Writer Bruce Weber Goes Into The Overlooked World Of Baseball Umpires

PIX's John Muller chats with New York Times reporter Bruce Weber about his new book As They See 'Em: A Fan’s Travels Through the Land of Umpires.

As They See 'Em is an insider’s look at the small and largely unknown world of professional umpires, who number less than 300—there are just 68 in the major leagues. Weber not only interviewed dozens of professional umpires, he transformed himself into one, attending and graduating from an officially sanctioned umpire training school and then spending the 2006 baseball season working as a professional umpire.

This is his personal account of the experience as well as a lively exploration of the art of umpiring: the culture, the history, the personalities, the recent major league controversies, the surprisingly arcane set of rules by which they work, why the fans hate the umpires, and why the umpires hate the owners, and what it’s like to do a job that offers the chance to earn only blame and never credit, where the mark of a job well done is not being noticed at all. This is the umpire’s oft-repeated mantra: “We’re expected to start out perfect, and then improve.”

As They See 'Em is currently available in bookstores.