BILLINGS — It's one of the more thanksless jobs around, but first-year umpire Jason Hardy loves calling the balls and strikes.
"I love the sport, first of all, and the kids deserve someone out here. The students deserve to play and deserve a fair game. I love the game, and this is how I stay engaged," Hardy said.
"Honestly, I think he's done a really nice job," said longtime umpire Craig Berube, who heads the Billings pool. "He's got things to work on, as we all do, but he's out there and he enjoys it. That's the biggest thing, is to take that love of the game and keep going with it in an officiating capacity."
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With the expansion of high school baseball in Montana, especially around the Billings area, the demand on umpires has increased. These are folks with jobs outside of the Montana Officials Association, so there have been difficulties this spring.
"The hardest part is some of these games, they're starting at 11 o'clock. I've had Tuesday games at 3 and 6, so you have to cut out of work early," Berube said. "We try to arrive an hour before game time to get ready, pregame and go over everything, so it can be difficult at times."
"It can really be a stretch covering them. Sometimes we've got to call schools and say, 'Hey, we can't do that time. Can you do earlier or later?'" Hardy said. "Then guys are having to go from game to game and time to time and really stretching their family time at that point."
For guys like Hardy, though, the stresses are worth it when the kids can play the games. A longtime football official down in Oklahoma, Hardy is finding Montana's climate a little more friendly for baseball umpires than the Sooner State.
"You've got to stay hydrated. I know that sounds so obvious, but you can really tell the difference if you're hydrated or not," Hardy said. "What I say to new officials is, whatever you think is enough hydration, double it."
They aren't the first people fans think of regarding high school athletics, but the games doesn't go on without the officials.
