Good Bye Baseball, Hello Football

Between late Friday afternoon, and early Sunday evening, I finished off my baseball umpiring season...7 games, 6 behind the plate.  The event, The Dale Harter Memorial Little League Tournament in Celina, went on with only a 90 minute rain delay on Saturday, and was completed on time...Teams from Miami Valley, and Wapakoneta, were the winners in the 12 and 10 year old divisions respectively....Sam and I did many of the games in the 12 year old division, including the Semi and Finals.  This 61 year old body feels every inning behind the plate in his upper back and legs this morning.  The tournament was played in hot and humid weather, and that is one thing that saps the strength out of even a 12 year old...so you can imagine what it did to this old man.

I tried a new stance this year for the Little League games and those I worked last weekend at the Pony League games in Minster...it proved much easier on my legs...sure they ache, and the back has major issues this morning, but the stance was much better than trying to get down to the little guys level.  Working High School Varsity and American Legion games for most of the season, doing the dozen or so lower level games for the 14 and under kids, at the end of the season, requires a different style and approach.  From Strike Zone to temperament(did I mention many Little League parents are idiots?), it is a different game from an umpires perspective.

95 or so games between mid March and August 1st....a few less than last year(110-115), but still plenty of wear and tear on the old body...now a couple of weeks rest(and the back needs it), and football begins.

Today, I will gather the baseball gear and clothes, clean and inventory same, and pack and hang them away for the year....6 1/2 months from now, baseball meetings begin, but for now Football, followed by winter time Basketball looms on the horizon.

Next Saturday, Sam and I will attend a football clinic at Lima Shawnee High School....the OHSAA(Ohio High School Athletic Association) has foisted 20 pages of mechanics changes and a few new rules on the football officials.   Not being with a regular crew on Friday nights, they won't affect me as much as the guys who work together every week...but the changes will come into play on occasions, especially those when I fill in on a crew, that needs some help.

But for now, I plan on resting up, and trying to get this pain in my back in control....before that first scrimmage on August 20th comes along.

back later>>>>