The number of umpires serving for amateur baseball tournaments has been on the decline in Fukushima Prefecture, with the number registered with the prefecture’s baseball federation in the current fiscal year dropping by 94 from four years ago.
At the same time, more umpires have been required in recent years as tournament organizers now hold games at multiple stadiums on the same day, to shorten the duration of tournaments.
The Fukushima federation is working to recruit new people, recognizing that the recent shortage of umpires is attributable to their age and the difficulty of keeping their schedules open on weekends when most games are held.