Can someone please explain to me the logic behind the position of OF umpires?

Seriously.

On the last play of that Yankee-Indians game the LF ump was more. more than 10-15 feet behind the 3b ump. What good is he possibly doing there?

Why not be at least half way from the Infield to the OF wall? or even at the base of the wall?

I just can't imagine how that is optimal to be right behind the 3b ump.

Does anyone know the logic of the current positioning?

In certain situations the left field umpire enters a rotation to help cover the infield, hence the need for some proximity there.

It also means you can have 6 different guys behind the plate. Only game 7 gets a repeat and in theory he's the best of the crew. But I agree, it's primarily about getting guys playoff recognition and pay.

ftab06 said:

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The real answer is so more umpires can be paid during the post season

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Well, I'm not sure about that. This started before World War 2 when they started bringing an extra umpire from each league to the World Series in case they were needed. They had the manpower and the revenue to not have to worry about going to a small crew if an injury happened.

After the War, they started putting the guys along the foul lines for what I believe was: "we're already paying them so let's make them more useful."

Of course, in the 60s they expanded to all postseason games.

So, you can take a cynical view it's still around to get guys paid but I think that might underestimate baseball's ability to resist change simply to resist change.

I think the extra eyes can be useful, I do acknowledge changing the system requires some "getting used to" by the umpires.

Umpires mention that it's easy to fall asleep when you're on a four-man crew. Can you imagine being on a six-man crew? I like umpiring, but that sounds brutal.