Fernandez brothers strengthen their bond by umpiring together

MONROE – Albert and Steve Fernandez never turn down an opportunity to spend time together.

Officiating high school softball offers the twin brothers the perfect chance to be with their best friend, doing what they love.

That sentiment, along with affection for the game, is the reason the brothers have combined for 80-plus years of umpiring, with the majority of that time being together on the field.

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Steve, the younger brother by two minutes, says the connection between him and Albert runs deeper than just enjoying the other’s company.

“It’s a bond between my brother and I, the most important thing is the love I have for my brother, if I don’t feel good, I call him and say ‘Why do I feel this way?’” he said. “When we do ball, we’re together and that’s what I love the most.”

Born in New York before moving to Cuba for 10 years, then moving back to the United States, the passion for the game started at an early age.

“When you’re born, they throw a bat and a ball at the Cubans because they love their baseball,” Albert said.

Fluent in both English and Spainsh, Steve and Albert will sometimes switch their speech to keep things to themselves on the diamond.

“We’ll change it up sometimes to keep it private, like, ‘Move a little to the left,’ or ‘Move a little to the right,’” Steve said. “There is one girl from, I think Airport that is good at the language and I think she can understand what we’re saying,” he added with a laugh.

A love for the game is made more special watching talented high school athletes.

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“The enjoyment of seeing how the girls play, because they are so, so good. The catchers are extremely good,” Albert said.

Steve gave the same credit to the coaching he sees in the Monroe County Region.

“They are very good coaches. They are the top of the line. They know how to approach us and we enjoy being a part the game with them,” he said.

Albert knows something about good coaching himself – he has coached at Muskegon Community College, U of D Jesuit, Trenton and was the head coach at Gibraltar Carlson for three years.

As the coach at Jesuit, Albert led his club to the first regional championship in school history and also took a team to the state finals. He’s also coached Major League players J.J. Putz (Trenton) and Danny Fields (Jesuit).

As a coach, Albert held a respect for umpires and said the outcome of the game is on the team, not the officiating.

“I never blamed officials because in baseball you gotta hit the ball. If you don’t hit the ball, you’re going to lose,” he said. “All I asked from them was consistency.”

Consistency is what Region teams get from the Fernandez brothers, when they’re calling the game.

During their time officiating in the region, Steve said they’ve got to know the players and coaches so well that they know, “who can run and who can catch, who coaches this way or that way.”

Jess Irwin praised the two’s consistency in doing right by the athletes.

“The best part about them is they hold each other accountable,” she said. “Their egos are not so big that they are not willing to make the call right. They want to make it right because it’s all about the kids.”

It’s the reason that several years ago Albert was chose to umpire the state finals, a task that Steve was happy to assist with.

“Before he went to the finals two or three years ago, we spoke to make sure he was ready – I was coaching him,” he joked.

Steve humbly added the knowledge that his bother possesses.

“He has a talent to teach, I still learn a lot from him,” he said.

Albert will be calling the district games at St Mary Catholic Central and regionals at Woodhaven, but this year it’ll be Steve’s turn in the state finals.

When Steve takes the field, Albert thinks there’ll be just as many supporters there for his brother as the two teams vying for the title.

“He might have more fans their than either of the teams,” Albert said. “I’ll be there to support my brother and he’ll have others there to cheer him on.”

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Twin brothers stay together by umpiring high school softball games