Umpire Kevin Mandzuk is safe at home in Regina during pandemic

Kevin Mandzuk, a minor-league baseball umpire, poses for photos at the Lions Park ball diamonds in Regina on July 2, 2020. Photo: Troy Fleece / Regina Leader-Post

*This article was originally published on the Regina Leader-Post website on July 30, 2020. You can read the original article here.

August 3, 2020

By Greg Harder

Regina Leader-Post

Prior to the COVID-19 nightmare, Kevin Mandzuk’s chosen profession was more than just an ordinary job.

It was a field of dreams.

The 24-year-old minor-league umpire was supposed to spend this summer on the sun-drenched baseball diamonds of California — the latest stop on a journey toward his dream assignment in the Big Leagues.

Instead, Mandzuk returned home to Regina and reclaimed his off-season job as a carpenter after spring training was interrupted by COVID-19.

Although Major League Baseball is trying to mount a comeback this summer, it was officially announced on June 30 that the 2020 season has been cancelled for all of MLB’s affiliate leagues.

As a result, Mandzuk won’t return to calling balls and strikes in the minors until 2021.

“It’s a crazy time,” he says. “It’s definitely frustrating to not be able to go down there (to California) and keep progressing. But, the way I look at it, I’m not the only one who’s not working right now. Every other minor-league umpire is also sitting at home.”

Given the circumstances, Mandzuk feels fortunate that he was able to join up with a carpentry crew that’s working on a major project in Portage la Prairie, Man.

It’s not a glamorous job, but it pays the bills.

“I don’t think it’s ever a bad thing to have to work hard,” he says. “I would definitely rather be umpiring baseball but I’m OK for the time being. I’m handling it the best you can.”

Mandzuk has been building toward a career in baseball since his first assignment at 12 years old. He juggled his time between playing and umpiring until age 18, at which point he decided to make a permanent move behind the plate.

“As I got older, I just stuck with it and kept learning and getting better,” he says. “In Regina for a long time we had such a shortage of umpires. We still do, but we’re starting to slowly get better. We didn’t have enough guys to cover games sometimes so I wanted to help out the umpire association but I also wanted to keep playing. There were times I had to choose between the two. That’s part of life — part of growing up.”

Mandzuk’s experience showed him a side of the game that few players get to see.

That said, it didn’t compel him to go easy on the masked men as a player.

“I think I might have been harder on the umpires,” he says. “I was a competitive person. I looked for any edge. I felt like I knew the rules really well being an umpire and player. I wanted them to be the best they could be so I could be the best I could be too.”

Mandzuk doesn’t regret his choice to become a full-time ump, even though it can be a thankless job. He had a similar experience during his time as a young hockey referee before giving it up to focus on baseball.

“It’s definitely not for everybody,” he says. “It takes a different kind of person to do a job where most people are yelling at you every day. I enjoyed playing baseball. I enjoy watching baseball. I enjoy umpiring. There’s just something about it. It’s cool to say my job is to umpire baseball.”

Mandzuk worked his way up through the Baseball Canada program and also spent one season in the Western Major Baseball League (now the Western Canadian Baseball League) before he enrolled in professional umpiring school at age 21.

Mandzuk headed east in 2017 for his first pro season with the Can-Am independent league and was hired the next year into the MLB affiliate ranks. He debuted in Florida’s Gulf Coast League (rookie level), followed by a promotion to the New York-Penn League (Class A short season).

Mandzuk moved up to the Midwest League (low Class A) in 2019 and was headed for the California League (Class A advanced) this spring when the baseball world came to an abrupt halt.

Much like the players, it has been a disappointing time for a young umpire who’s trying to establish himself and eventually reach the Big Leagues.

“That’s definitely the goal,” says Mandzuk. “But for right now, just keep progressing and take it one year at a time and get better every day.”

Unfortunately, the pandemic hasn’t been conducive to honing his craft.

“It’s tough in that sense,” he continues. “We’re not on the field so I can’t work on things. For right now there’s not a lot of baseball going on anywhere. There’s no (need for) umpires. It’s definitely a little bit frustrating to not be out there working.”

Although the minor leagues are on pause, Mandzuk is happy that MLB is trying to make a go of it.

As a baseball fan, he wants to see the boys of summer back in action — even if he’s not among them.

“They kind of want to figure out Major League Baseball first and then try to figure something out for us (in the minors),” he says. “I definitely would like to have baseball back. I’ve been a big baseball fan my whole life. I like watching it. And I think everyone’s getting a little bored now. Having something to watch wouldn’t be the worst thing.”

It might also be a bittersweet experience for Mandzuk, who would rather not be stuck at home watching on TV.

That said, he knows it’s another step toward eventually “going back to doing what I love every day.”

“I’m hopeful when things do start up again … that everything will kind of pick up from where we left off,” he adds. “(Hopefully) everyone will be in the same spot that they were before the COVID pandemic hit.”