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A key gear discovery… My hat’s off to Kyle!


Kevin Finnerty
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Years ago on another forum, Kyle endorsed the use of hockey referee shin guards, insisting that the protection is more than adequate, and the comfort, light weight, and low price are all worth strong consideration by us baseball umpires. Kyle, the intrepid soul that he is, fell on his sword for us by employing the use of these sleek, affordable shin guards, and we all but ignored his suggestion.

 

Well, Ump-Attire showed up with an offering from Champro called “hockey style shin guards.†At $85, I wasn’t especially prone to jump at them, but it aroused my curiosity, and compelled me to follow Kyle’s age-old suggestion and acquire some hockey referee shin guards. These are the ones I chose:

 

bauer_supreme_1000_referee_hockey_shin_g

 

I tried them out for the first time yesterday at a high-level H.S. varsity game (I’m not going to give them their first shot at a college scrimmage J). I can honestly say that they are so light and comfortable that there were times that I felt that I was wearing no shins at all. They fit beautifully and are amazingly light. I didn’t get drilled while I worked in them, but I gave them a healthy whack before I went out there and they offer substantial protection. (Hockey refs get whacked with hockey sticks in face-offs, for crying out loud—they have to offer adequate protection for that, so it figures that a bouncing baseball could not feel too much worse.)

 

There are two bottom lines (price and performance):

 

They made me noticeably faster when I ran. I’m pretty fast for a geezer, but I never realized how much my Wilson Golds slowed me down until I sported a pair of Douglas West Vest shins, which are somewhat lighter than their successor, the Golds. Well, now, I can say that the Douglases slowed me down too. Good heavens, a pair of these Bauers weigh less than one Wilson Gold.

 

The main bottom line, however is that they cost me $37 brand new (on sale). If I paid the shipping, it would have been another $10, but after I ordered them, I discovered the store/warehouse is located within a couple miles, so I picked them up. They normally go for $48 at DiscountHockey.com, and for as much as $69 on ebay.

 

For their comfort alone, I am going to use these at every game that the pitching can be expected to fall in the 80s and below. I would wear them at any level, but they have no ankle protection. I wear high-tops exclusively, along with two pairs of thick socks, so I’m well-padded against an ankle shot. And I have a stance that has my toe facing the pitcher, so the extremely rare ankle shot just glances off the inside of my shoe. But that’s the sole trade-off.

 

They’re lighter, more comfortable and considerably less expensive than baseball-specific shins. They even take up less space in my bag!

 

Thank you, Kyle... and, I'm sorry, Kyle. I should have listened and responded a lot sooner. I had Wilson on the brain. I'll listen better. 

 

http://discounthockey.com/protective/shin-guards/senior/bauer-supreme-1000-referee-hockey-shin-guards-senior.html

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I got a pair last summer. The only issue I have is that the top strap slips...but it really does not cause any issues, besides me knowing that it has slipped. 

 

I did take an ankle shot last summer in a LL Junior All-Star district game. It hurt (NB 460s) but no damage. Terrible catcher. I will probably wear them some this high school season as well.

 

Great deal and incredibly comfortable. The lack of ankle protection is the biggest issue that I have with them.

 

Got mine from Hokey Monkey.

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I got a pair last summer. The only issue I have is that the top strap slips...but it really does not cause any issues, besides me knowing that it has slipped. 

 

I did take an ankle shot last summer in a LL Junior All-Star district game. It hurt (NB 460s) but no damage. Terrible catcher. I will probably wear them some this high school season as well.

 

Great deal and incredibly comfortable. The lack of ankle protection is the biggest issue that I have with them.

 

Got mine from Hokey Monkey.

That's why that catcher is an all star.

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My pleasure.

 

No, they're not perfect. But they are quite protective of the shin and knee. If you get them to mate up, in your stance, with your high tops, then just your ankles are "naked".

 

My first pair were $10, from the local Play It Again store. I thought they might work, and they did. Since then, I've upgraded to newer ones. So far, so good.

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We need a tip-of-the-cap smiley, but until we have one, this will have to do:   :notworthy:  Kyle, there are passionate enthusiasts, and there are passionate enthusiasts, but you... well you know the rest. 

 

I used to give the least thought to my shin guards of any of the key pieces of gear. If I put it in order, I suppose it would go something like,

 

1) Mask  

2) Chest protector

3) Plate shoes

4) Cup (Shock Doctor steel)

5) Throat guard

6) Shin guards

 

The reason the shins were of so little concern is that with even standard shins, you're unlikely to have any painful or disabling injury from even the hardest shot. That cannot be said of merely adequate masks, CPs, plate shoes, and especially protective cups!

 

But by giving my shins so little attention, I had not placed a premium on comfort or mobility. Nor had I given much thought to their profile. Once I had gone from Wilson Golds to the lighter, more comfortable Douglas West Vest shins as my primary, I thought they couldn't get too much lighter. I felt the same way when I switched from the New Balance 450 plate shoes to the Reebok Magistrates. They made me step a little livelier. (I can't wait to try the Zig plates after going nuts over the Zig base shoes. Talk about stepping livelier...) 

 

Well, after flying around the high school diamond for a 14-inning one-man, these ultra-light Bauers made a difference in my first-step quickness and overall running speed. (I love to run!) They not only made me faster, I must believe that they also made me less fatigued. I was already sold on the comfort difference just walking to the field. And for the extremely rare ankle shot, as comfortable as these things are, I will make that trade-off. I have had two direct ankle shots in seven years of umpiring, and both were absorbed by a combination of that ankle flap, high-top plate shoes and two pairs of thick socks (and sometimes a neoprene ankle wrap). If you have that Bauer guard right down into your shoe-top, there is a little coverage, so I'll have what's needed for the typical grazing, and possibly enough for that direct ankle shot that I'm due for sometime in 2017.

 

I suppose, if you have your foot facing in the right direction in your stance, you'll get very few ankle shots, and even then, it has to be a somewhat freakish thing. I'll stick with these babies for most of the games I work, and take a slight gamble on something that virtually never happens. It's like my sticking with a standard mask rather than going to a bucket to guard against another incident like the one back-swing head shot I've had in the entire time I've umpired. It's a comfort/performance, risk/reward trade-off that Kyle, Slo and I are willing to make. 

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Thank you, Chief! Happy New Year! (Can you tell that jumping back up here was one of my resolutions?)

 

We should talk. There's some compelling stuff to discuss.

 

... Continued thanks for having this forum for us all to visit and grow as umpires. I have actually made friends from among the members of your club. I've broken bread with Thunderheads and his lovely bride; I'm working with Grayhawk again on Tuesday... among many others and more to come.

 

Look around at all of the camaraderie you have generated among all levels of the umpiring community.    :notworthy:  

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One thing I was told to keep an eye on is not having my shins show through my plate pants.

 

That was the precise reason that I was curious about them. I saw a picture of my stance and one of my punch-out, and my shins and their shape were too visible under my slacks. A peer who pointed it out told me to look for something low-profile like these Schutts that he wears. I had seen the DaviShins (both editions), and I had seen the Champros on U-A, and based on Kyle's long-standing recommendation, I searched for and found those Bauers.

 

MAN, I love this crap! 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Update:

 

I got drilled with a high-80s fastball straight in the hollow of the knee and these things are extremely resilient and protective.

 

I'm looking into some flaps to Velcro onto the inside ankles, and then I'd wear them at any level. I wouldn't have tried them out at this tournament I worked, but the level of pitching was better than I anticipated. But they passed the impact test. 

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Update:

 

I got drilled with a high-80s fastball straight in the hollow of the knee and these things are extremely resilient and protective.

 

I'm looking into some flaps to Velcro onto the inside ankles, and then I'd wear them at any level. I wouldn't have tried them out at this tournament I worked, but the level of pitching was better than I anticipated. But they passed the impact test.

demand photos so we can copy the FinnShins (trademarked of course)

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Update:

 

I got drilled with a high-80s fastball straight in the hollow of the knee and these things are extremely resilient and protective.

 

I'm looking into some flaps to Velcro onto the inside ankles, and then I'd wear them at any level. I wouldn't have tried them out at this tournament I worked, but the level of pitching was better than I anticipated. But they passed the impact test.

I wonder if the toe caps off another pair of shins would be too big.

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Update:

 

I got drilled with a high-80s fastball straight in the hollow of the knee and these things are extremely resilient and protective.

 

I'm looking into some flaps to Velcro onto the inside ankles, and then I'd wear them at any level. I wouldn't have tried them out at this tournament I worked, but the level of pitching was better than I anticipated. But they passed the impact test.

I wonder if the toe caps off another pair of shins would be too big.

interesting. Kind of like what Wislon/Gerry Davis did with their first generation DavisShins.

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Last night, I took a chance and wore the Bauers at a D-I intrasquad game, and took a straight, low-90s foul on the lower shin bone. The protection was outstanding---not even a stinging feeling. I've now been drilled in the knee at mid-80s, and drilled in the lower shin at 90-91, and I can freely state that because of their degree of protection, I can wear these things anywhere. I was originally going to wear them at some high school and some men's baseball. If something this light and comfortable actually offers this degree of protection, I'm going to wear them all the time. I'm augmenting the ankle protection ASAP, and I'll get back to you.

 

Awesome gear! 

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