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I wear full body protection, chest protector, steel toes with metatarsal plate, shin guards, cup(yes, I work with umps that do not wear one), and mask with attached throat protector. I come just short of insisting on wearing the equipment for the umps on my board. Umps that are not wearing shin proctection are always dancing at the plate when a pitch is in the dirt. Without a chest protector most umps will flinch when the ball is inside coming at them. It just looks terrible.
I didn't always wear steel toes. I started wearing them after I took a foul ball off the toe and lost a toenail because of it. Also have been stepped on a few times by the catcher.
When you are in pain, and you will be sooner or later without the gear (even with the gear), you cannot fully concentrate on the job at hand.
I can still remember my very first game I did as an ASA umpire. Catcher was set up outside, I was in the slot and the pitch was inside. Batter fouled it off and it hit me in the cup. Best $10 I have ever spent. It still stung but I was able to continue the game without any problems. Crowd also got quite a chuckle out of it.
[Edited by Duke on Mar 14th, 2004 at 08:22 PM]
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