Local umpire ready to work College World Series

By Ray Brewer (contact)

Friday, June 18, 2010 | 2:05 a.m.

When Kelly Gonzales signed up to be an umpire toward the end of his college baseball career, his motive was simple: Earning some beer money.

Now, 25 years later, Gonzales still is calling balls and strikes. Only instead of working games in his college town of Forest Grove, Ore., Gonzales will be on one of the sport's biggest stages in front of thousands of fans.

The Henderson resident is one of eight umpires selected to work this year's College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

"The World Series is what everyone shoots for," Gonzales said. "If you are an amateur umpire working college baseball, then Omaha is the place you dream of (reaching)."

Every game of the Series, which starts Saturday and runs through June 30, will be televised by ESPN. Gonzales, who will be making his first Series appearance, knows he won't be working a typical game.

"It's in the back of your mind the first couple of minutes," Gonzales said of the magnitude of the event. "You just go out and try to make the right decision. Eventually, you get so involved in the game, you don't realize (it's the Series)."

Gonzales has been umpiring Division I baseball since the mid-1990s and mostly works games in the Pac-10, Western Athletic and Mountain West conferences.

The selection process is based on grades and evaluations from games worked during the regular season, he said. Roughly 50 umpires were selected to work one of 16 regional events two weeks ago, and the top eight were taken from that group.

The Series umpires didn't work last week's Super Regional, receiving a break before potentially having to work 11 straight days in Omaha.

With all of the hundreds of umpires who work games throughout the nation, Gonzales knows getting picked is more than doing a quality job. There has to be a little luck, too.

"You have to be fortunate to get your name on (the Series) list," he said.

Gonzales works as a claims adjuster for an insurance company and burns all of his vacation time so he can umpire. Also, his company has been more than accommodating — he misses virtually every Friday from February through June, traveling mostly on the West Coast.

"Like I said, I'm really fortunate," he said. "They could have easily said no, and I wouldn't be going."

Gonzales is best known locally for officiating high school games. He works football games for the Southern Nevada Officials Association and serves on the American Legion summer baseball league's board of directors.

"He just has a good flair for the game," said Gary Mouden, Legion's local commissioner. "He is always in line to make what he thinks is a good call."