The Sashman Speaks

Sooo an important thing I learned today,  which is to just to the best I can and not to let the instructors or anyone else get me down and discouraged about my abilities as an umpire.  I quickly realized once I got down here at school that I didn't posses the physical abilities to be a big league umpire, and thats okay because I am doing the best that I can, and in the end I am okay with that fact.   I mean I know I will never be on a big league field as an umpire but I am okay with being on high school fields and maybe one day if the challenge arrises  I can be on a college field, but I will never stop learning, trying, expanding my knowledge of the game, my love of the game or my passion for the game.

Soo as we finished up week # 4 and start towards the home stretch, I am amazed at how fast this experience has gone.  I have waited over 3 years for this experience and to be on the fields working and learning and gaining experience that hopefully I will be able to use in order to become a better umpire, then I was before I came here.  Also getting to know and meet the instructors has been amazing. To personally get to talk with and get to know this guys that I have watched for years on tv and to just see them and talk with them has been a great learning experience.  As the guys have hammered into us, "Don't leave this experience with any regrets." I am definitely not going to do that. Even with my knee injury, I never stopped I kept fighting and learning and busting my ass to get back on the field, and I can tell everyone that I will not have any regrets when I come home, I will have left everything out on the field and will have made each and everyone of you that has...

Soo today's class was a continuation about our learning about how to deal with situations, also known as how to deal with Ejections.  Its not as easy as you may think and there are some boundaries and guidelines that we as umpires are supposed to follow in order to not have situations escalate and become worse.  So when it was my turn I had decided to eject the instructor no matter what he had to say.. which wasn't exactly what we were supposed to do, but I just wanted to have some fun!  soo to make a long story short, I set the record at least for right now for the quickest ejection of about 3 seconds :)  Other then that just had a fun day and my inning went well and I am continuing to improve and get better and my mistakes are becoming fewer and fewer just have to take what I am told and apply it and I feel that at the end of this course not only will I have learned soo much about umpiring and how to be a better umpire but that I will have a lot more respect and...

Soo today was a very light day. Had no control games or innings, but did have some time out on the drill field to get back into the habit of doing routine plays to get back into the swing of full umpiring.  Sadly I also started to realize how cutthroat this business can be.  Soo due to my injuries I haven't fully been at full health, as well as my other physical issues, have made my career has an umpire not the easiest of things to do.  I usually often in pain from my legs to my back and I do my best to push through it to continue to work my game, and due to the pain I may not look at athletic or graceful as other guys out there on the field, but I do my best.    One of the guys that I have gotten to know here at school, told me that sadly there have been a few guys that have snickered and made fun of me behind my back. He told me, not to worry about that, that the situation had been taken care of and that I should just focus on my game. To hear that a guy t...

WOW.. what a day.. first off today was the first day I was able to fully get back to full Baseball activities and it felt great.  Had a little setback when my knee and then my back tightened but I wasn't going to let that stop me from being on the field.  Let me first explain what control games are. They are games that are directed and instructed by the instructors to have certain situations be played and we as the umpires have to work the plays that are given.     I was very nervous since I hadn't been on a field in over a week, but I did pretty well only making a few minor mistakes that usually arise when I haven't been on a field in a while. Then after lunch I had my inning. Now our inning is a full 3 outs ( or as much as the instructors sitting up in the podium want us to work)   Once again was nervous but I was excited and was able to work my first official inning since I last was on a field in August.  The feeling of having all my fellow umpires r...

Soo the past few days have been good and bad. Been continuing to work and get into the cage for my plate work, but sadly my knee is still not where I had hoped it would be.  I have been slowly getting better and better and progressing, and tomorrow will once again try and get back out there and prove my umpiring skills.  Also this school has provided me with such a great opportunity to get to know some amazing guys and the instructors as well, and to get to know this guys has been such a privilege and honor.  I can't believe how fast this is going but I am enjoying every second of it!

Soo today,  started with a nice breakfast with my dad, before he had to leave to head back to VT.  We had a really good visit, other then our little blow up with usually happens every now and then,( They happen because we are soo likeminded that we usually argue and 20 minutes later apologize and move on.  After he left, went to the fields. Since I couldn't really do much for drills/ manuvers  I ended up doing a lot of watching and hopefully I was able to visualize and understand a lot of what was being thrown at us.  This week is where things start to get pretty intesene and we were told that most of us would hit a wall, and hit a wall we did.  I really enjoy being a part of this program and the guys are a lot of fun to be around and work with, so I am sure we will continue to push through and make the next three plus weeks as enjoyable as possible.  So things to look forward to this week, are my knee getting stronger/healthier and getting back on...

Soo as we start the beginning of week #3 I have come to the realization that as much as I want to be like all the other guys who are here umpiring, I need to be able to listen to my body and adjust certain things to make it possible to actually umpire correctly.  My knee is still in one place the swelling has continued to go down but the soreness is still there. Hopefully by Tuesday or Wednesday I can slowly start ramping it up again and won't have lost too much time.

So today, was the weekly 6 hours at the field starting at 10 am. We started with drills followed by more drills then lunch then drills and more drills then some fun competition stuff.  Also in the middle of this my dad arrived from VT ! It was such a boost to see him here and smiling and enjoying himself watching all the baseball action around him.    He got to meet our head instructor as well as Ed Hickcox who paid me a very high compliment saying I was a hard working, determined and that he enjoyed having me around.  Quite honor to hear that.  Also at least a couple times my dad said to me that seeing me on a baseball field brought him such joy and that he was "filled with pride"  Hearing him say those words ... it means the world to me.  Sadly he will only be here till Monday afternoon, but just having him here has boosted my confidence, my whole outlook on this school and just has made me feel soo wanting to excel and push myself that much harde...

Soo today hasn't been the kind of day I was hoping for. Woke up and the pain in my knee had returned. I was hoping that after yesterday being a good day and not having that much swelling and pain that it was starting to subside and potentially heal so I could get back on the field fast.   Well not so fast... turns out that I need at least today to let it fully recover and heal and while it's very frustrating to not be on the field with the rest of my class, I would rather let it heal and not be in pain then, try and push myself past my limits.  I hate thinking of myself as "limited" or not able to do as much as others.  I don't like using excuses for my limitation of what I can and can't do on a baseball field or in every day life.  I have always tried to do what I can and to be the best that I can, but sometimes I let my "overdrive" kick in when I should be slowing down and going into neutral.  I believe in my abilities and try as hard as I can t...

Soo today started off with going down to class and we got to be introduced to a sure hall of fame Umpire Bruce Froemming.. now a lot of Red Sox /mlb fans will remember him as being the Umpire that tried to get in between A-Rod and Varitek before the huge brawl in 04.  Bruce also has the record for most seasons umpired by a MLB guy over 30+ years.  Also today got to meet Ed Rapuano, have a open discussion with Paul Nauert whose time as our instructor ended today. It was such an wonderful experience to get to talk with and have him observe and offer advise to me as a learning/maturing umpire.  Also today  one of the past students and minor league umpires,  received the "call" and was promoted to the MLB staff of Umpires.  When we got to the fields I was really hoping my knee would hold up and it did  and was able to do the drills today. I am still slowly improving my mechanics each and every time I get out on the field and by the end of this school I a...

So today at Camp.... had our first two tests which I think I did pretty well on .. only getting maybe one or two questions wrong... so that's not too bad for my first two tests.  Afterwards we were doing base mechanics and drills and was going up the first baseline as a runner hit the center of the base with my left leg and my knee "popped" so just tried to take it easy, massage, stretch it out and such.. then got right back in there only to have it pop again.  SO sadly had to sit out the rest of the drills, but that didn't mean that I stopped encouraging and supporting my classmates and helping them with the pivot and drop steps and just giving them encouragement.  I am really starting to enjoy my time here and get to know the other guys here. They are all really great guys love the game, and its great to be around them!

Soo today was a very good day. Started off with a little rust when it came to getting back onto the field but was about to brush that off and quickly get right back into the swing of things !  Today was a lot more of plate work and today they added in fair/foul ball /mechanics and voice. My first go around wasn't my best with my hat/mask technique still needing to be refined a little bit, but I am improving each day which is really picking my confidence up.  In fact after doing one of my "drills" one of the instructors was like, " Now that's how we do it "  I also got a thumbs up from one of the MLB umpires which really helped.       I am starting to feel more comfortable here at the school, and have found a really good group of guys that are willing to help encourage,support, push/challenge/ help and just be my friend while I am here.   Tomorrow is our first set of tests and I am feeling good about going into them and coming out with good resul...

Soo today was our day off from class/field work, but that doesn't mean we weren't practicing our mechanics or studying terms/rules.  Today after getting breakfast, went down to the beach and joined in with a group of guys practicing our plate mechanics and our safe/out calls.  Then watched some football, went food-shopping and got some dinner, talked with some friends and just chilled out.  In a little while I head to my study group to once again practice my plate work and other odds and ends of my craft.  I am feeling much better about my choice to come here and not feeling as stressed and worried about things.       My thinking is that my realistic chances of making it are not the best ( there are 175 or so students here, with maybe 25-50 jobs available) So what my goal is, is to be the best umpire I can be, to give 110% percent every single time I take a field and leave the evaluation to the instructors and to just leave everything I have out th...

Soo today marks my first full week of being down in Daytona. What a different culture and weather patterns I have witnessed. Also in regards to the school.       There are close to 175 students here, from all over the country and the world, including two from Alaska, two students with the same last name ( no relation) one from Japan, one from Mexico, and of course I am the ONLY VERMONTER !!!!  I will admit getting to meet and talk with all the instructors including Hunter Wendelstedt and Ed Hickcox has been like a dream. Getting to ask them questions about proper mechanics or having them explain proper stance,  or what the MLB is looking for for Umpires is amazing.  Throughout the program we will be getting to meet many more people and I look forward to each and every opportunity to talk with and pick their brains about this craft that I have such a deep love and appreciation for.   When I am not in class or on the field,  I have been able to ge...

Soo today since the fields were damp we spend most of the day going over the Dimensions and the measurements of the field, and equipment. Not an exciting day but a well used day of being able to learn and process important information.  Later bought myself a new Mask, which after 10 years of using the "Bucket" or Hockey Style helmet will take some getting used to, but since, here at school we are taught to use the "2 piece" I thought it was important to buy myself my own, then continuing to borrow other's.  In case anyone didn't see my post earlier on facebook here is a photo After Dinner, had a really fun study group with a bunch of other students and we went over part of the manuel, as well as practicing removing our masks without knocking off our hats. ( there is a trick ... but sadly you have to be an umpire to know it ;) Tomorrow, heading back to the fields to work on 2 man mechanics and hopefully the weather cooperates.

Sooo today was the official first day of getting onto a Field and doing drills and boy has it been a while.  The last time I was on a field was at the end of August, so my body wasn't really quite ready for the squatting of getting into position to call balls and strikes, safes and outs.  But after some loosening up and some stretching my body warmed up and I quickly found myself back behind the plate trying to retrain my eyes to "track the pitch" and to find the right timung with calling the pitch. Still a work in progress, but that's why we have 5 weeks of this course!   Tomorrow more class work and then back to the field ( hopefully the weather holds up ... yes its supposed to rain here in Daytona) I know all my friends back North and East are like its close to Zero out with a wind chill..  so I should be quiet about the weather.. well I am sorry to all my friends back home hope you guys all stay warm and happy :)

Sooo where do I start.. So Umpiring Camp has officially begun with registration earlier this morning.  Well the interesting and anxiety filled part of my morning was that they couldn't FIND me in the system.  So I spend about 2 hours waiting, talking with my dad, and the other instructors who were finally able to get me registered and all set up and ready to go.  At the end of the registration I finally got to meet some of the instructors including the head of the school Hunter Wendelstedt himself.  I am soo excited for the Opening Banquet and to start up with instruction tomorrow morning !