MadMax

. Riddell did it to themselves. If they had simply brokered and honored a dividend to Joe West on the Power CP, we wouldn’t have been “denied the superior protection”. Riddell is just as slimy in this puddle. So too, Joe West wasn’t the one that conjoined a Cease-&-Desist letter, a (potential) Patent Infringement lawsuit, and the (relatively) vast fortunes of American football equipment. That was a shark 🦈 (not a typo) lawyer for Wilson that stuck the dagger in deep. Riddell was top-of-the-heap in football, with All-American, Douglas, Bike (which became Adams, and then assumed by Schutt), and Schutt all being much more prominent players over Wilson… who had little impact upon football, other than the actual footballs themselves. If ya can’t beat ‘em… litigate the $h!t outta ‘em. No, just… no. The WestVest has never been $30. You have to consider the source (Amazon). Wilson would never devalue such “signature” products. I can assure you, that those WestVests that were (massively) discounted were coming out of a retail / wholesale liquidation, not from Wilson directly. Retailers are forced to purchase supply from Wilson, and then re-sell through their retail channels. If the product doesn’t move, it doesn’t matter to Wilson, because they’ve already been paid. That antiquated, arcane manufacturer – buyer (job title, not customer) – wholesaler – retailer model is a severe handicap on product progression and development. One has to implement changes months-to-seasons out, and if something changes in the market – such as new technology, or new production methods, or new materials, or… new colors (hear that you navy-loving codgers??!) – you are typically limited for fear of distressing customers and retailers alike.

… and let’s say it all together… No Runners On → No Balk

Establish context… Operate within this context. To @noumpere’s points (he has several), we should err more to the side of “best intent” and participation, instead of jumping all over penalty. (“Ha! Gotcha! Umpire Bingo Card… punched!”). If this is the kid’s first at-bat (first time thru the lineup), then this either is a clarification or a correctable error. Nope. Not so. Names trump numbers. In OBR, how else do we have Jackie Robinson Day, or an All-Star Game? Then, in NFHS, we have that wonderful tidbit where a coach can add, at any time, additional players to the lineup card… and they can be in JV / Freshman uniform, regardless of a number being present on said jersey, or it being the same as a Varsity player. Then you get into the whole fracas of “poor schools” only having t-shirts, and not being able to afford “proper” number-sequenced uniforms. These “poor” schools should not be disenfranchised from playing simply because somebody wants to be anal and pedantic about numbers. Name. The name takes priority. … and that goes for every variation on “Kylie Smith” you can drum up.

Why is the Batter running into the dugout? Did he put the ball in play? Did he receive a 4-ball BB? Was there a U3K? Or, did he get stung by a hornet and need his epi-pen?? If he’s still the Batter, then his at-bat hasn’t ended until he’s been put Out, by putting the ball in play, BB (IBB, HBP), 3K, or INT of the “batter variety”. Batter-Runner, sure. But if we’re dicing details, then words & terms matter.

👆🏼 👆🏼 👆🏼 this!!! This is the a platform we should operate from for all amateur ball beneath collegiate. If you think about it, LL already does dead ball appeals. The precedent has already been established (thanks ESPN coverage!) in LLWS events, with coaches appealing just about everything. Any umpire who is so standoffish and pedantic so as to not allow dead ball appeals – or, at the very least, guidance through a live ball appeal – in amateur baseball may as well hang it up. And I’m not talking about coaching them through it, like some kind of How-To tutorial. Simply saying, “The ball is still Live, guys, you don’t have to go to the mound” is enough. Muss, I’d do a game with you anywhere in this great nation (… okay, Canada, too) if you’ve got an attitude like this. I’d rather work with you than a stodgy, inflexible “rules” guy. Ya can’t exactly say that. As long as he breaks the plane of the plate, he’s considered a Scored Runner, and his base running requirements – as far as passing goes – are complete. If he’s among the throng of teammates celebrating at / around / over the plate, I’m inclined to considered him scored, subject-to-appeal for the missed touch of HP notwithstanding. So, no passing. That space on the Umpire Bingo Card remains unpunched.

Watch this latest snip from Force3, featuring the Defender v2 (v3?) HSM : Watch it again, carefully, and note the tester's head... It doesn't move (much, if at all). The entire forward (main) shell of the HSM compresses, deforms, and rebounds around his head. That's all the kinetic energy at work, dissipating into the mass and mechanisms of the Defender. Looking at this, where or how is the concussion occurring? Well, like I pointed out, what we don't see is the wearer snapping his head back, recoiling at the shock of being hit. This is what causes the concussion!!! It's not the kinetic force of the impact that's doing it directly, but instead, it's our own REACTION to it that causes our head to snap back, and our brain to slosh to-&-fro within our skull! Now, granted, this wearer has been alerted and knows it's coming. We don't exactly know which pitch is going to get us, but be assured, it takes awareness and preparation – on each pitch – so as to best mitigate an impact. One advantage that I have is an extensive background as a catcher and hockey goalie, where I would be impacted by baseballs or pucks to my mask. If I didn't outright know they were coming, I can say I almost expected them. Similar can be said about soccer, in that instead of letting the ball hit your head, you prepare and ready yourself to propel your head to the ball. No one mask frame is better or worse than another at "preventing concussions", provided it is intact. So, the MLBU that stood up in front of our class and claimed that titanium masks are/were "dangerous" was full of $h!t. Of course, rightly so, a great deal of the protection is in the pads (and to this end, Wilson and other manufacturers have been woefully deficient). All-Star and Force3 have taken this one step further, by employing geometric and mechanical features, respectively, to significantly aid in reducing the amount of kinetic energy that affects the wearer.

Yup. They exist. We must remember... Riddell is a football equipment company, first and foremost, and didn't specifically allocate resources (parts, materials) to the Power; they simply employed what they had on hand for football. The Power name wasn't unique to the baseball CP, either; several models of football shoulder pads, from which the CP employed parts from, were named Power. I'd have to check and verify, but I speculate that the rare, revered orange Riddell Power CPs were the result of Illinois-based Riddell obtaining a significant quantity of orange nylon so as to outfit the University of Illinois and/or the Chicago Bears. Of course, these were produced just before the Cease-&-Desist Letter was issued from Wilson by way of litigation. What does the user / customer want done on that orange Power? I would advocate that, in lieu of getting orange wicking fabric, to recommend using orange thread to sew the pad back together instead of black. Orange-on-black would look hella-dope, and be an homage to this rare CP.

FIFY. It was absolutely why the "other coach" was blowing through all his mound visits / conferences. Time-limited tournaments with "Sunday trophies" are the among the vilest forms of baseball, and bring out every manner of shenanigan and seedy trick imaginable. Or, in fairness to everyone involved (and @Miss Prospects ), this could have been (yet another) a different Tournament Series (Grand Slam? I've never called one in my career), despite being at a familiar venue, hosted by a familiar tournament director (person or people, not overarching organization), called by (rather) familiar umpires, and played by familiar teams. This happens to us frequently in Arizona, where my colleagues and I will routinely call games that not only be under all three core Rulesets (OBR, NCAA, and NFHS), but will involve all manner of amateur -fueled variations (LL, Adult OBR, NFHS w/ tourney mods... NAIA *shudder* ). I have heard many a colleague, through no negligence of their own, call out, "Hey Charlie! What ruleset we using for this one?", from Field 3, while Charlie on Field 4 answers back, "NFHS, with continuous batting order, and OBR pitching visits!" 🤨 You're making my eye twitch. Was this a NFHS-based tournament? If yes, then... <* rummages around his shed to find his soapbox and megaphone *> ... why didn't you allow / remind / inform / prompt him to conduct a DEAD BALL APPEAL??!! Just avoid the pain entirely! If no, then... <* turns off megaphone, but continues to stand on soapbox *> ... why didn't you allow him to tell/direct his F5 to make that appeal from the field (ie. out of the dugout, but short of the foul line), with the ball still being Live? And if he's requesting Time to do so, simply inquire further, and mention that to make the appeal, Coach, the ball needs to be Live to do so, so what purpose would be served in killing it (actually calling Time)? This is amateur baseball! This ain't the pros, or even college for that matter. To expect an amateur coach and/or their players to know how to conduct an appeal is, as the analogy goes, A Bridge Too Far. Remember the film, based on the book, The Rainmaker ? Matt Damon plays recent law school grad (passed the bar exam, but is not yet licensed) Rudy Baylor, who takes on an insurance-bad-faith case. The judge, unimpressed by the high-priced and pressed suit lawyers of the insurance company, guides Rudy through several points of court protocol and procedure, for while he cannot present evidence or raise objections for him and the plaintiff, he certainly can mention that such a procedure or protocol exists, and facilitates with great patience as Rudy navigates into this uncharted territory for himself. We certainly shouldn't coddle or hand-hold coaches, but we are the living representatives of the Rulebook. We can certainly be "accessible".

🙄 Know where this comes from, or where this is going? Stupid Fed rules. What these youth teams do is send a BR direct to 2B (or even 3B) on a BB so as to force the defense to throw. It’s not teaching baseball… it’s “teaching” aggressive run-scoring. The purpose is not to develop baseball skills, in aggregate, but to “win the weekend”… and the stupid “trophy” on Sunday. I can identify these teams – or, to be fair, these coaches – from fifty paces away. Coaches are young (at least < me), their attire is all matching to the team’s (outrageous) color scheme, and there’s often more than 2 (the BCs are working like a verbal tag team). They want Visitors (most of the / every) time. They are exceptionally confrontational, and unless you (as umpire) cite Rulebook terminology, they will either twist words, or will state, “That’s not what the other / previous umpire said.” They prey on young and old umpires in equal measure. Their goal in running the score(s) up is one-part demoralizing, one-part time-&-energy saving, and one-part for better seeding (ie. Runs Against or Run Differential). Because these tournaments have so many teams in such a stratified bracket, their aim is not to have 3 good, intense games, and then on to the Championship, come what may… no, their aim is to have 3 quick, blowout games, and then “earn” the top seed, Home advantage in the championship… which in many tournaments… loosens its time limits!!!

A kitchen brigade? All kidding aside, congratulations! Ouch. 😬 🫣

I'll do exactly that. I'm going to relay to @Umpiresrock74 3 different "tiers" of plan for your CP: Shoulder pauldron pads only. Shoulder pauldron pads + new torso vest pad, laid out and crafted to the "ideal" form and features for not only low profile protection, but ventilation channels and easy resizing. The full vindaloo... not only making the pauldron pads, and vest pad, but also replacing any/all rivets, putting in better SR buckles (or the mag clips) rather than T-hooks, which are known to tear up shirts, and replacing the pathetic D-rings on the trailing edge of the shoulder arch plates, to make the attachment of your (new) harness hassle-free. Mike can break down his costs, and relay them to you, per tier. Choose which one works for ya. Whereabouts are you located, Fish?

"Because that's the rule. If they didn't want it called, they wouldn't have written it in. If they wanted it ignored with no-one on base, then they would've written that in." 🤨

Not to diminish your question, @BLWizzRanger, but in a rant like this, the ruleset – and, more importantly, the context matters… big-time. There are things that we can absolutely “let slide” in a men’s amateur league game that cannot be ignored in a sanctioned college game. There are things that I have no need to address in a 16U Perfect Game game – such as catchers wearing a two-piece mask, or what gaudy shapes of eye-black are on their face – but I am compelled to address in a sanctioned Varsity HS game… played by the same kids! Hey, let’s examine your list: Bats – Unfortunately, we gotta get this one. It’s a safety thing. If the event delineates that only “these” bats are acceptable, then that’s what those bats have to be. While you can’t prevent a batter using an illegal bat, if you were made aware of it, and at the very least, ignored its removal, you’d be liable for any harm that bat caused. I’ve had to invoke illegal bat removals (at least) and penalties (at worst) at all levels of ball I’ve worked. Gloves – this one, I can agree on. Obviously and blatantly white or grey for use by the pitcher? Nope, not happening. But a Mexican flag 🇲🇽 stitched on the back of the glove? Really? We’re going to get that petty? In one example, I had an instance wherein a kid came out of the dugout, expecting to be the (new) F3. Threw a few grounders, and took a few throws… when suddenly, the starting F3 came out to 1B; it seemed that the HC wanted a different F1 afterall. The starting F3’s words to new kid were, “just go to right (field)”. Well, new kid just trots out to the F9 spot, and starts playing catch with F8. So, how many F3 mitts are now on the field?✌🏼, yup. My PU was just about to point the ball Live, and I put him on pause to say, “Hey guys, we need to get this mitt changed!” Contrast that against a men’s local league, wherein one team only has 9 players, and one of their RHT players comes up with a lame right arm. The long-time LHT F3 has to go play F5 (they’ve got no-one else who can do it), and the only glove he’s got is his LHT F3 mitt. So guess what he used, with neither the umpires nor anyone (of importance) on the opposing team making an issue of it? Yup, his F3 mitt. We just called it “Australian Rules Ball”. 😆 Exactly. What box? *looks around for one* For some inexplicable reason, some people subscribe to the notion that keeping guys in the dugout is a mark for/against one’s “game management skills”. I get it, in amateur baseball, it’s a safety thing. Once past that (ie. College), though, it’s morphed into a tribal/sportsmanship thing. And that’s where it gets inexorably grey. I once did a college game, and thought I was absolute nails on it. Everything – B&Ks, mechanics, rotations, pace-of-play, game management – the works… nails. The BU (himself, an “evaluator”) agreed… except he demerited me a “ding” on not noticing and directing an armed and armored campus security guard to fully remain in the dugout. A security guard?? Really?? Those aforementioned adult league games are always crucibles for this, too. These guys are insurance-paying adults. On these local leagues, all these guys know each other, so this becomes more like a round of golf or a curling match (funny how the Scots invented both, huh?) than a high-stakes baseball game. Provided they don’t interfere and/or crowd the HP dirt circle and on-deck spots, I really don’t care. Again, what box? Most amateur (non-college) fields don’t have BC boxes, and if they do, they’re never exact-to-code. And during a play, barring an official Limitation (Big L), a BC can go anywhere (within reason, short of INT), yes? So do you, aggrieved team, really really want me to limit your own BC’s location and movements because you feel butt-hurt about their BC spying your signs? Cuz as you know, if I Limit one, I must Limit both. I actually point out the ridiculousness of eyeblack “use”. Gets a good laugh. I have coaches point out the irony – kid will have this intricate eye-black applied, like an Ultimate Raccoon… but still have expensive sunglasses propped atop his ball-cap… on a night game. Here’s some gems 💎 (or, turds 💩) I don’t pick up: Wrist(Belt!) cards. That F3’s feet positioning matters, and that it should be a Balk call. (Doesn’t, and not going to happen. Ever). Any mention of sportsmanship at plate meetings Any directive about how to disagree with a call (they will), request Time (they won’t), and approach an umpire (some do already; some don’t and won’t care regardless) Size of dugouts (oh, it’s a thing for some umpires) Calling of “Time” prior to BR arriving to 1B on a BB, ball in possession of F2 or F1, coach / sub coming out already… _everyone_ knows it’s coming. Context-dependent. On an obvious single, with ball now in possession of F9 or F4, if BR rounds and makes contact with F3, that OBS should be called (what OBS?? I dinna see any OBS). That high-fives and back slaps between 3BC and (B)Runners on a HR is “coach assistance”. That a flung bat is an Out (Never). Tape holding ear pads in, on a non-sanctioned game.

This isn’t directed at _you_, Azul… Mr. Childress cannot anticipate, nor prevent, state / association heads / leads making their own interpretations, whether that be without knowledge of Childress (I think we can agree that most leads should know, or at least acknowledge Childress), ignorance, or blatant disregard. I’ve had plenty of umpires over the years report to me, after sitting in their state / association meeting(s), that their lead(s) discussed a rule, and the applied interpretation and direction (by the lead) broke with expectation, or established, understood practices. And these weren’t new POEs or edicts from the Fed. Either the lead was (stubbornly) resolute that his interpretation was the one to use, case closed, or he lacked that fortitude, and a discussion would erupt, with no clear (correct) consensus. Feral and Viral Umpiring are very real things.

Don’t misread me, good sir… I’m not an endorser or embracer of AI. #BeatTheMachine

2 things to point out about this Riddell Power… and, in no way am I pooh-poohing UMP-Retrofit’s work: I’m not at all convinced, nor mildly persuaded, that the structured stitch between the main torso vest pad and the pauldron pad is the “way to do it”. I will eternally stump for the pads being separate, and there being a connecting spline from the pauldron plate to the shoulder arch plate. The pec-wings, too, should be reposition-able and/or removable. Riddell Powers, Wilson Golds… I’m sure a few others… all do this cheat, and the unit just doesn’t fit right, because of it. This Riddell Power does (vertical) sizing dead right. Instead of offering 2-3 different sizes, with ever-so-slightly larger carapace plates (ahem, Wilson, you 🤬), you make all the (main) carapace plates the same size… and then add a plate to extend the height at the bottom. And @bluetick48, FYI… we consolidated our umpire roster numbering system in all 4 leagues under our umbrella… each umpire has a unique number… and we’re never issuing #51 again. Retired and laid-to-rest.

I could have used the NFL example, too… the infamous one involving the Saints(?), in the playoffs, wherein the video review was to check for a catch, and what it revealed, in glaring detail, was “blatant” pass interference… that can’t, by rule, be assessed and penalized post-facto. At what point does HD video technology augment organic judgement – like a sixth sense – or… supplant (ie. replace) it?

In “any” sport, you say? “Get the call right”, you say? 🧐 What sayz you to a replay in NCAA / NBA basketball, where there’s a question as to who’s possession it should be on an out-of-bounds call… the replay clearly shows a (missed) foul wherein the blue-jersey player slapped and propelled the red-jersey player’s hand… to touch the ball last before it went out of bounds. According to replay, blue team’s ball. Right call? We can scrutinize these calls in super high definition detail, ad nauseam – at some point, the system breaks.

I’m working on it! I’ve got to get into a space that I can work and draft some things up… kinda tough to when I’ve got multiple games every day and life on the road (right now). Dashboards make terrible desks.

I know (like, in my baseball bones, I know) a pitcher can throw directly to a base for the purposes of an appeal. I found this: And this: And this: These are likely all OBR citations, but I’m certain there’s a NFHS version. I just can’t find it ATM, challenged as I am by my resource facilities (on the road, on my phone, in a PF stretching room). As @Velho points out, I suspect that amateur umpires get this wrong because a combination of being so “keyed up” to get Balk calls, and situational un-awareness. Granted, in this OP, the F5 obviously implores or declares an appeal, verbally. Not every high school kid is going to do that. Most look at you (the umpire) like, “Yes? What now?”. If we (umpires) don’t know what’s being performed, ourselves, we jump on the most obvious call – “Balk!”. The key here is to stay aware of what’s going on in a game. R3 just advanced and scored on a caught fly ball… ya think the defensive team might want to appeal that? 🤔 Actively use your verbal skills. At these amateur levels, I frequently tell the players – both teams – what the status of the ball is, Live or Dead. Even though the F1 does not have to disengage so as to throw to a base to make an appeal, I find that by telling the participants that the “Ball is Live, guys… ball is Live”, the players figure it out (faster) and just throw the ball to the base being appealed. Conversely, I’ll say that the ball is Dead, and the players (or coaches) start telling their F1 to get on the mound. I then say, “Glad you asked! Fed allows Dead ball appeals! Isn’t that cool? So what are you asking about?” 😎

I am sooooo tempted, during a game, and especially when the 3rd Out is recorded before a Runner reaches the plate, to retrieve the bat, and re-enact Gandalf and the Balrog…

Ha! Those aren’t Fed umpires!! … they aren’t wearing navy vestments.

You need to be… prudent (or, careful) with this. As @The Man in Blue points out, these are kids playing, not professionals. It’s entirely possible – and, indeed, I’ve been adjacent to it happening – wherein a HC submits a lineup card with a starting pitcher, and that SP injures himself in the bullpen, or in the pre-game announcements, or in his warmups. Or, worse, the HC is notified that his listed SP is over his pitch limit (or hasn’t served the required rest days), and if he pitches, then there’s potential forfeiture (administrative). This notification can come in the most inauspicious of times… moments before first pitch. There’s no way we can compel the listed pitcher to pitch in good conscience or officiating, given those circumstances.

My good sir, I have the plausible possibility of advancing significantly in college baseball within the next 2 years (and I already do independent pro)… and I’m 48. In fact, what set me on this course was being evaluated by MLBU… when I was 39. Yes, I was too old to be a MLBU, but that didn’t end my aspirations, nor journey, to high-level baseball. @Velho, if you think Rich’s advice is cool (and it is 😎), have I got one for ya… I’ll start a new thread about it later tonight, but in a nutshell, I was reminded / re-inspired from my (younger) interests in archery and target-shooting (biathlon, specifically 🎿). I was absolutely fascinated by Olympic biathlon athletes when I was a teenager, primarily because they could exert themselves at peak performance, then arrest their heart rate so as to sight and shoot at a target the size of a half-dollar (approximately). I got really into archery, too, because as a catcher, I could directly affect my pop-time with drawing back a bow repetitively. There’s a breathing technique that comes out of this target 🎯 shooting that I’ll share with you over on that new thread topic. Incredibly helpful for those pitches that come after a rotation to 3B, especially.

No. It’s a Foul Tip, in its defined form. The ball remains Live, and if there were two Strikes previously, then this is a Caught 3rd Strike (as opposed to an Uncaught 3rd Strike (U3K)). Yes, but not quite. In NFHS, it’s a Foul Ball the moment it contacts the mask. The tracking & catching it is inconsequential. Yes. As soon as another player, or the umpire, makes contact with that potential foul tip (OBR (and NCAA) sharp & direct off any part of the catcher; NFHS, sharp & direct off the mitt or (free) hand of the catcher first ), it is rendered a Foul Ball.