Pacific Coast Baseball Umpires Association operates a hotline which we (okay, I) update every morning with the day's games. This is your point of contact with us should anything happen to a game. The hotline number is:
(604) 773-4654
This is a mobile phone with voice mail, which can also receive text messages. All messages are date/time stamped, and I am notified immediately when you leave a message, either by voice or by text. I will try to respond as soon as possible.
Please DO NOT use e-mail to contact me unless the matter is not time sensitive. I only check my e-mail in the evenings, usually quite late, so it can take a day or two for me to even see your message. In particular, e-mail notification of a rainout or other same-day game cancellation is NOT considered sufficient notice – you MUST use the hotline for a cancellation. This is explicitly stated in our contract with you.
The fee you pay for each game is split into a plate umpire's portion, a base umpire's portion, and an allocation fee. The allocation fee is always $8 per game. The plate umpire's portion is 55% of the remainder, rounded up to the next whole dollar. The base umpire's portion is what is left (note – the split for PBL and JPBL games is slightly different, and for regular season games, the allocation fee is paid by the league, separately from the rest of the game fee).
If I have done my job and assigned a full crew for a scheduled date, then the allocation fee is always charged, whether the game is cancelled or not, and regardless of how much notice (minutes, hours, days, or weeks) is given. Note that in the case of a cancelled doubleheader, we only charge the allocation fee for one game (a doubleheader is defined as the same two teams playing each other in consecutive games on the same date with the same umpires on both games). If the game takes place and the appropriate number of umpires appear, then the umpires' portions of the fee are charged. If a game is cancelled, different amounts may be charged depending on the circumstances of the cancellation.
If a game is going to be cancelled for any reason, we require two hours notice to stop the umpires from coming. The first thing I will do upon receiving your cancellation is to update the message on the hotline, and then I will call the umpires. If you give less than two hours notice (which is verified by the timestamp on the hotline message), I will still try to stop the umpires from going to the park. If I cannot stop them (i.e., they have started on their way to the park), then we will bill for the umpire(s) that I cannot stop. IMPORTANT: Unless you call me to cancel the game, the umpires WILL go to the park, even if it's raining so hard that an old man is putting pairs of animals onto an ark in your back yard. It can be pouring rain in one part of this city and sunny and playable in another. Or, the teams may have to get the game in no matter what, and decide to play in the rain. The reason we need two hours notice is that some umpires use public transit to get to a park, and others come from far away (like West Vancouver or Abbotsford), and they may have to leave two hours before the scheduled start time to be on time. Note that on rainy days, I will not phone anyone to ask for confirmation of a game. The onus is on the teams to phone the hotline to report the cancellation. If I haven’t heard from you, I’m going to assume the game is going ahead.
If you provide the two hours notice, and if we had scheduled two umpires for the game, we bill only the allocation fee. This is to cover the fact that we did in fact do our job by scheduling the umpires. If a doubleheader is cancelled with sufficient notice, we charge the allocation fee for only one game – you get a break there.
(On the flipside, if I have not been able to find a full crew for a game, you pay only for the umpires that are scheduled, with no allocation fee – because I haven't done my job. Also, if a full crew is scheduled but an umpire no-shows, you not only don’t pay for the umpire that failed to appear, but you get the other umpire for free, and we drop the allocation fee. And, internally, we discipline the person who didn't show up.)
We do realize that not everyone has a crystal ball that can perfectly predict what the weather will be like in two hours time. So, if the decision to cancel is made AT THE FIELD, and with BOTH TEAMS AND AT LEAST ONE UMPIRE present, and BEFORE lineups are exchanged, then we will only bill $8 plus a flat $20 per umpire regardless of the number of games scheduled. This is to cover the fact that not only did we do our job by providing the umpires, but that the umpires made the effort to appear. Note that this does not apply in the event of a forfeit at the field – if there's a forfeit, then you got a result out of it (and the umpires did their job – only the umpires can declare a forfeit), and we will bill the full rate for the game. The only time we will not bill for a forfeit is if you find out in advance that the game will be forfeited, and you give us enough notice to stop the umpires from going. In that case, we will treat it as a cancellation and bill only the allocation fee.
Be aware that this $48 rate for cancellations at the field only applies up until one hour after the scheduled start time of the game. It’s quite all right for you to request that the umpires remain at the park or nearby while you work to get the field ready, or you wait for the rain to stop, but once an hour passes after the originally scheduled start, if the game hasn’t been cancelled by that point we will bill the full fee for the game. If it’s a doubleheader, we’ll bill both game fees. Also, if you postpone the game to a start time more than one hour later than the originally scheduled start time, we will bill the full rate for the game or doubleheader, regardless of whether or not it gets played. If the original umpires are unavailable for the later start and I have to quickly assign a new crew, you have to pay for both crews.
Note that a cancellation is FINAL. A game absolutely CANNOT be un-cancelled, once you have phoned the hotline to say it is off. I will already have released the crew, and they will have made other plans for the day. I may not even be able to reach them at all. With this in mind, if you think there is any chance at all of getting the game in, you should let everyone get to the field and make a decision after they arrive. Err on the side of caution, and remember that it’s only $48 for two umpires if the decision to cancel is made at the park, with everyone present.
Once the exchange of lineups is begun, the full rate is charged for each game. However, if the first game of a doubleheader gets played but the second has to be cancelled (but not forfeited), we will treat the billing as if only one game had been scheduled, and we will bill nothing for the second game, not even the allocation fee. If the second game is forfeited, we will bill the full game fee.
To summarize:
If you give us appropriate notice, you pay only the allocation fee.
If you don't give us enough notice, but I stop the umpires anyway, you pay only the allocation fee.
If you don't give us enough notice and I can't stop an umpire, you pay the allocation fee and the cost of that umpire for the game(s).
If you don't give us enough notice and I can't stop any of the umpires, you pay the full amount for the game(s).
If the decision to cancel is made at the field, before lineups are exchanged, you pay the allocation fee plus $20 per umpire.
If the lineup exchange begins, you pay the full rate for the game.
If a forfeit occurs, you pay the full rate for the game(s), unless it happens far enough in advance that we can stop the umpires.
If we are unable to schedule a full crew, there is no allocation fee and you pay only for the umpires that appear.
If an umpire no-shows, there is no allocation fee and you don’t pay for the umpire who does appear – in fact, if it was a two-man crew, the whole game is free.
Cancelled games cannot be un-cancelled.
One other important note to keep in mind is that I umpire in addition to allocating. I typically don’t umpire during the week, but on weekends I have doubleheaders every Saturday and Sunday. I usually try to assign myself games later in the day, so that if anything goes wrong with the early games I will be able to deal with it before I step onto the field. But, there are going to be occasional times when I’m unable to respond to a page for an hour or more. Please be aware of this and be patient. If you really, badly need to track me down, just listen to the list of assignments on the hotline and find out where I’m working. Then see if you can contact someone there.
The following examples illustrate the points made above.
Example 1 – Game time is 6:00, for a single game. It's been pouring all day. At 3:55, I get a message on the hotline saying that the game is rained out. We will bill $8 for this game, regardless of whether or not the umpires have started for the park or whether or not I am able to stop them from going.
Example 2 – Game time is 12:00, for a doubleheader. It's been pouring all day. At 9:55, I get a message on the hotline saying that the games are rained out. We will bill $8 for this doubleheader, regardless of whether or not the umpires have started for the park or whether or not I am able to stop them from going.
Example 3 – Game time is 12:00, for a doubleheader. It's been pouring all day. At 10:30, I get a message on the hotline saying that the games are rained out. I call the umpires anyway, and manage to catch both of them before they leave for the park – lucky you! We will bill $8 for this doubleheader.
Example 4 – Game time is 6:00, for a single game. It's been pouring all day. At 4:30, I get a message on the hotline saying that the game is rained out. I call the umpires anyway, and manage to catch the base umpire before he leaves for the game. The plate umpire is already on the bus. We will bill the plate umpire's portion of the game fee, and the $8 allocation fee.
Example 5 – Game time is 6:00, for a single game. It's a beautiful sunny day. At 5:00, it clouds over. Everyone arrives at the park. At 5:30, the umpires arrive. At 5:31, the heavens open. The game is cancelled. We will bill $48 for this game.
Example 6 – Game time is 12:00, for a doubleheader. It's a beautiful sunny day. At 11:00, it clouds over. Everyone arrives at the park. At 11:30, the umpires arrive. At 11:31, the heavens open. The doubleheader is cancelled. We will bill $48 for this doubleheader.
Example 7 – Game time is 6:00, for a single game. It's a beautiful sunny day. At 5:00, everyone arrives at the park. To your dismay, some asshole in a 4x4 has done doughnuts all across the infield. At 5:30, the umpires arrive. They inspect the field and determine it is unplayable. The game is cancelled. We will bill $48 for this game.
Example 8 – Game time is 6:00, for a single game. It's a beautiful sunny day. At 5:00, your team is well into its warm-up routine. Of the other team, there is no sign. At 5:30, the umpires arrive. So do a couple of players on the other team. At 6:00, the other team has only 8 players. You hand your line-up to the umpires, and the other team is unable to present a line-up. You win by forfeit. We will bill the full rate for this game.
Example 9 – Game time is 12:00, for a doubleheader. It's a beautiful sunny day. At 11:00, your team is well into its warm-up routine. Of the other team, there is no sign. At 11:30, the umpires arrive. So do a couple of players on the other team. At 12:00, the other team has only 8 players. You hand your line-up to the umpires, and the other team is unable to present a line-up. You win both games by forfeit. We will bill the full rate for this doubleheader.
Example 10 – Game time is 12:00, for a doubleheader. It's a beautiful sunny day. At 11:30, the umpires show up at the park. There is no-one else there. The umpires wait until 12:00, see no baseball teams, and leave. We will bill the full rate for this doubleheader.
Example 11 – Game time is 12:00, for a doubleheader. It's a cloudy, threatening day, but so far there is no rain. At 12:00, the first game begins. So do the showers. By the end of the first game, it is pouring not just cats and dogs, but yaks and wildebeests as well. Ducks are cavorting on the lakes in the infield. The second game of the doubleheader is cancelled. We will bill for only one game.
Example 12 – Game time is 12:00, for a doubleheader. It's a beautiful sunny day. The other team has only nine players. The first game is played without incident. While warming up for the second game, the opposition's starting pitcher pulls a muscle and cannot play. The other team is unable to field a team and you win the second game by forfeit. We will bill the full rate for the doubleheader.
Example 13 – Game time is 6:00, for a single game. It's a beautiful sunny day. At 3:55, you call the hotline and tell me the other team has contacted you and forfeited the game because they can't scrape together enough players. We will consider this a cancellation rather than a forfeit and will charge only the $8 allocation fee, regardless of whether or not the umpires have started for the park or whether or not I am able to stop them from going.
Example 14 – Game time is 6:00, for a single game. Unfortunately, I have only been able to find one umpire for the game. The game is played without incident. We will bill only the plate umpire's portion for this game, with no allocation fee. Even if you are able to pull someone out of the stands to work the bases, and even it was a carded umpire and you agree to pay him as well, we will still not charge an allocation fee for this game.
Example 15 – Game time is 6:00, for a single game. Both teams are ready to play, but there is only one umpire present, even though I assigned two. You play the game with one umpire. We will not bill for this game.
Example 16 – Game time is 12:00 noon, for a doubleheader. When 12:00 noon rolls around, the other team has only eight players. They forfeit game one, but they promise that they have another player on his way there, he is just stuck in traffic, and they would like to try to play the second game when he arrives. The umpires will wait the customary time between two games of a doubleheader before forfeiting the second game. This time varies from league to league, and may be as short as 20 minutes (senior men) or as long as 45 minutes (BC Minor). Regardless of whether or not game two is played, we will bill the full rate for this doubleheader.
Example 17 – Game time is 12:00 noon, for a doubleheader. At 10:30, you phone me and tell me the field is unplayable. I call both umpires, and despite the fact that both are in their cars driving to the game, they agree to turn around and forego their expected full payment, even though the cancellation was phoned in late. They even agree not to take the $20 on-field cancellation payment. Aren’t you lucky! Meanwhile, immediately after stopping the umpires, I step onto a different field to umpire a doubleheader of my own. Imagine my surprise when, between games, I listen to my messages and hear five pleas to send the umpires after all, you reversed yourself and decided not to cancel the game. Each message is more strident than the last, ending with threats and insults, and there are nasty e-mails in my inbox when I get home. Well, from an allocation standpoint, the doubleheader is still cancelled, and we’re billing you $8 for it. The only thing you have succeeded in doing with your pleas, threats, and insults is to annoy me. If I am annoyed enough, I’m going to tack on the $20 per umpire for the crew that was on the road when you phoned in the late cancellation.
Example 18 – Game time is 6:00p, for a single game. It has been raining most of the day, and several other games have already been cancelled. But I don’t receive a message on the hotline cancelling this game. So, both umpires go to the field. The field is flooded and there is nobody there, so they leave. When I get home from work at 7:00p, I find an e-mail in my inbox with a time stamp of 2:30p, saying that the game is rained out. We will bill the full rate for this game. An e-mail is not sufficient notification of a cancellation, because I won’t see it until later in the evening. The hotline MUST be used for all cancellations.
Example 19 – Game time is 6:00p, for a single game. It has been pouring all day, and all other games have already been cancelled. But I don’t receive a message on the hotline cancelling this game. So, both umpires go to the field. The field is flooded and there is nobody there, so they leave. There’s not even an e-mail in my inbox when I get home – no communication at all. We will bill the full rate for this game.
Example 20 – Game time is 6:00p, for a single game. It has been pouring all day, and all other games have already been cancelled. But I don’t receive a message on the hotline cancelling this game. So, both umpires go to the field. The field is flooded and there is just one lonely, solitary coach there, who tells the umpires the game has been cancelled. We will bill the full rate for this game. You only get the benefit of the $48 rate if the decision to cancel is made with both teams and at least one umpire present.
Example 21 – Game time is 6:00p, for a single game. It’s been raining off and on for most of the day. You’ve been working like maniacs on the field and are frustrated, because every time you get it just playable, it showers again. It’s now approaching 4:00 and you don’t know what to do. If you bang the game now and phone the other team and the umpires, it’ll probably be sunny the rest of the day. But if you get everybody there, it’ll probably rain again and you don’t want to pay a game fee for nothing. What to do? Just remember this – if the decision to cancel is made at the field, with both teams and at least one umpire present, then you don’t have to pay the full game fee! It’s only $48 in this case. So your best bet when you can’t make a decision two hours in advance is to get everyone there and try to get the game in. The worst that can happen is you say “okay, we tried” and pay $48. But the best that can happen is all your efforts pay off, and you play the game! Just don’t give and up and send everyone home before the umpires get there, because if you do, then that would be a cancellation without notice – we’d treat that the same as example 20 above.
Example 22 – Game time is 6:00p, for a single game. It’s been raining on and off the whole day, and you haven’t quite got the field playable. But the forecast is for the showers to stop, eventually. The umpires arrive at 5:30p. You tell them you will not have the field ready to play on at 6:00p, but you hope (if the rain holds off) to have it ready by 7:00p. The umpires will wait until you either play or cancel the game. If you cancel it before 7:00p, we will bill $48 for this game. If you cancel after 7:00p, we will bill the full rate for this game.
Example 23 – Game is 12:00p, for a doubleheader. The weather’s been miserable, with that misty rain that’s not really rain but soaks everything anyway. At 12:00p you consult with the umpires and determine that the field is not playable. But if the weather improves, you may be able to get the games in later in the day. At 1:00p, the field’s still too wet to play, so you postpone the games to 3:00p. We will bill the full rate for this doubleheader, regardless of whether or not it is played. If the original umpires are not available for a 3:00p start and I assign a different crew for the postponement, we will bill the full rate for both crews.
The gist of it all is, if anything happens to the game, you have to give us enough notice to stop the umpires from coming, or we will bill for the game. You must use the hotline to notify us of all cancellations. If the game is cancelled with notice, you pay only the allocation fee. Cancelled games cannot be uncancelled The only exception is if the decision to cancel is made at the field, in consultation with the umpires, for a cause which could not have reasonably been foreseen two hours before the game, in which case we will only bill the allocation fee plus $20 per umpire. The point of no return is the exchange of line-up cards at home plate – once line-up cards are exchanged, the full game fee will always be billed.
The reason we have all these policies is that every single example above has happened to us at least once. However, in practice, most of the above scenarios are rare. Out of 900 to 1000 games that we allocate each year, it is unusual to have more than three or four occasions where we don’t get the proper notice of a cancellation. And in those cases, it is always someone who didn’t read the above policies! When everyone knows in advance the way things need to be done, then the season will run pretty smoothly.
