Umpires love Don Wakamatsu

There is an article in the Wall Street Journal by Dave Cameron titled "The Dying Art of the Ballpark Tantrum" which talks about how manager ejections are down 30% this year.

What! I love seeing managers get ejected! What is this?!

Ok, let's read further.

Cameron mentions how the Seattle Mariners have not had a single player, coach or manager ejected in a game this year.

OH COME ON NOW! What do their season ticket holders think about this?

Seattle manager, Don Wakamatsu who is described as a "cerebral" type says, "I think that players tend to follow my tendencies," adding that he's "never subscribed to the idea that I have to get kicked out of a game to motivate my players."

Ok, done reading. Don't need to go further. This is nuts.

Don, you are kind of missing the point here. Actually, motivating players is only a small part of this as I think ALMOST all managers know that you must throw a tantrum (on-field of course) every now and then to keep the umpires "honest" so they don't make a "mistake" which negatively affects your team. It doesn't really matter if the game is called correctly. You just cannot have them making calls against your team.

Dude, the players' salaries should provide their sole motivation (though admittedly this does not always work in practice); but that is not the primary purpose for getting thrown out of a game. With this threat of an on-field eruption, you are in a way managing the umpires' behavior as much as you are managing your own players.

Don't believe me?

Imagine this. There is a very close call in an important game which can go either way. You are in one dugout and Lou Piniella is in the other. Ok, with me? The umpire knows at worst, with you he will get a rational, intellectual argument which will eventually end with you walking back to the dugout "agreeing to disagree." With Lou Piniella, he knows that he is in for a face full of spittle, he might end on Sportscenter that night and he has to complete a lengthy report after the game to the league explaining the ejection. Who needs that? Do you know who is going to get the call? Probably not you.

Here is a little tip. Getting obnoxious and crazy with an umpire is a lot like fighting in hockey. Yeah, there are technically rules against it but really it is "allowed". In fact, the leagues tacitly encourage it because the fans like it and the leagues know that where the fans are, the money follows. Now you will never get an official memo from the league explicitly saying this but it is true. It is.

In other words, Don, you need to get with the program here!

Now get there, let your wild side out and go hurl some abuse at an umpire who dared to make a call against your team. It's not too late. The season is not over yet. You do not want to finish the year with a goose egg because they might put that on the back of your baseball card next year and little kids might, you know, laugh about it.

You will feel better too.