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America’s Umpire Problem is More than Balls and Strikes
“Strike three, you’re out.” You, the batter, know damn well that that was no strike and clearly ball four but you make your way back to the dug out grumbling the whole way.
The ump hears the reaction from the gathered fans who also didn’t like the call. The 13-year-old victim of the bad call feels solidarity with them and knows that he will be forgiven by the coach and everyone supporting the team for that “unfair strikeout.” Nobody, however, dares to call the ump out beyond the generic, “Aw come on, ump, whaddiya blind?!” Nervous laughs trickle through the small crowd sitting behind the protective fence.
Nearly in a whisper, someone tries to enlighten the crowd of the likely reasons for the bad call: “I hear he’s dating the sistah of the other team’s coach.” A shocked “Really” frames the budding controversy and the crowd slowly becomes more anxious, and more meticulous in its criticism: “Ah, come on, ump! You betta make ‘sure-w’ she’s worth you throwing this game…breaking these little boys’ hearts.”
Videos of parents and coaches verbally and physically assaulting umpires have gone viral. In one Little League game in Alabama, a coach was seen grabbing an umpire and…
