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Originally Posted by Mountaineer
That is an important issue here. If you don't walk the field and check the equipment you are liable if a kid gets injured. I also carry a sharpie pen in my ball bag and mark the new game balls with my initials before the game (and with any new ball that comes into the game during the game). After a ball has been batted a few times it can loose the cor and compression markings - but if it has my initials on there, I know it's a good ball.
Bottom line is safety and insurance. By checking equipment and walking and inspecting the field - you are helping insure the safety of the kids primarily and your family possessions secondly.
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In a HS game, I don't believe the umpire is liable. It is a preventive umpiring issue that works well. The reason you can ask coaches in HS concerning the proper equipment, but not in ASA or whatever, is because the kids are wards of the school during any school-sanctioned activity.
In ASA or whatever, there is no loco parentis for the purpose of responsibility for a minor.
An umpire would be liable if they knowingly allowed a piece of damaged/non-approved equipment to be used during the game and it resulted in an injury.
Same at the ASA level. The umpires are to check equipment, but it does not relieve the teams of their liabilities.