Bill Luff wanted to stay part of the action after his playing days were over. It just involved calling the balls and strikes, instead of making the play.
Standing behind home plate or in the field wasn’t a pursuit of personal glory for Luff. But every game the Lockport native umpires is his way of feeding his passion for baseball he developed as a 12-year-old playing in the Lockport Midget League in the 1950s.
Luff’s first umpired slow-pitch softball game 47 years ago, recalling asking players for and receiving four different answers for the strike zone and having to learn the rules on his own. Since then, Luff, who now lives in Snyder, built a career of umpiring high school and college baseball and softball games throughout Western New York and across the country.
Luff’s efforts were recognized when he received the Tony DeVivo Award from the New York State Baseball Umpire Association on Oct. 12, becoming the fourth Section VI umpire to win since 1991.
“I didn’t think I deserved it,” Luff, 80, said. “… They all say, ‘Bill, you deserve it.’ And
I asked only one person why and he said, ‘Bill, you always do your best, you always try your best, always give your best and you were willing to help other umpires. Not many people do that.’ … I’ve been around a long time and I always do my best.”
For nearly two decades, Luff was the rules interpreter for the Niagara Falls and Lockport chapters in Section VI until 2012, when he decided it was time for someone else to take on the role. But Luff continued to remain part of the sport, without an official role.
From regional games and high school state tournaments to nearly 30 years of umpiring Division I softball, Luff has covered all the bases. His schedule begins with umpiring college baseball in Florida in March, continues with umpiring 80 Western New York high school games in a season and ending in August.
Luff’s enthusiasm continued this season when he was asked by the Monsignor Martin
Athletic Association to umpire its postseason games, including the semifinals between St. Joe’s and St. Mary’s in May at Depew High School. Seeing the players grow, at either level, is what continues to draw Luff back to the diamond.
“The higher the level (of) the sport, the more comfortable and more fun I have,” Luff said. “College, I love. High school, I love. I love the game and I love watching kids improve. Baseball is a very difficult game. It’s a skill game. I get enjoyment out of watching kids play the game. I was a decent player and I like to be around talent and so the higher level, the better.”
Luff also likes to nurture talent and that comes with helping young umpires. One of the umpires who has worked with Luff for 21 years is Mike Salada, the current president of the Niagara Falls Chapter of the NYSBUA since 2012 and who called Luff about the award.
Coincidentally, Luff umpired a game when Salada and Niagara Catholic faced St. Joe’s in the first game under the lights at the new Sal Maglie Stadium in 2002. The two then connected when Salada became an umpire the following year as a senior.
Luff was a mentor for Salada, including, at one point, spending an hour after one of Salada’s first games providing tips on umpiring. The wealth of knowledge, combined with no ego, is why Luff has continued to be a valuable asset for the chapter.
“He just has that natural ability to teach it in a way that helps you understand it,” Salada said. “So, not only do you need to be in this position, but why you need to be in this position, and what you can see. Or, not only this is what the rule is, but here’s why the rule is what it is in order to help us understand why we’re doing it.”