Message from Paul Rybarczyk - February 22, 2024
We are less than 3 weeks from our high school season opener. Hopefully, the weather will be like today and we can get these early games in....
I want to thank all of the 82 umpires who attended are CCUA clinic a week ago at Brother Rice High School. I want to personally thank all of the the speakers who discussed a variety of important topics. Hopefully, you will utilize the expertise they brought to the table when you start umpiring this spring...Rob Hacker has sent all of the names who attended the clinic in to the IHSA. Please check your Officials Center to make sure you have received credit for our clinic. If you did NOT, and were at the clinic -please contact either Rob or myself so the state can give you credit.
While we were at the clinic, I had the opportunity to talk with some of you. I plan to be out to more games this season to observe. This was something the CCL wanted me to do as the assigner. Also, there may be some misunderstanding of what I discussed with the varsity umpires in our short session prior to mechanics. Two things: 1) the coaches want a bigger strike zone. They also want a consistent strike zone. What is a strike in the first inning should also be a strike in a tie ball game in the 7th inning.2) With regards to plate and base assignments at the varsity level: When I assigned the games in October and November, I did not purposely put an umpire on the plate and the other on the base. I just assigned the games as I always have in the past with no rationale on which umpire was doing the plate or base assignment. I have done that with 3 man though, as that is a different mechanic. So what is the change? What I need umpires to do is two things: Check with your partner prior to a CCL game and decide who is doing the plate. If it is the same as Arbiter currently shows, you need to do nothing more. If it is opposite of what Arbiter shows, Umpire A is doing plate and Umpire B is on the bases and Umpire B is now doing the plate and Umpire A is doing the bases, you need to contact both schools (head coaches) and inform them of the change. The head coaches have NO say in who is doing the plate and base. All they want to know is who is doing it!!! It's that simple. I heard talk already that the coaches are dictating who is doing the plate... NONSENSE! They are not even involved in this whole process. I hope that clarifies that.
I need you to do the following:Update you calendars now! I will be getting more changes and I want to know your open dates.Send me your March open dates so I can develop a list.For lower class officials, I just added some Notre Dame games and the CCL tourney games from May 11th to the 16th are listed in Arbiter as TBA. If you are open, please take a TBA as games will be both on the North and South side - maybe even western suburbs. I will schedule umps accordingly.
Thanks for coming to the clinic...Appreciate it...Looking forward to a great season...
Paul
I want to thank all of the 82 umpires who attended are CCUA clinic a week ago at Brother Rice High School. I want to personally thank all of the the speakers who discussed a variety of important topics. Hopefully, you will utilize the expertise they brought to the table when you start umpiring this spring...Rob Hacker has sent all of the names who attended the clinic in to the IHSA. Please check your Officials Center to make sure you have received credit for our clinic. If you did NOT, and were at the clinic -please contact either Rob or myself so the state can give you credit.
While we were at the clinic, I had the opportunity to talk with some of you. I plan to be out to more games this season to observe. This was something the CCL wanted me to do as the assigner. Also, there may be some misunderstanding of what I discussed with the varsity umpires in our short session prior to mechanics. Two things: 1) the coaches want a bigger strike zone. They also want a consistent strike zone. What is a strike in the first inning should also be a strike in a tie ball game in the 7th inning.2) With regards to plate and base assignments at the varsity level: When I assigned the games in October and November, I did not purposely put an umpire on the plate and the other on the base. I just assigned the games as I always have in the past with no rationale on which umpire was doing the plate or base assignment. I have done that with 3 man though, as that is a different mechanic. So what is the change? What I need umpires to do is two things: Check with your partner prior to a CCL game and decide who is doing the plate. If it is the same as Arbiter currently shows, you need to do nothing more. If it is opposite of what Arbiter shows, Umpire A is doing plate and Umpire B is on the bases and Umpire B is now doing the plate and Umpire A is doing the bases, you need to contact both schools (head coaches) and inform them of the change. The head coaches have NO say in who is doing the plate and base. All they want to know is who is doing it!!! It's that simple. I heard talk already that the coaches are dictating who is doing the plate... NONSENSE! They are not even involved in this whole process. I hope that clarifies that.
I need you to do the following:Update you calendars now! I will be getting more changes and I want to know your open dates.Send me your March open dates so I can develop a list.For lower class officials, I just added some Notre Dame games and the CCL tourney games from May 11th to the 16th are listed in Arbiter as TBA. If you are open, please take a TBA as games will be both on the North and South side - maybe even western suburbs. I will schedule umps accordingly.
Thanks for coming to the clinic...Appreciate it...Looking forward to a great season...
Paul