On August 31, 2018, a feat occurred in a baseball game between the Yankees and Tigers that doesn't happen too often:  both managers were ejected.

Aaron Boone (Yankees) was ejected by Home Plate Umpire Nic Lentz for arguing balls and strikes.  Ron Gardenhire (Tigers) was ejected by First Base Umpire Paul Nauert for arguing a check swing no-call.  Both cases contained an element of absurdity that further proves that the theater of baseball disqualifications regarding managers is not only a joke to the game, but also an abhorrent way to influence others who witness it.

Boone took exception with the strike zone of Lentz to the point where he made contact with the umpire and put on a demonstration in a catcher's crouch that did nothing more than delay the game and solidify his ignorance towards the arbiters of the game.  What Boone probably didn't know is that, according to the official plot of the zone after the game by Brooks Baseball Pitch f/x tool, Lentz really only missed two pitches the entire game.

Further, Boone was clearly upset at his team's lack of offense and used the ejection as a way to "fire up" his team.  This translates to the idea of yelling vociferously at an innocent umpire to vent your frustrations over your own team's inability to hit with the hope that your players decide to change their ways somehow.

The fact of the matter is that these arguments are rarely filled with the tirade we think they are.  Usually, the manager is yelling about how bad his team is, leaving the umpire the unfortunate target of hate where the fans usually pile on him as the bad guy for tossing the manager (assuming it's the home team).  In fact, even if the manager is yelling about his displeasure with an umpire, the confrontation has the ability to make even a professional umpire begin to question his calls, resulting in more displeasure.

On the flip side, Gardenhire was ejected when Nauert ruled that Yankees hitter Luke Voit did not swing at a pitch.  It was a close pitch and a tough call to make in real time, but the replay seemed to make me think the call was incorrect:  Voit did offer at the pitch.  Gardenhire's argument resulted in ridiculous accusations that Nauert could obviously see through, but it wasn't until the argument finished that it was clear it was a joke of an argument.

As soon as Gardenhire turned around to walk back to the clubhouse, he looked right at Voit who was standing on first base (the no-call resulted in a walk) and asked him, "Did you swing?" as he walked by, followed by a smirk .

Even Gardenhire knew this was a joke.

A few days later, Boone was hit with a one-game suspension for making contact with Lentz during the confrontation.  To quote Boone:

"I was arguing, I got kicked out of the game, I reacted how I reacted.  Unfortunately, I got a little too close, and I do regret that.  I always want to be in control of my emotions, to a degree.  But sometimes you also have to state your claim and defend certain things that are important.  I definitely shouldn't have nicked his cap."

In this brief statement, we got a cop-out about responsibility for one's actions and emotions as well as evidence of misplaced priorities.  No mention of an apology...no mention that Lentz actually was doing a good job...just a lame way of getting around talking about something where Boone was at fault.

Sorry, Aaron.  Cancer is important.  Poverty is important.  Borderline pitches are not.

We've praised Janis Meredith before for her work as a parenting coach.  She recently wrote an article on a topic we have discussed many times before:  abuse of officials.  Her thesis:  how to stop it.

Meredith begins by doing the obvious and the easy:  telling people to JUST STOP.  You would think it should be that easy, but unfortunately, it's not always that simple.  She goes on to give three steps to assist with the process:

1. Sit down.  Many parents get up close and personal (or within earshot) of officials so they are sure officials can hear them.  If you want to stop it, just find a seat and relax.

2. Imagine the official is your child.  In the vein of "treat others as you would wish to be treated," take a moment to imagine how you would feel if you observed someone berating your child in the same way that you might berate an official.  Doesn't feel so good, does it?

3. Remember who is watching.  Can you imagine what would happen if someone used their phone to record your poor behavior and spread it everywhere?  You could lose your job, among other things, if your employer didn't want you associated with the company after seeing it!

If that's not enough for you, then become an official.  After a year, you'll change your tune.  Trust me.

A media piece earlier this year submitted by Today/The Today Show finally provided some statistical data we suspected all along:  we're losing a significant amount of youth sports officials at a rapid rate.

According to the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS, the governing board overseeing high school athletics), 80% of high school sports officials quit before their third year.  The most common reasons are always the verbal and physical abuse from coaches and parents.  In fact, many states are facing the crisis of having to postpone athletic events due to a lack of officials.

Fanning these flames are the threats of social media, where one call can go viral very quickly thanks to the recording capabilities on phones and other devices.  Verbal abuse doesn't just occur on the field anymore:  it's online.

The obvious solution is for people (players, coaches, parents, fans) to behave better.  High school sports are an extension of the classroom.  If you wouldn't act a certain way inside a school, don't act that way while at the field.

But another solution?  If you think you could do better as an official, there is a class waiting for you!  There are cadet courses always looking for more officials.  Why don't you sign up and show everyone your skills?

If you're of a certain age, perhaps you've seen the movie "The Matrix."  If you haven't, here is your spoiler warning...

Have you ever had a point in your life where you can't go back to things the way they used to be?  Have you ever noticed that "life will never be the same?"  That's what Thomas Anderson, a.k.a Neo (played by Keanu Reeves), experienced in "The Matrix" when he was awakened from the false reality and shown what life really was:  a barren landscape left from a war between humans and machines.

There are a lot of points in my life where I felt that way.  But when it comes to sports, I can pinpoint one moment where I experienced it:  the moment I became a baseball umpire.

Since I started officiating baseball games, life hasn't been the same.  Sure, I still root for the Yankees, but I watch umpires just as much.  It's an odd situation where my friends give me a friendly about of grief for my knowledge about umpires!

In an article in Referee Magazine back in March discussing the integrity of officials, it was pointed out that some officials don't treat other officials with respect when they're watching a game, especially if it's a game involving their kids.  For example, if I went to go see my proverbial son play a baseball game, it would be considered wrong if I berated the officials on the field when they know I'm also an official.

Officials are a special breed who are charged with upholding the integrity of competition.  Whether we're on the field or in the stands, all officials have to stand together, like a fraternity of people sharing a common bond.  We cannot complain about fans one day and then be those complaining fans the next.

That's how officials experience the Thomas Anderson effect.  Life is never the same once you step on that field!

The snow in New Jersey throughout March kept me from most of my baseball scrimmages, leaving me all of two games (only one behind the plate) to be ready for the regular season.  However, one play during my final game proved a very important point.

With a runner on first base, the pitcher, while in the stretch, did not come to a complete stop.  My partner correctly ruled it a balk as the pitch was delivered.  The batter, however, swung and lined a base hit through the left side of the infield.  Immediately, I came out from behind the plate and yelled, "TIME!  DEAD BALL!"  The first base coach, however, was already disagreeing with me.  "You have to play that out!  A balk is not a dead ball!"

"Yes it is, coach," I said.  "In NFHS (high school) baseball, a balk is an immediate dead ball."

He immediately dropped his argument, which was amazing, in my opinion.  But my partner took the time to explain it to him.  The runner from first base was advanced to second, and the batter resumed his at-bat.

The conflict that arose is that, in OBR (official baseball rules, which is what MLB uses, as do many other forms of baseball), a balk is a delayed dead ball.  That is, you wait for the play to be over before deciding to enforce the balk.  In the case above, we would have let the play go, then given the offense the option of taking the balk penalty or the result of the play.  However, high school rules do not allow this:  they clearly state that the ball is dead immediately and the balk is enforced.  It's an odd shame when something good happens, though...what if the batter hit a home run?  You guessed it:  I become the bad guy and have to nullify the home run to award the balk penalty.

Sometimes these rules don't make sense.  But it's not my job, as the umpire, to debate the rules.  I just have to enforce them.  Further, the coaches should probably take the time to understand these rules as well.  When offered a high school coaching job, it's not as simple as just teaching the game and leading the team.  You have to understand that there are MAJOR DIFFERENCES between high school sports and other levels of those same sports.

As much as officials do their homework to know these odd rules, coaches need to do the same.  After all, high school athletics are an extension of the classroom.  They are another opportunity to educate student athletes on valuable life lessons.  We, as coaches and officials, owe it to the kids to get it right.

Referee Magazine recently published an article about what the best officials keep doing.  The article made a point to define what the author meant by this, but it essentially came down to the fact that the best officials never stop getting better, nor do they become complacent with "arriving" at the top of their game.

It's something of a natural reaction for us to take a step back and a deep breath when we finally reach the pinnacle of our journey.  When the end of the school year arrives, we usually don't spend the next day doing homework!  And in theory, not only is there really nothing wrong with this, it can be significantly healthy for us to take a step back and relax.

But like everything else in life, when we stop using a skill, a muscle, or a part of our brain for a significant period of time, we can forget how to use it.  It's similar to how we might forget how to get somewhere if we haven't been there in a while.  And officials can't let themselves do that.

The real point, though, is not so much about reaching the end of the physical year, but rather the top of the profession.  When the baseball season ends, umpires don't look for another opportunity to strap on the gear and work the plate.  They cherish the time they have at home, relaxing, spending time with their families, etc.  But the good officials realize that even if they're the oldest, longest tenured officials with the most important assignments, they have to maintain that level and continue to get better, rather than "throw their weight around."

The job of the official is to start out perfect, then get better from there.  Think about that for a second...that sounds like something Yogi Berra would say!  But it's true.  No matter your profession, remember that complacency at the top opens up an avenue for someone beneath you to usurp your glory.

There's an old saying in officiating:  "Remember, they're not your friends."

However, an article published last year in Referee magazine provoked some thought on the relationships officials have with players and coaches.

There's a certain mindset that sometimes goes into the relationship between officials and others in the arena of competition.  Usually, it is akin to a level of animosity that broods a contemptible relationship, almost as if to shift attention from the relationship between two competing entities to a competitive nature between one of those entities and the officials on the contest.  In other words, a team of 9 baseball players aren't competing with another 9 players in a different uniform, but rather the guys on the field in black/blue who are calling ball/strike, fair/foul, and safe/out.

In order for that type of a harsh relationship to maintain any sort of sustainability, it must be fed by all the necessary parties creating it.  Therefore, if one party stops feeding it, it will cease to exist (or at least falter to the point of eventually not working as well).

Case in point:  if an official makes a conscious effort to be more respectful and have a normal professional relationship with others, the chances of things going well increase.  Obviously, it's not a fool-proof solution; there will always be situations where idiots make the game difficult.  But tipping the scales in your favor can never hurt.

It's as easy as greeting people with a smile and a firm handshake.  Rather than being defensive off the bat, understand that knowing how to talk to people and choosing the proper attitude has the power to reform the tone of a conversation and a relationship.  Respecting people and eliminating "attitude" eliminates the potential for conflict.  Even if there is a questionable call (or a blown call), choosing the proper words and approach can be the difference between the issue being dropped immediately and the coach being on you until you reach the parking lot.

By contrast, officials who walk on the field with clout and a bloated ego leading the way can immediately cause coaches and players to question their authority, especially in a day and age where our youth have the potential to be more belligerent and less respectful of others.  An official who thinks that "this is my field and I'm just letting these kids play on it" is bound to have trouble find him/her, whereas an official who is ready to provide a quality service of officiating a game and making sure that they do everything they can to provide the best possible experience for the kids involved is more likely to walk off the field with the respect of the coaches, players, and fans.

In fact, when officials do the latter, watch what happens when those officials return to the field to see one or both of those teams again.  Coaches may suddenly feel at ease knowing the game is in good hands with you at the helm!

If you following the NFL, you may have heard about this little tidbit through the fall of 2017.

Following a victory (yes, a victory) by the Philadelphia Eagles, the fans in Philly were still not pleased with NFL referee Pete Morelli, whose crew had just penalized the Eagles a far significant amount over their opponent that evening, the Carolina Panthers.  In fact, it was so much of a sin to some fans that an online petition was created.

Will Philbrick of Little Rock, AR, created an online petition at Change.org to ban Morelli and his crew from officiating Eagles games.  Directly from the petition:

"NFL Referee Pete Morelli has a clear and statistically obvious bias against the Philadelphia Eagles. Over the last four games that he has officiated that the Eagles were playing in, the Eagles were flagged a total of 40 times for 396 yards, while the Eagles opponent in those games were flagged a mere 8 times for 74 yards. This is unacceptable and puts the Philadelphia Eagles at a disadvantage. Preventing Morelli from refereeing Eagles games will result in a more trustworthy and honest NFL. This will benefit the entire league and keep all claims of conspiracy to a normal level."

At the time of writing this post, the petition was signed by over 75,000 people.

Okay, you now have permission to take a few minutes to let all this sink in, followed by letting the rage stemming from the stupidity of this subside so you can think clearly.

Let's now go over every aspect of how dumb this is.

1. NFL officiating crews not only change from time to time, but Morelli's crew was completely different in this game following similar gripes in years past.  So to say this is entirely Morelli's fault (or the fault of his crew) is to say that a large number of officials who have it out for the Eagles, not just Morelli.  That seems absurd.

2. NFL officials are so highly trained and scrutinized that, unless there is some clear debacle at hand (like in the NBA with referees being paid off), claiming that there is a bias shows very little education for how the system works.  All NFL officials are graded so stringently that to be this poor, as is being claimed, would mean these officials would not get postseason assignments or would be completely dismissed from officiating altogether.  So unless there is a covert mission to infiltrate the professional officiating community by James Bond himself just to do this, followed by a complete extraction from the program after the mission is complete, it seems highly improbable that there is actually a bias.

3. The NFL has been plagued with scandals that are far worse than this throughout the course of this season.  Not only is viewership down due to the National Anthem protests, but CTE and head trauma has forced people like me to turn the game off and find something better to do on Sundays.  You can also point to domestic violence as an issue that continues to plague the league.  No matter how you slice it, the issues that stem from the protests, CTE, and domestic violence are probably a bit more important than whether Pete Morelli's crew might have flagged your team for a call with which you may not have necessarily agreed.

4. Before the Eagles and their fans go pointing fingers at others, perhaps they should be looking in the mirror as a collective whole.  I don't think I'm breaking new ground when I say that Philadelphia sports fans carry an unfortunate label as very poor sports.  These are the same fans that booed Santa Claus and required a jail and judge placed in the bowels of their stadiums.  I know we're casting a wide net in grouping all fans together, which is unfair because there are some Philadelphia fans that are decent; in fact, the same could be said about most fan bases in that the actions of a few should not represent the group as a whole.  However, it seems fair to reference how Philly gets a worse reputation than most based on the frequency of incidents.

Now, let's consider some of the more specific points of this ridiculous case.

First, the fact that Change.org is programmed to follow the same bleeding-heart protocol and beg for my help as I scan the page for information makes me never want to sign a petition again...not that I was signing many in the first place.  I know the site has to be fair to all users, but you'd think that someone at the company would look at this and say, "Really?  Can we just delete this?"

Second, the fact that over 75,000 people actually think this is a real problem is a major indictment on our society.  If there were 3,000 signatures, I'd just laugh it off.  But 75,000?  What are you people doing with your time?  How about dedicating it to a cause that actually might make the world a better place, rather than take a stance against perceived poor officiating within entertainment?

Finally, do you really think that Roger Goodell cares about this?  This is a man who has laughed in the face of serious issues plaguing his league due to the amount of money the sport makes and the amount of money that goes into his pocket.  They don't care about this.  They care more that you're just watching and playing into the plan that your eyeballs continue to see the advertisements that provide them with the infinite dollars that make them rich.

If you really wanted to take a stand, you'd turn off the game.

In a society where people are innocent until proven guilty, we must preface this story by stating that we cannot prove intent.  The only judgment we can give is that from the court of public opinion, not one with any actual legal weight.

Last season, an incident occurred where MLB umpire Quinn Wolcott was hit with a fastball up around the head/neck area from Detroit Tigers pitcher Buck Farmer.  The incident immediately followed Wolcott's ejection of both Tigers catcher James McCann and then manager Brad Ausmus over balls and strikes.

The problem wasn't just that Wolcott was hit, but that the immediate reaction was incredibly telling by the Tigers.  As soon as Wolcott went down, Cleveland Indians batter Yandy Diaz was the only one to tend to Wolcott until base umpires Brian O'Nora and Paul Emmel made it to the plate at a dead sprint, meeting the Indians training staff at the same time.

Replacement catcher John Hicks and pitcher Buck Farmer paid zero attention to Wolcott.

The key to this incident is in Hicks' response.  Catchers and umpires have a kinship because they both wear the gear behind the plate.  They are both subject to the bumps and bruises of foul balls and other minor injuries throughout the course of a game.  They work together to get strikes called for pitchers.  Even though they're not on the same "team," per se, they are on the same team.  When one goes down, the other tends to him.

So when Hicks immediately ignored Wolcott, that told you all you needed to know.

No postgame comments from anyone on the Tigers could sway the opinion otherwise.  Following the incident with the Yankees earlier in the year, it was pretty clear that the 2017 Detroit Tigers were no longer playing for their late owner:  they were in a selfish free fall that can best be described as unfortunate.

In this three part series, we will examine some of the craziness of MLB umpires that took place during August 2017.

Okay, I have officially given up on the Sporting News.

Joe Rivera is the latest to write the standard article about a disdain for umpires.  He goes through the usual rhetoric about umpires not understanding people aren't there to see them officiate or knowing the name of an umpire.

I get it.  But enough is enough.

Umpires make mistakes.  But why are sports writers and fans so quick to criticize rather than empathize?  Aren't we all prone to mistakes?

I just can't take any more of these articles that take the time to call out officials.  Do we ever praise officials for a good job?  For every one time an official makes a mistake, there are a million other times they do their job properly!

Ironically, the same day I read Rivera's article is the same day that Christopher "Mad Dog" Russo praised three umpires for three ejections in the same day!

To summarize the ejections:

1. Stu Scheurwater ejected Mariners manager Scott Servais for arguing a check swing.
2. Chris Segal ejected Cardinals manager Mike Matheny for arguing "time" being called.
3. Chris Conroy ejected Cubs manager Joe Maddon for arguing a bunt attempt on a hit by pitch.

And Mad Dog didn't even mention this one:

4. Lance Barksdale ejected Blue Jays manager John Gibbons for arguing balls and strikes.

I'll save you the dissection of each situation, but I happen to agree with the umpires in every single one.

It just goes to show you that praise never makes it way to umpires.  Everyone knows about the bad stuff, but nobody remembers the good stuff.