Christal honored for postseason work

LUBBOCK, Texas — The National College Baseball Hall of Fame announced today the selection of Randy Christal as the 2020 recipient of the National Collegiate Umpire Award, which honors a lifetime of excellence in umpiring.

Christal, who umpired at the College World Series nine times between 1978 and 1996, was a postseason staple. He worked a pair of NAIA World Series, 25 NCAA regionals and three super regionals. He also umpired numerous international assignments, including the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.

“Randy is very deserving of this recognition,” said Mike Gustafson, president and CEO of the National College Baseball Hall of Fame. “He was a fixture in postseason play for a quarter-century. When he was working a postseason game, it was usually important.”

Christal’s selection as the National Collegiate Umpire Award recipient is the result of a nomination and screening process by past and current NCAA national coordinators of umpires, NCAA regional advisers, conference umpire coordinators and four collegiate head coaches.

He will be honored as part of the virtual College Baseball Night of Champions ceremony later in August.

For more information, contact Mike Gustafson at gus@collegebaseballfoundation.org.