Education for officials is a never ending process
By Mike Puterio
Officials in sports should, in most instances, be invisible on the field; not that they should not be seen, but should not be the focal point of the game.
The game is all about the players and their athletic ability, demonstrating their dedication to their sport, their talent, and their proficiency. The officials, though unnoticed, also have some of those traits, and those who make the most of them tend to be the most unnoticed on the field or court. Those who have worked the hardest tend to officiate smoothly run contests, and have less controversy or questions on calls.
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How does an official have similar traits as the athletes? Officials train, study, work out, and continually seek to improve in their chosen avocation.
Baseball umpiring is a constant, evolving avocation. I sometimes describe an umpiring team as engaging in a form of dance. In our two umpire system, each umpire has a job, a place to be, often in synchronous movement with their partner. On every baseball hit, the umpires rotate around the field, covering as much of the action as possible. An umpire goes to the outfield to observe a difficult catch, while his partner moves into the infield to observe the baserunner and fielders actions, watching the touch of bases and preparing for a potential play on the runner. This action takes practice and communication, and requires the umpires to be in good physical condition.
These movements, rotations, following plays, all take practice and continual education. There are many books, classes, and clinics that umpires attend to work on those movements, to learn to anticipate what could occur on the field.
Many of the mechanics - the nuts and bolts of umpiring - come from the professional crews, filtering down to the college and high school ranks. As these mechanics are studied, and the results reviewed, changes are implemented, all with the goal of officiating a better game.
Learning in officiating is a never ending process, just as in life. No one ever knows everything in officiating or in life, and our challenge is to continue to better ourselves, on the field and off.
Umpire’s job goes far beyond balls and strikes
By Mike Puterio
Many who watch baseball barely notice the third team on the field, and when they do, it is usually for a negative reason. This third team is the umpires and they are entrusted with many responsibilities, yet most fans only notice the most obvious ones.
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The typical fan notices the umpires when a pitch is called a strike or ball, and it appears to be wrong. They notice the umpires when the batter is out on a close call at first. But the umpires’ responsibilities go much further than those obvious situations, and those responsibilities are worth noticing, especially in at the high school level.
One of the great things about high school sports is teaching the young student-athlete sportsmanship, and the umpires are entrusted with ensuring that all participants observe sportsmanship. Watching out for trash talking, and playing within the spirit of the rules are all a part of the umpire’s job.
The umpires also must ensure that the game is played in as safe a manner as possible. Knowing what equipment is legal to use, that the equipment used is not broken, and that the equipment is used properly, is all part of the umpires job. We also make sure that the players are playing safely, and penalizing unsafe acts, such as taking out the second baseman on a force play, or crashing into the catcher.
The umpires are the true arbiters of the game and our third team on the field helps make baseball function as we know it today.
Mike Puterio has been umpiring baseball for 11 years, and has worked for Eastern Suffolk Baseball Umpires Association, as well as ECUA for outside and summer leagues. He has umpired for Junior College and NCAA Divisions I and II. I lives in the Middle Country School District.
