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Aug. 11—MITCHELL — For Peyton Schroder, the Class B state amateur baseball tournament has always been something to watch.
Growing up in Mitchell, Schroder watched the tournament unfold at Cadwell Park, seeing some of the best amateur baseball players in the state compete on his hometown field. This year, however, he experienced the tournament from a different perspective by standing behind the plate as an umpire.
Schroder, 22, was the youngest umpire in this year's pool of umpires for the Class B state amateur tournament. His first appearance at the tournament marked another milestone in a young umpiring career that began when he was still a teenager.
Schroder first got into umpiring in 2019, working youth baseball games around Mitchell. While he started out casually, he began taking umpiring more seriously at the age of 19, setting his sights on advancing through the ranks.
Getting to Cadwell Park for the tournament took nearly three years of work. Along the way, Schroder attended numerous umpiring clinics in Kansas City, where he worked with instructors and evaluators and gained experience working games with three-man crews.
"It took a lot of grinding and getting in front of instructors and evaluators to get to this point for myself," Schroder said. "I took a lot of the instruction from that, and it has really helped me become a better umpire today and I am greatly appreciative of those clinics."
That preparation paid off this summer when Schroder received his first opportunity to umpire at the state amateur tournament. The South Dakota Umpires Association and the South Dakota Amateur Baseball Association has selected 25 umpires to work the Class A and Class B tournaments, with 45 games in all over a 12-day span. Registered umpires must be in at least their third year of umpiring and must attend a preseason clinic before they can be selected to umpire an American Legion state tournament or the amateur state tournament.
During his first go-round, Schroder worked seven Class B tournament games over the first weekend of the event. While seven games may have been just the beginning of his experience of amateur baseball, each game provided another opportunity to learn and improve.
For Schroder, the experience also reinforced why he chose to stay involved in baseball through umpiring.
"I just enjoy the game of baseball, and this tournament made me realize that," Schroder said. "It was definitely the highest level of umpiring I have done, and hopefully I get the opportunity to come back next year."
Having the chance to work the tournament in Mitchell added another layer of significance. Instead of simply watching the state amateur tournament at Cadwell Park as he had growing up, Schroder was now part of the action, working games in front of his peers and hometown fans.
"It was truly an honor, and it was a really cool experience," Schroder said. "To be in front of my hometown and in front of the fans, it was really awesome to be a part of."
Although working his first state amateur tournament has come to a close, Schroder views the experience as another step in his development. Working alongside veteran umpires gave him an opportunity to learn from those who have spent years behind the plate and on the field.
"Just working the state amateur tournament for my first year was a really awesome turnout, and It helped me have the opportunity to pick the brains of some of the other umpires that have been doing it for a long time," Schroder said. "That has been the biggest thing for me, and just learning from them and getting better. Baseball has always been a sport I love, and to be able to stick around it has been really awesome so far."
Continue reading...
Growing up in Mitchell, Schroder watched the tournament unfold at Cadwell Park, seeing some of the best amateur baseball players in the state compete on his hometown field. This year, however, he experienced the tournament from a different perspective by standing behind the plate as an umpire.
Schroder, 22, was the youngest umpire in this year's pool of umpires for the Class B state amateur tournament. His first appearance at the tournament marked another milestone in a young umpiring career that began when he was still a teenager.
Schroder first got into umpiring in 2019, working youth baseball games around Mitchell. While he started out casually, he began taking umpiring more seriously at the age of 19, setting his sights on advancing through the ranks.
Getting to Cadwell Park for the tournament took nearly three years of work. Along the way, Schroder attended numerous umpiring clinics in Kansas City, where he worked with instructors and evaluators and gained experience working games with three-man crews.
"It took a lot of grinding and getting in front of instructors and evaluators to get to this point for myself," Schroder said. "I took a lot of the instruction from that, and it has really helped me become a better umpire today and I am greatly appreciative of those clinics."
That preparation paid off this summer when Schroder received his first opportunity to umpire at the state amateur tournament. The South Dakota Umpires Association and the South Dakota Amateur Baseball Association has selected 25 umpires to work the Class A and Class B tournaments, with 45 games in all over a 12-day span. Registered umpires must be in at least their third year of umpiring and must attend a preseason clinic before they can be selected to umpire an American Legion state tournament or the amateur state tournament.
During his first go-round, Schroder worked seven Class B tournament games over the first weekend of the event. While seven games may have been just the beginning of his experience of amateur baseball, each game provided another opportunity to learn and improve.
For Schroder, the experience also reinforced why he chose to stay involved in baseball through umpiring.
"I just enjoy the game of baseball, and this tournament made me realize that," Schroder said. "It was definitely the highest level of umpiring I have done, and hopefully I get the opportunity to come back next year."
Having the chance to work the tournament in Mitchell added another layer of significance. Instead of simply watching the state amateur tournament at Cadwell Park as he had growing up, Schroder was now part of the action, working games in front of his peers and hometown fans.
"It was truly an honor, and it was a really cool experience," Schroder said. "To be in front of my hometown and in front of the fans, it was really awesome to be a part of."
Although working his first state amateur tournament has come to a close, Schroder views the experience as another step in his development. Working alongside veteran umpires gave him an opportunity to learn from those who have spent years behind the plate and on the field.
"Just working the state amateur tournament for my first year was a really awesome turnout, and It helped me have the opportunity to pick the brains of some of the other umpires that have been doing it for a long time," Schroder said. "That has been the biggest thing for me, and just learning from them and getting better. Baseball has always been a sport I love, and to be able to stick around it has been really awesome so far."
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