Baseball, softball teams struggle with umpire shortage in Indiana
MOORESVILLE, IND. (WISH) — Some baseball and softball teams in Indiana are having trouble filling one position on the field: umpires.
Dave McComb, umpire in chief with U.S. Specialty Sports Association, said Monday, “I sat down this morning looking at my spreadsheets, putting them into the scheduling system, and scratching my head because I don’t have enough guys to cover what I’ve got.”
McComb is in charge of scheduling umpires for every travel league’s game across the state. He says the difficulty to find umpires is growing and that worries him for the game’s sake.
“We try to work a two-man system, and there are occasions, because of that shortage, we may only end up going to one. The quagmire there is it’s billed as a two-umpire system. The problem is teams kind of end up getting cheated, if you will, and I use that word tongue and cheek,” McComb said.
It’s not just a problem in travel ballclubs.
According to officials with the Indiana High School Athletic Association, they also are having a hard time finding umpires for high school games, causing some games to be rescheduled.
McComb says its unfair to the kids.
“I would hate to think that it would happen, but there is always a possibility that the frustration would set in and the the kids just don’t participate anymore. After all, baseball is the all-American sport. It would be a very sad thing to see those numbers diminish,” McComb said.
The IHSAA is working to solve its issue. Next week, they’ll be presenting an idea to the National Federation of State High Schools to help combat the national shortage. Working with the Indiana Department of Education, the IHSAA hopes to offer a high school elective course to get students certified as umpires. They could officiate lower-level games.
Dave says the abuse officials take from fans plays a big role in the shortage.
“You can go on any social media and you’ll see videos of referees, umpires. … All officials really take a beating sometimes,” McComb said.
Despite the shortage, McComb will keep working to get umpires because of the joy it brings the kids.
“When you see that 8-year-old face, there is nothing like it when he lights up. There is nothing like it. It never gets old, never gets old,” McComb said.
Dave says he’s working on a schedule for 230 games across the state. He needs roughly 95 to 100 umpires and isn’t sure if he’ll reach that number. Anyone interested in becoming an umpire can go to the websites of the U.S. Specialty Sports Association or IHSAA for more information.