Page 112 - ShowSight - December 2019

Officiating
AND INSTANT REPLAY
BY WALTER SOMMERFEILT
60’s in a working-class neighborhood in the Polish section of Cleve- land, Ohio. My father was a decorated World War II veteran that served in the European theater under Eisen- hower. Following the war in 1946 Mom and Dad got married and over the next 50 plus
years they raised 5 children born in 1951, 54, 60, 63, & 66. When I was young Dad worked two jobs and my mother was a typical stay at home mom. We lived upstairs above my grandparents in a small apartment filled with love.
It was a great time to be a kid. We didn’t have much, but we never really gave it much thought.
Mom and dad were good Catholics (in fact two of my aunts were nuns) so we were sentenced to 12 years of Catholic School and had a pretty normal childhood. What I remember most about growing up was that almost all my friends and the other kids in the neighbor- hood were always outside playing some type of sports or getting into mischief. On most days’ baseball, touch and tackle football, basket- ball, kickball, and whatever else we could play with the number of kids available occupied our free time. My brother and I had paper routes to earn spending money and we walked everywhere except for those times when we would take a bus to go fishing on Lake Erie or downtown to attend a Cleveland Indians game when you could buy a general admission ticket for $.75.
I remember that when I joined the little league, the team that I wanted to play for had tryouts and you had to earn your place on the team. I was not a natural athlete and had to work hard in order to make the team roster. There were no guarantees of playing time, but you practiced a lot and in my case on a rare occasion I got into a game or two. Just like with almost all sports competition we had umpires, some good, some bad, and most were just volunteers try- ing their best. There were obviously moments with arguments over calls but when the game was over, we lined up and shook hands with the other team and went home or for ice cream after a win. In professional sports now I believe hockey is the only sport that still lines up and shakes hands with the opponent following every game.
am one of those baby boomer kids that grew up in the 50’s and
When we would play sandlot style sports with our friends, we figured out ways to officiate in our own way and it pretty much worked without too many fisticuffs. Usually it was the biggest kid or the one that brought the equipment that won the disputes, but we had fun.
In those days, we only had three TV channels (and most of us only had black and white) no internet, or video games. We did have pinball and bowling and they were great to play against your friends especially in the cold winter months. In our neighborhood sports were just one of the better outlets for most of us. We followed our favorite local teams, the Cleveland Indians and Browns, Cleveland Baron’s Hockey, wrestling, and Ohio State football either on the radio or through the newspapers. As a kid life was good. TV began expanding, we would catch an occasional sports event on TV. The World Series, College football’s game of the week, the Olympics and of course ABC’s Wide World of Sports. Being able to watch live sports was not like today where you have it 24/7/365 on cable. It was a treat especially when officials made those critical calls that at times had a major impact on the outcome of the games. It was a hoot to watch Billy Martin and Earl Weaver argue with the umpires spitting, kicking up dirt and complaining about a call, or watching Woody Hayes have a sideline temper tantrum and Bobby Knight throwing chairs across the court. Following the tantrums, the crowd would erupt when the officials would flag them or eject them from the game. When we got to high school organized foot- ball, Basketball, Baseball, Track, and other sports introduced us to paid, well trained and sanctioned officials’ which also often-made disputed calls. We learned to understand that these people were human and trying their best, and even if they were wrong the call was final, so you better accept it.
Through the year’s technology continued improving and now when you watch a sporting event, especially a college or profession- al one, there are numerous cameras spread around throughout the venue giving us every possible angle to see the plays. With all these cameras and angles many sports adopted “instant replay.” Challeng- es to human calls made by the officials were now added to the land- scape. Just look at this past year’s Kentucky Derby where the winner was Disqualified for interference. In those sports that have adopted it the reviews allow for the overturning of the call on the field. As a result, many of the officials in those sports also have review com- mittees that evaluate them and can fine, suspend and even termi- nate them if they do not perform up to an acceptable standard. I just read in the paper where there is a debate in major league base- ball about having a computerized robot serve behind the plate to call balls and strikes. Are we all so hung up on winning and losing that we have lost sight of the spirit of sportsmanship and fair play? >
“JUST LIKE WITH ALMOST ALL SPORTS COMPETITION WE HAD UMPIRES,
some good, some bad, and most were just volunteers trying their best.”
110 • ShowSight Magazine, DeceMber 2019