Mike Prince

@Thunderheads, lock it up please. These are going to a new home!

Have had a couple of inquiries, but no offer/sale yet. Someone take these off my hands please!

Update - the pending sale on these large (and in great shape) shin guards did not materialize, these are available once again. Make me an offer, they are boxed up and ready to ship to you!

​Hello to you Jeff, hope all is well!

Sale pending on these. And no, not to Thunderheads!

Yep, 20", that is not a typo. In any case I am no longer active here (or in umpiring), but decided to post this to see if there is any interest in these shins. They are the newer gray shell/navy padding models, I used them for 3 seasons before my umpire retirement last summer. They are in great shape, and have been modified with plastic buckles as part of a Douglas factory recondition after season #2 - I did not care for the stock Douglas metal buckles. I sent Jeff Cook an email recently to find out if these could be reworked to a smaller size (to make them more sellable) and the short answer is that it's not financially practical. So, if there are any tall/long legged umpires out there, feel free to make me an offer on these. You will get a truly great set of shin pads for a great price, I guarantee that. So, for purposes of complying with what I remember to be the rules here, I am offering these for best offer plus actual shipping costs to you from Mooresville, NC (28117). I have great feedback here as both a buyer and a seller and am honestly looking for someone who can use these to take them off my hands. I paid a fortune for these, but am not concerned with the return on that investment (I already got that by using them). If they don't sell here they will likely be donated locally. Please PM (vs. posting as I won't respond to posts with offers) offers or email to mfprince@gmail.com. I am traveling for the next week including the weekend, so if you want these and are in a hurry to get them this may not be the deal for you. If there is interest in these I can post some pictures of them tomorrow. Thanks - Mike

So maybe you should start a new thread for your sale instead of hijacking this one...

The +POS pads are actually quite good, they are identical to the All-Star LUC pads. The value of the pads is probably less than $15 so you won't save a lot by buying a frame only.

Hell, just call lots of them. Who cares how you do it? 😄

My nephew plays 10U USSSA and the tournaments I have been to as a spectator have shown that they don't pay or respect their umpires, and they are getting what they pay for. It is apparent that most of these guys are not trained and at first glance they do not know how to manage a game or situations, but I do not blame the umpires for this; the TD's are treating umpires as a commodity and the blame lies with them. I say "at first glance" because I went to his last tournament of the season this past weekend and my seat in the bleachers was within earshot of the umpires' meeting that the TD was holding (this was not intentional, but it made me realize what a disadvantage these poor umpires have). A couple of the gems I overheard: - You get 3 new baseballs per day of the tournament. If you do not turn them all in at the end of each day I will dock your game fees $5 per unreturned baseball. If for some reason you need more baseballs you get charged another $5 unless you can turn in a damaged ball. I saw umpires all weekend delaying their game to make sure out of play foul balls were being returned to them. With a 2-hour time limit, I bet at least 10 minutes per game were wasted by everyone standing around so the PU could get "his" baseball back. - An ejection is a last resort and all ejections are subject to immediate review. If you EJ or restrict a coach and I overturn it, you will finish the game you are on and you should not expect to get assigned any more games this weekend. WOW. I saw coach behavior on my nephew's team that I would have no problem justifying an EJ on and the umpires never even warned. In fact they continued the conversations and got walked all over the entire weekend. The 1BC ran at the umpire to dispute a catch/no catch call during the play and was not even warned! But, this is what happens when the umpires have no backing and their authority is non-existent. Also saw multiple occurrences of umpires justifying their calls verbally to the stands... - Pay was $25 per game and they got one voucher for a hot dog and a drink at the snack bar. Two-hour time limit games, two-man crews and each umpire could probably get 5, maybe 6 games a day (games started at 8am each day). So I can make $125 with a free lunch in 90+ degree heat, unless I don't have 3 baseballs turned in... Bottom line, you want to subject yourself to this level of ball, you have to play by the TD's "rules". He isn't looking for good umpires, he is looking for warm bodies who are willing to work for peanuts and keep the coaches happy. All the TD cares about is money and that the teams return for his next tourney. Umpires? If a few leave he will find other ones - someone (trained or not) will do it for $125 a day and a free hot dog...

You believe wrong!

I cant get a guard on right with it,Sure you can.

Your FM25 is a fine mask, worth investing in a new finish for it. I've had a lot of different masks and the FM25 is my favorite.

Time shouldn't be called (in most cases) until the playing action is over. As far as the original question, the earliest time should be called is after the BR reached 1B, but you must also judge that all playing action has ended as well.

I would have no "worry" of being known as the guy who habitually calls others on their BS excuses. If they suck on the dish, I wouldn't expect that they're much better on the pads. I think doing the pads well is harder. There are fewer opportunities to F-up on the pads , but those F-ups are usually signficant. I'd rather that he suck on the dish. You can't much care about what these guys think about you shaming them into working the plate. If this is a significant problem, then you're probably getting good at calling them on their BS. Why worry ? I disagree about the dish versus bases. While I agree that one F-up can be worse on the bases it is still better to have the better umpire on the dish. Nothing can derail a game quicker than an inconsistent or poor strike zone. And there is not a lot of damage control I can do on the bases when my partner has a horrid zone. But if he F's up a call on the bases, I find it easier as the plate umpire to run interference or do something to keep the situation under control. Oftentimes the coaches look at the PU as the crew chief, even if he technically has no more authority. I respectfully disagree with your disagreement. When I have an inexperienced partner, I encourage him to take the plate. Once they realize they won't get hit (or that the equipment will protect them) most do just fine - batters and coaches remarkably have an ability to adapt to whatever strike zone is being called and ball/strike chirping is pretty easy to manage, even for a new guy. Many "disaster" games I have had involve a lazy or inexperienced partner on the bases - it's easy for a new umpire to be overwhelmed as to where proper positions are and how to have proper timing. Once a new guy blows a call on the bases and realizes he either gave or took away an out incorrectly, things go further downhill from there.

For some reason "Navy Ball Bags" sounds a whole lot better than "Blue Ball Bags" Carry on. To make my post relevant, I will vary my cap and ball bag color between black and navy (both the same) depending what color shirts are being worn.

And the RHP gains back this same advantage when he is trying to pick off R3. The LHP cannot come to the balance point and go to 3B without the free foot moving towards home during the motion to the base.

Everything is now sold @Thunderheads please lock this thread up. Thanks!

As you describe what happened you are correct in your interp, R1/R2 with two outs. If R2 had not retouched and returned to 2B you would score the run per @JaxRolo's post and wait for the defense to (hopefully) appeal his leaving early (which they did by throwing to 2B).

Had very positive selling experiences recently with: @bam @guyinaredhat @skeeterman @goindeep Enjoy the gear guys!

where did this myth come from then? Where most myths come from - dumb people.

Mask & pads sold. All sold items either have shipped (and tracking numbers PM'd) or will be later today. Will be making another post with apparel items shortly. Mostly jackets, I think I have a never worn black longsleeve shirt as well.

For those asking who the PU was, it doesn't matter all that much as Miller made the correct call (out) on the field. Scoscia initiated a replay and the guys in NYC took it from there.

Sale pending on the mask and both sets of pads. This may be a long shot, but I also have a LONG (20") set of gray/navy Douglas shin guards that I would be willing to sell. Purchased in 2013, reconditioned and customized (plastic buckles) by Douglas this past spring. There is some minor wear at the bottom of the shin guard where the shell rubs against the padding (a common issue with these SG's), otherwise are in excellent shape. I will take a rather major loss on these since I have over $250 in them between the purchase and the work done to them this spring, but if anyone can use these and is interested in them, PM me an offer. These are fantastic SG's, but due to the size I don't expect there to be a big market on these.

Update post - the Champro Bag, Douglas CP and all 4 pair of U-A polywools are sold. They are all packed up and will be shipped today. The mask and shoes are still available although there is interest in both. Here are some pics. The shoes have been cleaned with Murphy's after the last game I did in them, there is a small spot on one of the soles where a wad of gum came in contact with the sole (damn kids ) and dirt stuck to it. Otherwise they are in excellent condition (and I found the original box). The mask is pretty much flawless, not a mark on it and the harness and pads were purchased new this March.