Batter up!
As a first-time umpire this past Sunday, watching the nine and ten year olds warm up, listen to their coaches (sort of), talk to family and friends through the fence, and even take a nap in the dugout – which one actually did – was quite pleasing. Baseball in the spring, it's part of American culture the way that Coca-Cola is synonymous with soda.
The first two games were interesting because another umpire was calling balls and strikes behind the plate. Moving from position A (behind first base) to position B (behind second base) to position C (behind third base) granted a different perspective of the American pastime. Some of the news should be labeled as bothersome, at least, while most observations should be attributed to the fact that mere nine and ten year olds were playing, making it comical more than anything else.
First, the good news: parents were not causing a ruckus about balls and strikes, nor were they complaining about calls down at first base. After seeing and hearing so many stories about parents causing problems during Little League games, that concern brought great concern. Luckily, it did not come to fruition.
Watching the kids enjoy the game, at least for the most part, brought a smile to many a face within the complex (six diamonds in all). Kids running as hard as they trampled down the base paths, echoes of, "Hey, batter, batter!" were heard throughout the day, and of course the jubilation from a team when a player scored a run made the day a success.
Now, the concerning issue truly stood out, literally. What on God's green earth are a select few of these kids being fed? At 180-pounds, as an adult, that's fine. But a ten year old kid should not weigh in excess of 130, 140, or God knows how much! No joking around; a few kids had to be over 150. It was terrible. Parents should be ashamed that they allow their children to be so inactive that they are practically running in cement as they go down the first base line. One kid could barely move forward beyond a walking pace, and that is no exaggeration.
To be fair, it was possible that some the kids had medical conditions that caused the nature of their weight to be high. Otherwise, however, the overweight kids were yet further examples of how American society far too often allows their children to sit around and play video games instead of going outside and playing. It's sad.
After changing duties with the other umpire for games three and four, something else struck the mind after stooping behind home plate for the first time that had long since been forgotten: some kids are just big for their age and do not look like they belong. You know, the kid that developed quickly and just is bigger, faster, stronger? There were a few of those kids playing that fit that description this past Sunday. Fortunately, not many overmatched their competition, or at least not many playing in the games that were being played on field no. 4.
Then, there were the wild pitches, and the comedy that ensued. One kid had a ball go between his legs…bet he couldn't do that again! Kids swung at pitches that were already in the catchers' glove, pitchers threw the ball five feet in front of home plate, batters bailed out of the batters box when the ball was delivered right down main street, true comedy my friends, true comedy.
Umpiring should be fun. It's a great way to make some money in between the spring and fall semesters.
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