What it Means to be a Regional LL Umpire

I've now been at Jr Regional for 4 days. When I got here, I knew two other people- Kevin from D54 and Rob from D14. I have now worked games with 6 of the 7 other umpires - there is only 1 that I have not worked with yet.

What I can say is how much of an honor we all feel it is to be here. I feel very privileged to represent CA D12 at this tournament. I have been trained and mentored by some of the best umpires in the region at D12 for the past 16 years, and at D54 for the past 4 - and I can tell you all that we have some of the best trainers around. I feel like I have been preparing for this week for the past 16 years...and also for the past 8 months (since I found out I was selected)...and for the past 6 weeks - working in tournaments around northern California at the League, District, Section and Division levels - all ages from 10 year old to Big League.

We have an incredible crew here - umpires from across the west coast. We got here by different routes, with different experiences, but with a common love of baseball and Little League. We are supported by an amazing group of folks from Aliso Viejo LL and D55. They have worked hard to make sure we were taken care of, that we have enough water, food and rest (when possible).

All of this so that the 150 kids on the 12 teams have an invaluable experience at their Jr Regional Tournament. For most of these kids, this will be the apex of their baseball experience. Sure, some will go onto high school ball, and some will play in college. But for many of them, they may never again experience the excitement of a tournament at this level. To be able to help make that a memorable time in their lives is just amazing. We have had players come up to us between games and thank us; the Laguna Niguel (the host team team from D55) team comes up to the crew during introductions and shakes hands with us - just to let us know that they know what it takes to get here as an umpire; and, we talk to the kids during the game to find out more about them and their teams...and they get to know more about us.

The tournament is about 1/2 over, but already I can safely say that it has been an incredible time for all of us on the crew.