[UmpJM]

Last Fall, as I was acquiring gear in anticipation of umpiring the first game of my life, I had to decide whether to get a traditional mask or an HSM. I chose the HSM (Easton Stealth, if anyone's interested) for two primary reasons:

1. Some of the games I would be working would be played on fields with those God-awful "half dome" backstops and I didn't want to get hit by a rebound on the top or back of my head.

2. I saw the video clip last year of the umpire wearing a mask getting whacked up side the head by the batter's bat on his follow through and wasn't interested in having that experience.

3. I wanted to "feel" well protected because I thought it would help me combat "flinching" my head.

Oops, that's three.

So far, I've worked a grand total of 48 games - everything from 12U-14U Travel to HS Frosh/Soph to Colt & Sr. Colt to MSBL. I've taken a number of good shots off foul balls to the helmet, both direct to the "mask" part (like right between the eyes) as well as more "glancing" shots off the helmet part. So far, I haven't had even a hint of a headache from these shots, nor have I experienced any "ringing in the ears". A couple of shots were kind of loud, but nothing very extreme. I've read a couple of comments on this board about the HSM being uncomfortable on hot days, but I haven't noticed that yet.

So far, to me, the biggest drawback is that it's kind of "clumsy" to handle when dealing with lineup cards (or maybe I'm just clumsy).

Now, I'm shopping for a "traditional mask" - not because I'm displeased with the HSM, but because I want to try it. I'll continue to wear the HSM on the half dome backstop fields.

JM