Unveiling the World of Umps

Sept. 1, 2009 – Ray Starwalt

SALT LAKE CITY – Mixed in among the arrivals of the softball teams here for the Western Nationals were the men and women who wear the “Green Shirts,” certified SSUSA umpires.

After checking in at our hotel, preparation began for the games with an umpires’ meeting at the Red Lion Hotel on Aug. 3. This meeting was not just a “Hi, how are you?” get-together, but a meeting of dedicated individuals who want to be up-to-date on the latest rules and information.

The tournament-rule information received by the managers – including the batter’s box, pitcher safety rule, and safety base rule _ was presented so that everyone would be on the same page. There was also a short clinic on mechanics and uniforms. The meeting ended with a roundtable discussion of what-if situations.

On Tuesday at 8:30 am, the sound of “Play Ball” echoed near and far and for the next six days the Green Shirts officiated 238 games in wind, rain and stormy weather.

As the Western Nationals began winding down on Saturday and ended on Sunday with championship games, the teams began packing up and returning to their hometowns and cities.

The umpires gathered Sunday night to receive their evaluations, discuss officiating aspects of the tournament and what we could do improve mechanics, game officiating and how to better ourselves as SSUSA umpires.

Then we also began packing and returning to our hometowns and cities, such as San Diego, Seattle, Phoenix and points between.

One aspect of this tournament which was well received was that for the first time, all of the umpires were billeted in the same hotel/motel. That was nice because we were able to efficiently get together in the evenings and discuss the pros and cons of the day’s officiating, coordinate umpire schedule changes, transportation to and from the ball parks and still have time to socialize with other umpires.

The list of applicant umpires was long and it took awhile to select the umpire team to work in this tournament. I congratulate each and every umpire upon his and her selection. You did a great job. You are dedicated individuals who go beyond just the ordinary, show great team enthusiasm and always give the tournament teams your “A+ game”

It makes a great organization one of the best in the world. We are: Senior Softball-USA.