midmoump

Awesome avatar

Semper, I'm not a medical expert and, unfortunately, there is not a scientific/medical study that will conclusively tell you which type or brand of head protection to buy. However, there are a few basic principles that can be applied when making your decision: First, the energy of a baseball must go somewhere, so it is either deflected or absorbed. It seems to me that deflection is the best defense, so an angular cage is better than a flat cage. Most <acronym title='Hockey Style Mask '>HSM</acronym> have more angle than traditional facemasks, and consequently the <acronym title='Hockey Style Mask '>HSM</acronym> has a greater chance at deflecting the ball's energy. Second, absorption is a question without any reliable testing. Are the Team Wendy pads superior to Wilson wrap around pads? I dunno. Team Wendy has conducted their own testing and THEIR results are impressive. Umpire Ed Hickox has suffered as many serious head injuries as I've heard of, and the last I heard he is wearing an All Star <acronym title='Hockey Style Mask '>HSM</acronym> with a steel cage (steel is more absorbant than titanium). I also read a story recently about an NHL goalie who changed from titanium to a heavier steel cage after a head injury. It begs the question whether a heavy two pound steel facemask offers more protection than a one pound titanium cage. Finally, I suffered a mild concussion earlier this year when I was hit in the jaw while wearing a traditional mask. I felt the effects for two weeks. I wonder if this blow (which wasn't really that severe) would have been reduced if I had been wearing a mouth guard to create distance between my jaw and skull (head of the condyle and glenoid fossa). I hope this information is helpful in your decision making process. Pete

Example video (OUCH!): http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=10082289&topic_id=&c_id=mlb&tcid=vpp_copy_10082289&v=3

Last year friend and I worked a NAIA mid-week double header two hours from our town. I drove. When we got to the college my buddy discovered that he forgot his pants - base AND plate! The funny part was that I had an extra pair of plate and base pants hanging in my SUV and he wears the same waist and inseam size! How lucky is that? Pete

Last year a friend and I worked a NAIA mid-week double header two hours from our town. I drove. When we got to the college my buddy discovered that he forgot his pants - base AND plate! The funny part was that I had an extra pair of plate and base pants hanging in my SUV and he wears the same waist and inseam size! How lucky is that? Pete

always a douche http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/28/sports/baseball/young-of-the-tigers-arrested-after-altercation.html?_r=1

I'll get the review party started with a review of the magnesium mask sold by Plus Pos: http://midwestump.blogspot.com/2011/06/review-of-plus-pos-mag-t-magnesium.html I have worn this mask as my primary during the past spring season with no trouble. I had no difficulty with purchasing from Dan at Plus Pos. I would rate the delivery time and communication as average (although I am not that needy and do not need my indicator held throughout an online transaction). I went back through my email and did not find a tracking number for my purchase, although the Plus Pos website states you can find it by logging onto their website. As a side note, every magnesium mask needs special care because the coating will chip easily. My mask never touches the ground (I consider it bad luck), and it goes straight into a protective bag when I am finished. Pete

I currently carry two masks in my umpire bag : a silver magnesium sold by +POS with tan Markwort pads, and a silver Diamond with black Team Wendy's pads. I have taken a few blows to the magnesium and it shows absolutely no sign of denting, although my previous magnesium mask dented after a serious blow. My unscientific opinion is that the magnesium masks are more durable than the hollow core steel and probably about as durable as titanium. FYI: the Markwort pads are thick, comfortable, very durable and (I think) look great. However, I recently took two shots during one at bat (only times I've been hit all year) while wearing the Markwort pads, and it rung my bell pretty good. It was comparable to what I have experienced with the Wilson wrap around pads. I'm going to switch to the Team Wendy's tan for a time and see if this makes a difference. In the past few years I have taken significant blows while wearing the Diamond without any sign of denting. K-Finn's report of cracking is the first I have heard of trouble with this mask. A mask is supposed to dent, not crack, so this is worrisome. Pete

Congrats, and DON'T SUCK Pete

An ejectorcism! I love it!

Ah, the things we love most: baseball and. . . Morganna the Kissing Bandit!

I met Bob at a clinic in Springfield, Mo. He's a good guy and a very knowledgeable umpire. Pete

Hey, dumbdumb! I like your What Cha Got series. Keep it up! Hey UIC! How do I nominate DD for a member of the month award thing? Pete

The "gap" is not an unprotected area! The "problem" is where the curved shoulder plate and padding ends at your shoulder near the collar bone. A ball impact will push the plate into your shoulder. The harder the impact, the more its gonna hurt. Protectors like the Wilson Platinum use a thick padding to prevent the impact from pushing the plate into your shoulder. The Douglas has very thin padding in this area, so hard impacts are going to cause you some pain. The extra shoulder plate on the Douglas-Douglas fixes this, um. . . "omission." Pete

Tony, GREAT POST!!! As K-Finn points out, the Douglas is a fine protector for many (lower) levels of baseball. Probably better than most on the market. Yes, it is pricey, but its light weight and comfort should not be overlooked. The shoulder gap issue is worrisome at upper levels, but is it dangerous? If it is, then Douglas is playing a risky game with a known defective product. The right impact at the right location at the right speed. . . who knows? There is legal precedent for suing umpire equipment manufacturers for defective products. As for the readers of this board, caveat emptor! I think the discussion about the Douglas, pro and con, has been frank and educational. We are all big boys, so we all make our own informed buying decisions. As for <acronym title='Umpire-in-Chief'>UIC</acronym>, how is he promoting this product? It appears that the reintroduced Douglas is the flavour of the month at a time when there have been few new umpire products. Next month, something else to get excited about. Pete

For info on the Douglas 13", check out the Midwest Ump review at http://midwestump.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-of-douglas-umpire-chest.html?m=0 I emailed Jeff Cook who stated that the new Douglas is identical to the old, except the color change. Pete

My Nutty Buddy story: The Nutty Buddy "floats" between your jock and your compression shorts. I have heard that some guys like to wear a second set of compression shorts over the jock, but I have always thought that was overkill. So I'm on the dish for my second college series this year. I am returning from busting down the line on a routine ground ball and I notice my NB has turned sideways! WTF?! Since this is the first out of the inning, I try to make a slight and casual adjustment to turn the cup. IT POPS OUT OF THE JOCK and starts traveling down my leg. CRAP! I drop into my plate stance and trap it against my thigh. Strike one looked a little funny as I try to keep the NB pinned. Then, the batter grounds to F6 and I waddle/run down the line. I return to the plate area and the NB falls to my plate shoe. Fortunately it didn't fall all the way out. I grab it and navigate it up my leg, where I stuff it inside my shin guard. It sat there until the last out of the inning and I was able to retreat to the dugout and fix it. My partner got a good chuckle over my dilemma. I have never had this issue with the NB and I can only surmise that I improperly installed the NB when I was gearing up. Since then I have been very careful to ensure the jock is stretched tight to hold it in place! Pete

"Shoulder gap" is a common problem in chest protectors. Hearing Evans complain in the video, it appears that this gap is where he was hit. While reviewing the Schutt AiR Flex protector I took a low speed impact to the gap and felt discomfort. A high speed impact will ruin your day (and reportedly cause your goatee to become soiled with snot - gross!) As Kevin describes, the shoulder gap problem results from the impact forcing the edges of the shoulder plate into your shoulder. The answer to this issue is either a shoulder cap plate to cover the area (a la the Douglas-Douglas [i love that moniker]), or additional padding (a la the Wilson Platinum and Gold, and All Star CPU4000). Pete

There are a lot of materials out there including Zorbium, Brock Beads, Zoombang, and now Kevlar. What we are talking about is absorption. The plastic plates on your hard shell are designed to absorb impact by distributing the force across the plates. The interior padding is mainly there for comfort and is typically made from a moisture wicking polyester. According to Unequal's website, the size of the Kevlar is around 5mm, or about the same thickness as the plastic plates on your hard shell protector. The design that was shown in the video is a "soft shell protector". In this case the Kevlar is sewn into the polyester fabric and perhaps sits on a filler material for comfort. The weight that is raved about raises my eyebrows. The Douglas chest protector is the lightest hard shell I have tested at 2.09 pounds. Soft shell designs are on average a bit lighter than hard shell protectors, but two pounds is pretty light! Revolutionary? Advanced? I dunno. I appreciate Jim Evans standing in front of a 90mph fastball, but I have seen 90+ mph fastballs bounce off hardshell protectors many times (and worn them myself). I am intrigued by the Unequal's thin, low profile design. For reference, the Douglas and the Schutt are a mere one inch thick. Pete

Cool! I still like the ESS. I have been impressed with the fog free / scratch resistant lenses. I am not easy on my sunglasses and the ESS are very durable. The price is also nice, especially with your coupon code! Pete

"I don't always wear compression pants, but when I do I wear inexpensive brands. Stay cheap, my friends." Compression pants come in a variety of flavors. I have worn Nike and UA compression pants, but I think that the brand name should be the least important part of the selection process (unless the company tells you to eff off. Wow!) Just like undershirts, one set of compression pants does not fit all occasions. For hot weather, think moisture wicking. I like moisture wicking material that is thin and breathable, so the polyester Wal-Mart specials are my choice for around $12. Sometimes I will wear them in cooler weather as an extra layer. For cold weather, I've found a heavier polyester blend pant at Marshalls: Layer 8 Base Layer for $16.99. It will still wick away moisture, but its main function is warmth during early season games. Polypropylene is great for cold weather, but it is overkill and bulky. [if I ever do a game in Antarctica, I'm packing polypro and my Majestic Therma Base Jacket] Normally I prefer long Nike Pro Combat compression shorts and tall socks. The shorts come to my knee which prevents leg guard irritation. I get my compression shorts from Marshall's for $14.99. I wear a Nutty Buddy over all of my compression gear. à chacun son goût Pete

I reviewed a navy Smitty Thermal Full Zip Umpire Jacket in December, and there are very minor differences between the Majestic and the Smitty. Here is the link to the article: http://midwestump.blogspot.com/2011/12/review-of-smitty-thermal-full-zip.html I can't speak to the color differences or the width of the stripes. Pete

I measured my SUV hatch yesterday also to see if I need to order a 5 or 6 gallon KFINN FSB. Can I tell my wife that I'm not crazy/obsessed since others are doing it too? Pete

Rolando, I measure 15.5" from center of knee to ankle. The Diamond DLG-UMP Lite 150 leg guards at 15" fit me great. I had no problem wearing the 17" All Star LGU2000 leg guards during my review. As Brad said, the knee is adjustible for a custom fit. The 17" All Star shins should work fine for you, unless you are shaped like Dorf: Pete

I recently updated the Midwest Ump site with a 2012 Umpire Insurance Review. Nothing has changed for ABUA or NASO from 2011, but NFHS went to a different carrier. The NFHS insurance is automatic for most officials, but only covers NFHS events for registered officials. Between NASO and ABUA, the NASO offers better coverage, but at a steeper price. For instance, if you are sued for a bad call during a game (it happens!), NASO covers you with its errors and omissions benefit, ABUA does not. Also, ABUA only covers baseball and softball events, NASO covers any sport. That is a big benefit for multi-sport officials. Pete