Last 4 days of umpiring - First, Well, Plate, First, Left Field Line, Third

I know this is going to be a plethora of details here but I want to get this down before I start forgetting details. I have at least 2 more blogs planned, so my tournament isn't over yet.

Day 7, Game 2: I was at first base for the 5:00 pm game. This was our last day of 3 games a day.

He smelled real bad and he said his name was Bernie. And Slick.
(Ernie is not here. Just wanted to point that out.)

Pre-game, Bernie and Slick from the 66ers came down to throw out the first pitch. All the girls knew these mascots because we went out to see a 66ers game the previous Thursday. Bernie always makes a good impression.

I felt my rotations this game were much better than my previous first base experience. This time thought I think I defaulted too often to going to the outside of the bag way too quickly. Working on my read step is definitely something I want to focus on next year.

There was a play at one point where there was a runner on first and the batter hit a blooper just past the first base bag. The first baseman ran to get the ball and the runner on first bumped into her (not on purpose.) I called the batter out for interference as I felt the fielder would have caught the ball had the interference not occurred.  Wrong on two points.

She's out. Oops.

1. Had the runner on first interfered with the catch, the one who interfered would be out, not the batter unless the runner was already out (on a double play most of the time.) Then teammate interference can be called.

2. The runner has the right to the base on a pop fly. The fielder has to get around the runner if the ball is in the air and the runner makes a reasonable effort to avoid the fielder. The fielder in this case was on the bag at the time of the contact, meaning that I should have called nothing and sent the batter back to bat with a strike on the foul ball.

Something to work on for next year again: Interference, Obstruction, and That's Nothing.

Oregon beat Hawaii in the game. Don't remember the score (I could look it up.) Oh look. The score. Oregon 6, Hawaii 2.

Day 7, Game 3: In the Well

This is no time for a snow cone! Wait,
maybe it is. Where's mine? It's hot!

Back to the well to watch this game. Darryl was behind the plate and it really is a pleasure to watch him work. This game was Arizona and Utah. Well played, Utah won, sending them to play Oregon on Thursday for the first semi-final.

Day 8, Game 2: Plate

The early game for this day (5:00 pm) was the California Championship game. I wasn't on that game at all, getting ready for the 7:30 pm plate. Daniel was on that plate and he did a great job from everything I saw. Final score was something like 14-3 Northern California over Southern California. Kinda surprising but that's why we play the games.

 So not only did I have the plate for the Washington/Alaska game, but the big boss was out, Mark Bernstein. I do like Mark a lot. He is a straight shooter, a great encourager, and a pretty good umpire to boot. I didn't hear what he thought of the game but I'm glad he was there to watch it

This was the all Southern California crew. I, CA 71/21/28, was on the plate. Lawerence, CA 16, was at first. Ernie, CA 72, was at second. Scott, CA 51, was at third, and Jeff, CA 31, was in the well.

Shake hands and let's come out
fighting! Oh wait, wrong sport.

So like I said, the game was Washington vs. Alaska. Both of these managers were really good people. I enjoyed their company whenever I got to talk with them and they were pleasant on the field, even when they had a question. It seems I get the games with the good sports in them at my regionals. At least I'm 2 for 2.

Still should have swung at that.

The game really didn't have a lot in it. Alaska fought hard but were just outmanned as Washington won 11-1. I felt my zone was solid this game, my rotations were correct, and my game was good. The good thing about the Alaska team is that they had permission to stream the game back home on Facebook. So now I can go back and watch the game to critique myself, not something I get to do very often. What did I learn from my critique?

I run like an old man, shuffling from base to base. My basic 6 is sloppy. My head height is pretty good but I readjust my hat and mask every pitch, which looks like a nervous twitch. I've got some more things to work on this off-season.

I did feel really good after the game and one of my partners complimented that this showed I should have been on one of the semi's or the finals. I don't know. After my self-critique, I am seeing what the supervisors are seeing and know what I need to work on to be a better umpire for the kids. The biggest thing I must do is lose weight. I shuffle because I weigh so much. Right now, I'm in umpire shape. If I spend the next 6-8 months sitting back, I'll be out of shape until June again. Now that I have the momentum, I am looking to continue it and get better every year.

Day 9, Game 1: First base

On the rubber. Set.

So for semi-final #1, I had the privilege of being at first base again. This was my third time at first base this tournament, twice out of the rotation. Pretty standard game. The biggest thing about this game is that we had 6 guys on the field. This means that if a ball was past me in the air down the first base line, I no longer have fair/foul obligations. That would be the right field line umpire. I don't believe I had one fair/foul call all game. I had plenty of safe/out calls at first, but the back line guy had some line drive flies and the plate guy had some that died before the base. Not a lot of rotations (actually, none) and calm game. Utah beat Oregon 5-0.



Day 9, Game 2: Left Field Line

I had to do a presto-chango and change from pink to light blue for the late semi-final. Dave from Oregon had the plate for this one. Dave had a plate earlier in the tournament and he felt he didn't have the best plate out there. I was excited for him though when it was revealed he had one of the semi-final games on the dish. He had a great attitude that was contagious. And he was doing this in memory of a friend who had passed away this year. I think he put a lot of pressure on himself in the first game and nerves took over. For this game, he was great. Greg would have been proud of the performance he put out there for the world to see.

It's lonely way out in left field.

For this game, we were still in 6 man. Nothing much happening in 6 man. Washington scored 6 runs in the bottom of the 1st and no one scored the rest of the day. In fact, the Washington pitcher threw a 1 hitter for the 6-0 win. There were exactly 2 pop flys to the outfield all game. The first was an easy catch to the center fielder. The second was a little farther from the center fielder in the top of the 6th where she was coming towards me to left field and make a great diving catch, which was my only call of the game. Out call.

So the finals were set for Friday. Utah and Washington. The #1 and the #2 seeded teams of the tournament only because of a coin flip. This coin flip, Washington won and decided to be the visiting team for the championship. They had been high scorers all tournament so they figured they would make Utah play catch up.

Day 10: Championship Friday

All the girls got together with us as a thank you for the work we did this week. That was great.

Pre-game at 4:00 pm, we got the chance to go out for closing ceremonies. Pretty much everyone just walked out onto the field and they announced the winner of the manager sportsman award. The winner was Nicole from Alaska. I told you that the Alaska and Washington teams had great sportsmanship.

One of the things I prepared for was getting to talk with and get the signature of Marge Villa. Marge Villa played for the Kenosha Comets of the All-American Girls Baseball League from 1946 - 1950, having made the all-star team in 1949. So I bought a souvenir ball and had it ready to sign for my girls. My girls love history so having this ball in their room would be a cool marker of women making it big in American history. I love giving them things like that because they can do great things if the put their mind to it, their faith in God, and their hope in His plan. Well, she was scheduled to sign autographs during the game. Shoot.

Her nickname was Poncho. I didn't
mention my great-grandpa rode with
Poncho Villa. She had great stories
of her own.

Well, Doug, our head of umpiring, was able to secure a time before the game for me to go get a signature. Here I am talking with her pre-game. I told her I was one of the umpires and she feigned surprise, saying, "I never thought I'd be talking with one of the umpires!" She was funny, engaging, personable, and extremely encouraging to the girls and to everyone else who had the chance to talk with her. I didn't want it to end but game time was coming and I had to finish getting dressed and she had to go in the well to cool off from standing around in the sun. I could have done without the signature, like I do the rest of the time I meet famous people, but this was for my girls so I stooped to that level :)

A hug from an umpire? Who would have thought it!

Here he is, Mr. Plate.

For the championship game, Jeff was behind the plate, Scott was at first, Darryl was at second, I was at third. The line guys all rotated in after a couple of innings. In left field was Lawrence then Charles. In right field was Daniel, Dave, and then Ernie. I loved watching Jeff work throughout the tournament. He was the senior statesman of our group but that did not slow him up. Instead of slow, he was deliberate and smooth. He was always in the right place. That is years of experience, training, and practice. It was a pleasure and an honor to work with him.

This was a game for the ages. I had one call at third, a foul call, but it was big early on in the game. The ball is bounding up the line, the third baseman reaches for the ball in foul territory but I have her missing, then the ball continues foul. Loud, forceful foul call to sell it. We did get together on this one to see if Jeff had the fielder touching the ball prior to it going foul. He did not and we couldn't really unring the foul call without ESPN, who wasn't there.

Ready for the ball. Put me in coach!

So at the end of 6, these two offensive juggernauts during the rest of the tournament are tied, 0-0. End of 7, 0-0. Top of the 8th, 0-0. Bottom of the 8th, Utah gets a runner to first. She takes second on a passed ball. The #3 batter, the pitcher for Utah, his a grounder to second base, letting the runner get to third with 2 outs. The #4 batter comes up to the plate and...

The ball is about a foot fair as it shoots by the first baseman. Runner from third touches home plate. Batter/runner makes it to first base and pandemonium breaks out as the state of Utah repeats as the Western Region Little League Major Softball champions and are heading to Alpenrose next week. 1-0. 8 innings. The softball gods saw how great a tournament this was and couldn't let it end after just 6. I am so humbled that I got to work this game at all, much less one of the base positions. It is the best softball game of which I have ever been a part. 

The hardest part was not being able to celebrate out there with them. Had Washington won, I would have cheered for them. When Utah won, I wanted to cheer for them. Not the umpire's place though. As the girls celebrated and got their banner in the glow of the 1-0 scoreboard, we walked off the field to little accolades. The focus was on the girls, which is where it should be. We did our job. We gave both teams a chance to win this game, and one of them did. Washington didn't have anything to shame their heads about. They played in the best softball game ever played at Al Houghton Stadium.

The girls celebrate!

Out we go!

Waiting by the barracks was my wife and 3 kids (as kid 4 was still in Panama), my mom, and my umpire friends Dave Burt, Steve Bailey, and Eddie Gutierrez. They came out to see me work the pineapple and for that support, I am eternally grateful. 

I will get to reflections in a future post. I wanted to get some game descriptions in before they began to fade.

Dealing with Disappointment

This blog has been my release valve this tournament. There has been great moments and there have been moments of crying this week - from a completely unexpected source. I'm glad I've had this to talk.

Now I'm probably going to make myself too vulnerable here. I'm ok with it.

The assignments came out for tomorrow. The first game is the Southern California vs. Northern California for the California State Championship. The second game is Washington vs. Alaska. I have the plate for Washington vs. Alaska.

I get another plate, which is exciting, but this means that I will not get one of the semi's or the finals plate. Upon seeing the assignment, I was disappointed. I wanted a semi or the final. It was hard work getting here. Tons of games. Tons of time away from my family. Tons of study. And... I'm on Washington/Alaska. It'll be a good game but the dream isn't fulfilled.

I knew this was a horrible attitude to have. It is not the attitude I expect myself to have. I couldn't feign excitement so I went to look for a broom. Why a broom?

In 2 weeks, I will be out here as a Little League volunteer sweeping trash in the stadium. I swept two sections of the stands tonight. It was a good amount of trash. Why? Tonight I was sweeping trash. Tomorrow, I'll be umpiring a quarterfinal game at the Western Region Little League Softball Tournament. These girls have played hard to get here and deserve an umpire who will give as much as they do, if not more.

Next week, this tournament will be done and the boy's tournament will be right around the corner. I will be out here sweeping trash again. Why? Because I'm a Little League volunteer. I could be sitting at home watching TV or helping clean up out here. Sure, 6 am is awfully early in the morning but it is worth it it because I am with my friends and with people who are pushing to a common goal - to teach boys and girls respect, character, courage, and loyalty.

So I swept trash. It was pretty hard as I didn't have a push broom but only a house broom. There were no blowers, no gloves, no one else to help. I did sweep up 2 sections. I swept trash because I needed reminding that there is no small job not needed in Little League. Whether it is trash, or announcing, or umpiring, I am part of the family here in San Bernardino. Am I going to walk out with my music playing as two teams fight for a spot in Alpenrose? Not this year. There is no shame because the other umpires here worked as hard as I did and studied as hard, worked as many games and spent as many hours away from home to prepare for this tournament. I don't have a monopoly in hard work.

I will run out of that tunnel with my head held high because tomorrow, my little part of making this one of the best places to be in late July and early August will be behind the plate making sure that no one gets an unfair advantage contrary to the Little League Rulebook. 

This is the cherry on top. I'm doing a quarterfinal game in San Bernardino at the end of July. This is the dream come true.

Day 7 recap tomorrow. I know my walkup music for tomorrow's game already and it's not a repeat of the Imperial March from my first plate. You'll see.

Schedule:

Wednesday: 7:30 pm - Washington vs. Alaska - Plate

For my love, Trina Escarzaga.

Day 5: Nothing. Day 6: Well and 3rd Base

Day 5: We had an off day so we went to Art's house. Art is the baseball tournament uncle and has a great place to chill, eat smoked meat, and hang out with the guys. I had a good time relaxing.

Day 6:

In the Well:
The well is the place where the alternate sits while the game is going on to have a spare guy just in case one of the field umpires goes down. A few years ago one of the umpires had to drop out of the game because they suffered from heat exhaustion. In order for the game to continue on with 4 umpires, a fifth is in the well with his gear bag, plate shoes, base shoes, plate pants, base pants, and anything else he needs to take anyone else's place on the field.

Today's game at 9:00 am was the coolest game we've had all week with temperatures reaching a balmy 81 degrees with a great cloud covering. Nope, I'm not taking anyone's place - thank goodness.

So on the plate is Ernie. Ernie is from District 72, a neighboring district to 28 (my new district). I got to work with him at the state tournament as well as get to know him a little bit from the D28 umpire clinic and the invitational we did up at Regionals in May. He is a great guy and I look forward to working with him in the future because he really has become a friend.

Ernie had a problem pre-game. His pants were split and the dry cleaner who was supposed to redo the hems and sew up the crotch didn't sew up the crotch. So he pulls out his pants and you can see right through them. Not cool. Look for a sewing machine on campus and no sewing machine exist. He has another pair of pants, combo pants, to work on the plate.

A couple of things seem to conspire against him. I have a feeling that he was starting to feel like me at the beginning of my game. His pre-game jitters turned into a great game behind the plate. I was so glad my friend did his thing, even when he was wearing the wrong pants.

Lunch:
About 11;50 am, I receive a text from my wife. She just had to leave her mom at the hospital because her mom was having a heart attack. See, she had a normal physical scheduled. In the process of the physical, the doctor told my mother-in-law to go to the ER right now because she was in the middle of a heart attack.

I called my wife. Twice. She answered the phone crying. I asked her if she needed me to go home. I don't think she wanted me to come home fully because she knew how much being at this tournament means. She means more to me so I told her that my next game was at 7:30 so if she needed me, I could be there and back before my next game. She needed me.

I don't think anyone likes hearing their spouse hurting. I had to go talk to Doug who was eating in the cafeteria about having to go home. I'm in tears, choked up, barely able to talk.

Dianne, my mother-in-law, is a steady pillar in our family. She was first my best friend's mom. She was our voice of calm when we were rambunctious kids trying to run a puppet ministry. She was my trainer when I first started teaching pre-school. Now she is my mother-in-law, something which I am sure isn't easy but we get along.

Hearing that she was admitted to the hospital would usually be enough to get me concerned. Learning that she was having a heart attack is devastating. This not only is my wife's mother, but my kids grandmother whom they live with and love very much.

So I try talking to Doug and the words aren't coming out. I can't get through the tears. Finally I get enough words out to get the point across. The Western Region is very good about putting family first in these kind of situations. There was no, well, we need you so don't go or else you can't come back. There was only support. In fact, Gary, one of our evaluators, didn't let me drive home but took me in his car all the way down to Menifee and then waited around to find out what was going to happen. Thank you Gary. Your support means the world to me.

While on the way down, I contact my dad who graciously comes over to hang out with my children while Trina was able to go be with her mom.

I got home, my girls immediately run up to me and hug me like they haven't seen me all week or something. Trina is taking care of her grandma at this point so I'm waiting for her. She comes out of the room and immediately we hug. Nothing else. Hug. Cry. Hug. Cry some more. I wasn't sure what she had told the kids yet so Zoe brought up mom mentioned it was a heart attack. I knew my home base there now.

My dad shows up. Other help is starting to talk about coming out. My wife gave me her blessing to head back up to San Bernardino to continue this tournament. While I'm excited to continue to work games, if Dianne was worse off in the hospital, I would leave knowing I had one great plate and now I have a fraternity of brothers who care what is happening.

Dianne is still in the hospital. She is taking care of tests tonight and they should know more tomorrow. If you are in the area that could help Trina, we could use the help.

7:30 pm - 3rd base

I have now made it around the rotation. 3rd base was my final spot on the rotation around the bases and my last prescheduled game as now all 9 umpires have made the rotation also. Game 9, last game of pool play. 9 games, 9 umpires, 9 teams. It's like fate smiled down on us and said, hey, 9. I like that.

Today, all 3 crews wore pink. It was pink Monday. I liked it. Pre-game, we're doing equipment inspections and after doing the home team, we're trying to walk back to the umpire area but there's an apparent party going on down in the well by the announcers - like 10 people down there milling around, including the boss, Dave Bonham, Brian Pickering, April Meehleder, and a little girl who everyone is gushing over. In the first game of the day, 9;00 am, someone comes down and asks if we had a softball for a little girl up in the stands who is ill. Sure, at that point we've done 6 games so Doug gives the gentleman the ball. Now I see this little girl in the well and put 2 and 2 together. They invited her back to throw out the first pitch. I just happened to be carrying a few of my pins in my pocket so out one comes. A bunch of people had given her pins at this point but she looked and excitedly said, "It's a Doctor Who pin! I have to show my dad! Dad, look! Doctor Who!" I also gave one to the other young lady down there, a former softball player and student at Loma Linda earning her medical degree.

So opening ceremonies for the game come up and I'm already emotional from the early part of the day. The girls are announced and each one gives this girl a hug. They call out the umpires and I'm last, being at 3rd base. I shake the Washington's coach's hand, then kneel down and look this girl in the eyes. "Can I hug you?" "Yes." "Thank you so much for being here." See below.

Such a sweet, excited girl. I gave her one of my pins and she was so excited because it was Doctor Who. That made my day.

I don't know if there was anything better in the world at that very moment than that hug. Illness doesn't define who we are. I'm sitting here crying now. God has a way of bringing comfort to the most dire of situations in the oddest of ways. I needed Caitlin Simpson in my life at that very moment. I didn't cry on the field.

Go to shake the hand of the other young lady and she says, 'You can hug me too.' so I did. Shake the other coach's hand and then out to our lineup. Caitlin threw out her first pitch, then threw it again.

During the Little League pledge, I stood there next to my brothers in... pink... and looked at this beautiful stadium. My wife and my mother-in-law floated through my mind and I fought back tears. I had to get it under control or this was going to be a really, really hard game.

Got it under control with the tear ducts at least. The event of this all kept going through my head throughout the game. I would go out to our mid-inning point and stare out at the stadium. The sunset had just happened, there was an amazing design of clouds hanging out over Mt. Baldy, the stadium was full of hopes and dreams and an amazing amount of people for this tournament (we don't get baseball crowds... yet. Give it 5 years.) I stood there and took it all in as if this could be my last game here. I have such an appreciation for this tournament, for the people who are here. Every year I can't wait to get up here and be a part of the tournament, whether it is announcing softball games, picking up trash at 6 am, or having the incredible opportunity to umpire. I get so much more back from this game than I give to it.

To top it off, my buddy Steve Bailey showed up at the 9 am game and is back helping on the grounds crew. Then in the stands is Dave Burt and his wife Kelly. Then about the 2nd inning Randy Robbins shows up to make his presence known after a 16 hour work day just to come by and see me work a few pitches and support me while I'm out there. I have the most incredible group of friends I have made through umpiring who would come out on a 85 degree, 70% humidity Monday night and watch me on the pineapple (third base. I'll tell you later.)

We've got a deal on third base bags.
You may say they are a steal.

Now that I've got the waterworks going, the game. Washington beat Montana 10-0. I had 2 extremely close plays at second and nailed them. First was a steal where the fielder got the ball and put the glove on top of the base instead of in front, meaning the sliding runner was able to touch the base before being tagged. The second was a bounding grounder to the third baseman who turned around to get the force at 3rd. The sliding runner actually dislodged the bag on her slide and then the fielder touched the base. Huge safe call. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion for these calls. There's just moments where you see everything. I love when it happens at first base because bang-bang calls aren't as close as the first base coach in the coaching box signalling safe thinks they are. I was in that umpire zone last night and it was great.

Did I work a perfect game last night? No,but the game was perfect. Softball therapy.

If last night was the last night I was here, I worked every base. I worked hard. I hustled. I was part of an amazing crew that I will never forget. I made some new lifelong friends who I know if I ever get to their neck of the woods, I'll have a place on the field to work with them once again.

Tomorrow's assignments:

Game #10, 9:00 am, Montana vs. Alaska - In the stands watching
Game #11, 5:00 pm, Oregon vs. Hawaii - 1st Base
Game #12, 7:30 pm, Utah vs. Arizona - In the well

I love you, Trina Escarzaga.

Day 4: Plate

Saturday was such an emotional day. Let me tell you about it.

I didn't work the 9:00 am game so I got to walk around with Ernie and go see different people. We ran into Stephen Duncan. I like Steven - he's a good guy with a great attitude. Ernie, on the other hand, credits Stephen with being here. He's Ernie's mentor so it was great to sit down with Stephen and watch a couple innings.

All day though I am mentally prepping for my plate at 5:00 pm. It was great to watch Daryl behind the plate. He's only been umping for 5 years but he has developed some great mechanics and is so smooth out there. He had a great plate.

Look at the glisten on that arm!

There is nothing longer than the break between the 9 am game and starting to get dressed for the 5 pm game at 3:30. I do walk out a few times to see if I know anyone coming in. No one is there yet because it's stinking hot!

So we have our pre-game meeting before getting dressed. I have Lawrence at 3rd (from Santa Monica), Jeff at second (from San Diego) and Ernie at first (from Corona) so it is an all Southern California crew. It was a pretty smooth pre-game. These guys are experienced and have great attitudes.

We walk out. I don't see anyone in the stands yet because it's an hour to game time and it's hot! I didn't look high enough because my mom and Ali were sitting near the top of the stadium, hiding in the shade.

Pay no attention to the red eyes.

We get downstairs, I talk to the announcer and score keeper, I tell them what walk up music I want, and then head back to the crew. A few minutes later, I stick my head out of the well and see mom and Ali. Ali runs down the stairs and I come all the way up and hug her for a long time. Emotions all over the place. I walk her down in the well and introduce her to the staff and my crew. All very gracious and kind to my daughter.

Look at all that beauty...
And me.

Doug asked if I would like Ali and my mom to sit down in the well during the game. Yes. It's 10 degrees cooler down there. My mom was eternally grateful.

So we are ready to start the game. Girl introductions commence. We walk out ready to get going. One of the things we said was make sure you shake the special guest's hand. Ok. Got it.

Hand over the heart. Ready, Begin.

The Imperial March begins (Darth Vader's theme (I do a whole Darth Vader motif I use on Twitter (Evil Umpire (Yes, it's supposed to be funny (shut up))))) and they let 30 seconds of the song go by before they say my name. The girls are curled, blocking a straight shot to the special guest so I have to go way up near the plate to make it to the middle. Take a jog, jump over the line, curl around, make sure I'm in the right place in the middle. Ernie is called out after me and he shakes the guest speaker's hand. Oh shoot! I forgot to shake the hand. I move back and shake his hand. I hope I pay more attention during the game.

Pre-game warmup. Looks like a strike.

Plate meeting and I look over the lineups. There is a change for Northern California so I need to make sure the scorekeeper has the change before lineups are official. I do the plate meeting really quick and shake hands. Alan, our uncle, says in a soft voice, "Lineups. Give the managers the lineups." DOH! I'm 0-2 on remembering to do things. This game is going to be horrible because I'm going to forget to call a strike sometime at this rate.

The game starts. First couple pitches are balls and the third one comes in for a strike. I bring my hands up as to call strike 3 with a punch out but catch it very quickly before I pull the trigger. Strike 1. SLOW DOWN! SLOW DOWN!

She got a picture of me with my
strike 3 punch out. She was more
excited than the girls hitting a home run.

Then, it happened. Strike calls went smooth. Timing turned great. Rotations went well. I got in position for a pulled foot. By the time the 5th inning rolls around, I am thinking that unless I mess up bad, this is going to be a great game behind the plate. My mom is in the well. Ali is taking pictures down in the well. Joey and Jennifer Broxmeyer had gotten my attention to say hi at one point. I was in the zone. 4 man mechanics on instinct because I studied it so much.

Safe at third. The ball's on the ground.

Third out in the top of the 6th and we're done. Utah 6, Northern California 3. I'm on cloud 9. I came to regions, I worked hard. I worked a ton of games to prepare. I worked with my mentors, mentored others, watched video, read books, had Q&As, for this one moment at Western Region and I've never felt better after a game. Even the Hawaii/Arizona game at the 2013 Intermediate Regional. I came to San Bernardino, a dream of mine since I started umpiring, and did my name, my mentors, my leagues, my districts, my partners, and myself proud. I wanted to jump up and down on the field in celebration but you don't do that as an umpire. Someone just lost so can't dance on someone else's grave.

You should have swung at that pitch.

I only almost cried once and that was while introducing Ali to the crew pre-game. I fist pumped numerous times in the umpire room. I was on an adrenaline high that kept me awake until 1 am. So excited. There are 9 of us out here doing this tournament. There are 17 games, meaning that one of us will only get 1 plate. If this was my one plate, I will be happy because I can say that I performed up to the task. I proved to myself that I belong with this great group of umpires - isn't low self-esteem great?

Ready to call the pitch.
Feeling great.

After the game, my mom, Ali and I went to Denny's. I smiled the whole time, except when I almost cried when my daughter asked me what was on my bucket list. I said, "Walking the 3 of you girls down the aisle and holding a grandchild. Then dropping a grandchild."
She asks, "What about a World Series?"
"If it happens, I'll be happy. If it doesn't I'd rather walk you down the aisle. In 30 years."

This was one of the best days of my life.

Day 3: First games, 2nd base, 1st base

Smooth out calls are prepared

After 6 months of build up, 6 months of games, preparation, practice, study, travel, and anticipation, we finally got started with games yesterday. My schedule yesterday was game 1, 2nd base at 9:00 am, opening ceremonies at 4:00 pm and 1st base at 7:30 pm.

Game 1: 9:00 am - 2nd base

First game of the tournament is usually the hardest because of the nerves, the newness of working a four man crew, and the nerves. If I was going to be eased into this, starting at second base was the best place. We discussed pre-game that if there is a pop fly in the cone (between the left fielder and the right fielder) 2nd base umpire is going to go out to judge catch/no catch. Pretty automatic thinking.

So the game starts off in the first and the runner from first runs into the second baseman making a play on the ball. No-brainer call, that's Interference. Apparently I needed more of my brain because I point, say, "That's In.. Obs.. In... Obstruction! Time!" Thank you nerves.

Rest of the game ran pretty smoothly. In fact, the evaluators said it was the best first game they've had at this tournament this year. Pretty high praise :)

See the ball, see the foot, see the tag... what do I have?

If you said out, you were right. 5 points to you.

Had a call at second base where I rotate in, see the call and wind up. It's a great picture.







In the end, Oregon beat Southern California 6-3. It was a good morning, not too hot (although getting there near 11 when we ended) and beautiful skies. Couldn't ask for better in San Bernardino.






Opening Ceremonies: 4:00 pm

This really went so fast that it's hard to remember much. Each team lined up around the infield and then the umpires were announced. After the 4 guys in charge, I was the 4th guy announced (they went in order of district number so I was after California 51 and before California 72 being a California 71 guy this tournament. (My badge says California 28 though. (Moving on up. (More parenthesis.))))

Look at the beautiful group of men out there!

So when they announce me, I'm Antonio EscarZAga. A normal pronunciation I get but one syllable off. Oh well. I'm still a Western Region Little League Softball Umpire, even if they don't get my name quite right. I'm smiling pretty much the whole time. Can't get enough of this.

Monkeys in the middle.

Living the dream.

Game 2: 7:30 pm. 1st base.

This game was a little rougher for me than my previous game. At second base, my mind set is... I'm going out. At first base, there is a lot more having to read your partner at second base to see if I'm rotating all over the field.

The ugly: Early on, there was a shot to right field. The right fielder was pretty close so I have to look to see fair/foul. See fair, point fair, did not turn my back as there was no need and then the right fielder guns it to first base. Surprised me to pieces. I turn, deer in the headlights, and make a safe call because I think she was safe. Was I sure? It was bang bang and I was surprised. Surprise is the enemy of the umpire. If someone was to show me a picture of the play and said I got it wrong, I would have no argument. Heck, may not have an argument if they just came up to me and said so.

The bad: Quite a few times, I feel my rotation work was sloppy. Apparently the evaluators and umpires who weren't on the game didn't feel I was as bad as I felt I was. We are our own worse critic.

The good: At one point early in the game, fly ball to left-center. Ernesto (U2) goes out to judge catch/no catch. Jeff (U3) rotates over to 2nd. Daniel (PU) rotates up the third. My job at this point is to watch the batter touch first and make sure she takes off to second and then break home. She's flying so I head on home to the point of plate (a magical, merry land about 15 feet behind the plate.) She's at third, a bobble by the shortstop and she's not stopping. I'm going to have a call at the plate. Throw comes in, pulls the catcher high, runner slides. I adjust to 3rd base line extended (a magical land where the third base line would be had it decided it was just going to keep on going past the plate) and the swipe tag misses so I have a safe call. Run scores. Great position, great play, great googily moogily!

Go back to first happy. This is a play that umpires in four-man mechanics dream of doing but hardly ever get the chance to do. Only thing better is when you get to bang the runner out at home because that's so dramatic. Oh well, maybe next time.

Next time happened 2 innings later. Same situation, runner is booking home. Throw comes into the catcher and...

See the ball, see the tag, see the foot... what do I have?

I rotate a little closer to see the ball in the catcher's glove to make sure it didn't fall out. I can see it through the webbing in the glove... so out at home! At the review post game Alan (our uncle) says that this game was the Tony Show as having one of these in a game is rare. Having 2 is amazingly rare.

Nor Cal: 10, Alaska 6.

I love this game.

Thoughts:

During the first game, in the fifth inning, I look up in the stands and look at the people. People there to cheer the girls, to support the volunteers, to be part of the magic. I think about all the people who supported me over the last 10 years to get me to this point. I think about my loved ones sitting up there in the stands watching me do what I love to do and my eyes start tearing up. I'm not here by myself. I am the sum parts of everyone who has given me encouragement, support, tips, criticism, a water during the game, or a witty umpire complaint.  I can't express my gratitude enough for you, my friends and family, for the love you've shown me over the years. I'm here for you.

Tonight, the 5 pm plate. I hope I'm not a blubbering mess. I'm not looking into the stands until after the game tonight.

Day 2: Preliminary Setup

Day 2 at the Regional tournament did not have any games, well, except for everyone at the tournament went down to San Manuel Stadium to go see a 66er's game. But that's later in the evening. Let's start at the beginning.

The day started out early, which is my normal time to wake up anyways for work. Got up, got dressed, got ready, got out to eat breakfast. After breakfast we all dressed in our umpire uniforms, my nice, new uniforms with the number 71 on them despite what you see on facebook, and go out and listen to the presentations of the ground rules and we do equipment checks for all the team's equipment. 9 teams and I think we found 5 pieces of equipment we had to remove. One was a bat that was near shattering if you could count on the spider webbing to be accurate. Don't want to be anywhere near a bat when it shatters.

After this, we get our umpire pictures done by the professional photographers. Don't know how they turned out but I know I had the widest smile on my face for all the pictures because I'm living the dream.

After that is lunch, then waiting for the manager's meeting. The the manager's meeting, then back to the barracks for some downtime while we wait for 5 pm to go to the 66er's game. While we are waiting, a few of us start going over our rotations via a magnetic board and 7 of the 9 of us end up surrounding this board, going over rotations, talking about irregular plays that may alter the standard rotation, and having a good discussion. It was very helpful.

Go to the game and it's hamburgers and hot dogs at the field, which we showed up to 2 hours before game time. Meal was decent. Then the admins start talking and introduce the former softball coach for UCLA, who led the team to 11 national championships. As she is talking, I don't even question how she led all those teams to titles. She is a dynamic speaker, engaging, motivating, and the girls are riveted. Heck, I'm riveted. I'm ready to go run into a burning building to save a bucket of softballs after hearing her speak.

The game was meh. I usually like going to games to watch the umpires, especially single A because the guys are so crisp and they hustle like no one's business. I guess these umps were at the end of either a long drive to get there or the August sputtering is starting a little early. Yeah, they were good umpires, better than me on my best day, but it wasn't their best day. Oh well, fatigue happens in long seasons. No worries.

After the second day, I will say that this is a really good group of guys. A really, really good group. I'm glad I'm here. I feel like I belong here, ready to work hard and be part of this team as we walk onto the field tomorrow for the 9:00 am game. I start at 2nd Base tomorrow morning and then move to 1B for tomorrow's evening game at 7:30 pm. Saturday afternoon, the day when people can get off and watch the game, I have the Northern California and Utah plate at 5:00 pm. It's just another game of balls and strikes, safe and out, 60 feet and turn left (that's from the UCLA coach this afternoon.)

I don't know how I am going to contain my smile tomorrow while walking onto the field, making my way to second base, punching some runners out, calling some fly balls out, and umpiring a Little League Western Region Tournament game in San Bernardino. It really is living the dream. I'll be in front of the home town crowd knowing that I was a kid sitting in the same place 30 years ago who was thinking... man, that is one fat umpire at second base. :)

I'm going to enjoy this next week and a half. That's who I am.

Day 1: introductions

Showed up this morning at 10:30 and met up with as the umpires. This is a good group of guys thus far.  I'm looking forward to getting started on the field.
I'm trying to write this from my phone so it won't be long but wanted to share some occurs that Alan, our umpire uncle, took while we were going over the rotations this evening. I'm going to see if I can use a computer to blog in the next few days.
Pictures:

See you tomorrow. 

First 3 Days Schedule

Quick note:

Friday:
9:00 am - 2nd Base
7:30 pm - 1st Base

Saturday
5:00 pm - Plate

Monday
9:00 am - Alternate
7:30 pm - 3rd Base

Assignments were taken out of a hat a few days ago. I have the 5:00 pm Saturday plate. Nor Cal/Utah. That may be an amazing game with a great crowd. Time to show what I can do!

Some mighty fine gentlemen

I have to admit, I'm a Little League homer. I am to the point in my life where I would rather watch a Little League game, actually rather umpire a Little League game, than go watch a pro game. Growing up, I could give you stats out the wazoo for baseball records. Now, I base my fantasy baseball team off of who the current hottest transaction guy is. I couldn't name 25 guys who play in the pros anymore.
Having said that, I do truly believe that the most important time of the Little League season is the regular season which happens at the local league level. Little League (That's a lot of L's) is about giving a chance to the kid who gets picked last on the playground team to be part of a team and experience playing in uniform, to develop friendships and gain experiences which will help develop character. The All Star experience is a cherry on top. The kids you see on ESPN are not really who Little League is targeted to - it's my kids who won't make an All Star team at this point but love being part of something bigger than themselves. I like being part of something bigger than myself too.
The biggest reason I love the All Star season is because I get to work with my friends more in that month than I do the rest of the year. Over 10 years in umpiring and I have developed some great friendships. I thought I would share some pictures instead of gushing over them on the eve of reporting to the Western Region Major Softball tournament. I'll let pictures speak for themselves (with some captions underneath.)

2013 State Major Softball Game, Colton, CA
George, Andy, I believe that's John Rodino, and myself. Dave sat out to give us a shot at this game.


2016 10/11 Baseball, North Rialto
Me and my first UIC, the man who got me into the game, Joey Broxmeyer. Thank you Joey and thank you Craigslist.

2013 Intermediate Western Region Umpire Crew. This was a fantastic group of umpires. Not a weak link in the bunch.

2015, Citrus Little League. I believe this was a Big League state game.
Me, David Burt, and Randy Robbins. Randy is the father of another one of my very first mentors, Danny. Randy is an incredible umpire who I have learned so much from.


2015, Junior District.
Scott Rubel, Me, David Burt, Dick Langois. Scott and Dick are great guys and great umpires. Scott is still on his way up while Dick is at the end of his line but he keeps on like a trooper. Many people complain about Dick but Ilearned to love him working so many games in the 2013 Intermediate tournament heading towards Irvine. I really do love games I work with the senior statesman.


2015, Western Region Visitation, Alta Loma Little League
Mark Blue. Mark is a dad umpire who caught the bug. He has a great attitude and always wants to learn more. His son, Devin, is one of the best catchers I've ever worked behind.


2012 Junior Sub-Division Semi-Finals
Me, Dave Dahlby, David Burt, Steve Bailey. This was the year Steve went to Berdoo for Major Baseball. I was so green still but Dave Burt kept bringing me along and helped me improve. David Dahlby was such a pleasure to watch behind the plate. I loved it when he brought out the plate coat. A class gentleman.

2017 Major Softball State Tournament, Hesperia, California
Ernie Hinojosa, David Burt, Me, John Rodino. This was after game 2. John had game 1. I get to work the next tournament with Ernie so it was fun working with him that night. John is one of my favorite umpires to watch because he's always in position, always so smooth, and always right.


2017 Major State Softball Championship (There was an if game after.)
Me, Ernie, Scott Moseley
All three of us are working San Bernardino this week so it was a great time to work on our rotations, our communication, and get to know each other. It should be a good week.


2017 District 28 - Tom Ebel, Me, Kirby
My new district. I am amazed at how many really good umpires District 28 has. I'm glad I get to work with these guys in the coming years (a lot more than I did this year. Sorry Shannan.)

2017 Intermediate State Tournament
Scott, Dave, George Rodriguez, Me. It was fun going back to District 55 to an Intermediate game 4 years later. George had so many great suggestions to make my game looks sharper. One game can make a difference.

They say you're not supposed to have a favorite kid. Maybe not but I have a favorite umpire crew. David Burt, Eddie Gutierrez, Steve Bailey, and myself. I don't know if you could find 4 guys who are so different politically that are such great friends and compliment each other so well on a ball field. We were supposed to have one game together this All Star Tournament but some umpires couldn't make their game so we had to split to two crews. Dave is my mentor, my friend, my UIC, and someone I love to just hang out with and talk. Eddie is young, energetic, passionate, intelligent, and fun to watch. Steve Bailey is my bud. I would do anything for him. I sat through 115 degree weather right behind home plate watching one of his plate games in 2012 because I had to be there. As we start to drift away in our umpire duties because of other commitments, distance, and scheduling, I don't know if I'll ever find another group of men I would call my favorite crew. If the picture in light blue is our last game together, I will be sad but know that the smiles in that picture are not plastered on for a picture but true uproarious laughter because we enjoy each other.

Rebecca (base umpire), Zoe (Batter), Ali (R1), Me (Plate)
I hope to be able to pass on my passion for this silly game to my kids because I have learned a lot from it that I hope they will learn too. This is my favorite umpire picture ever.

My bags are packed. I'm ready to go. The next step in this incredible journey of umpiring begins tomorrow with a new group of gentlemen who will enter my memories as umpire friends. I hope I can sleep tonight.