ESPN coverage of PGF & LL Seniors

[default]

Any one else get to see both of these on ESPN yesterday?

I caught the last couple of innings of the Little League "Seniors" Championship in the afternoon and watched some of the PGF finals on ESPN last night.

I believe they were both 18U but, aside from that, not much else in common. Night and day the level of softball being played in these 2 championship games.

Nice to see ESPN coverage of the games.

 

[default]

I would agree. Speed of the game no comparison between the two. From a sporting standpoint no question the PGF would be the one that should receive more coverage in the future.

 

[default]

The seniors LL championship is 16U not 18U.

 

[default]

Anyone else see the controversial final play of the PGF game?

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQ8xru2MTOU&feature=player_embedded

 

[default]

Anyone else see the controversial final play of the PGF game?

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQ8xru2MTOU&feature=player_embedded

Yes, but it was top of 6th.

Did you see the classy apology the umpire posted for ruling it a HR instead of a catch? Here it is:

Friends, colleagues and softball fans,

My ruling in Saturday's game was incorrect. From my angle, while in pursuit of the ball, the centerfielder knocked the fence down while jumping for the ball. While in flight, the player contacted the fence with her right foot before catching the ball. Under NFHS rules, contacting the fence while it is still on its way down in considered to be in live ball territory. This should have been ruled a catch. I was wrong.

I am saddened to think that this decision on my part has become the focus of this event. This past week, the best ballplayers and best teams in the country showed us some incredible softball. The championship game should have been a display of the best of the best athletes competing at the highest level. It should not have been determined by the incorrect descision of an umpire. The play of Brittany Clopton was of the highest order, and I denied her that privledge.

I apologize to the fans, participants and staff of the SoCal Athletics and the Impact Gold along with the event organizers. This event should have been about them, not about the umpires. Mr. Jackson and the rest of the Impact Gold staff should be applauded for their handling of the situation.

Smokey

 

[default]

Assuming that's the Smokey I imagine it is, I kind of know him. He is a highly respected umpire around here in the Pacific Northwest. I want to say he's from the Portland area, but that could be wrong.

 

[default]

The announcers said that it was the correct call the whole time!! Said she had to have one foot on the ground or something!! Wow, I thought that was a blown call! Bummer!

 

[default]

Yes, but it was top of 6th.

Thanks for clarifying that. I didn't seethe actual inning listed in game accounts until later. Top of the sixth it was, the score was tied 2-2, this was ruled a two-run homer and the final score was 4-2.

The announcers said that it was the correct call the whole time!! Said she had to have one foot on the ground or something!! Wow, I thought that was a blown call! Bummer!

Announcers say lot's of stuff that doesn't have anything to do with the real rules in the real rule book! There's no requirement for the fielder to have one foot on the ground. All she has to do is establish that both feet are in live-ball territory before leaping, making the catch and then landing in dead-ball area- which this fielder did! Should have been ruled a catch for an out.

 

[default]

My question is why didn't the coach themselves ask for an appeal of the decision?

Pretty stupid on the coach's part in my opinion.

 

[default]

The coach can only ask the umpire that made the call to check with his partners. Not sure if he did- the telecast of the game showed the coach speaking with the umpire, but no way of knowing what was said.

Just because a coach requests the umpire to get help, it's still at his discretion to check with his partners or not. If he thinks he's sure of what he saw and sure of his ruling, there's nothing that says he has to check with them. And the coach can't "appeal" to one of the umpires. He could try, but if they understand the correct protocol, they won't offer any opinion of the call. All they can do is tell the coach to talk to the umpire that made the call.

A coach who knew the correct rule could have talked with the umpire to see if the rule was being misinterpreted. If the rule was being misinterpreted, the coach could have filed an official protest (assuming protests were allowed in this game- I have no way of knowing).

 

[default]

Any good umpire... when asked..... WILL ask his partner(s) for their thoughts and what they might have saw and what he might have missed.

Umpires need to be taught that this game is not about them and about getting the RIGHT call. Just because a coach asks for you to ask the other umpire... it isn't an attack on your ability.

I'm big about asking something right there in the open.. loud enough for everyone to hear.. when it comes to "Did she bobble it" (play at first), "Did she pull her foot off".

Why meet in "secret on such things" ? Just gives people the WRONG opinion that an umpire is not willing to change his mind.

I never have had a problem with coaches being around in a discussion on things.. as long as they are respectful and stay quiet while me and my partner are sorting through everything.

Umpires need to get rid of their egos. I see this problem growing each and every year.

I have a guy from Dover that always wants to come down for my event with his friends from Akron and I refuse to have him. Nice guy, very good umpire.. just an ego about questoned calls. I refuse to put him in my mix of umpires.

 

[default]

It might be about ego in some cases (it shouldn't be). If there is some legitimate reason why I might have missed something that could affect my call, I don't have any problem with a coach asking me to check with my partner to see if he had something different.

A pulled foot or swipe tag at first base are two of the specific reasons listed in most umpire manuals where it's recommended that an umpire check with his partner- and you should check, if there is any doubt in your mind that you had a bad angle or your view was blocked on the play. Other examples on other plays might be if you know you were caught out of position or if there is an issue about loss of ball control on a tag or catch that you may not have seen.

I wouldn't go so far as to say that only a "good" umpire will ask for help. I would say that a "good" umpire will gladly ask for help when the circumstances warrant that he should. Not all calls warrant this.

Example: You're the base umpire and there is a very close force play at second base. You're in perfect position, you saw the tag of the base, the fielder maintained control of the ball and you judged that the ball beat the runner. There was nothing unusual here and it was, in your mind, a routine play that you called as you saw it- an out.

If a coach asked you to "go for help" on that one, would you? I hope not! Wanting you to ask for help on a routine play is nothing more than a coach who didn't like the call and is fishing for a second opinion. Are you going to allow that on every close play where a coach just didn't like the outcome? Be ready for a long day at the old ballpark!

Of all the dozens of calls an umpire might make in a game, there are really very few legitimate times when he should be asking for help from his partner(s). If the situation warrants, by all means do. But if it doesn't, I don't have any problem with an umpire telling a coach that it was his call, explaining what he had and sticking with it.

"Getting the call right" is one thing. If there's a reasonable possibility that your partner saw something you didn't, by all means, ask. Where I see this go down the wrong road is when umpires shirk their own responsibility to make calls that are clearly their's and dump the call off to their partner when they shouldn't, when umpires refuse to ask for help on calls that they should, or when coaches want an umpire to ask for help on routine plays that they don't have any legitimate reason asking about.

 

[default]

I was at this tourney (although not at the finals where this happened) and I have to say that the umpires were of top notch caliber. As an umpire myself I chatted with a quite a few, and were impressed with there credentials. Most were NCAA umpires from all over the country.

My wife and I both questioned the call while watching the game, and came to the conclusion that he had missed this one. We also noticed the Texas coach ONLY speaking with the plate umpire. He should have gone to the umpire that went out on the play to request he ask for help. For a guy who had been coaching his program for 14 years like the announcers stated, you would have thought he would know the procedure for disputing a call. I'm sure the answer he got from the plate umpire was that he was doing his job watching the runner and was not watching the play in the outfield.

 

[default]

I agree... I think the COACH lost the game for not knowing how to ask for help.

Maybe if the umpire who missed the call... explained what he saw ( catch, feet location, etc..) to the plate umpire... plate umpire would have told him the ruling of such a play.

 

[default]

We also noticed the Texas coach ONLY speaking with the plate umpire. He should have gone to the umpire that went out on the play to request he ask for help.

Exactly. This happens so often, where a coach just goes straight to the plate umpire, apparently thinking that he can overrule or change a call, that umpires should have a stock response when it does.

You don't comment on the other umpire's judgment, start explaining what you saw on the play, agree or disagree with the call or start offering up excuses on why it was called the way it was. Any of these could effectively "throw your partner under the bus" and undermine the credibility of the umpires in this game working together as a cohesive unit.

All you have to do is say, "Coach, you need to talk to the umpire that made the call".

 

[default]

That's amazing, but not all that surprising, that a coach at that level doesn't know the procedure for asking an ump to ask for help.

 

[default]

I agree Joe.. the COACH blew the game.

 

[default]

Little League Game was frankly average ASA softball. 16U pitchers throwing 50-53 MPH rarely gets you into the finals of a qualifier and the hitting was sub par. I think ESPN should jump on the ASA/USA finals for good softball. The ESPN Rise championship was good TV. Thise were clearly 2 of the best teams in the country. Little League softball is no where near where baseball is because there is so many players that play travel ball.