BY SAPNA PATHAK
Sure, the stakes were higher – it was one of two losers bracket semifinal match-ups in this year’s District 1 11- and 12-year-old Little League tournament – but the four volunteer umpires calling the game thought they were prepared.
They were wrong.
A controversial call in the bottom of the sixth inning – Concord National player Cody Ferns was called out at third base – angered National fans, who hurled food and profanities at the umpires after the game, a 10-9 Salem American win on July 11.
National fans were outraged after Ferns was called out at third, then ejected from the game for “throwing a fit” in the dugout, according to National manager Dave Angus, as well as a called third strike against National batter Cody Barnhart to end the game.
“I got hit in the head with pizza and in the arm with pizza,” said umpire Dan Bachand, who posted his statement on WMUR-TV’s Web site July 12.
Bachand, an umpire in Manchester Central’s Little League organization, monitored plays at second base and said he was struck with food while walking past the concession stand at Memorial Field in Concord after the game.
Joining Bachand around the diamond were third-base umpire William Dreckmann, home-plate umpire Matt Lemear and first-base umpire Eugene Emmons, a 30-year veteran of Little League game calling.
“I was afraid for my safety,” said Dreckmann on WMUR.com. “I wanted to call the police.”
This is not the first incident involving Manchester Central umpires, who had to be escorted by state police following a game in Salem a few years ago. The league also hired a police detail once after repeated cursing during games.
Chris Mamos, president of Concord National Little League’s board of directors, was unavailable for comment, but board members posted a letter on the league’s Web site on July 13. It reads in part: “We are truly sorry that these events transpired at our home field.
“We are in the process of working through the issues and situations that led up to this event in hope that we can avoid any future incidents.”
For the full statement, visit concordnll.com.