shane1

I bought the Diamond bag JaxRolo had for sale. Great guy to deal with and was exactly as he described. No problems at all and he even went the extra mile to ship it to me quickly.

Been there myself! LOL! Usually it's some off the wall deal you never see.

Hey Jax. My old Reebok bag is falling apart and this would make a good replacement! Any idea of a ballpark (no pun intended) figure? I can do Paypal today if we can get together on this so I can have it before our state tourney starts in a week or two.

@Mike, I feel for you. I've never had it but my dad does. He said he can't even stand a bedsheet to touch his foot at night when it flares up. He found some cherry tablets in a health food store and takes them every day with his BP meds. He also swears by the cherry juice theory. If you need the info just shoot me a PM and I'll call him in the AM and get the details on where and what brand of cherry tabs he gets. Hope you recover quickly!

I thought I saw a flash from a camera tonight! Before anyone asks, no that really isn't me but we all had to start somewhere.

I like my Zigs. I went from NB to Zig mids and love how light they are. I've been hit one time since I got them but didn't feel a thing. They do run small in the toe area so if you have wide feet it would be best if you can try them on first.

I called a showcase a few nights ago for JR/SR LL. Pretty good baseball but somewhat relaxed. For the first time in my 17 years as an umpire, I had to call time because the batter and F2, along with myself couldn't stop laughing! As F2 "took it down" he looked over and said, sort of matter of fact, "I don't know what flavor these sliding shorts are but they must be my a$$'s favorite, it's been trying to eat "em since I put them on today!" He then prceeded to dig deep in his ongoing battle while telling us his cup was the only thing that had stopped it that time! LOL! This kid kept me in stitches all night.

The "poof" play in LL Majors. Want a S#$% storm? (and who would) call that one! I call it when it happens but know whats coming when I do. Sometime you just have to be the bad guy.

I would but they are just wore out. Just a matter of time before they would blow out somewhere else. We have a couple of new guys so I passed them on to help one of them get started. I got to try out my new Zigs tonight. They are light and comfortable. I didn't get hit so really don't know how well they will block a shot to the foot but my feet, legs, and back do feel better than when I wore the NB.

Sorry for my slow reply Semper. Yes, my NB are plate shoes but they didn't help when they were in my bag upstairs! LOL! I realized the heel was coming loose just before game time and had to wear my base shoes (I know, stupid move) I had noticed several post saying Reebok was really light and comfortable so I gave them a shot this round.

Ordered a new pair of Reebok Zig mid plate shoes Wed night after taking a foul to the toe in the first game of a dblheader. I just used standard shipping and got them today! 3 days from order to delivery is pretty good in my book! As for the shoes, I have worn them inside for an hour or so to stretch them out but don't have a game until Monday. They are a little more comfortable than my old NB but I'm not sure they cover as well yet. This was my first order from UA but won't be my last. They even included a $5 off for my next order.

Beat me to it!

I looked at the "ML" and if it would have been longer I'd have bought it. I'm almost 6'3 so most CPs leave my bottom ribs in harms way. The Wilson was my first choice but it's a little shorter than most. My 12u gear is Champro and has served me well for 5-6 years so I pulled the trigger on a Champro Plate Armor with bicep and bottom extentions. I've only worn it once so far because I'm doing mostly 12u games right now and those kids just don't throw that hard yet. I had a game last night with both f1's hitting low 60's. It seems more restrictive around the shoulders but I'm sure that's due to the armor. I took a foul to the upper arm and it didn't hurt at all! Bicep ext were worth every $$ with that one shot. Took one off shoulder as well and really didn't even feel it. I know it's had a few mixed reviews but if it holds up as well as my soft cp then I'll be well pleased with it. Our Jr/Sr/Big LL will get started this week and I can do a better review after a few 80 mph shots. From what I can tell so far, I have a good CP with bicept and ab protection for $100. I'm not dinging the Wilson at all mind you. I know a guy that wears the ML in the NAIA games we work and he loves his but he's maybe 5'9. If you can try one and it covers your ribs well I think it's a great CP. Hope this helped

Glad you folks are with me on this one. OM wanted obs. DM wanted int. Coach dad, not sure which team, yelled, "Come on blue you gotta call something!" I thought to myself, I did. Out! End of inning! I've been around a long time and I work games from LL up to a few NAIA college each year and this is one I've never seen. I'm speaking at clinic in two weeks for new LL umpires and I can't wait to throw this one out there!

LL majors r1 on 1st 2 outs. Pitch is chin music and batter let's go of bat as he ducks face first across plate. As the bat seems to float the pitch hits it and dribbles fair. OM comes out of his skin in 3rd base side box yelling "Run Run Run! BR jumps up, both feet in box, just as F2 starts for ball. They crash together in the batters box and both hit the ground. F1 fields the ball and throws to F3 who tags R1, as he stands frozen on 1st then steps on bag. Tell me howyou have it then I'll tell you what I called. I "think" I got it right but wanted your opinions as well. FWIW it was 13-0 in the 2nd so I didn't hear alot of flack. I know score didn't matter but I think they may have fussed more if it was a tight game. OM said I should kill it because batter didn't have control of bat. DC wanted obstruction cause it was a batted ball but batter was still in box. Neither tried to avoid the other. R1 looked like a deer in the headlights! I've been around a long time and this was a new one on me.

You're in our prayers. My sister in law lives in Glade Springs near Abingdon. and it was bad there as well. We finally got in touch with her about 5AM this morning. Her home and shop is ok but her husbands 2 shop buildings were destroyed. Only foundations left. Keep us posted.

I do alot of games from LL minors up to NAIA. In the LL majors to SR I use a strong strike call. When a 9-10 year old kid steps into the box and he's scared stiff I tend to use less volume on my calls. My thinking is his knees are shaking already and a loud STRIIIKKKEE is just going to shake him up more. If you do youth games you've seen the kid that starts running out of the box before the f1 lets go of the ball. I've seen kids cry while walking to the plate but that's another topic. If I'm PU for JR/SR LL and up I don't change anything. What do you folks do?

Hello friends. I have been looking around for a few days and decided to join. I have been calling games for years but can always learn something every time out even from new umpires. I have been a coach, bookkeeper, player, parent, manager, and another fan in the stands so I have a decent grasp of what is going on. I am no expert at any of the above but try to advance a little every day. Look forward to getting to know you and hope to contribute if I can.