Grandfather passes experience as umpire on to granddaughter

Topeka Capital-Journal, The, Aug 28, 2003 by Capital-Journal

NORTH TOPEKA -- A resident of northern Shawnee County has found a umpire protege in his teenage granddaughter.

David W. Freeman, 61, is passing on his skills as a softball umpire to his 17-year-old granddaughter, Kristen Hall. After 23 years as a slow and fast-pitch softball umpire, Freeman is well versed in the rules of the games, signals that umpires use to communicate, handling crowds and some tips for defusing potentially explosive arguments involving coaches and players.

Hall, a senior at Shawnee Heights High School and daughter of Wayne and Deborah Hall, is in her first season of umpiring. She decided last year not to continue playing softball, but loved the sport and was reluctant to leave it entirely. So she decided to follow her grandfather into umpiring.

"He has started lots of people," she said.

Passing it on

Freeman taught her the mechanics of umpiring in the back yard. With Hall's sister, Kelsey Hall, 14, posing as a batter, Freeman showed his older granddaughter the umpire's position behind the catcher, the strike zone for batters, the umpire's field positioning, and the hand signals with which umpires communicate with each other.

He explained that fast pitch uses two umpires and they must use signals to communicate. Signaling skills are most crucial in championship games, which use three umpires. Slow pitch softball operates with just one umpire.

Most important, Freeman taught Hall, is the in-field fly rule. With less than two outs and runners on first and second, or on first, second and third, the ball must be within a reasonable amount of effort by an infielder.

Halls's playing experience helped a lot with her training as an umpire, Freeman said. She began playing softball at age 8, and had played both fast pitch and slow pitch.

She admits to being "real nervous" when she donned the umpire's uniform and took to the field for her first game. Freeman worked the plate for their first game together, a fast pitch game.

"I learned a lot of signals that game," Kristen said.

Her case of nerves was not at all unusual, Freeman said.

"If an umpire goes out without butterflies in his stomach, he is no good as an ump," he said. "I still get butterflies."

Kristen worked as an umpire from mid-May to mid-July this summer, after which she she went to the volleyball nationals in Atlanta, Ga., from June 28 through July 2. Her volleyball club team, the Topeka Juniors, took ninth place. She also plays high school volleyball and softball.

Freeman also advised Hall on how to defuse dicey situations in his experience as an umpire. He said he has only thrown one player out of a game.

"I wouldn't have thrown him out if he hadn't thrown his hat on the ground," Freeman said. "If you go out there looking for trouble, you are going to find it. If you go out there to just have a good game, you are going to have a good game."

He has learned to give players an option when they begin protesting a call. They can take themselves out of a game if they cross the line, and he won't have to order them out.

"Any judgment call an umpire makes is not protestable," Freeman said.

And as for crowd problems, you kind of block out everything on the bleachers behind you. If there is a problem, you go to the coach to tell him, "This is your problem, you take care of it or forfeit the game.

"I have only had to forfeit one game, and both coaches forfeited that one. I could count on one hand the number of times I have thrown someone out of a ball game. I give a coach a choice --- just one more word, and you can remove yourself. I don't have to throw them out."

"You get a good rapport with players after awhile. But a few young guys like to hot dog, think they have to hit the ball out of the ball park every time they are up, and get angry if they don't."

Freeman advised his granddaughter that another type of umpiring decision that can raise the hackles on a coach or player is testing the bats and eliminating those that are "too hot" and can cause injuries. Some of those bats cost $450 to $500, and "people get upset when those bats gets thrown out of a game."

Start of a Career

Freeman started umpiring in 1980 after he was called out during a game for missing second base when the batter hit a triple. He said he knew he hadn't missed the bag, and thought he could call the plays better himself. So he signed up with the Amateur Softball Association, paid for a rule book and took the test on rules.

After umpiring slow pitch softball for 18 or 19 years, Freeman decided to concentrate on fast pitch, which he prefers. In fast pitch, an umpire doesn't have to put up with coaches as much.

"I just kinda got burned out on slow pitch," he said.

There are nearly 800 slow pitch teams in Shawnee County. They play at Shawnee County North Community Center, the North Topeka YMCA, and Topeka Parks and Recreation ball parks.

Freeman has one big hope as an umpire --- that his granddaughter, Hall, will take over for him when he retires from umpiring in five or six years.