Yes. I am talking about umpires, referees, and officials of sports games.
The above are considered minor insults compared to what can be hurled at officials in person and, these days, online in any number of forums. Complaints, transgressions, nitpicking, and more remain part of the game, right or wrong, directed at those in charge of officiating any number of events.
Amplified to the extreme, thanks to technology, where every perceived missed call, bad call, and no call is analyzed more than a conspiracy theorist breaking down the Zapruder film. In many ways, advances in technology have helped games at a professional and college level, aiding in correcting mistakes and finding the right call.
Technology, too, can be detrimental. Specifically, the advent of the K-Zone (and its similar representations) and the call for robot umps behind home plate in Major League Baseball.
K-Zone: Every fan is an umpire
Years ago, when the first variant of the K-Zone appeared on a televised ESPN broadcast in 2001, I was intrigued. Fans finally had something to confirm their bias of strikes and balls and how the game was called. Whether watching on television or via a box score, this neat little square graphic added an element to the game.
As much as I enjoyed this added aspect at the time, and still do on occasion, I'd rather see Fox's "Scooter" explaining to me a pitch in this day and age (see: sweeper).
The K-Zone and the focus of inches and centimeters on called balls and strikes, and our judging eyes, has also affected catchers to an extent. Once, the best catchers were able to frame pitches, a talent and ability of slyly moving the catcher's mitt to affect the umpire's call. Now, within that framework, catchers snap their mitts in dramatic gestures hoping to provide the illusion of a pitch crossing the plate where it didn't.
In turn this, and the lovely box on the screen, has turned fans at home into umpires themselves. More so, as opposed to the past when televised games where appointment viewings (Sunday Night Baseball, Saturday game of the week, a rare weekday affair, or simply watching the Chicago Cubs on WGN or Atlanta on TBS), usually every game is available (blackouts to local markets may apply). The errors and missed calls multiply, umpires are scrutinized even more, and the call for robot umps behind home plate grows with each passing day.
And I am firmly against it.
I will agree there are horrible umps out there, making egregious calls it seems almost daily. And there should be a system in place that further demotes specific umps from doing more games behind the plate. But one of the strategies always employed in my high school playing days was knowing who was behind the plate each game. Players prepared, knowing if an ump called things tight, had a wide strike zone, or were ones who called the game consistently inconsistent.
Those, of course, are the worst kind and can leave players and fans feeling frustrated.
Having been out of the game for so long, I wonder, too, if hitters protecting the plate is really even taught/accepted practice in today's baseball. Once upon a time, hitters were taught that with two strikes, you had to swing at anything close. But too many times in a game, K-Zone or not, I watch hitters fail to swing at a two-strike pitch that is way too close to be taking. Then, of course, proceed to complain or offer snide looks to the umpire.
Perfection is hard to reach and I think a robot ump, with an exact strike zone every time, takes some of the fun, excitement, and disappointment out of the game. We'd see a lot more walks or, in looking to adapt, pitchers grooving a lot more balls down the middle. While I enjoy the occasional 11 to 10 game, it's not something I wish to see every outing.
And that's where I fear the game would be headed, if the robot umps get their way. That said, though, there are certain concerns in continuing to go with a human behind home plate making the call.
To ump or not to ump
One of the growing aspects involved in going forward is the love of sports betting. Instances in the NFL and NBA have already seen players suspended for betting. And of course, MLB has its own history with the lifetime suspension of Pete Rose.
When calls by umpires become so outlandish, whispers begin of throwing games on purpose. Or, at the very least, an opportunity is presented to see a certain pitcher succeed or fail. Something that could help be limited by the introduction of a robot ump behind the plate.
With so much scrutiny, too, it is on umpires and refs to be better and not integrate themselves so much into the game. Missed call after missed call doesn't help and they get "known" for all the wrong reasons.
More technology is not the answer. Human officials in a game are an element of the drama I quite enjoy, one way or another. That comes with missing a call or two, whether in a crucial moment or not. Frustrating at times? Yes but officials are an element that keeps things interesting and provides talking points between fans, players, coaches, and leagues alike. It sucks to be on the losing end of such calls and mistakes, but I'd rather see that than the alternative.
K-Zone has its positive attributes and provides clarity in certain instances. Still, I also understand every umpire, even with the general knowledge of the strike zone, will not be perfect. And that's why I will continue to advocate for not delegating the calling of balls and strikes to technology. Because to me, there is beauty in imperfection.
photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
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