Over the last few weeks, calls for replay have reached an all-time high, as epic failures by umpires in playoff games have brought the Umpocalypse upon us. However, while replay should be pursued and will help correct the most egregious mistakes, it does not get at the core of the problem. While umpires may be as good as they have ever been, that is no longer enough. Their mistakes have been exposed by technology that allows us to analyze every decision they make, such that MLB is losing some legitimacy due to their lack of competence. I have a few ideas for helping MLB ameliorate this issue, and hope that you will contibute some solutions of your own in the comments.
1) Train umpires in-house: This is an important problem, and it is one that shocks me each time I think about it. Major League Baseball does not train their own umpires, leaving that task to the umpires themselves. This is an untenable state of affairs, as quality control begins at the training stage, and younger umpires are being trained by the very umpires that we find to be incompetent. How can you expect those umpires to be better than those that they are learning from when they have no external influences involved in their formative training? Obviously, even if MLB takes control of umpire training, existing umpires will need to be involved in the schooling. However, MLB needs to have some oversight to ensure proper quality control.
2) Pay at the minor league level: Major League umpires make somewhere between $100,000 and 350,000, a tidy sum for a job that only requires 6 months of work. However, minor league umpires make a pittance despite intense travel schedules and fairly poor working conditions. Being that there are not that many Major League slots and that umpires only release those jobs upon retirement, it is obvious to see why intelligent candidates might eschew umpiring as a career choice. Why endure tough conditions for little money on the off chance that you make the majors when you can make more doing something else? There is little incentive for the best potential candidates to become umpires, leaving us with second-tier talents to train. Major League Baseball should make an investment in the sport and offer higher salaries to umpires at the minor league level. Enticing better umpire candidates should be a priority for MLB in solving their officiating problem.
3) Rigorous evaluation: As I mentioned in the last section, umpires are entrenched at the Major league level, such that those in the minors have little chance of making it to the show. Furthermore, while umpires are evaluated in the current system, there does not seem to be much in the way of repercussions for a poor evaluation. Both problems can be fixed by instituting a system whereby umpires can be sent down to the minors based on poor evaluations, with umpires who have scored well at AAA taking their places. This would incentivize umpires to perform at an optimal level every night, and show fans and players that umpires are being held accountable for their actions. This would also help clear out some of the dead weight that has accumulated in the umpiring ranks over the years, as all umpires would be subject to the evaluation system.
What do you think about these ideas? How would you address the umpiring problem?
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7 Responses to Discussion: Fixing The Umpiring
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TIQ IQ
4) Make umpiring evaluation methods and scores available to the public.
5) Assign only the best (i.e. highest rated) umpires to Play-off Games.
Hello Moshe..Most of the worst calls, you do not need slow mo, or replay..naked eye calls..thats the problem..the slow mo calls are above human perception ,and could be tolerated.i forget what game it was, the running over slid second base ,the guy had the glove on him,the ump had a very close position, perfect to see it..he blew it..what i think happens.they assume it should be out , start their call, and stick by it..instead of instantly changing the call. it comes down to how much power they have and must feel above reproach..look how quick they throw guys out..they stare at a player walking away from them looking for an excuse to toss them..some even take a few steps with them walking away..the days of martin, pinnella, lasorda, i went blank the manager from balt..how can i forget his name..and several other great managers who really showed up the guys in blue are gone..they need to be taken back down a few notches, i feel they have a right to question calls,,,if not lets do this…managers are not allowed on the field to argue, but get two challenges a game on replay..the on field debates , compared to a replay by a guy in the booth or at a central location for all games will take up less time.. see if they like that.
Excellent suggestions Moshe. With tongue firmly in cheek, I propose the following:
1- Televised off-season eye examinations. Imagine the excitement in trying to discover on live TV whether Phil Cuzzi’s consistent inability to distinguish fair from foul and safe from out is caused by some correctable vision problem or just plain incompetence. Bring in a nationally renowned opthamologist to provide the analysis as the examinations are taking place.
2- Ball- Strike testing in spring training. Give the boys a couple of weeks of games to get their stuff together and then have their ball- strike calling capability put to the test using modern technology. Everyone would have to surpass a certain percentage- let’s say 95% – over three games- to be allowed to start the season. if not, extended spring training or back to the minors. Imagine the drama in the final week of spring training seeing whether C. B. Bucknor can nail 99% of ball/ strike calls right in his final game to hang on for another year.
3- Athletic skills competition. We want our umps to be in shape. Televise Cowboy Joe West running against Tim McClelland around the bases. At the risk of embarrassment this will whip them into shape so they can be in position to make the proper calls on plays which require some running..
4-Points system for blown calls. Much like the NBA has a punitive system for excessive technical fouls, why not a similar concept for umpire’s missed calls on the bases. For example, give them one point for getting a bang bang play wrong at first, two points for a missed trapped fly in the outfield, three points for a miss on a ball down the line, etc. Accumulate a certain number of points then you get suspended without pay, do it again and down to the minors you go. Make each umpires running tally public. In addition to forcing the boys to be on their toes this will add a new element of suspense to each close call because of the potential ramifications for the umpire.
This is hilarious. Love it.
I’d use robots.
It’s funny, because Richie Phillips made them completely off-limits as far as any kind of oversight, then they threw that away by walking away. But MLB acts as if RP is still top dog, and refuses to fire even the most incompetent, even allowing them to force questec out of the equation. (Heaven forfend any kind of evaluation.)
Now the vast majority have their own strike zones completely different from what the rule-book states, and can’t seem to make even the easiest calls.
Either MLB/Bud Selig grows a pair and starts firing the most incompetent or it’ll get worse.
I’m assuming instant replay is besides the point here?
I agree with all three points, and have argued for the second two for some time (hadn’t realized the first but it is the most neccesary).
Other things I would strongly consider.
First, have each ump at a fixed position, rather than rotate them. I’d rather the ump be really great at being a 1st base ump, than a pretty good one at all the positions.
Second, if the do not have it already, fitness and vision tests every year, with a strong penalty, including forced retirement.
Third, consider making a 6 man umpiring crew standard. If it is important in teh post season, why doesn’t it matter in the regular season? When you so often have divisions won by a game or two, it becomes imperative that an ump doesn’t give away those games. Given what the umpires make – a good sum for you and I, but a pittance to MLB – this should be affordable. However, it can’t happen until they start paying and training at the lower levels to increase the talent pool.