The Umpire Inspire Podcast

Few people represent the values of Umpire Inspire more than veteran MLB Umpire Ted Barrett. It's his servant's attitude toward umpiring and the mentor role he has rightly earned over the course of his 25+ year MLB career. It's his determination to lead with the best example he can and to "pay forward" what others have poured into him. And it's how he backs it all up by the way he gives his time, effort, and talent to others, both on an MLB diamond and in the offseason, far away from the spotlight. It was a pleasure and a privilege for Your Humble Host to visit with Ted, and I hope you'll be as inspired as I have been by the example this outstanding umpire sets for us. Enjoy! --- Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support The Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- Minor League Baseball umpire Ben Engstrand shares what he's learned on his umpire journey, and gives us the scoop on a brand-new education opportunity for umpires at any level: the Wendelstedt Umpire School Online Prep Course. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support The Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- High school, college and Little League umpire Dan Campagnolo mines his decades in umpiring to share some concrete tips and a few stories, including: what NOT to do when you forget your shinguards; how to never worry about counting mid-inning warmup pitches again; and why working the dish for the Little League World Series Championship Game in 2012 was maybe only the third-coolest thing that happened to Dan that year. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support The Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- Season One guest David Saball reports back to us after successfully completing his first step toward a professional umpiring career: Summer 2020 working in the North Woods League. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support The Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- Bill Nowlin, author of "Working a Perfect Game: Conversations with Umpires" stops by to share his experience interviewing 70+ MLB umpires and learning about umpires and umpiring for the very first time! Spoiler alert: he came away from his four years of researching and writing his book with a very favorable impression of the men and women behind the mask, and of the craft itself—and it was fascinating to view our world through brand-new eyes. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support The Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- What's it like being the youngest umpire in Minor League Baseball—for two years running? What's it like to overturn a walk-off home run? What's it like to call a no-hitter? 21-year-old Nathan Diederich shares stories of these experiences and more from his three years of swift advancement through MiLB in this episode! Even at a young age, Nate already has the gift of drawing some pretty perceptive and important lessons from his experiences and the people he’s come into contact with—you're going to find him very easy to root for as he advances toward the Bigs. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support The Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- Since 2013, Elizabeth Hammerschmidt has been making her mark as a rising NCAA softball umpire. She’s a current Big10 Crew Chief who also works in multiple other college conferences, she's had conference championship and regional assignments every year since 2016, and a D1 super regional assignment in 2019. She's also the co-host of the Both Sides of the Mask podcast. In this conversation Liz and I do indeed explore both sides of the mask, so to speak—the games, the approach, Liz’s stories, her on-field experiences—but there is also a person wearing that mask. We do get to the heart of some challenges that Liz has faced balancing her family life with her pursuit of umpiring, as well as the enjoyment she’s found bringing her family along for the ride. Liz is a true professional but at the same time so personable and plainspoken and open to share her experiences and thoughts. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support the Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- Meet Filip Havlik, an 18-year-old umpire from Prague in the Czech Republic! Learn about baseball in his country; the similarities and differences of being an umpire there compared to what we are accustomed to in the United States; his opportunities to work European tournaments; and his upcoming first-ever-visit to the US to umpire at a tournament that means a lot to him. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support the Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- Today: Brian Hertzog on his nine-year journey as a Minor League Baseball umpire! The craziness—and huge impact—of working Venezuela Winter League ball. The 20+ MLB umpires he worked alongside during his Minor League journey and the ones who inspired him the most. And a very personal description of what it really felt like NOT to get "The Call" to the big leagues. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!

Support the Umpire Inspire Podcast on Patreon Connect with the Umpire Inspire community on Facebook --- Enjoy a super-motivating and, at times, very personal conversation with Mark Bernstein, the Umpire in Chief for Little League’s West Region. Mark oversees and trains umpires from the 11 western states that make up Little League’s West Region and is a skilled and accomplished umpire in his own right. And he’s someone who has been hugely influential in the umpiring career of your humble host and in the careers of many, many other Little League volunteer umpires. When I describe Mark to people, I describe him as a “True Believer.” He believes in Little League. He believes in the significant positive impact that a great Little League umpire can have on the experience for the players… and that belief rubs off in a big, big way. I challenge any umpire within the sound of this podcast to spend ten minutes with Mark and have any apathy or cynicism about being a Little League umpire. What’s far more likely is that you’ll be charged up to go redouble your efforts and pour even more of your energy and dedication than ever before to your position on the field. Enjoy! --- Join the Umpire Inspire Crew on Patreon! The Umpire Inspire Podcast is LISTENER-SUPPORTED! Working umpires, and those who support them, are the engine behind this podcast and the greater mission of Umpire Inspire. I’d like to invite you to support the show on Patreon and become an active participant in building Umpire Inspire as we celebrate and inspire baseball and softball umpires all around the world. Contributors on Patreon earn rewards like early access to podcast episodes, community involvement opportunities, Umpire Inspire merchandise, and, most importantly, the pride of fueling an effort that matters to you. Join the UI Crew today!