NRHEG Star Eagle

137 Years Serving the New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva Area
Newspaper of Record for NRHEG School District
Newspaper of Record for Waseca County, MN
PO Box 248 • New Richland, MN 56072

507-463-8112
email: steagle@hickorytech.net
Published every Thursday
Yearly Subscription: Waseca, Steele, and Freeborn counties: $52
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There are two types of people I really dislike. One is the people who sit directly behind me when I umpire, thinking they’ll have a great view of the strike zone so they can question every ball and strike they don’t agree with. (Guess what? It’s hard to see through both me and the catcher!)

The other is the people who sit down the baselines and think they can see the strike zone even better at that angle.  In addition, they also can see fair/foul extremely well. Amazing!

I’ve umpired baseball games for 17 years now, and I’m starting to feel more and more like I’d really enjoy a game where none of the parents were allowed to attend. It seems like I have to listen to and deal with more parents acting ludicrous all the time.

Understand this: if you want to officiate at any level, you need to have a thick skin. I’m not out to make friends; someone will always disagree with a close call, especially in a close game. Most of the complaints roll right off me; I try to be professional in dealing with controversy. If you respond to complaints from the crowd, they know they’ve got your ear and will continue. If you can ignore them, just like a bully, they might give up.

I’ve also found that the younger the level, the worse the parents can be. I’ve had to deal with more stupidity at a 13-year-old level than I ever have in a varsity game. And it’s not just the complaints, but also the parents who seem to think they know the game inside and out, yet aren’t in the dugout as a coach.

I was in Owatonna this year working a 13-year-old tournament. One of those first type of people I dislike was sitting right behind me, informing every player that it was a tight strike zone today. She disapproved of many of my calls and was consistently telling her son what he should do. During a time out, he happened to be coming up to bat, with his mom wagging her tongue again.

I mentioned to him that the only person he should listen to was his coach. He sighed. “I know,” he said. Then he turned to his mother. “Would you be quiet and let me do my job?” We didn’t hear the woman the rest of the game.

At least I wasn’t part of another game in Owatonna where the police had to be called after some parents were berating and threatening an umpire. Seriously?

I was trying to remember the last time I ejected somebody from a game. It’s been some time. I try to give people a chance unless it’s something egregious (swearing is an easy exit). There was a parent at a Legion game this summer who disagreed with my partner’s call on the bases. Even after the coach had argued and gone back to the dugout, this buffoon continued to yell, as if somehow that would change the call.

I finally had to turn around and tell him he was done. He needed to sit down and be quiet, or he would be gone. It took two warnings, but he finally shut his trap. I don’t want to eject anyone (okay, it is kind of cool when you do it right), but this was not a great example to set for our youth.

Have I ever changed a call? Certainly. I’ve had coaches come out and remind me that my interpretation of a rule is not correct. In that case, I’m more than happy to admit I’m wrong if it means the right call is made. Coaches have the right to question a close call or an interpretation. Fans do not, though I have no problem going up between innings to explain the rule.

Speaking of great examples, I got to see some prime parenting in Albert Lea this year for Jayna’s 12U softball. The parents from the other team (which was a more talented team, don’t get me wrong) were taunting our girls as their team thrashed us. They laughed if our girls made a mistake. It was disgraceful, but I talked to Jayna afterwards and reminded her to always show good sportsmanship, even if you lose.

Oh no. I’ve done it again. I have enough for another entire column! I guess you’ll have to wait until next week to learn the worst example of parent behavior I’ve seen this year!

Word of the Week: This week’s word is glabella, which is the flat area above your nose and between your eyebrows, as in, “The umpire tried to look at the glabella instead of the fiery eyes of the upset coach.” Thanks to my neighbor Karen Ibberson for this week’s word! Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!


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