Reflections

I am starting to become acclimated to home again. One nice side-effect of the trip back is that I become regular in my sleeping habits, at least for a few days. Those of you who know me realize that is very unusual in itself. I have been in bed at around 11:00 PM every night so far. This will probably wear off by the end of the weekend.

I have heard positive comments from many of you regarding this blog, and the one I wrote in November. I have also received the requisite ribbing from my pals back in Michigan as well. I DO realize that not everyone is interested in some of the minutiae I included in my daily posts, and that most of you have more important things to do than track my daily activities (except Bruce Keeling, who has no other life). The blog first and foremost provided a way for me to stay close to my four girls back home (my wife, Vicki, daughters Hannah & Olivia, and my sister Tina) and to provide something I can look back on later to remember all the good times. It is also for the umpires that were here (and their families). If I've also provided a window to the experience for other umpires, officials and friends, then so much the better.

In reflecting on my second trip to Taiwan in five months, I would once again like to thank Dick Runchey for providing such a tremendous opportunity. Dick is the best thing to happen to international umpiring in recent times. He put together an extremely capable group of umpires for this tournament, and has a great leadership style. He allows you to go out and do your job without interference, but is also not afraid to give you a kick in the pants if you need it. Dick's efforts will play a big part in helping get baseball back in the Olympics after 2008. I have no doubt that USA Baseball (and others) will succeed in getting Olympic Baseball back with Dick's help.

I would also like to thank Rich Fetchiet, who has been involved to varying degrees with international umpiring for years. Rich's position is now more as a consultant in this regard, but I would never have been in a position to make a trip like this one or the World Cup without his help and guidance in my amateur umpire career. Rich's willingness to accept former professional umpires into the amateur fold cannot be overstated. He is an honest, straight-forward person, and I feel fortunate that my college baseball schedule is entirely in his hands.

The guys I umpired with this trip were fabulous. Out of the international umpires (those not from Taiwan) only Carlos Rey from Puerto Rico was at the World Cup tournament here last November. I became closer to several of the Taiwanese umpires that I did not know well before, and made new friends from Canada, the Netherlands, Australia, Austria, Mexico, Cuba & Puerto Rico. Thanks, guys, for making this a very special memory.

Thanks also go to those scoring the tournament, especially Moira and Jenny, who made the long bus trip to Douliou and hung out with us after the late games at the hotel. I gained a new respect for what scorers bring to our game through getting to know them. It was also great meeting the wives of Carlos and Dale (Jacky & Deb). The tournament support personnel and hotel/restaurant staff were a delight to work with as well. We could not have survived without Lidia and Lili communicating with us and keeping us in line.

It was also great to visit with some of the friends I made last November, who made an effort to remain in touch during this second trip. I was able to visit with Natalia and her friend Victoria, my good friend Johnny, and Queenie from The Frog (she of the perfect margaritas). I also met some of Queenie's friends, and corresponded with former staffer Natalie (not to be confused with Natalia) via email while in Taichung, although we were not able to work in a visit.

Most of all, I'd like to thank my family: Vicki, Hannah & Olivia, for allowing me to make a second trip away in such a short period. They were very gracious in allowing me to go. (That couldn't be because of the gifts I brought back, or the fact that they're planning a St. Joe to Orlando to Hawaii trip for later in the year, could it?)

If you are an umpire reading this post, I reiterate my closing from the prologue of the November journal. This is an umpiring experience like no other you'll ever have. Become a member of the ABUA and do whatever you have to do to put yourself in a position to work one of these events. It's a decision you will never regret.

To all -- thanks for reading and for keeping in touch via email as you did so. I will keep this blog and the photo albums online...feel free to share their contents with any and all.

-- Dave

Day 10: The Trip Home

I don't usually sleep well before an early flight, and experienced no exception to this rule before my trip home from Taiwan. I had to work to find the best places in my luggage to protect the gifts I was bringing back home, particularly because I brought no hard-sided luggage. I did manage to get about an hour of sleep before my bus call of 6:00 AM.

The day did not start out in the best possible way. It turned out that Dana and I were the only ones from the hotel scheduled for the trip to the airport at this time slot. Instead of the bus we were expecting, a large car was waiting. This did not seem to be a problem, as the car would be much more comfortable for trying to get some sleep on the two hour trip to the Taipei airport. We said our goodbyes to Lidia and Lili and headed out. Unfortunately, and to our surprise, our driver stopped at the hotel that housed the tournament officials, where one of the officials was waiting. There appeared to be no way we could fit five very large pieces of checked luggage, our carry-ons, the driver and three people in this car. It took ten minutes of arranging and re-arranging for the two bellboys to jam (and I DO mean jam) it all in. Instead of a comfortable ride with a good opportunity for sleep, Dana and I were jammed together in half of the back seat, while the tournament official sat up front in luxury, never even commenting on our plight in the back. Oh well, just another thing to add to our list of experiences.

I managed to parlay a baseball into an exit row seat and a one class upgrade upon my arrival to the airport. This made a huge difference in legroom for the long flights home. As I travelled alone, not much of interest happened to report, so I'll leave you with an accounting of my 24+ hour day in a time log. Whoever dreamed up this itinerary must have been looking for ways to maximize my frequent flyer points! Here goes (all times approximate and EST):

• 1800 - Leave for airport


• 2000 - Arrive at airport; stretch body from car ride for ½ hour


• 2300 - Flight leaves for Tokyo (2 ½ hour flight)


• 0130 - Flight arrives in Tokyo; go through Japanese security all over again


• 0400 - Flight leaves for Washington, D.C. (12 hr flight)


• 1600 - Flight arrives in Washington, D.C. (go through Customs, claim checked baggage, recheck checked baggage, go back through security)


• 1700 - Flight leaves for Detroit (1 ½ hr flight)


• 1830 - Flight arrives in Detroit; switch from United terminal to Northwest, go back through security)


• 1930 - 20 minute massage at airport to work out kinks


• 2130 - Flight leaves for Kalamazoo (1 hr flight)


• 2230 - Flight arrives in Kalamazoo


• 2300 - File missing bag report with NWA for equipment bag


• 2330 - Greet sister Tina, who graciously agreed to pick me up from the airport


• 0030 - Arrive home!

Reflections to follow...

Day 9: Korea vs Chinese Taipei

The final day of the tournament! I went out to buy some more souvenirs in the morning at the place we shopped at before. Queenie came over for lunch and wanted to eat in the downstairs restaurant. I had not been there before; in fact, did not even know it was there. The staff was not as well-versed in English, so it was a good thing I was with someone who speaks Mandarin. They brought us about 10-12 different dishes. Many of them had to be explained to me, but I tried as many as I could. One of them was chicken feet. The Taiwanese love these, but they seem like a lot of work for not much return. After lunch I returned to the room and caught up on yesterday's blog info and before I knew it it was time to get ready for the ball game.

I was assigned second base for the Korea vs Chinese Taipei game this evening. Paul Hyham (from Australia) was on the plate, Dale (Canada) was at first, and Carlos (Puerto Rico) worked third. Although both teams have already qualified for the Olympics, the game was a complete sellout (over 20,000). The combination of the facts that these two teams don't like each other, that it was a Friday night, and that closing ceremonies immediately followed the game made for quite a festive atmosphere. I had forgotten how vocal the local people are in supporting their team...you couldn't hear anything when they were cheering, which was often. The teams seemed a little nervous and made several miscues in the field. Korea got off to a 4-1 start and managed to hold on for a 4-3 win.

Paul had a very good game behind the plate. He is confident and crisp in his mechanics, and seemed in control throughout. He has been selected to represent Australia in the Olympics and I'm sure he will do an outstanding job. Dale had most of the action on the bases. Carlos and I didn't end up with a whole lot to do.

After the game, all the umpires came onto the field for the closing ceremonies. We took tons of pictures as the three top teams (Canada, Korea and Chinese Taipei) were awarded trophies for their accomplishments. At the ceremony's conclusion, the umpires all went out near the outfield wall to get a good group picture. Many fans were still in the outfield bleachers and waved and posed for pictures. Many of the guys (me included) had their cameras and broke off for some shots with their favorite guys. We returned to the locker room, where Runch complimented everyone on a job well done.

We met back one last time in the front hotel bar to have a meal and cocktail. People started filtering out a few at a time to pack. Some are leaving very early. I have a flight about 11:00 AM and have to be downstairs for a 6:00 AM departure. I'll recap the tournament once I return home and get a day or two to catch up on my sleep and collect my thoughts.

Day 8: Korea vs Canada

I finally slept in a little after staying out at The Frog with Dana and Johnny the night before. I had a late lunch with some of the guys and then came back to catch up on email/blog/etc.

Our game on Thursday was the one I was hoping for: Korea vs Canada. Korea came into the day undefeated, and Canada had only lost one game. I was scheduled to work the plate, with Carlos Rey at first, Arnold at second, and Po-Sung Huang at third. Po was the only member of the Taiwanese umpire group I had not yet worked with, and it was the first time I had an opportunity to work with Carlos as well.

There were a couple familiar faces on the Canadian team. Rob Ducey, the third base coach, was a player in the minor league system when I was still umpiring professionally. I then had him as a player for Team Canada in a Pan-American Games qualifier. A couple of years ago, he was the first base coach for Team Canada in the Olympic Qualifier in Phoenix. Finally, he now scouts at the MLB level, so I occasionally see him in Chicago. Chris Robinson, the starting catcher, played for the University of Illinois, so I had seen him there and also at the Phoenix qualifier.

The game was a pretty good one. Korea scored a run right away and Canada answered with three in the bottom of the inning. They added another run in the middle of the game, and led 4-1 going into the top of the ninth. Things got a little interesting, as Korea got to within one run but couldn't score further.

I felt like I was more liberal with the corners of the strike zone, which worked out better at this level. Chris and I had no problems; I don't think he even asked me on a single pitch. The Korea catcher and I still had some problems in the middle of the game. He has a very bad habit of holding pitches when he wants them. He did not seem to be getting the idea that the corner was actually shrinking more each time he held the ball. Finally, I had to yell at him to throw one back. This seemed to have more of an effect and we were able to continue without further problems.

I went down to dinner in the front restaurant after returning from the game. There were a number of people already there, and my friend Johnny came in shortly afterward. He brought a box of Taiwanese dessert cakes for everyone to try after dinner (very delicious) and then he and I headed for the Frog.

Queenie, or favorite bartender from last fall, was actually working late that night. I guess she just helps out every now and then, and I had spoken to her the previous night and learned she would be there. She introduced Johnny and I to a couple of her friends that were there that night. We just hung out until the bar closed at 2:00 AM. I asked all the girls a lot of questions about their country, music, culture, etc. while I downed Queenie's great margaritas. She gave me a ride back to the hotel on her scooter. A police car came into the front of the hotel right behind us; I think they may have been going to say something about me not wearing a helmet. I got in the door and upstairs and avoided a brush with the Taiwanese law and headed for bed.

Day 7: Germany vs Korea

Dick held a brief meeting in the morning, then we were on our own until game time. For the first time in the tournament, I was assigned an early game (12:30 PM). In addition, the game was at Intercontinental Stadium, so we didn't have to leave real early. Our crew for the game: Dale (Canada) on the plate, me at first, Fan-Chung Huang (Taiwan) at second and Chin-Hsiea Chang at third (Taiwan).

Korea won this game easily, 12-1 in seven innings (10 run mercy rule). It only took about 2:15 to play. There was only one interesting situation in the whole game (and again it involved me). Very early, the Germany pitcher committed a start and stop balk with a runner on second (started into the set, stopped, then stepped off). The manager came out of the dugout. Arguing balks is not permitted in the tournament, although the umpire can give an explanation. This was exactly what I said to the manager as he came out: "We're not going to have an argument about this one, but I'll be happy to give you an explanation." For some reason he took offense to this and started a whole rant about how that was an inappropriate way to approach him and that I was being defensive. I let him go on this until he got to asking about the play, which I explained to him. He was still real agitated, and said that he didn't see the balk and he didn't think anyone else did either (actually Dale had recognized the balk from behind the plate as well). I asked him why he was wound up so tight and he said that my initial statement had "really got him agitated." His reaction during our discussion was so unusual for a play like this that I started wondering afterward if perhaps he and I had a history that I wasn't aware of. In talking with Dana (from Austria and formerly the US) later, though, I found out that he is like that all the time. It reminded me very much of how some of our Mid-American Conference coaches behaved several years ago. Anyway, the rest of the game went smoothly and we were back at the hotel shortly after 3:30 PM.


I wrote up all the stuff from the day off in the afternoon and waited for Arnold to get back so we could go for some pizza. Also, Johnny, one of the tournament staffers from last November, was coming over to meet me in the evening. When I came to the lobby to meet Johnny, Arnold was walking through, so it worked out perfectly. We took a cab over to Fatty's and had a nice dinner. Arnold had been craving pizza for a few days, so he got that. I decided on some ravioli and red wine (yes, red wine all you smart guys back in Michigan -- yuk it up some more). I didn't quite recognize what Johnny ordered. It was great to see him, and it was good that he was there, because we needed a translator with our waitress. After dinner we decided to walk back to the hotel, and waited for people to start trickling in from the evening games.

After hearing the stories of the days events and taking some pictures with Lidia and Lili by the hotel Buddha, Dana, Johnny and I decided to hit the Frog Mexican restaurant. This had been our unofficial hangout in Taichung last November, but our favorite bartender, Queenie, no longer works there so it was the first time I had taken anyone in. I recognized one of the bartenders from before (J.J.). She knew Queenie and got her on the phone. I talked to her for a few minutes and I think she going to meet us there on Thursday night. Johnny treated Dana and I to some Taiwan sausage from a vendor outside the bar. It was served with little lumps of rice and was quite good. We'll see on Thursday if taking that risk was a smart move. Dana seemed to like the Frog (it's a little hole-in;the-wall place with a lively atmosphere -- perfect umpy bar). We came back about 1:30 AM, said good-bye to Johnny and called it a night.

Day 6: Off Day

Tuesday was a day off for us, and we had a pretty productive day. Louie took one group sight-seeing. Several of the rest of us got together to head a different direction. Moira, Jenny, Gabriel (the scorer from Mexico), Dale and Deb, Rafael, Dana, Arnold, Jimmy and I made up the second group. We took taxis to an area that had both little shops and historical buildings. The shopkeepers were very proactive in promoting their wares, demonstrating their use in some situations and quoting a price. I found some interesting things for my family there and may go back before the tournament ends.

There was also a scenic area with a koi pond and a little bridge, an area that had wax figures of people performing different tasks from the history of Taiwan, and a number of rooms preserved to show the furnishings in a Taiwan home (albeit an upper class home). I got several good pictures while browsing through these exhibits.

We were not as lucky with the second spot. It was a mainstream shopping area, but the only thing being sold in any of the shops was women's clothing. It didn't take us long to figure this out. Unfortunately, we had divided up and were meeting back at a certain time to take taxis back to the hotel, so we had to wait a bit. Our sub-group went into a tea shop to get out of the sun and get some refreshments. We made the mistake of depending on Arnold to do our ordering. He seems to have problems wherever he goes when dealing with waitresses. Ours didn't seem to understand what he was trying to order (even though he had circled what we wanted in pen on the menu). When the girl finally came back with our order, he sent it back because it wasn't the size he wanted. I had a glass of cold guava tea that was very delicious. Eventually the others from our group came back and we took taxis back to the hotel.

The only downside to the day was that Jimmy left his camera in the taxi. He discovered this almost immediately, and we set about trying to track down the cab through the front desk. Unfortunately, there is still no sign of the camera at this point.

Rafael and I were to meet Natalia, one of the staffers from the World Cup, at 3:00 PM. He had been put in contact with her through Luis, who represented Mexico in the World Cup. Although they had not met face-to-face, they had talked several times through video and email on the web. Natalia arrived right on time, and brought Victoria, a friend of hers. They suggested we eat at an Italian restaurant, Fatty's. We opted for Pizza, and it was very good. It was great to see Natalia again and Victoria was very nice as well. I wasn't sure how much English she spoke at the beginning, because she didn't say much, but found out soon after that she speaks very well. We had a very nice lunch asking them questions about Taiwan, their jobs, school, etc. After lunch we came back to the hotel and the girls had to leave, as Victoria had a meeting with one of her college professors. We took some pictures together before they left. Natalia very thoughtfully brought me a CD of her favorite music from a group called Sodagreen. I am listening to it right now and it is quite good...they are a pop group with a female lead singer. I was glad we had a chance to get together, and it was nice to meet Victoria. It was quite a drive for the girls down from Taipei and we were appreciative they made the effort.

The evening's planned activity was a traditional dinner for all the umpires and scorers hosted by the Taiwanese umpires. It was quite a drive to the restaurant, but was well worth it once we got there. They had a separate room set aside for us, complete with a karaoke machine. Louie got the evening started with a welcome and some introductions, and then we were off and running. Beer, wine and scotch were provided in abundance, and the servers kept bringing out different kinds of food on a lazy susan so we could try it all. I made another attempt at the chopsticks and did much better than my first attempt a few days ago. I managed to use them for the entire meal this time. I'm still not great with them; perhaps this could be a good weight-loss technique!

Louie got the karaoke started, and drafted Jimmy and I for a number. The didn't have a whole lot of selections in English. Since there were no Carpenters songs on the list, we chose Frank Sinatra's "My Way." Anyone who has ever heard me sing can only imagine how that went. Just when we were thinking that Runch wasn't coming, he showed up to make the evening complete. I tried most of the food. There was a whole fish, rice, pork, something that looked like paella, and some other things. We all had a great time and let loose a little with the alcohol. After starting with beer, I decided scotch would be my drink of choice for the night. Although it wasn't a late night, we all had a great time before heading back to the hotel.

I thought maybe I'd take a couple of the guys to Frog when we got back, but after sitting in the front lounge waiting for all the vans to get back I started to feel the effects of the alcohol and we decided to move that back a night. The smartest thing I did upon my return to my room was to immediately leave a morning call and went to sleep without any delay. All in all, a great day here in Taichung!

Day 5: Mexico vs Australia

Well, it was only a matter of time ... more on that later.

Monday was our last day before the day off. Jim Jackson and I decided to walk around and take some pictures after breakfast. This was the first day it was kind of dreary and rainy. We heard that the Museum of Natural History was closed, but there was also purported to be botanical gardens near there and something called "The Path of Evolution." Since this was very near the hotel, we decided to take a look. The Path of Evolution turned out to be a walkway showing how life evolved through time through pictures embedded in the walkway itself. Along the way Jim and I got some good shots of some of the local people. Among those were several of children, and one of a bride-to-be, who was being professionally photographed with her dog in front of a waterfall. Many of those shots are available for viewing in the photo gallery and are also in a slideshow toward the top, right-hand sidebar on the main blog page. We started to get rained on pretty good, plus I was running out of batteries and Jim had used up the memory in his camera, so we headed back.

Now to my initial comment for the day. My game tonight was once again at Douliou Stadium; Mexico vs Australia. We made the hour + drive and arrived an hour and 45 minutes before game time (a little overkill, but what else were we going to do anyway). Edwin Hernandez was our plate umpire, Dale (Canada) at first, I was at second, and Chin-Hsien Chang at third.

The game was going along smoothly into the top of the 5th, with Australia leading 1-0. Mexico had a runner on second with nobody out. The left-handed Australian pitcher made a pick-off move to second base and didn't throw. The Mexico dugout started screaming that the move was a balk. In reality, the move looked awkward because the pitcher was using a step-through move and it was difficult for him to rotate his pivot foot around as he did so. After listening to the Mexico manager loudly complain repeatedly (yes, this was Jose Tolentino, the star of last night's show) that the pitcher had first stepped toward first before continuing on to second, I asked him from the middle of the diamond why the pitcher would do that with no runner on first. At some point another member of the dugout shouted out "Same as last night!" referring to their thoughts on the strike zone from the night before. They apparently said this for my benefit since I was the only one on the crew who had worked the previous game, even though I was not calling balls and strikes. Referring to the night before was enough for me to warn the dugout, and I told them if someone wanted to go, we could accommodate them. Jose volunteered, and I obliged. He then came out of the dugout and wanted me to come to the mound with him while he demonstrated what the pitcher did. Since I had already ejected him, I left him to parade to the mound while I returned to second base. He apparently was not aware that his show was only being witnessed by about 25 people in the stands. Shortly afterwards he left he field and the dugout. It was extremely calm and quiet in their dugout with their manager not around to stir things up for the remainder of the game.

Our other interesting play occurred in the top of the 8th. A ground ball was hit to the infield with the bases loaded and no one out. The throw came to the plate to force the runner from third. That runner's slide sent the catcher sprawling. The Australia second baseman and a number of people on the Australian bench started screaming that it was a dirty play. I came in to peel off the second baseman, and then to keep the coaches away from Edwin so he could talk to the manager. Dale and Chang came in as well. The argument was that the runner had interfered with the catcher, that it was a dirty play, and that interference should be called. (I watched the play on television later, and the runner's whole arm slid across the plate, disproving their theory). The situation was prolonged by the injury. It left the Australia bench longer to complain about the call. Eventually the catcher returned after some work with the trainer and we finished the game. Mexico finished the upset with a 7-4 win, their first of the tournament.

The only other thing of note that we had in the game occurred on a fair ball just inside the line at third that the Australian third baseman fielded and threw late to first. Our third base umpire vocally called the ball fair as he pointed, which I found out is the practice in the Far East. The Australia manager came out to question him, but Chang had no idea what he was asking. It was somewhat humorous to watch the coach ask Chang why he shouted fair, only to have him indicate that it was a fair ball with his arms. This just frustrated the manager more -- he said "I know it was fair, I just want to know why you shouted it fair." After watching a couple of rounds of this, I went in and mediated, telling the manager that I understood his concern, but that we've been unable to persuade the Taiwan umpires to abandon this mechanic.

Edwin did an extremely good job on balls and strikes. He had a liberal strike zone on the corners for both teams, has a solid strike mechanic, and has a very good presence on the field.

I was hoping we might go out upon our return to the hotel, but the umpires who worked the afternoon games had already been drinking for a while and wanted to get some sleep, and the people who had worked the late games were tired from the trip. Hopefully the social scene will pick up some on our day off tomorrow and continue through the end of the tournament.

Day 4: Mexico vs Korea

I was scheduled for the night game at Douliou again on Sunday, so I had a leisurely breakfast and lunch and worked on the blog the remainder of the time. We had a brief meeting in the morning, where Runch went over some things he had observed the first few days of the tournament.

Things are starting to get a little intense, as some teams are seeing the handwriting on the wall after getting off to a slow start in the tournament. That was the case with Mexico in this game. Our crew for the game was Arnold (from the Netherlands) on the plate, me at first, Louie (Taiwan) and second and Shih (Taiwan) at third.

In the top of the first we had a rotation on an extra base hit that took me to the plate for a play where the runner was out pretty easily. As I returned to the outfield in rightfield (it was the third out of the inning) the Mexico manager (Jose Tolentino) came down to the end of the dugout and tried to get my attention. When I looked around, he asked me to watch for the catcher tagging the runner with one hand while the ball was in the other. I told him that didn't happen. He repeated that he'd just like me to "watch for it." Then, he said the Korea pitcher had been balking in the 1st inning. I asked him how. He said that he was transferring the ball from his glove to his throwing hand as he started to assume the set position and look in for the sign. I told him that was not a balk and I would not be calling it. I'm assuming this was some kind of attempt to work me for later, as he picked two things that didn't happen just to get an opportunity to engage me in conversation. I knew the Mexico manager looked familiar to me but I hadn't initially caught his name. After doing a bit of research, I realized who he was and that I had him as a player in the American Association when he was with Buffalo. He was always a very high energy, flashy player (I'm thinking of some other adjectives to describe him, but I'll let you do the math on that) and has not changed that philosophy as a manager.

There was one humorous moment in the game where the Korea pitcher wanted to exchange baseballs. Arnold complied, but the pitcher didn't like the next ball either. He tried to change up again, but Arnold refused. I don't think the pitcher had ever had this happen before. He tried unsuccessfully to change the baseball again, even calling Arnold out to the mound to look at the baseball. Arnold refused to cycle through all the balls in his bag and play finally continued.

The game sailed along pretty smoothly, with Korea scoring one run first; then Mexico tying the game up. In the bottom of the 6th, Korea had a runner on third and less than two outs. A ball was hit down the rightfield line, so I was out in coverage. After the catch, the throw came in to the plate but the runner beat the play. Mexico appealed the tag at third, but they had asked for time prior to doing so, and no signal was made by our third base umpire (appropriately). Once this was explained to them, they appealed again once the ball was put back in play. The runner was ruled safe and Tolentino came screaming out of the dugout. He didn't get far with our Taiwanese umpire, who to my knowledge doesn't speak a word of English or Spanish.

In the bottom of the 8th inning, Mexico brought in a new pitcher, who struggled finding the plate from the outset. The dugout started trying to pin his troubles on Arnold, who largely ignored their complaints. After a couple of walks and a couple of runs had scored, Tolentino went to the mound, obviously to engage Arnold in an argument over his strike zone. Arnold was listening to none of it, and when he came out to break up the conference, he beckoned the manager off the hill to get him back in the dugout. The manager wanted him to get all the way up on the mound so he could make a big show of questioning the balls and strikes. To Arnold's credit, he refused to give him what he wanted.

Later in the half-inning, a Mexico player started barking from the dugout as well, and pretty loudly. I turned and focused my attention on him. This brought forth the usual request to get my eyes back on the game, which I ignored. Eventually Tolentino came at me out of the dugout to make another big show for his team. He wanted to get ejected at that point, so he could deflect blame for their performance onto the umpiring crew. Under those circumstances, I thought it best to make him remain and watch the conclusion of the game. Korea ended up scoring four in the inning. Mexico went down easily in the 9th to make the final score 6-1, but not before Tolentino took a couple more cheap shots at Arnold.

We made the hour long trek back to Taichung, where the "night shift" umpires met in the lounge to eat and discuss the day. I had chicken and some red wine and good conversation, and was in bed and asleep by 1:00 AM. I get to make the trip back to Douliou on Monday for another game with Mexico, so things should be interesting.

Day 3: Germany vs Spain

Our game on Day 4 was at Douliou Stadium, which is a little more than an hour drive from the hotel in Taichung. Because of this, we have to leave at 3:30 PM when going to that stadium, just to make sure there are no issues with traffic, etc. The trip was uneventful and we made it about an hour and a half before game time. Our crew for the game was Liang-Kuei Hsieh on the plate, Jose Perez from Cuba at first, me at second, and Fan-Chung Huang at third. Jose and I went out to check out the ground rules and found a very spacious, clean park. The stadium had just been full hours before, as Chinese Taipei played in the afternoon game, and since it was Saturday, the people were out in droves. The game recap said it was a sellout, and the stadium holds 15,000. Not so for our game. You could have actually counted the people by hand if you were bored enough.

We began with a good pace and stayed on it for most of the game. Spain hit the first Germany batter, but he was promptly thrown out stealing on the next pitch. Although both teams had some good scoring chances, the only run of the game was a solo home run by Germany in the top of the 8th inning. I did have a balk call for no step on the right-handed pitcher from Spain. He just spun around in the same spot. It's amazing to me how such a basic call can still generate such a response from the players and managers. They look at you like you've grown a second head, or as the Ohio State fans said to Mike Conlin once, like "you're seeing the game for the first time." After giving an explanation of the balk to the Spain manager, I turned to go back to my position. When I turned around, the manager was at the mound talking to his pitcher. I waited for Hsieh to write this down as a trip, but he didn't. I didn't want to come in at the conclusion of the half-inning after calling the balk, thinking that might draw a shot from the dugout. I waited until the next opportunity and went in to make sure Hsieh marked it down as a trip. (Unlike major league baseball, this was actually important even though the inning was over, because international baseball allows three free visits to the mound throughout the first nine innings. Had the game been played with the MLB trip rule, it would have been a moot point once the half-inning was over.)

One other interesting thing happened in the game. My plate umpire stopped the game at one point and was gesturing to the centerfield stands. There were only two people out there. One was the television camera guy, and the other one was someone taking photographs. Apparently this second person was in the batter's line of sight when pitches came in, so he was asked to move. One wonders what we would have done in this situation if we'd have had the first game's crowd, when those centerfield bleachers would have undoubtedly been full.

I thought Hsieh did a very good job on balls and strikes. He had several called third strikes and ran the game well. We had some communication issues on balls hit to the outfield, but you might expect that with people on the bases speaking three different languages. Also, I'm not sure our third base umpire gets that much opportunity to work in a four-man crew.

The trip back to Taichung was uneventful. A number of umpires and scorers who had worked the late game were having the meal dubbed "midnight snack" in the front lounge of the hotel. This is not really a snack at all, but a full fledged meal. We get breakfast every day, and then can choose between lunch/tea time and dinner/midnight snack for our other two meals of the day, depending on what time our game is being played. The food is always excellent in the hotel. I had a dish that was recommended by one of the front desk staffers that had a big bowl of noodles, to which you could add some spicy side ingredients. Along with that was a bowl of very tender beef, a salad, and dessert. It more than lived up to its billing. One of the other Taiwanese umpires (Wen-Ching Liao) was walking around with a bottle of Tequila, and I had a couple of glasses.

I sat and talked with the Hackett's, Jose, Jenny, Moira and Lidia and Lili (the two main staffers in charge of taking care of the umpires). They do a great job, and I was asking about their backgrounds. They both speak at least three languages and are currently going to school. I'm sure they will have no trouble getting jobs anywhere in the world with their experiences and multiple language sets.

I headed up to the room about 12:30 AM and realized that I was exhausted. I put the audiobook I am listening to (Stephen King's Duma Key) on a half-hour timer and probably fell asleep 10 minutes in. At least my sleep pattern is starting to stabilize a little bit.

Day 2: Spain vs Chinese Taipei

Friday morning didn't start the way I would have planned it. During our meeting on Thursday, Runch asked Carlos Rey and I to get everyone together on Friday to watch a DVD on four umpire mechanics and facilitate any discussion. I secured a room with the front desk after the party on Thursday night and left a note for Lidia, one of our main tournament staffers, asking her to make sure everyone was informed about it. I left a morning wake-up call for 7:00 AM, with the meeting to start at 8:30 AM.

The call came in as expected. I was still trying to shake off the fatigue of the long trip over here and woke up feeling extremely tired. I remember telling myself to get up; that if I didn't, I would fall back asleep and would never wake up on my own again before the meeting. Apparently my body said "No way, I'm getting a few more REMs before getting up for the day." MISTAKE. The next call I got was from Dick, asking if I was planning on coming down. I didn't even know he was planning on coming over to our hotel for the meeting. Fortunately, he had several things he wanted to talk to the group about and stalled until I got downstairs and set up the DVD. (The DVD itself is one that was created by MLB and is a great way to go over coverage of the different systems. It gives you visuals to go along with bullet points for each situation, making it much easier to follow than the usual PowerPoint style presentation that is text-only. Hopefully the NCAA will incorporate this type of tool in the future.)

I had the plate for the Spain vs Chinese Taipei game in the evening at Intercon Stadium. We didn't start until 7:10 PM due to opening ceremonies. The local crowd, while not as large as I would have expected for a game involving the home country's team, was as vocal as I remembered last November. Weather was perfect for me; cool enough for the base guys to wear jackets and to keep me from becoming a drowned rat. My partners for the game were Dale Hackett from Canada at first, Arnold from the Netherlands at second, and Jose Perez Julian from Cuba at third. With three of the four of us speaking English, we had no trouble communicating on the field.

Each team scored a pair of runs in the first inning and everything got off to a good start. Chinese Taipei then started piling on some runs. The Spain pitcher (and subsequent pitchers) began looking in on pitches that were around, but off of, the plate. Apparently they were used to getting them called strikes, even though the catcher was pulling most of them back into the strike zone. There was one instance where a decision pitch was called a ball, and the next pitch was hit for a run scoring double. The first baseman became vocal with me at the conclusion of the play and had to be addressed. (Either he realized that this was not the way to interact with a plate umpire when you were expecting to bat three more times that night or was informed so in the dugout, because he made sure to apologize just prior to his next at-bat.)

The feeling on the field throughout seemed to be that the teams were expecting a few more strikes. In hindsight, I probably could have gotten a few more (and will attempt to do so in my next plate job). The difficulty comes in developing a strike zone that will hold up to the scrutiny of ESPN and then working in situations where the games aren't televised to that degree and with teams who don't normally get that kind of media coverage. They are in all probability used to a larger number of questionable pitches being called strikes.

Things got interesting in the bottom of the 7th inning. First, the Spain manager came out to the mound and barked at me about two pitches on his way out. I met him at the mound and we got that addressed. Secondly, Chinese Taipei was leading 12-3, and a ten run mercy rule is in effect throughout the tournament after seven innings. This brings about an interesting philosophical discussion regarding baseball etiquette. Under normal circumstances, it is considered "piling on" if teams aggressively work for more runs (bunting, stealing, etc.) with a big lead. However, the chance to save two innings of a pitcher's arm with a berth in the Olympic Games at stake changes the thinking of the team ahead. This happened in the 7th inning. A Chinese Taipei runner stole second base. The next pitch was slightly inside and under the hands of the hitter (although I think the catcher wanted the batter hit). The catcher went to the mound, glaring at the CT dugout and then exchanging words with them. We were able to put a stop to that. Eventually the bases were loaded and the batter hit a sacrifice fly that ended the game. As the team started celebrating on the field, more words were exchanged with the Spain dugout. The whole crew had to work to keep the teams separated before we were finally able leave for the locker room. International baseball at its best.

In any case, my crewmates and Dick were very supportive in the locker room. Although I did not consider the game my best work, I felt I was consistent throughout in the pitches I was giving (and not giving) to both teams. I think if I make a slight adjustment to the width and bottom of the zone I'll be all set for my next outing. We came back to the hotel and I sat and talked to Dale and his wife in the hotel lounge, along with Moira and Jenny (scorers for the tournament from South Africa and Australia). When that broke up, I went to see if Queenie, our favorite bartender at Frog during the World Cup, was working. I was told she no longer tended bar there. Since I was alone anyway, I decided to return to the hotel. The last few days finally caught up with me and I fell into bed exhausted. After watching the last two innings of my game on tape delay and the latest episode of Survivor that I downloaded from the internet on my computer (I am, after all, a TV junkie) I fell asleep and slept soundly until 10:00 AM.

That should bring everything up to date. I've got the late game between my good friends from Spain and Germany. I'm working second base and will be the only English-speaking member of the crew. We'll see tomorrow if I managed to stay out of trouble.

Day 1: Meetings, Etc.

Since the entire tournament is being held in and around Taichung, getting around is a lot easier than last time I was here. Any time there were meetings, parties, ceremonies, etc., we had to get on the bus and come a couple of hours each way. Our umpire meeting this morning was at the hotel where all the administrative people are staying. It's only a few blocks away from our hotel. The guys who have not recently received equipment got theirs, we had the meeting, and then were free until the evening.

Jim Jackson and I had lunch with Dana Bieszczynski, who is from Austria. I intended on getting a nice long nap upon my return to my room after lunch, but ended up working on the blog instead.

We were invited to an introductory party with all the technical advisors, scorers and city officials at the other hotel. The food was very good, and a band performed for us both during and after dinner. Someone forgot to tell me that when you are eating unpeeled shrimp, it is a good idea to put the sauce on AFTER you've managed to peel them. One piece was particularly hard to peel, and I ended up with red sauce all over my green shirt. As Bruce Keeling and anyone else from the greater North Adams area will tell you, we didn't get out much growing up. Our idea of fine dining was a trip to Hillsdale to the Big Boy. Bruce, we will talk when I return and I'll give you a few tips on the finer points of socializing with others.

After dinner, the singer got interactive with the crowd, and before you knew it, Dick Runchey, our umpire supervisor, ended up in the conga line. Runch was all decked out in a coat and tie, and I don't even think the tie was a clip-on! We called it a night fairly early, as tomorrow the tournament begins. I've got the plate for the Chinese Taipei vs Spain game, which is in the evening. We're going to go over mechanics in the morning at 8:30 AM, though, so I'm going to try and catch up on my sleep.

Return to Taiwan!

Well, it's 2:36 AM on Wednesday night / Thursday morning. What I'm still doing up I have no idea. I spent Monday night packing after having my last basketball game hours earlier. I ended up getting no sleep at all. Vicki drove me to the airport in Kalamazoo at 6:00 AM so she could get back in time to see the girls off to school. I had an 8:15 AM flight to Detroit, then had to switch terminals and barely made my connector in time. The connector was back to Chicago. I left there about 1:00 PM Michigan time for Tokyo. The flight was not as full as in November, and the ticket agent in Kalamazoo upgraded me to "Economy Plus" which gave me some extra leg room on the flight. Other than the audio not working on our in-flight movies in our section and not having a companion umpire for the trip, the flight was uneventful. The trip to Japan is about 13 hours or so. You play little games with yourself to get through it. I also bought a couple of books on Taiwan and read some of them on the flight.

I had another two hour layover in Tokyo, then took the last leg into Taipei (about a three hour flight). A gentleman was waiting for me with a sign with my name on it. We waited another half hour or so for another umpire from the Netherlands (Arnold Verbruggen) and then made the 2 hour drive to Taichung, where the tournament will be held. Arnold was real nice (and big; after meeting him and Fred from the last trip I'm beginning to think there's something in the water over there) and we conversed a bit on the trip (the driver spoke no English).

I'm staying at the Hotel National Taichung, which is where I stayed last time I was here. That's a good thing. The staff is extremely friendly, the hotel is very clean, and the food is excellent. I got unpacked and, of course, set up my internet access. Tomorrow we have a meeting in the morning and a party at night. The tournament starts on Friday.

It was too late and I'm too tired to make any attempt at being witty in this post. I will work to make the remainder of the blog more interesting to read. More tomorrow...zzzzzzz.