Just one more reminder

Last week I went to a few different games and events, all baseball by the way. It was fun … it is nice to be back out there and to see some familiar faces and to feel a sense of somewhat normalcy.

However, one thing that has always, and will always, drive me crazy happened in all games I was at: People being ruthless to the officials.

I have written about this before so nothing I am about to say should be a surprise, but one of my biggest pet peeves as a sports journalist is seeing officials getting verbally abused by fans, coaches and players. It drives me crazy.

I’m not sure if it is because we were all cooped up for three months due to the ongoing pandemic, but collectively, this was probably the worst week I have ever seen. I saw officials being cursed at, mocked, yelled at, questioned on seemingly every call. Not just by coaches, by everyone. It was a really rough week.

First off, no one other than the head coach should be speaking to officials when it comes to voicing displeasure or arguing a call. That’s just how it should be in my opinion, that is one of the duties and authorities of a coach, bridging the gap between the team and the officials.

Even if the official does make an incorrect call, the only person on the field that should be saying anything is the coach, period. That was far from the case in these games that I was at, these umps heard it from all over.

Look, I am not against a coach arguing a call or calling out an official. Sometimes refs do make lousy calls, sometimes they do have an effect on the game. I know if I was a coach and my team was on the wrong end of a bad call, I’d have a lot of trouble hiding my frustration as well.

But in a sport like baseball especially, not every ball or strike is game-altering. Yes, you can argue that each pitch is important, and it is, but sometimes it is just easier to let a call go and move on to the next one than it is to chirp and get frustrated.

Especially during times like these when there are more COVID-related restrictions on umps, causing them to have to officiate from different angles, field positions, and even sometimes having to call a game alone. It is tougher than ever.

Not to mention the fact that umpires are neutral. If they are bad at their job, then they are hurting each team. Maybe I am naive for thinking that there is no bias when it comes to local officiating, and I am absolutely not saying poor officiating is acceptable, but it drives me crazy when teams truly believe that they lost because of the ref. Sometimes that is the case, but it is very, very rare. The better team usually wins, and it is usually because they outplay their opponent.

The shortage of officials has been well documented for years now and continues to worsen. People wonder why this is, but from talking to local officials, it is obvious … people simply do not want to deal with being treated poorly for little pay. For those of you who are not aware, umpires do not get paid much, they are there because they love sports and are looking to make a little extra on the side.

In today’s climate though, is it really worth it? I know that I would never put myself through it, it just is not worth it.

And of course, part of the job is having thick skin. It comes with the territory, you certainly can’t be a ref if you are sensitive or averse to criticism. But there is a big difference between being disagreed with and being harassed, and the latter happened in every single game I was at.

Don’t get me wrong either, one of my favorite parts of sports is the fan interaction. Go ahead and boo a call, go ahead and crack a joke or two at a ref, sometimes it is quite entertaining. But when you swear at an official or call them out with a hostile approach … it’s really just annoying and accomplishes nothing other than embarrassing yourself and your child on the field.

Going back to bias by the way, if you’re a player getting in the face of a ref, don’t expect to get the 50-50 call the next time you’re up. Fine, I’m a hypocrite.

This column is not breaking news and I do not expect to make a huge difference with this issue. It always has been a problem and unfortunately always will be, but I am simply just trying to remind readers to relax once in a while and to not forget that it is just a game, played for fun.

Refs are not perfect, they make mistakes. Being the human beings that they are, they also hear what you have to say and sometimes even the thickest of skin can’t protect one’s confidence and ego. Don’t be a jerk, let the coach do the talking, and remember this is all for fun. F-U-N.

Bad calls happen and they can be frustrating. But let’s not lose sight of the big picture. We are all human, we are all going through a tough year, and we all just want to live our lives in comfort. We’re in this together.