SBmom34,
Thanks for sharing that story- off topic or not! ?
But I have to say that I have mixed emotions about what you saw. While it sounds like the umpire had a good attitude, and you certainly can't say that she was over-reacting to any of the antics from the coaches, there are times when an ejection is in order.
Frankly, from your description an ejection- or two!- might have been in order. I keep harping on umpires having a good temperment, game management skills and not looking for trouble. But when trouble finds you, you have to act accordingly.
A coach leaving his position, either the dugout or coach's box, and charging at an umpire to argue a call is an offense that can warrant an immediate ejection. Depending on what might have transpired up to that point, the ejection is at the umpire's discretion. If it is the first offense a warning might be in order.
This same thing happened to me in a game last week. Very close play at the plate, I called the runner out and the offensive coach comes unglued. He charged from the dugout screaming that the runner beat the throw.
I told him that's not how I saw it. Lucky for him he cooled off pretty fast, because charging onto the field puts a coach on thin ice. If he continues to push it he is getting closer and closer to being ejected. Before he returned to his dugout, I told him that if he entered the field to argue a call again, he would no longer be a participant in this game. That was his one warning (not required, but offered as a courtesy) and he was fairly quiet the rest of the game.
The coaches from your game went on to display several other actions that would have given the umpire every right to eject them.
Arguing balls and strikes is also grounds for ejection. Sure, you get grumbles on close pitches throughout the game and some moaning can be tolerated. But if the arguing becomes constant it needs to be addressed. Maybe one warning, depending on the circumstances, then eject on a repeat offense.
Strike three against these guys happens when their yelling goes from criticizing the calls to personally criticizing the umpire.
Comments such as, "C,mon, Blue, she beat the throw!", or, "She missed the tag!" are common in every game and should generally be ignored.
But when the yelling gets into personal attacks against the umpire, such as, "You are the worst umpire I've ever seen", or, "You should be ashamed of yourself", the coach has crossed a well-defined line that warrants an ejection.
Any one of these offenses might get a coach ejected and, at the least, should be addressed with a warning. All three taken together in one game should pratically be a guarantee that someone is sent to the showers.
And that is where I am getting mixed emotions. While much of the grumbling should be ignored, the rule book gives clear, black-and-white guidelines on certain offenses that can lead to an ejection. While I might critisize an umpire for being overly sensetive to complaints, the opposite is also true. There are times when an umpire must step up and put an end to unruly behavior.
By not dumping one of these guys, the umpire has allowed the game to continue under what you describe as "threatening conditions" (ie: the umpire may not have lost her cool, but she is losing control of the game). That type of atmosphere should not be tolerated in youth sports and the umpire has a duty to put an end to it.
The other problem I have is that by not acting upon these clearly ejectionable offenses, the coaches now have received the message that their behavior is acceptable. That can lead to an escalation in the rude behavior. It also means that the next umpire who works their next game is left to clean up the mess when these guys exhibit the same behavior they got away with in the game before.
There is a fine line between over-reacting and not reacting swiftly enough. While I applaud your umpire for keeping a cool head, the flip side is that sometimes an umpire is put in a position where bad behavior MUST be addressed.
There's an old saying that umpires do not eject coaches. Coaches eject themselves- by virtue of their own actions.
We just announce it! ?;D