Greetings MAC/NVBUA Umpires,
Well, we’ve arrived at what I am sure is our collective favorite time of the year for those of us providing adjudication services on the local DC region high school baseball fields! Scrimmages are underway, private school games are underway and public schools will throw their first pitches this week. Once again, all of the hardworking staff of Blue Crew News have put together another edition of our beloved newsletter, submitted for your review and approval.
President Maher has thrown some proverbial logs on the fire, he’s in his most comfortable easy chair and he has put together another fine President’s Message for you. (However, unlike FDR, Dave does not have his treasured Scottish Terrier, Fala at his side…) Read his message here.
Blue Crew News’ man of the people…man of the umpires who really sets the standard for classing up any joint, that’s right…intrepid interviewer Gary Reals has worked his magic once again on his vintage Underwood to bring us another excellent profile. This time he had the pleasure of sitting down with MAC/NVBUA association vice-president and umpire extraordinaire Anthony Hemmans! Check out Gary’s piece on The Veep right here.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous super-sleuth Sherlock Holmes once said while on his “Adventure of the Copper Beeches”, “Data! Data! Data! I can’t make bricks without clay!” No doubt when Vin Vena dons his association cap and uniform shirt to Holmes’ deerstalker hat and Inverness cape, swinging into action he says, “Rules! Rules! Rules! I cannot umpire a baseball game without rules!” Yes, Blue Crew News is pleased to report the return again of Vinny and his Case Play Files. In this edition, he’s going to talk with us about some myths that have existed and sadly, continue to exist, in the game of baseball. As umpires, it is most important we do not promulgate these myths! So, fire up your gourd Calabash pipe, throw another log on the fire (Dave’s got plenty to spare, I’m sure…) and spend some quality time with Vin dispelling rule’s myths here.
Batting clean-up this week is Paul Porto, Director of Training. Like most umpires, Paul loves the game of baseball and the craft of umpiring. One of the ways Paul can share that is when he has a chance to lead a group of umpires in a scrimmage or a live-pitching cage session. For this edition, Paul has a photo essay from a recent session he worked at Dominion High School in Sterling, Virginia. Don’t miss a nice piece highlighting all the great work being done by our association umpires in a perhaps slightly different and unconventional way – check out An Afternoon with Titans.
Thank you as always for stopping by and checking out the Blue Crew News. Your photos, feedback and questions are always welcome via email at: [email protected]
Best Regards,
Robert Fobian
Editor, Blue Crew News