That was one general manager's broad-brushed assessment during another of baseball's periodic umpiring rebellions.

It was said more with regret than animosity, and it rang true. Unfortunately for the sport, there is still some truth to it a decade later.

Umpires: How to Become an Umpire | ybevosapoyud.web.fc2.com

If you want to understand the strained climate that exists between umpires and too many of the other people who work in baseball, consider the system that produces the Ken Kaisers and Joe Wests. They don't simply apply for the job after graduating from college--or even from umpire school, for that matter. Like an undrafted player, they must start at the very bottom of their sport and work their way up.

For those who succeed in reaching the majors, the long climb can cost them their youth and take a heavy toll on their personal lives. Unlike players, they have no organizations equally committed to their success.

They are truly on their own. They travel the country in vans and road-weary autos from one city to the next, driving through the night when it's necessary. Their pitiful salaries force them to live on the tightest of budgets.

Just how pitiful are these salaries? That's a cool 17 grand a year--and Eric Krupa, an adminstrator in the Professional Baseball Umpires Corportation, says it generally takes about eight years for an umpire to work his way up to Class AAA. Once an umpire gets a full-season job at any level, he qualifies for year-around medical benefits.

The Average Yearly Income for Major League Umpires | ybevosapoyud.web.fc2.com

Leagues pick up hotel charges, but that's no bargain. Umpires are paid a per diem for meals. And a pension plan? Yet year after year, scores of men and a few brave women ply their lonely trade. They do it because they see "the golden ring" of a job in the major leagues, according to Krupa.

The few umpires who do reach the big leagues there are 68 full-time umpires, and most of them have at least 10 years' service time have succeeded in turning an awful job into a good one. Can anybody blame them for having chips on their shoulder when they arrive or a feeling of entitlement as they settle into a long career? If dozens of major-league umpires resign their positions Sept. Baseball would go on, most likely with a combination of replacement umpires and young major-league umpires unwilling to walk away from the job they sacrificed so much to get.

Like most threats, this one probably will go away. But the standoff between Phillips and baseball executive Sandy Alderson is likely to get even uglier before it is resolved.

Unlike their big-league counterparts, no one should blame minor-league umpires if they stage a walkout to bring attention to their thankless existences.

These guys have a legitimate beef. If Major League Baseball wants to improve umpiring for future generations, it will focus its attention on the guys working in places like Burlington, Iowa, and Augusta, Ga, not just at Comiskey Park and Wrigley Field. Phillies pitcher Paul Byrd had no trouble with dinner reservations while in Boston for the All-Star Game.

He threw out his father's name, not his own. That's Larry, as in Larry Byrd. Former Dodgers GM Fred Claire never has tried to duck responsibility for trading All-Star MVP Pedro Martinez to Montreal for second baseman Delino DeShields in But now surgeon Frank Jobe says he deserves some blame too. At the time of the trade, Martinez was all but lost in brother Ramon's shadow.

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Jobe reconstructed Martinez's left non-pitching shoulder, which he injured sliding into a base in the minors. He advised Claire that Martinez appeared susceptible to problems with his right foot. Umpires Pay Heavy Dues On Way To Majors. July 18, By Phil Rogers. When one partner in a marriage doesn't want sex, what are options? Former Illini football player convicted of sexual assault. What are the differences? Children can have significant reactions to insect bites.

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