Okay, it is a new week, still a new year, and
you're listening to the Dan Time Podcast. I am
your host, Dan McArdle. DanTimePod at gmail .com,
at Dan TimePod on the socials. Thanks for downloading
and subscribing. Don't know how you found me,
but I appreciate you jumping on for at least
one ride here. If you haven't made... A clean
break yet from all of your vices and your poor
decisions and you haven't acted on one of those
gym membership ads that you keep seeing. You
still have time. You've got plenty of time. Slow
things down. When you're on Dan time, I'm not
telling you to procrastinate, but give yourself
a break. Let your thoughts settle for a minute.
Listen, my piece of advice, and I don't dish
it out often, it's very simple. Give yourself
a shot. Give yourself a shot. Other people will
give you chances in life. They'll take a chance
on you, but it all starts with you. Give yourself
a shot. Believe in what you can do. And it doesn't
even have to be on a grand scale. Okay. You know,
when you watch a show or you listen to a podcast
and the host says to the guest, come back anytime.
You're always welcome here. And then that's the
last time you ever see that person on the show.
Well, I do my best on this podcast to stay true
to my promises. And you hear me talk to people
and say, Hey, let's do a second episode. So we're
getting around to some of those. They won't just
start piling up because there's a lot of new
guests that I want to introduce you to. But last
week's guest, Gerald Watkins, superb guest, chairman
and executive director of the Friends of Rickwood.
I won't recap everything because you can go back
and listen to the episode, but he was referred
to me by the very first Dan to appear on this
podcast. That's right. The one and only Dan Weinrib.
If you just got on board with this show, go all
the way back and listen to episode number two.
There's a reason why the first Dan wasn't the
first actual guest. And it's there that you'll
hear Dan Weinrib's compelling story as a public
servant. Today, we're gonna explore Dan's love
for the game of baseball. and his 20 plus years
as a baseball umpire. If you love baseball, you're
going to love this episode. If you're not really
a big baseball or sports fan, I think you'll
still enjoy this episode. That's because Dan
Weinrib is the featured guest. As you'll find
out, he's just such a decent and engaging guy.
After listening to this show, you're going to
understand the mind of the umpire. the ways of
the umpire, the challenges that they face, the
methods, the reasons why. I know what some of
you may be thinking. Dan, it's January. It's
freezing outside. It's the NFL playoffs. It's
why are we talking all this baseball right now?
The answer is quite simple. It's because when
the calendar turns over to a new year, it's time.
I don't wait for pitchers and catchers to report.
to spring training. I don't wait until the end
of the Superbowl, till the end of March Madness.
I don't wait. Baseball to me is optimism. It's
fun. And as they say, hope springs eternal. But
just when you think the show is moving in one
direction, it'll spin somewhere else. I've got
an exciting musical guest next week. So you're
always in for a surprise here on the Dan Time
Podcast. Again, thanks for listening. Let's get
to my conversation now. It is Dan Wine Rib Time.
Dan, it is just great to have you back today.
Well, thank you, Dan. Right back at you. It's
an honor to be asked back for another podcast
interview. And I see it as another opportunity
for you and I just to catch up and... continue
our friendship and share experiences. So thanks
for having me. Well, when we reconnected a few
months ago, this is the first time that we had
spoken in over a decade. And it was so much fun.
And we covered a lot about what you do day to
day and the 2002 race for Jefferson County Tax
Assessor. I mean, folks, if you haven't heard
this episode, dial it back. You know put this
one on pause and go back and listen to episode
number two You'll really get a good a good introduction
to Dan wine rib, but now we have more of an open
-ended conversation where we promise to just
talk some baseball because as this episode is
being released We're right on the cusp of a new
season pitchers and catchers reporting to spring
training camps and Folks, Dan Weinreb has been
involved in the game of baseball directly, indirectly
for a long time, and specifically for almost
25 years. I think this is coming up on season
24 as a high school baseball umpire in the state
of Alabama, uh, with the AHSAA. Dan, I don't
even know where to start, but, um, do you enjoy
it as much as you did season one? I'm sure you've
learned a lot and tell me a little bit about
being a baseball umpire. I'd love to. First of
all, Dan, I love the game of baseball. And so,
yes, I get as much thrill out of stepping onto
a ball field in 2023 and now 2024 as I did back
in 2000 when I first got started. And I mean,
to be quite candid, baseball was the first Love
of my wife. I basically came out my mama's belly
wearing a Cincinnati Reds hat and I've always
known Just you know from growing up in the family
that grew up and that I loved the game of baseball
But I must admit as a kid. I never thought of
growing up to be an umpire But it was a decision
that I reached In my late 20s right at the end
of my 20s and I'm glad I did it because I went
from being 29 years old to 30 years young once
I started doing it and so yeah, it's it brings
me great joy to Be involved with the game and
to get a chance to call balls and strikes here
in our area And I was able to obtain a copy.
This is a few years ago 20 the 2016 -17 umpires
manual but Casual fans even me included. I'm
a huge baseball fan We're not really in touch
with what's going on with the officiating crew
Minute by minute second by second in the game
of baseball what they're observing what they're
tasked with observing controlling Dan this is
a 72 page manual. I mean the situations that
are covered here You know some are pretty straightforward
that we see all the time, but here's one a a
good ball boy helps past balls or wild pitches
that go to the fence or backstop are a potential
problem for the home plate umpire an Unretrieved
ball is a safety hazard it could also cause confusion
if a live ball goes into the same area a ton
of minutiae here for the average fan, but then
people probably don't realize how important every
little detail is if you are a baseball umpire
whether it's high school college minor leagues
or major leagues you're right and on top of that
you have variations in the rules of the game
between high school versus college versus the
pros and you know as a high school umpire i owe
it to the teams and to the High School Association
to stay updated on the rules book and to know
how to apply the rules of the game onto the field
and so. That is actually something that I've
been doing since really last 10 days and it will
continue into the season is just reading through
for me the high school rules book and the appropriate
cases to know how to and just make sure that.
I stay on top of the rules of the game just like
you want your doctor to stay Involved through
continuing ed through, you know updates and modern
medicine saying what's your lawyers your accountants
and stuff like that and so yeah, there's a lot
of minutiae that you have to stay on top of as
an umpire just to be good at what you do and
You're really in charge of handling The players
the assistant coaches and there's kind of a fine
line with how Much or how little or if if at
all you should get involved with spectators you
have to have a very solid grasp well, there's
knowledge of the game then there's managing the
game itself and managing the relationships and
thankfully in high school we there are some protocols
in place that Only the head coach and the team
captain, if the team's designated team captain,
do the communicating with the umpire behind the
plate and on the bases. And so we try not to
engage with the assistant coaches beyond, and
maybe pregame chit chat before the plate meeting.
And we definitely don't engage with the fans.
We let, there's a school administrator, at least
at the high school level, there's supposed to
be a school administrator who's supposed to stay
on the premises. And if there are any issues
with fans that could affect the game, we get
in touch with the head coach, head coach gets
in touch with the administrator and the administrator
deals with whatever the off the field problem
is. But thankfully, in my association with our
region those issues are few and far between.
So we're lucky that where I officiate we have
a lot of great teams a lot of good coaches and
the coaches most of them understand the rule
book as well as we do and so we don't get too
much thankfully grief from them. Yeah I can I
can see once you get up to a certain level you're
going to have some some outlier Situations that
you have to defuse but you're probably dealing
with players and coaches Who've been doing this
a long time players since they were little they
they kind of know the rhythm of the game how
they're supposed to conduct themselves same with
the coaching staff and even the parents the spectator
so You probably don't have a lot of explosive
problems to deal with You're right, thankfully
and thankfully that is the case. The kids are
very respectful. They were very good about yes
or no, sir, and they've been playing the game
long enough to know that the coaches handle any
potential issues or real issues that happen on
the field. And even in the pregame meeting, we
set the tone real early when we tell coaches,
hey, look, if the if you have any questions you
can approach us will be glad to answer the best
we can. We just want to get it right and. When
you do that, it goes a long way to building trust
as well as well as an umpire hustling, being
in good position to make your judgment calls
that further builds up your credibility. So,
you know, and in the big league game, we're starting
to see even fans, even I've got a friend who
would who would prefer to see robot umpires.
Across the board and just do away with the human
umpire. I am Completely and adamantly against
it. I notice on page 22 of this manual to err
is human umpires are human missed pitches or
errors and judgment will happen umpires should
do their best to have as few as possible when
you boot a call or miss a pitch do not Resolve
to even the call next time once called. That's
it It's over and done such a resolve blows your
objectivity. There's no way you can write the
call a Missed pitch or a Buddha call is just
that it's missed and gone forever. How do you
react when? You call somebody safe or you call
somebody out and then seconds later in your mind,
you know Hmm, maybe maybe I missed that Not sure
but maybe I did and you just how do you keep
your composure? I mean you have to but what?
Have you had that happen very often? Well, we
are human. I know that if I've ever erred on
anything on the ball field, it's on the ball
strike pitches. And if I've thought that a call
was questionable, then what it tells me is that,
well, maybe I was a little too quick to judge
and I just need to slow things down. By and large,
the safe and outs are usually more clear than
the balls and strikes, at least I have found
in my own experiences of looking back on my judgment
calls. But yeah, you know, that's why we umpires
have to go into the cages in the preseason and
start looking at pitches early before the February
15th opening day, just so that we can get used
to squatting, getting our head in the right position,
getting our feet in the right position. behind
the catcher and make sure that we see the pitch
all the way in to the catcher's glove before
we make a call because you're supposed to pause
read and react and if you do it the right way
you see the pitch watch it go into the glove
and then you pause for maybe a second or so confirming
your mind that was a strike or that was a ball
and then you Announce your call and in the case
of a strike you do your hand motion He'll hand
an arm motion, but that's why you have repetitions.
That's why you that's why folks like me have
to practice between now and February to get into
get your mind into game shape as well as your
body Dan do umpires have Just speaking for yourself
when you get to the ball field and you smell
the grass and it's a beautiful spring day Do
you have time I? Imagine you do to take it in
and have just that moment that fleeting moment
where you look around and you think Wow, I can't
believe I get to do this. This is great. Okay
now down to business now Let me get my checklist
going. Do you still have those moments? Oh, of
course I do. I mean, when you love the game of
baseball and you love what you do, yeah. I mean,
it's truly a gift that umpires like us never
want to take for granted. And you have that awe
and wonder moment when you get to the ball field
and you just want to take in the sights and sounds
and certainly the beautiful weather. But then
you realize, okay, we have a job to do. Let's
get our mind right. Let's do it. Go through our
pregame motions and get ready for first pitch.
But yes, it's truly a gift. Just to tell you
a story, Dan, this happened really early in my
umpiring career. My association gets together
during the season on every other Sunday just
to get game assignments. They're raising my hand,
trying to get games just like my colleagues were.
And then the supervisor announced this. I want
to say this is around, this had been 2001 or
so, my second year in. It says, all right, Mountain
Brook versus Woodlawn. This game's at Rickwood
Field on this day and time. Who's available?
And I quickly raised my hand and and I got the
assignment along with whoever my partner was
and I googled Rickwood field and I knew a little
bit about the history but then after googling
it I thought wow and normally I get to a game
assignment to the field 30 minutes ahead of time
to have my take it in moment. for Rick would
field I got there an hour and 15 minutes ahead
of time because I Had read so much about the
history of it that I wanted to walk around and
just take it all in before Getting to my game
day focus on so yeah, it happens to us You can't
help it. You're human And if you love the game
of baseball like you or I do you would have done
the same thing. Oh Man What an experience. And
at the time, you just didn't, that was an introduction
to the specter of Rickwood Field. Correct. That
was my very first introduction to Rickwood, too.
But yeah, when you're a fan of the game, you
want to take in the moment and just know that,
wow, I get to do this. This is a privilege. And
I still have those feelings going into season
24 as I did for seasons one and two. And speaking
of Rickwood Field, I'm not, as we're recording
this call, I'm not yet sure of the order, but
I believe this episode will fall just after my
conversation with your friend Gerald Watkins,
the chairman and executive director of Friends
of Rickwood. How much fun have you had being
involved with that organization and what you
get to do during the Rickwood Classic? It's awesome.
Rickwood is a special place. I owe a former Jefferson
County coworker of mine Charlie Wagner a debt
of gratitude because he's the one who recruited
me to volunteer and help Friends of Rickwood
out and I'll always remember this. I started
at Jefferson County in 2003 in my elected position
and Charlie and I struck up a friendship and
it got to be like May or June, I think it was
June. And he said, Dan, I need your help on something
that's baseball -related. And of course, that
caught my attention. I said, well, what is it?
And he told me, well, my son and I are supposed
to run the scoreboard for the Rickwood Classic,
because I'm involved with friends of Rickwood
on their board of directors. And we could use
some help. And I said, I'm here. Sign me up.
And that's how I got involved with Rickwood.
I did the my first scoreboard in 2003 for that
classic, and then the subsequent year, and I
did the same thing. And the end of 2004, start
of 2005, I want to say that's about right. I
was voted onto the board of directors because
I'd shown the time, interest, and enthusiasm.
And that's where my relationship with FOR got
launched. here I am 20 years later and I'm still
involved with the organization because it's a
great cause and a great historical place. And
I obviously haven't been able to lay eyes on
the refurbished Rickwood field. Many people have
not, I'm sure. I just cannot wait to see what
this place is going to look like. I'll probably
have to watch it on TV for the first ever Major
League Baseball game in the state of Alabama,
the tribute to the Negro Leagues game, which
as I understand is, I didn't ask Gerald this
directly, but I think an opportunity may have
opened up with the Field of Dreams location in
Iowa being kind of on hold as they were undergoing
some new development on that site and created
an opportunity perhaps. I mean, what an event
that we've got coming in June. You're right.
It's exciting. And with the teams, the Cardinals
and the Giants to agree to give up, you know,
one of those teams had to give up a home date
to agree to come to Birmingham. So yeah, you're
right. It is exciting. We've had Major League
Baseball teams come through Rickwood, but they
were always preseason exhibitions. But this is
the first, you know, you're right, regular season
game. Head to head, two MLB teams taking each
other on. And it's not an exhibition game, is
that right? This will count? Yes, it counts to
the standings, absolutely. And the Negro League
tie -in for our teams is that in the case of
the St. Louis Cardinals, if I recall correctly,
their very first Negro League or former Negro
League player who played on the Cardinals was
a relief pitcher by the name of Bill Griesen
who made his name and reputation as a starting
pitcher in the Negro Leagues. And Bill Greason
is, I want to say, like a 98, 99 -year -old retired
minister in Birmingham. And so this is a chance
for him to have a nice opportunity in the limelight.
And then you throw in on the Giants side, their
greatest baseball player ever in their history
was one Willie Mays from... uh nearby Westfield
which is now no longer a community but it's near
this next door neighbor's Fairfield and Rickwood
Field was where 16 year old Willie Mays made
his professional debut with the Birmingham Black
Barons and this was back I want to say in 1948
which was the year the Birmingham Black Barons
won the pennant that year and uh and so now here
we are What more than 75 years later something
like that? We have a chance to feature Willie
Mays and have an opportunity for him to return
to his hometown for a major league baseball game
involving his former team, so yeah, this is a
Once -in -a -lifetime opportunity in more ways
than one. It's just such a storybook I don't
even know the right way to describe it, but it's
for the city of Birmingham and friends of Rick
would Fans like me who grew up in Birmingham,
and you know we know about Rick would feel we
know about the prestige Everybody knows it's
the oldest ballpark in America perhaps the world
He's still actively hosting games miles college
high school baseball It's so exciting for it
to be put on the global stage for the intrigue
and the excitement for new fans to lay eyes on
Birmingham, Alabama, and just get this awareness
of Rick Woodfield, all the kids who, you know,
like when I was 10, 12, 14 years old, living
and breathing baseball, for them to be able to
sink their teeth into Rick Woodfield, maybe wanting
to grab a book about it. I just, I love everything
about What's going on? I know then talking to
Gerald Some concessions had to be made obviously
getting this the field big league ready Particularly
the dugouts having to take away those old dugouts,
but it just Had to be done. I think it's just
gonna look spectacular Agreed agreed. I mean
look I mean everyone who is familiar with Rick
would story It's an old ballpark, but the fact
of the matter is, and I'm sure Gerald touched
on it, is that if we wanted to have professional
baseball back at Rickwood Field year in and year
out, then these upgrades needed to be done. And
this is not the first renovation of Rickwood
Field. This is just the first renovation in a
really long time. But what we're excited about
are the opportunities that will come to the ballpark.
in subsequent years. I mean, amateur baseball
will continue to come to Rickwood Field, but
the idea that we could have the Barron's back
for future Rickwood classics, that in and of
itself makes the renovation project all the more
worthwhile. And the idea of having future major
league games possibly come back to Birmingham
is further icing on the cake. So, yeah, I mean,
these renovations had to be done. I mean, you're
talking about... a ballpark that opened in 1910,
and here we are in 2024. Yeah, any building needs
to be updated in order to remain relevant. I
can remember some of the old Rickwood classic
games. I think my first one was 2002, and I may
have missed a couple, but I know I got a streak
going somewhere around 0567, or I didn't miss
one until I moved to Pensacola. But, you know,
it usually fell on Wednesday at the end of May
pretty hot pretty warm in Birmingham and I just
remember the ball players for the Barons and
the visiting teams sitting on top of those old
dugouts because you can imagine how stuffy Was
inside but it cramped to actually after the game,
you know as a fan you can go out on the field
I don't know if they'll resume that and play
ball sit in the dugouts run the bases so Exciting
stuff and you know like we're talking and I spoke
with Gerald about this tribute to the Negro Leagues
game all these Upgrades, I'm sure there's a plan
for 2025 hosting a game 2026 and hopefully Each
year going forward Dan. How excited would you
be if? the Cincinnati Reds are Playing against
you know the New York Mets or something next
year Well, you got me speechless there. No, it
would be really cool. And in case for my team,
the Reds, the Reds actually had a relationship
with the Birmingham Barons in the late 1930s
through the mid 40s. And so there would be a
nice historical tie -in if it were to happen.
But, you know, it would be nice if it happened.
I'm not counting on it. any major league game
coming back to Rickwood. That way it'll be a
pleasant surprise if it does. But what I'm excited
about is, you know, the opportunity for, you
know, right now the Barons to come back and resume
the annual Rickwood Classic. That would be really
cool. And on top of that, Rickwood will continue
to host all kinds of travel ball and college
ball and high school games and a new improved
ball field. And that too is worth it. So now
dan let's uh Let's uh jump off for a minute And
I know you're a family man. You spend a lot of
time with your son Is he a baseball fan like
you are you guys on the same level or is there
a gap there? Where dad's crazy about it? There's
a there's a gap That's a pretty hard thing to
measure up to your old man as far as uh, I want
jack to develop his own interests and I would
love it if he can, if he shows as much interest
in baseball as I do. You know, so he'll follow
the game casually. I'm raising him to be a fourth
generation Reds fan. But you know, he also loves
football and hey, good. I'm glad he's passionate
about something. But you know, he also enjoys
other things too. He's currently involved with
Boy Scouts. He's involved with the high school
band. here in Homewood. He's he does ultimate
frisbee and so he has his own passions and I
want him to follow his heart and do what truly
stirs him and if baseball finds a way there in
his adulthood then then that's awesome but if
it doesn't well you know that's fine too but
you know he'll certainly enjoy going to baseball
games with me he always has and You know, he's,
he's your typical teenager. He's 16 years old
and there, I'm sure there are a lot of things
that he associates with dad. They're just right
now uncool. Maybe he'll come back around as an
adult. I know he will. Yeah. And I do talk on
this podcast about dads and their sons or daughters
or moms and sons and daughters and Whatever you
got the fire in the belly for it might not be
the same thing for your child but like you said
it's important to just be involved and Be in
touch with what really interests them, you know,
you might be a huge football fan but your child
is into theater or something like that and hey
find out everything you need to learn about theater
or whatever sparks their interest and just Be
around, hang out. Like you said, when my kids
aren't, they're not teenagers yet. I'm sure I'll
blink an eye and one of them will be, but they'll
be in time where they don't want to hang out
with you as much. But I'm sure a great thing
about the game of baseball, you can go to the
ballpark with a friend, with a coworker or with
your son or daughter or your spouse. And they
may not care about runners on first and third.
whether they should bunt or steal. They just
like that. Hey, we're sitting together. No one's
in a rush. Nobody's got to be somewhere. We're
just going to sit and enjoy and talk. And hey,
I'm going to get a hot dog. What do you want?
And just so many wonderful things about that
experience. You can go to the ballpark and have
a great time, even if you're not a huge fan.
I agree. I cannot say that better myself. Well,
in the offseason here, you know, I guess it's
For some teams, it's been pretty eventful for
others, pretty routine. But I know the Cincinnati
Reds have strengthened their bullpen. Just saw
Buck Farmer. Some of these guys, some of these
middle relievers fly under the radar. They don't,
you know, grab the headlines. But, you know,
he was pretty steady presence there in the Reds
bullpen. Buck Farmer, they re -signed. Yes. Emilio
Pagan signed a two -year deal. That's that's
big stuff, you know pitching usually It may not
get you all the way to the title, but if you've
got a staff ace and a strong bullpen You know,
that's what you need everything I've been reading
which has not been I haven't done a lot of well
sure dense reading in the offseason up with the
family responsibilities But what I do here is
that the Reds are at least expected to be an
80 plus win team Grab a wild card spot, compete
for the division. Are you excited about 2024
for your Cincinnati Reds? Of course. I mean,
last year's team exceeded my expectations. We
stunk up the joint so bad all 2022 that, you
know, I personally set my expectations for the
team as, you know, losing record, but, you know,
only winning 72, 71, 72 games, and instead they
won 82. And now they've... Gone out as you pointed
out with Amelia Pagan and they just the other
day signed Frankie Montas to a one year deal
to be a starter. And so yeah, they're investing
in pitching and because we have. We still had
some pitching struggles. I think our starting
rotation gave us like among the fewest innings
in Major League Baseball. So we wrote our bullpen
hard and wore them out. And so yeah, they've.
I like the investments they've made and in some
free agent signings. And it makes me optimistic
that 2024 can be a better year for our team.
But you also know that, you know, the Cardinals
are going to be competitive. The Cubs have a
great young core of players. You know that they're
going to be competitive, too. So, yeah, it's
a fun time to be a baseball fan in the National
League Central, whether you're a Reds fan or
Cubs fan or Cardinals fan. You know, the Brewers
are still trying to figure themselves out. They're
in transition. And of course, the Pirates are
certainly on yet another rebuild. But yeah, as
a Reds fan, it's exciting to see what my team
has done. And you just hope that it pays off
with a playoff run in October. Yeah, that NL
Central is usually, well, not always up for grabs,
but it's very competitive division. a few small
market teams there, the Reds, the Pirates, the
Brewers. So if you are a small market team like
the Reds, I think it makes sense to invest in
pitching because you may not be able to go out
and grab that big bat. You're not going to play
for Shohei Otani. So why not try to get the arms
that not only can shut down those big bats, but
they're probably assessing guys who they think
have a good chance of staying healthy in 2024.
It's always hard to gauge. One thing that's for
sure for a small market team, whether it's the
Brewers or the Reds, is that you can't afford
to give out the big contracts like the Dodgers
have just done, or the Yankees typically do,
or the Angels, or even the Cubs. And so you have
to spend your money and hit it right. because
you can maybe afford to eat one bad contract,
but it really cripples you if you have to pay
out more than one to a player who has been a
bust for you for various and century reasons.
So yeah, it's always a challenge for our teams.
On the other hand, that's life that you don't
have all the resources you want, but you have
some resources and you try to make the the most
and the best of it. So the way the Dodgers have
been free spending it, I joke with other baseball
friends of mine that the Dodgers have given me
about another billion more reasons never to pull
for them. But look, baseball is a great game.
And you know, whether it's a fan or as I am as
a baseball umpire, it's it's our passion. And
it's definitely my passion. And just like it
is for you, you follow the Cubs and That's what
makes the game as great as it is. It gives us
an opportunity to bond over yet another world
of subjects. Well, one final point on working
as an umpire. We could probably dedicate another
episode to this topic, but you really have to
trust the umpires around you. Uh, actually here
I'm on page 61 and this is just under remember
the following and there's like seven or eight
or more. Trust your partner and work as a team.
Maintain your composure at all times. It takes
two people to have an argument and then underlined.
Don't let your ego ruin the game. A lot of things
that you have to adhere to umpires. Hopefully
after listening to this episode, if you're a
baseball fan, the next game you watch and you
see an umpire standing in a particular spot on
the field in between innings, it really might
not be arbitrary. or the way that you're, that
you are standing or your arms are falling, that
sort of thing. But again, going back to just
trust your partner and work as a team, do you
have, you have to have a great relationship with
the folks around you. Well, it's paramount. I
mean, something that Owen Butts, my umpiring
supervisor tells us every preseason and during
the season is remember you and your partner are
a team and You have no fans. You have plenty
of critics out there, but the two of you have
to get the job done. You're there to officiate
the game. You're not there to determine winners
and losers. You're there just to enforce the
rules. And so you have to have each other's backs.
And so, yes, there is a high level of trust you
have to have between one another in order to
get through each game assignment successfully.
I'm happy to say that you know my chapter we
were full of very good umpires who know the game
know what their roles are and It makes it easier
and the part about egos is absolutely right.
You know, you can't let your ego get in the way
of what you're there to do and that's a good
lesson that can be applied to everyday work life
and and other relationships as well. So, but
yeah, those things are pretty critical in order
to be a great umpire who people want to work
with during the season and in the postseason.
Well, Dan, I just want to take a minute here
and thank you for your nearly quarter century
of high school baseball umpiring and being a
part of the game on that level. I've only skimmed
through this document that you guys have to have
mastered and Hopefully we keep all the field
umpires at the big league level for a long long
time I mean, I think every fan loves the animation
of the umpire with his particular You know, I
guess I didn't ask when you call somebody out
play at the plate You throw the fist up. Do you
have certain motions that are that you've? You've
come up with then hey, this is my it's the way
I'm gonna make the call You know like starting
the lawnmower. What's I don't know how you guys
what the lingo is but If you're talking about
being behind the plate and you got a particular
strike three call there's there is pulling the
string I've heard the lawnmower expression and
If the pitch is right on the corner, it hits
the edge of the strike zone for strike three,
particularly if it ends the bottom or top half
of the ending. Yeah, I may sell it with an extra
oomph, but if it's a routine pitch down the middle
and everyone can see it's a strike, I don't have
to sell it and so I give it a more calm strike
three motion. On the bases, if we get a banger,
A typical one is, you know, a close play at first
base. Yeah, shortstop goes in the hole and has
to throw it a long way, and the first baseman
stretches, and it's a real banger. Yeah, I may
sell the call with an extra loud, he's out. Or
if there's a banger on the bases involving a
runner trying to take an extra base. and he gets
in there just ahead of the tag, I may sell the
safe call just a little bit more than I would
normally. But on the other hand, if it's an out
and most everyone can see that player is out
or if it's safe and it really wasn't that close,
then I can just give a routine call with less
volume in my voice and people understand, oh,
he got it. He was on top of it. I agree. And
real quick, this is probably something I could
Google, but for people listening, driving, and
just curious, do you know the significance behind
the umpire calling a strike and turning his full
body, I guess, to the right and then throwing
out that index finger towards what I guess would
be the home dugout? If I remember my baseball
history correctly, there was a baseball player,
his last name was Hoy, and he was deaf. And because
he was deaf, if I remember the baseball history
correctly, that's what started the beginning
of hand signals for strike and out and things
like that. But before then, it used to be the
umpires just gave a verbal, but we're talking,
geez. turn of the prior century that this development
happened. And then of course you know if it's
a ball I guess most umpires just say ball but
there's no motion and the only people that would
hear it would be the players and coaches on the
field with the near shot. Well yeah we umpires
are supposed to keep our heads still and just
give the verbal ball because if we start moving
and doing hand signals everybody expects the
call to be a strike. And so if you move your
body and yell ball, then it looks like you were
indecisive. And that's what invites people to
question your credibility. And so that's why
at least we umpires are trained to keep extra
still and just say ball before resetting yourself
versus the strike you throw in your hand motion
as well. Dan, I I'm a little uncomfortable asking,
but I gotta ask. I'm sure it's happened in 24
years. The foul tip coming off of a cutter or
just a high fastball, the bat gets just under
it and it misses the catcher's mitt and hits
you right in the mask. Has that happened? Yes,
it has. What is that like? It's not pleasant.
You know, it's never good to get hit in the mask,
but it sure beats getting hit in the cup. But
you're supposed to position your head as the
home plate umpire in the upper inside quadrant
of the strike zone. And most of your body should
be protected by the catcher. And there are times
where the catcher misses the pitch or what's
more likely as you reference is the batter swings
and fouls it and just redirects the direction
of the ball that it hits your mask and it's very
jarring and and so what I Try to do I quickly
call it foul and then I whip off the mask because
the mask is reverberating and You just want to
whip off the mask and walk away Of course, being
a foul ball, the all play has stopped anyway.
But yeah, it's not a good feeling, but it does
happen. Maybe it happens to me now about once
a year to every other season. That's not too
bad. But hopefully those events are few and far
between. You also will take. errant pitches or
foul balls off of your chest protector or off
your shin guards and Thankfully, those are some
pretty hard equipment there that you barely feel
anything And you know some of these particularly
long games have you had some extra inning games
in the just the summer the thick of the summer
and You know, it's 14 innings now. We're going
into the top of the 15th You're just sweating
everywhere uh how are those experiences where
you know everybody loves the game but wow uh
have you had some particularly trying afternoons
where it's just a hundred and something degrees
and man can somebody get a a run across uh that's
a great question i it has been a long time since
i've been in a long game situation, summer or
not summer. But thankfully, amateur ball, the
rules have changed, particularly with travel
ball, but now it's made its way to the high school
association that there are now time limits on
games. And so the likelihood of having an extra
inning game go into the 10th, 11th, or as you
referenced, the 14th inning is getting more and
more unlikely. But the long games that are just
absolutely dreadful is when you have one team
in a talent mismatch against a weaker team, and
it's already like a 15 run difference, and it's
only the second inning. And you're just begging,
like, come on, please, guys, swing the ball,
make some outs, please, let's just move this
game along. But yeah, those happen, and you just...
learn to weather through it. But you have to,
as an umpire, try to maintain your concentration
and call every pitch consistently and show as
much effort with each pitch of a lopsided game
as you do for a close competitive game. And one
other thing I was going to ask, just trying to
think of some of these hot button questions that
might be on people's minds. The average fan may
think that With an ejection, you know, you just
you guys get animated you're face to face That's
enough and you throw the finger up to the sky
and you and he's out of there and he's walking
off People probably don't realize that you've
still got to fill out some paperwork after the
game and get this emailed or Written in a written
report down. Is that true? You got to turn around
quickly I'll let the college or professional
guys, you know, share how they handle ejections.
But in the high school level, it used to be that
you had to get your report in by email within
24 hours. Now with advances in technology, it's
more like they wanted the high school association
down Montgomery once it within 12. And so you
have to make notes of who got ejected and for
what reason is typically unsportsmanlike conduct,
questioning judgment calls, which they're not
supposed to do, or in the case of players and
violent collision, maybe malicious contact, you
know, some form of unsportsmanlike conduct like
that. But the point is, is that we have to report
it to our supervisor, typically in an email or
text immediately after the game. and they pass
my supervisor, then passes it up the food chain
to the state to deal with. And there are consequences
for getting ejected in baseball, at least at
the high school level. If I remember correctly,
the first ejection, you get a warning. The second
ejection, you get a small suspension, like a
one or two game suspension and a fine. If the
coach is ejected or players ejected the third
time, they are done for the season. And, you
know, no coach wants to be ejected and be subject
to punishment. And so, umpires really don't want
to do paperwork. So, you know, we try to warn
coaches, you know, give them a warning, give
them a verbal. And then if we have to warn them
again, make it a written warning and restrict
them to the bench. And that way they can calm
down and cool off and but they still remain in
the game. The high school association is trying
to encourage umpires to keep players and coaches
in the game as long as possible and only eject
if they have crossed the proverbial line that
you know would get anyone ejected. So thankfully
it's only been it's been at least three years
probably longer since I've ever had to dump a
coach. and hopefully I can keep that trend going
if everybody just behaves themselves. So when
it does happen at this level, it's particularly
rare and the violator has probably really crossed
the line and been, unless it was one play, it
must be somebody that you just can't get through
to between innings like, hey, let's keep it down.
Yeah, I'll tell you a couple of quick stories
of where I had to eject people and they absolutely
deserved it. I had a kid, I was behind home plate.
This kid was batting and a pitch came in fastball,
low outside corner, knee high. They caught the
plate and I said, strike two, you know, strike
for strike two. And he gave me a what? And next
pitch came in same pitch, same location. I rung
him up for strike three. And as he was walking
back to the dugout, he turned to me and yelled
both and cussing on, uh, is an grounds for automatic
ejection. And so I just whipped off my mask and
said, kid, you're done. And I walked up to his
coach and pointed out his number. I said, you're
going to need a new third basement. You know,
what'd he do? Well, the coach asked me, well,
what did my kids say essentially? And I have
to watch my own language or I could be subject
to a punishment myself. And so I just said, he
said the BS word. And, uh, and so it's like,
okay, probably the most serious coaching ejection
I ever did was, uh, over 10 years ago, I had
a banger on the basis that went against the home
team. And the coach came out to disagree with
my call and he got so close to me, he actually
belly bumped me and it's like, all right, you're
done. And before his other coaches could come
and restrain him, he started finger pointing
at me and he actually poked with his index finger,
my upper lip and scratched me. And so I sent
the ejection report and I did something that
I have never done before or since was I actually
included a selfie of me to show the scratch.
And I also made it a point not to shave. So I
had a day's growth and you could still see the
scratch. And so no one can say, oh, Dan cut himself
and is making up a story about, you know, the
coach poking him. No, it was still there. And
the coach ended up getting suspended and fined
by the state association. And he clearly deserved
it. But, you know, those were probably the two
most serious incidents I ever had to deal with
involving an injection. But hey, it does happen.
And if people... Don't behave themselves and
they cross the line. Well, they deserve to get
punished and that applies in real life as well
I guess most of the time you can have you can
have a coach disagree with you and maybe share
his opinion and then after the game Do they not
necessarily say hey, I apologize. I was little
little hot about that, but they just try to shift
gears and and be nice and say hey have a hope
you have a great rest of the weekend or Does
it kind of drift into niceties where it's just,
oh, let's just forget that ever happened? Yeah,
it happens more often than you realize. And yeah,
you understand it's the passion. They're competing.
They're trying to win every game. And at the
end of the game, they recognize, we're just doing
our job. And we quickly let bygones be bygones.
And so that's why we have, we coaches and umpires.
Tend to have an excellent relationship because
we know each other we've seen each other over
the years and we know each other's to be we know
what our roles are and What you also find is
the number of coaches have also umpired games
and so they know what's like to Be behind the
mask and having to do this job Well Dan I Wow
if it's baseball related we could do it two,
three hour episode, and that would be just fine
with me, but do you have time for a few quick,
little fun Dan time questions? Go for it. Okay.
Lightning round. Go for it. I think, you know,
and everybody listening, I don't know if people
even like these questions. The real silly ones.
I've gone a few weeks without popping them out
there, so here we go, folks. Dan, and this is
something that has happened to me. I'm embarrassed
to say at least a couple times. Have you ever
left a restaurant and you got the to -go box
and you're walking out and you gotta get something
in the car first so you put the box on top of
the car and then you just forget that it's there
and you start driving off and all you see in
the side mirror or the rear view is that white
styrofoam box of Tomorrow's lunch that you were
hoping for just fly into the night I Have I have
done that with a to -go cup. I have not done
that with food And it's a it's a humbling moment
that all you can do is just laugh at yourself
I've on countless occasions Got in the box, but
left the food at the restaurant on the table.
That's I don't even know how many times that's
happened I'm laughing with you because those
are mistakes that I could easily make myself
Dan have you ever Don't ask me where these questions
come from I just some of them I screen and some
of them I I moved to the top of the stack Have
you ever had to stop on the road? and run and
use the restroom, and you use the soap from the
soap dispenser, and it's just got this, you know,
it's just not that pleasant soft -soap, homey
kind of fragrance. It's just that gas station
soap fragrance that stays on your hands for the
next half of the day. Does that bother you? It's
a little bit of a problem for me, but I gotta
ask. You know what I'm talking about. We've all
been in those kinds of situations. Heck, I'm
just glad to run into a restroom that actually
has soap. But for that and for other reasons,
I try to keep moist wipes, handy wipes also available
in the car to give my hands a second cleaning
just to be safe. and are you above stopping on
the road because you just you can't wait for
the next exit or two and you pull up and it's
that gas station that they still have the key
to the bathroom around back and you go in and
there's it's just not desirable and you don't
have to do much but you gotta you gotta take
care of business are you above using those less
than ideal bathrooms I bail out of there. All
I ask for is a semi -decent clean bathroom, and
if I can't get it, I'm taking my business literally
elsewhere. Okay, let me clean up my act a little
bit here. What about laughy taffy jokes? Maybe
you don't eat the candy anymore, but we all remember
the material on those wrappers. If your son,
if Jack were to read one off to you, would you,
do you think you'd laugh at most of these jokes?
I would, I would guffaw. But I also know that
a lot of those jokes are what I hear nowadays
are called dad humor, and I'm definitely... One
who spreads dad humor, so that's why My son my
son hates my humor he hates the puns and so So
that's why I get pause because he'll just face
palm at the same time One thing I like about
you Dan is I feel like we are in the same boat
as far as embracing not just fatherhood being
a dad but but being the caricature of the goofy
dad the the corny dad at times and and not Having
any problem with it. I know who I am I know that
some of the music I listen to is not very current
anymore and But as I mentioned I think on an
episode I Did a bonus episode with my brother
Rob and we were talking about planes trains and
automobiles and when John Candy delivers, it's
kind of an emotional scene, but he says, I like
me. I'm fine with this. That's how I feel. I
think that's how you must feel as well. Well,
you and I are comfortable in our own skin. A
quick couple of Laffy Taffy jokes, just since
we brought it up. What's a parasite? The answer
is a place you go in Paris. That's a tough one
That's a good one How do you communicate with
a fish you drop it a line? That's great Why this
is alright this is gonna have to be the last
the last joke why was the cat afraid of the tree
I? Have no idea why was the cat afraid of the
tree because of its bark Uh, but I will say,
you know, because my kids are six and two and
a half. Uh, they'd be rolling on the floor, laughing
at these jokes. And when the time comes, we're
going to dive into them because. Wow. How about
one more? Why don't lobsters share? Hmm. You're
going to love this one, Dan. Why? Why? I don't
know. Why do lobsters not share? Because they
are shellfish. That's those are awesome Those
are great. Keep telling those jokes Dan. All
right one more for for the fans here We're on
our second or third encore Did you hear the joke?
This is this is timely. Do you hear the joke
about the toilet? Never mind. It's too dirty
There we go Those are great. All right, Dan,
thanks for your time. I enjoyed it. Look forward
to catching up with you again. All right. If
you love that episode, if you're enjoying the
Dan Time podcast, be sure to download and subscribe
so you never miss an episode. You can reach me
at dantimepodatgmail .com. Hope you have a great
week. I'll see you next Sunday.