paynew1993

​It is a game management technique. Weather you agree with the method or not it is a real game management technique that is taught at the professional level.

This is definitely a more advanced pro style way to handle the situation. Most guys on here probably won't agree with it but it got Fletcher the result he wanted and he kept Lester in the game. Lester was getting to the point where he was about to start demonstrating or possibly even throw at a batter and Fletcher would have had no other choice but to run him. So Fletcher jumps Lester which shuts him down and keeps him in the game. This is definitely an "all in" move, before he ever made a move at Lester Fletcher already knew he was going to draw all the attention back at him self. Sure it looks bad to fans and players but he got the situation taken care of and was able to keep everyone in the game and keep control of the game.

I loved the way my old Davishield fit with the true vest harness and I don't know that there is a better harness on the market as far as fit goes. However it did get a little hot for me and considering that the Davishield is a relatively cooler chest protector than many on the market I decided to give the deltaflex a try on my Platinum and it works great. I haven't tried the true vest harness on my platinum yet but I can't imagine it would be too bad other that the heat. I would say that considering the price it might be worth it to just get both and decide which one you like more.

At the USSSA complex I call and direct at we don't get a whole lot of brand new guys out because even though it's youth ball it is pretty high level youth ball and most brand new umpires can't keep up with it and we are pretty selective with who we have out on the field. Most of our guys call high school ball either in the local chapter or in chapters not too far from us so they all generally have pretty nice gear. The only time we get someone brand new is if it's someones son who already calls and in that case they usually have enough extra gear lying around that they can make due until they get their own gear. I come from the school of thought though that if you aren't willing to pay your dues and fork up the money up front to buy some decent gear that you probably aren't meant to umpire. I know that sounds harsh but I've found that if you have $500 invested in some gear that you will be much more likely to take it seriously and become a better umpire than those guys who aren't willing to do the same. Also the veteran umpires are much more willing to help out a new guy and take them under their wing when they are willing to show some initiative and get their own gear before stepping onto the field.

Wish I had pics to show but I don't so I'll try to describe everything as well as I can. On my WV Platinum the only mod I've done is added the new delta flex harness like the one that is used on the System 7. On my Honigs K96 (back up mask) I've put a generic MLB logo harness on it with a Diamond sun shield and a Wilson 4in. throat guard. On my Wilson Titanium I have the same sun shield and throat guard that are on my K96 but I kept the stock wilson harness. The biggest mod I've done to it though was have the frame powder coated matte black to cut down on glare. My System 7 double knee shin guards are brand new and only have about 10 games in them so I haven't worked out exactly what I want to do with them. As of right now the only thing I did was remove the toe guard that velcros in. The only complaint I have with them is that the top strap is too tight and restricts movement but if I loosen it any it catches on my pants when I lock in. If anybody knows a way to fix this problem and could let me know it would be greatly appreciated.

I say find a pair of glasses that fits better under your mask. I used to wear a pair of Radars under my mask and never had a problem with them. I have a few other pairs of Oakleys I rotate around just kind of depending on what I'm feeling and the lighting conditions, and they never have caused me any problems behind the plate. As far as sun-shields they won't help with the sun very much if at all because your bill is going to cover that part of your mask anyway. They do however help a great deal with heat and because of that I use one, and I just tend to like the look of it as well. A few pairs of Oakleys I would say to give a try are the older half jackets or the new half jacket 2.0s, the M-frames or flak jackets. It might cost you a little extra money to shell out for a second pair of glasses but then again it's a tax write off and most of the all black Oakleys especially the older models aren't that pricey. If there is an Oakley outlet by you try going in there and trying on a few pair, don't be afraid to take your mask and plate hat in either. It might look a little odd but it will be worth it.

I don't know about Easton's lenses all that much as I'm more of an Oakley guy but I've always liked brown lenses for the brighter colors they seem to provide. I'm not too keen on how they look in most frames but I've got a pair of old half jacket rootbeer frames that brown lenses look great in. I haven't worn them in a game in quite some time but I think they would work just fine. I like them a lot for golf because it makes it easier to see the ball which I'm sure would apply the same for baseball.

As far as the newer style pro shirts the way to go has to be Majestic. The OC shirts are noticeably different than all the other brands making the pro style shirts. I haven't seen the Smitty's in person but I've never been happy with anything Smitty I've ever bought so I tend to steer clear of them anyway. I have seen the Honigs and I thought it was a decent shirt and it didn't look too different than the original majestic but it didn't seem to fit as well as the majestic. I have both the black and the pro blue Majestic pro style shirts and I love them. They fit great and on a hot day they they breath extremely well and are very cool. I even wore the black one on a few back to back youth ball games on the plate in the middle of the day last summer and it felt perfectly fine, and that was here in Texas when it was 100+. The only thing I would say bad about the Majestics is that when you first get them they are a little itchy but I just ran them through the washing machine and dryer a few times and they were smooth as silk. Right now the only place I know that is carrying them is Ump-Attire, which is fine by me their service is top notch.

I have both of the majestic shirts and I got a medium which is what I wear for most other brands on the pads but I have found that the majestic somehow fits perfectly for the dish and the pads. I tend to like my sleeves a little longer so they go right to where my elbow bends which usually means the rest fits a little baggy however the majestic fits perfectly on my body and still has long enough sleeves for me. I would suggest to buy whatever shirt size you wear for the plate and it will most likely work for the bases as well. The sizes I think are most like the Honigs from a few years back before they changed their material.

Here in Texas TASO has a few color choices that you can wear but the technical default is navy although no one really wears it. My chapter adopted black as the standard color that all members are required to have. Most people that have been around longer than a year or actually are working to improve their game have pretty much everything. For the most part in my chapter at least we stick t black and pro blue all year around. I tend to think that navy, red, and creme especially look a little rec ballish. TASO has yet to make the newer MLB SH*#s approved for highschool but word is that next year it is going to be allowed.

I typically wear white most of the time because of the heat here in Texas. Not that it makes much difference it's more of a mental thing than anything. I'm more of a pro blue and black kind of guy and I can't actually remember the last time i wore something other than those two colors. When we work 4 man crews for high school playoffs it always seems that we end up wearing white unders except for on the plate if we are wearing pro blue I usually go with a black under just so that my straps don't show through in the back.

Baseball savings has the zigs in both white and black soles for $49.99 in just about every size most people would need right now. I haven't seen the plate zigs anywhere for a great price yet but then again I haven't really been looking for them either.

Wear it as much as possible. I broke mine in before I even plated a game with it just by wearing it around the house for a few hours. Also don't be afraid to bend the shoulders a little bit. At night the first few days I had it I put it face down on the floor and bent the shoulders down and put a few heavy books on the shoulder area to keep it down and that worked wonders.