Dedicated group serves as umpires for Freeport International Baseball Invitational

Chris Speer’s umpiring career started by accident.

Sitting in the stands getting ready to watch a game 10 years ago, an umpire failed to show. Speer answered the call so the game could be played.

Now, he is one of the more prominent umpires at the Freeport International Baseball Invitational.

Speer will work six games this week and is the back-up scheduler to veteran umpire Sam Wood.

“I liked umpiring and got my (PIAA sleeve) patch to do high school games about five years ago,” said Speer, 27.

Speer’s presence is valuable to chief umpire Wood.

“He’s a fine young man,” Wood said. “Several of us took him under our wings, and he’s made a big commitment.”

Being able to make a commitment is a big component of the ability to schedule umpires for the annual event. This year, for example, Wood has to staff 45 games in five days.

Many are played on weekday afternoons when some are working at their regular jobs. But that’s where the commitment part kicks in.

“It’s very tough as the pool of umpires is limited,” Wood said. “But we have guys who are retired and guys who schedule their vacations for this week.”

Wood cited Speer, Mike Falleroni and Tony Marcantonio among those who schedule vacations around the Freeport event.

With no tournament brackets or trophies to play for, the umpiring atmosphere is much different than a WPIAL contest or Game 7 of the World Series.

“This is more laid back,” Speer said. “It’s more of a fun time for this event.”

“It’s a much more pleasant experience here,” said Wood, 61, of Buffalo Township. “But you still want to keep your focus and do right by the players and my partners. You don’t want to put a lot of pressure on yourself.”

Wood even has his son, Harrison, involved in umpiring — a third-generation arbiter.

“My dad (Sam senior) started me when I was 18,” Sam Wood said. “He umpired for 44 years. He was the president of the former West Deer Little League. He made me umpire-in-chief after my freshman year of college.”

While FIBI organizers are having difficulty getting international teams to come to the event for various reasons, Wood enjoyed the experience of calling games with teams from Europe and elsewhere.

In baseball, there is no language barrier.

“Baseball signals are universal,” Wood said. “Left hand is balls, right hand is strikes. I’ve found the foreign teams very respectful of the umpires and the game itself.”

Wood laughs when he wonders if players talking in their native tongues are saying something bad about the umpires, with “arbitro” the Spanish term for umpire and “shinpan” the Japanese term.

“This keeps me in the game,” Wood said. “I just love the game, and I appreciate the umpires being flexible for scheduling and giving their best.”

The Freeport event lasts through Saturday with the USA-International game scheduled for 8 p.m. at Swartz Stadium to be followed by a fireworks display at 10.