Calling his shot: Albuquerque's Eli Bickel chasing dream of being MLB umpire

He was somewhere among the crowd quickly dispersing from left field.

>There was, however, the matter of finding him.

>It took some looking and a few well-timed shoutouts from Forest Stulting, the Albuquerque Isotopes public relations manager, before the 17-year-old weaved his way through the rush of his mostly bearded and somewhat older contemporaries, and jogged over.

>The grin etched on Eli Bickel’s face was the first thing that wasn’t hard to notice. The type that comes from doing something so enjoyable it takes a while to leave. The second thing was his choice of attire.

>The soon-to-be senior football player at Volcano Vista and second-year Isotopes batboy traded his usual uniforms for a new one on Saturday — a black shirt paired with gray trousers — for an MLB umpire camp at Isotopes Park.

>“It was awesome,” Bickel said. “Just to be able to learn from World Series umpires like Ted Barrett, Mike Everitt, Mark Carlson, a former crew chief, Rich Rieker — all these guys are such talented umpires and they have so much expertise — and show some of my skill was incredible.”

>How much experience? A lot. It was estimated there were more than 220 big league seasons and 14 World Series combined between the 16 staff members on hand.

>The camp in Albuquerque was the third of a five-city tour for those interested in pursuing a career as a professional umpire, improving their skills or simply learning more about the job. The first camp was in San Francisco in May, followed by Nashville in June. There will be another in Vero Beach, Florida, in August with the final one taking place in Brooklyn, New York in September. Each consists of three-plus hours of drills from calling outs to reading plays to positioning to calling balls and strikes.

>Selected individuals will get invited to the MLB Umpire Prospect Development Camp at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex in Vero Beach in January for an all-expenses-paid, four-week course. Last year, of the 56 invitees, 53 graduated with 41 currently working in the minor leagues.

>Between 140 and 150 people took part in Saturday’s camp.

>“We look for hustle, attitude (and) response to constructive criticism,” said Rieker, MLB’s senior director of umpire development. “Do they listen? Do they eliminate mistakes? You can have somebody who’s never worked a game before and they’re a good candidate because they pay attention.”

>Bickel doesn’t quite fit that mold of a Florida invitee. Certainly not yet. He’s still too young. Prospective umpires need a high school diploma or equivalency among other things. But it’s where he wants to get to and where he wants to be.

>At least to start.

>His future dream job? Making calls in MLB stadiums. Perhaps even telling a manager or two to stop chirping and settle down inside the dugout.

>“I always played baseball growing up and I just didn’t think I would ever be good enough to go to the MLB,” Bickel said. “But when we would play those wiffleball games, I would always get behind the catcher and be the umpire. I’d come to Isotopes games and I’d watch them do it, and I’m like, ‘This is a really cool thing these guys get to do.’ It made me think when I got old enough I’d buy some gear and go out and chase the dream.”

>So he did.

>Bickel was 12 years old when he started umpiring. It was understandably nerve wracking. There were so many rules to know. It could be stressful at times. He fell in love with all of it anyway. Umpiring has been a constant during his spring and summer — while balancing school, as well as his football and Isotopes duties — since.

>Bickel can’t remember how many games he’s taken part in, but it’s been more than a few. He’s called club baseball games and some at the high school level. Little League, however, has been his main training ground.

>Along with regular-season games, Bickel has worked different district tournaments around the state. He’s called state tournaments, too, which sends teams to Waco, Texas, for the Little League Southwest Regional. And, yes, he’s already gotten some experience making ejections. He’s got two on his record. One was a parent for constantly (incorrectly, Bickel said) arguing calls from the stands and refusing to stop. The second was for a coach cursing (a strong no-no).

>“My mom and dad have both been really supportive,” Bickel said. “They love the fact that I wanted to do this. No 17-year-old, or 12-year-old at the time, is saying, ‘Hey, mom and dad, I want to travel around and be away from family and call games.’ It doesn’t happen that much. … I really love them and I’m grateful and thankful they’re my parents.”

>And Bickel is eager to make sure all that time and effort is worth it. It’s why he signed up for the umpire camp at Isotopes Park after seeing it on social media. It seemed a perfect way to pick up some tips — like improving his footwork — or to simply pick someone else’s brain.

>“You can never know too much, especially in umpiring,” Bickel said. “I love watching these guys do what they do, and just being out here helps my confidence and grows my knowledge of the game.”

>He’s hoping he’ll be able to do more than watch in the future. That’s the goal. Chasing a dream, however, might be the better call.

>“I would love to be able to come back here and call a game one day,” Bickel said. “... But what a lot of guys who have been through this process have told me is to enjoy it. You’re traveling. You’re getting paid to be on a baseball field. You’re calling a game. Whether you get called up and they put a number on your sleeve or not, you’re doing something you love.

>“And to be able to have this experience has been awesome.”

>And that grin? It was still there when he walked away.

>David Glovach covers New Mexico United and other sports for the Journal. Reach him at dglovach@abqjournal.com or via X @DavidGlovach.