It's a different view from behind the plate

By Keith Groller
Of The Morning Call


Dave Hemerly has always looked like "a natural" at the plate. His effortlessly smooth swing, a stroke he seemed blessed with at birth, has been a terrifying sight to more than one Blue Mountain League pitcher over the past 12 seasons.

During the Lehigh Valley Championship Series in Limeport last week, Hemerly was again at the plate. But, this time, he looked very different.

Hemerly was serving as the home plate umpire for Game 2 of the best-of-three series between the Limeport Dodgers of the BML and the Tri-County League's Stahley's Angels.

From now on, whenever Hemerly is at the plate, he'll be peering at the pitcher from behind a mask, rather than staring him down and wielding one of the most dangerous bats in local baseball.

After posting some impressive numbers in the BML since 1980, Hemerly has called it quits as an active player; but he'll still be involved. Only now, he'll be wearing blue, rather than making pitchers feel blue.

Actually, his transition from player to ump began four or five years ago when he began working with veteran softball umpire Bill Bickel. He expanded his work to high school and Tri-County League baseball games.

"I planned the umpiring career a couple of years ago when I knew my career as a player was winding down," he said. "I didn't want to quit playing and, all of a sudden, go into umpiring. I started about three or four years ago, getting my feet wet. I have enough confidence now to make the transition."

Hemerly had a rude welcoming to the world of an umpire.

His first assignment was an East Penn Fastpitch League softball game between Catty S.A. and St. Francis in Northampton. Hemerly may have still been thinking as a hitter when he squatted behind the catcher for the first time.

"My strike zone was as big as a postage stamp in that first game and, boy, did I really hear it from both teams," Hemerly said. "I still remember it well. Dave Bilger was pitching for St. Francis and Brian Ruth was pitching for Catty S.A. They gave it to me pretty good."

Hemerly says his strike zone is a bit more generous now and he's become a better umpire with experience.

"I feel like I get better and better each time I go out there," he said. "Because I played the game, I know the rules. I'm someone who was in the same shoes as the players and know what they're looking for and what they're thinking.

"What you have to strive for as an umpire is consistency. You establish a strike zone in the first inning and the players have to adjust to it. You just have to make sure that what you call a strike in the first inning is also a strike in the seventh."

Hemerly, who always considered himself "laid-back" as a player, found a deep appreciation for the umps calling his games with the Bicentennial Stars in the BML after he began barking balls and strikes himself.

"I never was one to do a lot of arguing with umps in my career. I always figured they had a job to do and I knew they took a lot of crap from the players," he said. "After I began umpiring myself, there was no way I was ever going to say anything about a call. I began to feel I was one of them.

"Anybody who has ever yelled at a umpire should be in their shoes just once to see what it's like. They should wear the blue, get involved and see what it's like. I guarantee that if they experienced it themselves, they would have second thoughts about arguing with an umpire again."

Of course, since he still knows how frustrating it is to have a crucial close call go against you, Hemerly is not one to pull a quick trigger on an ejection.

"I don't have what you'd call a short fuse and I'll give a player or manager his say," Hemerly said. "They do have a right to argue, at least to a point. Being a player myself, I know the point they're trying to get across and I'll listen. Once it gets personal, though, you've got to draw the line."

Hemerly has made it clear that he's not in umpiring for the money.

"I do it just because I still want to be part of the game," he said. "I love baseball. I couldn't walk away totally. This gives me a perfect way to stay involved in some capacity."

The 33-year-old Hemerly said the commitment involved with playing in the BML from Mother's Day to Labor Day has become too much for him.

"It's been real fun playing on a team that reached the league finals 10 times in the last 12 years and won seven championships," Hemerly said. "We made the playoffs every year. I don't know where else you can go after you've had that kind of success.

"I was just fortunate enough to play for Lee Butz, a first-class guy who started the Allentown franchise, and so many great players like the Randy Seltzers, the Bob Hilinskis, the Mike Miorellis, Bill Sakovics, Greg Butz and so many others. Plus, I was able to play under several great managers like Greg Vogel (presently the baseball coach at Lafayette College), who was the best motivator I've ever had the privilege of playing for."

Though Hemerly hasn't lost much of his offensive game in recent years -- he was the league's MVP last season and batted just under .400 this season -- he felt it was time to hang up his spikes.

"There's other things in life," he said. "I relate real well to what (Limeport's) Andy Cichocki said about his retirement. He said that maybe it's time to grow up. I've got two little boys (3-year-old Christopher James, and 9-month-old Matthew) and I want to see them grow up.

"It's tough to go out to a game when they want you to stay. They go to bed at nine and our games with the Stars were usually at 8 o'clock. I missed putting them to bed."

Hemerly said it's also time to give something back to his wife, Alice, who has had to put up with his wacky baseball schedules through the years. He says that even though he'll do his share of games as an umpire and will probably still play Sunday afternoons in the Lehigh Valley Senior League, he intends to keep a few days a week free.

And, how would he like to be remembered as a player?

Well, his numbers -- an approximate .400 career batting mark -- will always stand out. They're good enough to earn him automatic induction into the BML Hall of Fame. But, Hemerly doesn't want to be remembered by numbers.

"I never worried about stats; I just worried about winning," he said. "I want my peers, friends and teammates, just to remember me as a blue-collar type of player, who was a good sportsman. I never was one to get overly-excited. I just liked to play hard, do the best I can and show good sportsmanship. Hopefully, I'm respected for being that kind of player."

And, most likely, the same kind of respect will come Hemerly's way in his career as an umpire.



keith.groller@mcall.com

From The Morning Call -- September 5, 1991

Copyright © 1991, The Morning Call