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Hockey Style Mask


Umpire_ar
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You know, @Umpire_ar, if you read any gear postings on the forums, you typically see @gnhbua93 stumping for Force3. It happens so often, most of us regulars just laugh it off... but in this case, he's got outstanding advice. The Force3 Defender HSM would be a viable, quality solution for you. It is a mechanical HSM, in that it relies on its spring & struts suspended cage to provide the protection. The Wilson Shock FX is the only other mechanical HSM, but Wilson has recently discontinued them, and finding an appropriate size may be problematic.

At this juncture, the only other HSMs I would recommend are the All-Star System 7 (which @Stk004 mentioned) or the Easton M7 (_not_ the Mako or M10... those are too styled for catchers specific), as these are the two best of the geometric or sculptural HSMs. All other HSMs are following after these two, with varying degrees of quality. The Mizuno is the most padded of catcher HSMs, but its shape is almost completely focused on a catcher's needs.

Mechanical HSMs are not suited for catchers because of the amount of pounding they take from being tossed off and hitting the ground. They also cannot afford to have extraneous width (typically where the absorption devices go) because a catcher needs to bring the ball up close to his ear for proper throwing.

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9 hours ago, Umpire_ar said:

How do people wear hats under them?

That's what came to mind after typing my first response to you... something to consider would be to get a 4-stitch or smaller-brimmed hat and wear that while wearing a HSM. The challenge becomes not yanking your hat off while taking off the HSM.

I would also strongly recommend taking the button out of a hat and keeping it for HSM use. That button will drive you mad otherwise. @KenBAZ and I are working on a solution for him, as the Arizona sun is brutal on those without headgear. We're trying bicycle hats, which are typically cotton, comfortable, and have a very brief brim so as to be worn with/under a cycling helmet.

Another approach is, as @ElkOil shared, to go without a hat. Some guys go completely without one (I think Cederstrom does this this), while others will wear a hat for pre-first-pitch activities, and then hand the hat to a MLB staffer or valet. The Minor League guys are heavily encouraged to have a hat, and I've seen several of them here in AZ carry one in their ball bag to wear prior to first pitch, and then between innings.

Oh, and FYI... KenBAZ uses both of the mechanical HSMs, the Wilson Shock FX-Ti and the Force Defender HSM.

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7 hours ago, MadMax said:

That's what came to mind after typing my first response to you... something to consider would be to get a 4-stitch or smaller-brimmed hat and wear that while wearing a HSM. The challenge becomes not yanking your hat off while taking off the HSM.

I would also strongly recommend taking the button out of a hat and keeping it for HSM use. That button will drive you mad otherwise. @KenBAZ and I are working on a solution for him, as the Arizona sun is brutal on those without headgear. We're trying bicycle hats, which are typically cotton, comfortable, and have a very brief brim so as to be worn with/under a cycling helmet.

Another approach is, as @ElkOil shared, to go without a hat. Some guys go completely without one (I think Cederstrom does this this), while others will wear a hat for pre-first-pitch activities, and then hand the hat to a MLB staffer or valet. The Minor League guys are heavily encouraged to have a hat, and I've seen several of them here in AZ carry one in their ball bag to wear prior to first pitch, and then between innings.

Oh, and FYI... KenBAZ uses both of the mechanical HSMs, the Wilson Shock FX-Ti and the Force Defender HSM.

I wear the Wilson Shock FX 2.0 and for kicks, tried to stuff a hat underneath it. No go.

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7 minutes ago, tpatience said:

What an idiot

We don't know the circumstances here. If the title of the video is accurate, the umpire is dazed at least. If he took a hard shot, he may have a concussion and isn't thinking clearly. Look at the 0:19 mark in this video. Marty's head and brain took the brunt of the force. Ideally, you want your mask to bleed off the energy by moving, whether it's falling off your head, or spinning around or something. His mask barely moved and you can see how his head was jolted, meaning his brain was banging against the inside of his skull. I'd wager he was thinking none too clearly after that. We should cut the guy in the above video some slack.

 

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17 minutes ago, ElkOil said:

We don't know the circumstances here. If the title of the video is accurate, the umpire is dazed at least. If he took a hard shot, he may have a concussion and isn't thinking clearly. Look at the 0:19 mark in this video. Marty's head and brain took the brunt of the force. Ideally, you want your mask to bleed off the energy by moving, whether it's falling off your head, or spinning around or something. His mask barely moved and you can see how his head was jolted, meaning his brain was banging against the inside of his skull. I'd wager he was thinking none too clearly after that. We should cut the guy in the above video some slack.

 

What do you mean? He's not wearing a mask.

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22 hours ago, tpatience said:

Dazed from what? Taking a foul ball without a mask on?

Dude, seriously... we don't know what happened prior to this video being taken. He may have taken a hard shot before you see what you see in the video. Criminy. And yes, you can get pretty dazed by taking a foul ball to the face without a mask. That just goes without saying.

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