Slick_Rick

Good call Clyde....I remember this coming up years ago and talking about it, but I had some confusion in my interpretation. I had thought the part of exception 2 below read "The ball was deflected by a fielder, EXCEPT FOR the pitcher", but he is included as a fielder on the deflection. I mixed it up with part 1 in the pitcher not being considered a fielder. Here is something that spells it our clearly I found. A runner who is hit by a fair batted ball is ALWAYS OUT except when: 1) The fielder (other than the pitcher) had a chance to field the ball (the ball passed through or within arm's reach of the fielder) and failed AND no other fielder behind the play had a chance to field the ball or; 2) The ball was deflected by a fielder, including the pitcher or; 3) He was on a base and struck by a DECLARED infield fly

But if they swat it and it prevents your fielder from making a play, then it can be a deterrent. Most of these plays are split second reactions, so unlikely anyone would be slick enough to pull that out (though I wouldn't mind seeing it). Keep in mind, there are differences between fielded and deflected (mainly the judgement of possession). Once it's fielded and thrown, all bets are off.

the call was correct, the pitcher is not considered a fielder, so if the ball deflects off the pitcher then hits the runner, they are out UNLESS it's already passed another infielder and no one else has a play on the ball.

It's pretty hard to have interference on a runner on a non-batter bad (non-batted as in on a secondary play where a throw of field is involved). Since the throw came in commission of the play (player wasn't doing out of the ordinary and didnt intentionally interfere) and furthermore it was on an errant throw, this is simply a no call and a live ball. Only way you would have interference on that play is if she was hit running out of the baseline (in fair territory) or intentionally tried to put herself in the play which I would find hard for a player at any level to figure out. I used to hate when plays like this happened when I umped because usually someone would freak out saying there should be a call when they're really just arguing for argument sake. Great game Breds............think both teams are talented enough to steal a game or two in the regional.

Being the umpires are supposed to inspect all bats prior to the game, I'd think the umpires bear some of that responsibility unless the bat was withheld from inspection. Tough call, but sounds like the umpires used their own discretion vs applying the actual rule interpretation. They probably just didn't feel like doing the ejection paperwork. If a bat was shaved, I think that's a whole different story, but I'd be hard pressed to think a team may have intentionally used a non-approved bat, but who knows.

Ellen Barkin has aged terribly

From what I was told (and I'm no doctor obviously, just stayed in a holiday inn express) it takes about 2 years for it to fully heal graft to fully fuse and adjust to your knee). That being said, I think the risk after 8-12 months reduce significantly enough to come back and play. I don't really think about it from the financial standpoint as much as I do hes a former MVP, still only 24, and puts the bulls back to the top 3 in the east when he returns for the next 5-10 years. I just look at it for the long term benefit of himself and the organization, dude should have enough money already to last him a long time. As far as the practice thing goes, you see guys cleared for practice all the time. When someone comes back from an injury, they are cleared for practice and when they feel 90%+ or whatever it is, they can resume playing. Maybe I sympathize a bit more because I am in the process of recovering from the same injury, but it's about the worst injury you can have in the sport.

For those unfamiliar with ACL surgery....here it is in a nutshell. when you tear the ligament, it can never be salvaged.....they literally go in and clean out every bit of it from you knee. Then they cut out a graft from your hamstring and drill it to have it replace where your ACL was. Think about the flex of your hamstring, it can stretch but never bends and flexes like your ACL does in your knee. That's why the recovery is so long, you are basically training a ligament not intended to bend and putting it in your knee with your ability to run, jump cut, ect. The recovery is so different because not everyone's body reacts to the graft the same. Some people's grafts develop quickly and others body doesn't react well to the new tendon. Therapy and training do make a difference, but when you take something in your body and put it somewhere it's not supposed to be, your body won't react naturally to it. So please...........quit name dropping people who have came back and how fast, it's 100% irrelevant. Also, keep in mind if he comes back and tears it again, his CAREER is likely over.

I had ACL surgery in December of 2012 and I know exactly what he's talking about. Functionally, I can do about everything without noticing a thing in my day to day (sit behind a desk). I also just resumed jogging again, but absolutely no cutting or jumping. I was fortunate enough to take the entire month of December off work and do therapy 4 days a week. I consider myself pretty active, I actually did it playing rec basketball. It completely plays with your mind. I can't take a quick step without thinking about it or getting paranoid. The thought of when you first tear it never goes away. My surgeon said that it really is a 2 year recovery and that professional athletes are actually brought back before they are 100% recovered if they come back after a year (watch Ricky Rubio's first games back from ACL tear). I think guys forget that this is his CAREER, comparing him to someone playing high school sports is different because that guy doesn't compete at that physical level nor is going to have to accumulate enough wealth in 10-12 years (if they're lucky) to last them their entire life. I am only talking from my opinion, but I could imagine returning to football being easier than returning to basketball because of the cutting and leaping in basketball. I think it's easy to call him soft, but I don't think you can speak accurately unless you have gone through it yourself. It's also stupid to compare him to AP (freak of nature and even Dr J Andrews said he's an absolute exception), Wes Welker, ect is an apples to oranges comparison as everyone's body is diff and recovery is different. Most people calling him soft are fans and have their interest over his. I think it's one of those scenarios that unless you've had a ACL tear yourself, you don't get much credit for being educated on the matter.

Trust me....it's not that lucrative. MOST people do it because they enjoy it, but yes the money is a nice bonus. By the time you pay for state licensing, gear, travel expenses, and you're required to do 10-15 hours of training.....it's not nearly as much as you might think. Comparing it to a cop or teacher is ludicrous as I didn't know anyone who made a living umping or was working for the betterment of society like a cop or teacher. Reality is.....it's a HS sports game, no kid remembers the umpires from a single game when they look back, they remember hanging out with friends and hopefully the value of hard work. It's the parents that tend to forget what it's really all about and think they have to "defend their kids" from these bad officials. Reality is....it's a hobby for most and most will tell you they like being around the kids.

It's determined by the coaches, they get to "rank" their top 5 umpires then the top ranking officials are assigned to districts and region. I haven't seen anyone put any names out on this thread (which was original purpose), so I'd be curious to see who the "top 4" would be (4 umps for regional championship)

I umpired baseball until a couple years ago and the best way to describe it is it's like playing a round of golf. You can go out one day and play the best round of your life then turn around a day or two later and things just aren't working for you. The thing that fans need to realize is they are going to see what they want to see and the way that benefits their team. Every time you do a game, you're constantly adjusting to the teams you're working with. The reality is, when you have two bad teams, your strike zone is extremely different than the way you call it with two top caliber teams and sometimes it's difficult to adjust when you do 3-4 games a week. The biggest thing too is people sitting at a 90 degree angle from the plate arguing its a strike because they can't see it's a ball or two off the plate or it crossed "above the letters" then dropped as it hits the catcher. I will tell you that the guys who were good, tended to not be rules honks, but just had a good ability to see balls and strikes and close plays. There were some guys who umped with us forever and knew that rule book inside and out, but just didn't have the vision to make good judgement calls. It takes a balance of poise, confidence, and a TON of patience. As for the 9th, I have no idea who the better umps are, but i'm sure you'll see the same old guys at it.

yes that's him......I talked to him the other day and he said he went to CCH. Told him he's getting a good reputation around the 9th.

Saw a game down at Rivershore 3 years ago and could verify this first hand. While waiting on another game, I popped over to watch a game between WV and a team from Lexington (don't recall the team they were playing). They were tearing the umpires apart (both coaches) and were making comments back and forth. This spilled into the stands where WV parents were making comments back and forth and the 2 umpires stopped the game and warned fans, players, and coaches that if it continued, the game would be a double forfeit. About a half an inning later, it picked right back up. Long story short, WV's coach threw a temper tantrum after the game and said he wouldn't play on the field if the 2 umpires remained at the field (believe it was Seth Wiggins & Judi Paul) and held the girls hostage to make a scene. The tourney director came out and said if you don't play, you forfeit. He stormed on the field and said fine and played the game. Never seen anything like this in all my years around baseball or softball. Just not surprised to hear something like this after what I saw a few years ago.

If by young you mean 20's young, it has to be Seth Wiggins since I think he's the only young guy that umpires in the 9th (prob late 20s early 30s). Saw him a few years ago doing a regional game then didn't see him again (which I believe coaches vote on who gets those games). Glad to hear he's still around in the 9th, they need some youth.