The purpose of the umpires' pregame conference is to decide umpiring responsibilities and discuss the ground rules. Specifically, each umpire should know who has foul-line or dead-ball coverage, who'll be calling out/safe, tag/no tag on the bases, and who'll be keeping track of balls, strikes and outs. For more information on signal calling, refer to the Softball Signal Chart.

All rule changes should be reviewed during the umpires' conference, including field ground rules that may have to be modified as a result of the tour of the field. You'll also want to review the mechanics for determining checked swings and illegal pitches. Umpires should be assigned to cover each of these areas as well. For a short checklist of all the topics covered in this conference, refer to the Checklist for Umpires' Pregame Conference.

At the end of this conference, you should be prepared for the coaches and captains' conference.