FAQs > Umpires
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- What about umpires?
- LCB has chosen to contract the services of paid
umpires for our games. This ensures availability of
qualified individuals throughout the season. We are
fortunate that many of our umpires are veterans with
years of experience calling games for LCB and are very
familiar with our program. Umpires will officiate games
at every level except Tee Ball and LCB Buddy Ball
League.
- Not all of the umpires I see at LCB appear to be veterans.
- LCB's mission is to develop young people in the game of baseball, and that applies not only to players but to umpires as well. We encourage young men and women who have experienced baseball as players to consider being umpires as a way of staying involved and giving back to the league and the game. Our veteran umpires serve as mentors to the younger umpires, who in many cases are also high school or competitive players.
Many of these young umpires are graduates of LCB.
- What if I disagree with the umpire's call?
- By design, baseball is a game of judgment calls and the umpire is given the authority to be the sole interpreter and enforcer of the rules and decisions on the field. Parents and fans may agree or disagree with an umpire's call, but only the manager can be involved in questioning a call on the field. If granted time the manager can approach the home plate umpire and ask for clarification. If the call in question is a judgment call, such as balls and strikes, safe or out, or an obstruction call, and the umpire responds "Coach, in my opinion…", then the manager can only thank him for his time and return to the dugout. If the question is regarding a rule interpretation, then the manager has the option of
immediately protesting the game, something that must be
done before play resumes. The game then continues and is played in its entirety
and the protest is reported up to the Protest Committee
for ultimate resolution. As you can see, parents and fans have no role in the resolution of disputed calls therefore are kindly requested to cheer, to support their team, to support their manager, to support the umpire and to move on and remember that the game is for the players and not the adults. Ultimately, most players don't have a concern one way or the other in a disputed call.
They're just anxious to get on with the game.
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