eddieq

Old thread. Sorry for the bump, but it's been nearly a year, and the cough is non existent. Lungs are still good. Taken plenty of shots on the chest protector and no injuries.

SB Umps anonymous: My name is Ed and I'm a softball umpire. Been doing youth FP mostly. Some adult rec FP leagues. (Hi Ed!) Local baseball assignor I know called me up and asked me to jump into a u10 game because he was down a guy. Game went well. One of two "groan" calls but no fighting/screaming from the coaches (some of the moms got mouthy but the home coach cut them off). Got good feedback from the coaches through the assignor. Talking about doing some more with them as their summer season ramps up. I object, though. I came to the dark side and there were no cookies.

Slight tangent, but one youth softball league I used to call had this one team that everyone knew. The coaches were problems and the coach's kids were problems. As I walked up for a regular weeknight game, I heard the one coach say to his kid, "Put that one away, this guy checks."

Update: Followed up with my GP who did some more tests and such. My lungs are "crystal clear" at this time. The condition was apparently transient. He made some medication adjustments as one of the meds I'm on has a common side effect of a persistent cough. He's not sure if the condition was related to an impact but he's unconcerned about recurrence. "Keep breathing deeply. Eat better. Exercise more." Either way - listen to your bodies, take notice if something is "different" or just "off". Have a great game!

I'm not sure what it's like in other places, but around here brick and mortar official supply stores are few and far between. There is a decent one I will visit once or twice a year about an hour from me but that's about it (it's a nice drive and near where I grew up and went to college so I visit too). Marble went with me on the last one and had a blast in the little community. He was definitely the star of the show that day. (Marble is my dog - 14 months old, pug/corgi mix). Anyway, that means that as a whole, we are stuck with either ordering something and trying it, then returning it when it's not right, then ordering something else. We can also work with each other to sample what we have, but add to that the unique and diverse body shapes of men and women, it can be a daunting task for sure. I'm glad you found something that works for you, @MarsOmega

In the “I’m my biggest enemy” category - I spent the day working on my daughter in law’s car during an excessive heat warning. Stay hydrated my friends. And not only listen to your body but I should probably listen to my wife more.

Playing softball in my 20’s and early 30’s helped me find a bone tumor. I took a big hack and ripped some scar tissue/adhesions away. Felt like a truck drove through my shoulder. Visit the doctor and there was a bone tumor (osteochondroma) that was, according to my surgeon, “a big sucker”. Took it out, did the PT, all good 21 years later. The tumor was at the top of the humerus bone impinging on the movement. I just dealt with it. Until.

Well I’m glad this sparked a discussion anyway. And for the record - that is speculation that a BFI and specifically the sling bat caused my current issue. I ignored the symptoms long enough until it interfered with my daily life was more the point. Interesting to hear similar stories from you all. Take care of yourselves!

Not a hijack at all, really. The point of the post was "listen to your body". Heal up, brother!

Yes, I’m a softball ump (although I have plans to cross to the dark side). Youth game. It was a freak thing, she let it go on the follow through and it got me.

So my wife has just reminded me that I came home from a youth fast pitch game about 6 weeks ago and told her that one of the batters slugged me in the ribs on a swing she let go of so … that may be the source. 🫥 edited to correct

My chest protector is a diamond ix3 with the abdomen extension. I’m well covered. I also have a big gut so there is that. I don’t ever get any bruising or feel impacts when wearing it. If this was from a pitch or foul ball, it was a freak accident. And again it was speculation. The area is certainly a spot where I take shots. I also could have breathed something in. I’m a fire police officer - could have been flare smoke - but the narrow band of damage certainly seems like an injury rather than something I would have breathed in. I am on the mend. My only restrictions are how I feel. I have an inhaler for when it’s acute, and one of those beakers I’m supposed to breath through and move the plunger as an exercise in filling my lungs. Thanks for the well wishes. Again I say make sure you listen when your body is telling you that something is different (not necessarily wrong - just different).

I have had a persistent cough for some time now that has gotten progressively worse. I finally went to an urgent care where they took a chest xray and found, "atelectasis" which is partial collapse of a lung or node. The xray shows a narrow band of collapsed air sacks near the bottom of the one lung node. It's speculation but the doctor tells me it could be from a blunt force injury. So while there is a lot of talk about heart stopping blows to the chest, don't ignore symptoms like a cough or shortness of breath after taking a shot. I'm on a series of meds and basically instructions to keep breathing deeply to try to get those air sacks filling again. Following up with my family doctor as well. So for sure, listen to your body. Stay hydrated. Keep your fitness level up as much as possible. Above all have a great game!

Softball guy here - I agreed to a tournament a few years back where it was cash at the plate before we start. One of my games, one of the teams presents me with a check made out to cash. I begrudgingly agreed to it, did the games and the rest of them. I went and deposited it on Monday and a few days later got the notice that it bounced, account closed, etc. I called the assignor who sighed and said it wasn't the first call he received and that he would run it down and take care of it. I talked to my bank and they reversed the bounced check fee for me as a courtesy for a long-time customer. The following week I got a check from my assignor (not from the team) which included the bounce fee. I called him and told him the bank had reversed it and he told me to keep it for my trouble. The following week when the assignments came out for a similar tournament, the note included, "Cash means cash. Don't take any personal checks". As noted by others in this thread, for established teams/leagues/TDs, I will accept both epay (such as venmo) or checks for my work. When I get called in to do a fill in and am told the teams will pay me at the plate, I emphasize cash. Haven't really had an issue since that one time, but man it was a pain.

So not NFHS and not baseball. I'm a softball umpire. I've talked with a local guy about crossing to the big field a couple of times, but that hasn't materialized with our schedules. Anyway, by nature of what's available around here, I do a lot of community youth FP and until we get to playoffs, they are entirely solo games. Last night I had two steal plays at second where I cleared the catcher, came out several steps, and tried to get the best angle, knowing I'd never get the distance. I made my calls based on what I saw and tried to get it right every time. I won't "guess" an out so if I'm screened and don't see a tag, I'm not calling the out. In between innings, a coach is talking about it (not griping AT me, but griping that he didn't get the call that he was sure I kicked). I engaged for a minute and just said, "Look, I called it from what I could see and I'm doing the best I can to get the calls right. The remedy is for the league to pay for two umpires and not rely on me calling it from 60+ feet away". He agreed and thanked me for my candor. I'm sure we'll start doing two man games tonight in light of that revelation. /sarcasm Side note, we called the game due to darkness, absolutely killing a comeback rally by the visitors. It's a beautiful complex with lots of fields and facilities. Apparently the township won't authorize field lighting.