North Georgia Amateur Umpire Association

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Metro Atlanta's BEST Softball Umpire Association!

NEWS...

Booking for Tuesday, May 6 moved to Wednesday, May 7
Glenn will be out of the office Tuesday, May 6 to attend a work conference. Bookings originally scheduled for Tuesday will now take place on Wednesday, May 7. Thank you for your understanding.

2008 NGAUA High Schools
NGAUA is in charge of all home games for 31 Georgia schools in 2008 - the most in NGAUA history. The following is a list of all 31 NGAUA GHSA schools and each school's Web site (when available):

 What Are The Requirements to Umpire High School Ball

1. Pay your GHSA dues
2. Attend a GHSA clinic each year (free)
3. Take the state GHSA Umpire Test and pass with 85% or higher -- each year

What Are The Requirements to be Eligible to Umpire Post Season High School Ball

1. All the above requirements to umpire high school ball
2. Attend a GHSA umpire camp at least once every two years (there is a fee -- see below but includes the required clinic for all umpires -- see info on these Umpire camps)

Play Ball!!! Scheduling for 2008 Has Begun
The 2008 Season is ready to start. the first couple of weeks are light, but the numbers of games will soon increase. Here is how you request/get your games ...

• New For 2008 - E-mail Your Request - Using our new Excel Pre-Scheduling Request Form. Fill out the form by adding your name, phone # and e-mail address and the week you are requesting (using the Monday date). Then for Mon-Fri on the days you want/can work, list your top five parks you'd like to work. For the weekend, add the earliest time you can start and latest time you can stay.  Here is an example of a filled out form. Save the file to your computer and e-mail the file to Glenn by 9:00 p.m. on Sunday the week BEFORE the week you are scheduling for. For example, If you are sending in a request for the week of Mon., March 17 - Sun , March 23, you should e-mail Glenn your spreadsheet by 9:00 p.m. ET on Sun, March 9. Glen will communicate your schedule to you by Friday of the week before the scheduled week (March 14th in this example).
• Call Glenn for Your Schedule - (New For 2008 - office hours now start at 2:30 p.m. daily - 30 minutes later than in the past). Each week, beginning at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesdays for veteran NGAUA umpires and 2:30 p.m. on Wednesdays for transfer and first year NGAUA umpires, umpires will call Glenn Stewart. If the phone is busy, keep trying. If it rings, DON'T HANG UP until Glenn answers. He has call-waiting and it may take him a moment to click over to your call. When you get a hold of Glenn, make sure you can tell him what days you want/can work and what parks you are interested in working. Again, you are calling in for games the following week.
  • First Call Day for Veteran NGAUA umpires is Tuesday, March 11
  • First Call Day for Transfer NGAUA umpires is Wednesday, March 12
  • First Call Day for First-Year NGAUA umpires is Wednesday, March 19

Umpire Code of Ethics
ASA umpires are professional umpires. We get paid to umpire amateur athletes. As individual professionals, we have a responsibility to the players, fans, other umpires, our associations, ASA and ourselves to meet a high standard of professionalism both on and off the field. All Georgia ASA Umpires are expected to know and follow the Georgia ASA Umpire Code of Ethics. Georgia ASA takes this very seriously. Umpires not following this document may be brought in front of the Georgia ASA disciplinary committee and are subject to disciplinary action. Any questions regarding this code, please contact Jimmy Derrick.

2008 ASA Rule and Code Changes
ASA has announced its rule and code changes for the 2008 season. The rule changes for 2008 and comments on the changes may be found by clicking on the link below. Rule changes for 2008 include (but are limited to) a pitching distance change for Girls' 18-A, run rule changes for all types of ASA ball, pitching changes in senior slow pitch and 16-inch and removal of the 10-B special classification for championship play.

• 2008 Rule Changes with Comments (requires Adobe Acrobat reader)

Changes to the ASA Code with comments and clarifications may be found at the following links (requires Adobe Acrobat reader):

• 2008 ASA Code Changes with Comments
• Roster Change Deadline Clarification
• Team Registration Clarification
• Complete ASA Code

2008 ASA National Fast Pitch Umpire Camp In Cummung, GA
NGAUA is very lucky to have the ASA National Fast Pitch Umpire Camp in our back yard for the second year in a row. This is the premier fast pitch school in the country and a requirement for Elite membership. You have the opportunity to attend this this prestigious camp with virtual no travel expenses and possibly no housing expenses. Umpires from around the country will converge on Cumming, GA to participate in classroom and on-field instruction from Kevin Ryan, Julie Johnson, Jim Craig and Dick Gayler of the ASA Umpire National Staff. Umpires in the school will also get a chance to put their skills to the test while being observed at the end of the week in live J.O. Tournament. The cost for the school is $400 and includes all meals, shirts, video tape equipment and awards. Umpires are also responsible four their housing during the camp. Umpires will be paid a game fee for games they work in the tournament at the end of the week. Click here to download the camp registration form and return to Jimmy Derrick.

2007 NGAUA Awards
It was another fun time at the 2007 NGAUA banquet held at the Smyrna Community Center on November 10. The following umpires were honored with awards:

• ASA Slow Pitch Umpire of the Year -Jesse Merchant
• ASA Fast Pitch Umpire of the Year - Lamar Meers
• USSSA Umpire of the Year - Jeff Neiswender
• ISA Umpire of the Year - John Ivors
• Jim Herring Founders Award - Ralph Sexton

Congratulations to all the award winners and to all NGAUA umpires for a great 2007 season. Watch this web site for news regarding training for the 2008 season. A schedule of training dates should be posted in mid-January.

Georgia to Host Five ASA Nationals in 2009; Cobb County Gets 14U ASA/USA FP
Over 70 cities in 30 states were awarded ASA Nationals for 2009 at ASA's National Convention in November of 2007. Georgia ASA was awarded five, including one of the coveted five ASA/USA J.O. FP Nationals up for bid -- the 14U ASA/USA FP. The ASA Nationals being held in Georgia in 2009 are as follows:

Georgia ASA will be hosting six ASA Nationals in 2008. The 2008 Tournaments are as follows:

• Men’s "D" SP, Southern - Marietta, GA
• Coed "B" SP - LaGrange, GA
• Women’s "C" SP, East - Augusta, GA
• Girls’ 14 "B" FP, Southern - Columbus, GA
• Men's 9-Man Modified - Cumming, GA
• Men's 10-Man Modified - Cumming, GA
• All 2008 ASA National Championships

2008 NGAUA Board Election Results
The polls have closed. The results are in. We have an elected board for 2008. The results from the October 21st election held at Lockheed Elementary School are as follows:

President: Jerry Clover
Vice-President: Alan Brown
Secretary-Treasurer: Don Mitchell
Coordinator: Glenn Stewart
Recording Secretary: Lamar Meers
Member-At-Large (5): Ray Levy, Jeff Neiswender, Edwin Pickering, Jim Rollins, Bobby Streetmon 

Congratulations to the 2008 Board! The new board will be sworn in at the NGAUA banquet on November 10. A special thanks to Angela Baldwin and Dean Mills for all your hard work on the NGAUA Board. Both Angela and Dean chose not to run for a board seat for 2008.

New Park Directions
NGAUA has a couple of new parks ... listed below are driving directions to these new parks. We'll have the Directions page updated shortly.

New ASA Banned Bat List
Quick ... check the ASA banned bat list you bring to every game (you do bring a bat list to every game, right?!?) ... what's the date on it? If it is before February 21, 2007, you're out date. ASA updated the bat list at the end of February. Click on the Forms link on the left side of the page to get the up-to-the-minute ASA Banned Bat List. There is also a link to the up-to-the-minutes ASA Banned Bat List w/ Pictures so you'll know what the banned bats look like.

Get Your Partner's Name Right On Your Pay Sheet
You must include your partner's FULL name on your NGAUA pay sheet for each game. To make sure you you get the correct spelling, double check the name against the NGAUA Umpire Roster which is available on the Forms page. This document lists the names of each umpired registered with NGAUA for 2007.

Rainout Number
Not sure if your games are on because of the weather? Then call the NGAUA Rainout Number. Don't call Glenn! Glenn will be busy talking to the parks. He'll leave all the cancellation information on a recording that you may access by calling 770-443-2742.

This number also serves as the NGAUA fax line. So if the modem answers, that means there are no cancellations at this time. Also, never assume your game is canceled. Atlanta weather can be funny. It may be raining where you are and perfectly dry down the road at the park. Also, many of the parks we serve have excellent drainage and outstanding ground crews. So, make the call to the rainout number.

I Want to Be in Cyberspace
Have you achieved a new level in ASA Medals Program, or been honored into the NIF, ISF or ASA Elite programs? Did you work postseason in ISA, USSSA, ASA in GHSA in 2006 and don't see your name on NGAUA.com? Then let us know. Send an e-mail to our Webmaster and we'll get your name in Cyberspace.