Plate shoes

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally posted by Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.

JR:

I have been umpiring H.S. baseball and fastpitch softball as well as ASA and USSSA fastpitch softball since 1991.

MTD, Sr.

Hmmmmm.

Maybe you would have been better served to have taken some basic English courses during that time.

MTD Sr.--"Being a volunteer is no excuse for wearing the correct equipment to do the job correctly"

Or did you really mean that?

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

Originally posted by Jurassic Referee

Hmmmmm.

Maybe you would have been better served to have taken some basic English courses during that time.

MTD Sr.--"Being a volunteer is no excuse for wearing the correct equipment to do the job correctly"

Or did you really mean that?

No, I don't really mean that. I am going back and editing my original post. I typed it so fast and did not bother to proof read it before hitting the "Submit Reply" button.

MTD, Sr.

[LMan]

..so what do the younger guys (say, 17-19 yo) who actually *don't* have hundreds of dollars to spend upfront on this do?

[mick]

Wearing the correct equipment is no excuse for a volunteer to work a game incorrectly.

mick

[Kaliix]

Originally posted by LMan
..so what do the younger guys (say, 17-19 yo) who actually *don't* have hundreds of dollars to spend upfront on this do?

Pray you don't get hit...


Or save your first few game checks and buy the proper equipment. As I stated earlier, you can get catchers shin guards with extended toe plates on ebay for less than $20. Those will save your feet in most cases.

[BlueBob]

Thanks for all of the suggestions and other commentary on assumptions that are made which seems to be the norm for must of the replies.

[His High Holiness]

Originally posted by mrm21711

Not necessarily true. You should not assume the gentleman is living in poverty (which you have made), or that these would deprive his family of shelter/food/ect. ...... Your quote of buying something that would produce zero income is not relevant, if it produces zero income and puts his health in jeopardy, there has to be some compromise made. Let him make that decision, dont criticize everybody else for offering him advice.

It would appear that I stirred up a mini s$$$house with my Friday post I have not lost my touch!

I believe that I should, in fact, assume that one is not taking care of his bills when he shells out a bunch of money on umpire gear as a volunteer. Consider the following:

1. 45% of all marriages in the US end in divorce. In over half these divorces, money is indicated as a major contributer to the breakup. (Sex is the other.)

2. Over half (70%) of all marriages have major arguments over money.

3. In 1 and 2 above, the money issues generally fall into two categories. The wife spends too much on shopping and the husband spends too much on hobbies. I mention this because someone referred to hobbies in response to my post.

4. Only half of all workers contribute to a 401k/403b/457/IRA/SEP/other pension plan. Of that 50% who contribute, only half of those contribute enough. That means that 75% of all workers have deficiencies in their retirement plan. The $100 that went to plate shoes should probably be going to retirement.

Given 1-4 above, its a fairly safe assumption that our umpire should not be spending $100 to do volunteer umpiring. Does this mean that he should work without proper gear. NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That is where at least one of the responses made a false assumption about what I was advocating.

He should not umpire at all unless the league will provide proper gear for free. Failing that, the league pay him adequately so that he can get the gear himself without shortchanging the more important responsibilities in his life.

To the poster who referred to the golf clubs in my garage, you are correct. The golf clubs have stayed in my garage since 1982 when my youngest child was born. At that time, I determined that it was irresponsible to spend 6 hours and $60 (2004 dollars) on a hobby when I could get paid $60+ (2004 dollars) for umpiring baseball.

Having your hobby/exercise/fun produce income prevents a whole lot of friction on the home front. To read more about this one must be a paid subscriber. I have an article coming out next week on this subject with regards to Little League baseball. Click on the "On Deck" button of officiating.com's home page for more details.

How's that for another shameless promotion!

Peter

[mrm21711]

Originally posted by LMan
..so what do the younger guys (say, 17-19 yo) who actually *don't* have hundreds of dollars to spend upfront on this do?

I am twenty years old and have....

West Vest Platinum
New Honig's Mask and Leg Guards
Five Paris of Pants
6 Shirts
A Plate Jacket and Base Jacket
Plate Shoes
among other things....

My response is find the proper equipment to protect my health. As much as I love umpiring, my health/personal safety does not come second.

[kylejt]

Yikes!

Somebody wants to get some better protection for himself, so he can volunteer his services at the local youth sports organization, and some self anointed gas bag has the nerve to say it's going to ruin his love life.

I'm sure glad my Dad doesn't take the same advice in his volunteer work. "Hey Pop, Pete says it's irresponsible to spend money for your top of the line gear. So take back that Glock, and get a BB gun".

Everybody comes to umpiring from different angles. My 16 year old son likes the 45 bones a game. It beats flippin' burgers, and mopping floors. A friend loves it so much he sponsors a youth umpire organization. Many dollars out his pocket to further the cause. To some it's a just a gig. It pays some bills, keeps them outta bars, and the extra dough keeps the little lady from walkin'. To each his own.

Me, I'm lucky enough to work my 40, pull six figures, keep my wife happy AND volunteer my skills to the community. And yes, I can afford to gear up properly, and fully fund my 401K. When I do work paid games, I either donate it back to another organization, pay green fees or "donate" it to my wife's favorite jewelry store by the beach.

Wow, HHH thanks for showing me the error of my ways. I've been doing it wrong all these years.

[LMan]

Originally posted by kylejt
Yikes!


Me, I'm lucky enough to work my 40, pull six figures, keep my wife happy AND volunteer my skills to the community. And yes, I can afford to gear up properly, and fully fund my 401K. When I do work paid games, I either donate it back to another organization, pay green fees or "donate" it to my wife's favorite jewelry store by the beach.

"lucky" doesn't begin to cover your happy situation. I'm glad someone is doing well in life!

[mick]

Play nicely.

[His High Holiness]

Originally posted by kylejt

I respect your opinions, just don't assume to speak for everyone.

(this was a response to a HHH post that he deleted)



[Edited by kylejt on Nov 16th, 2004 at 04:34 PM]

Speaking of assumptions, you just made a big one. I did not delete my post, the moderators did. They must be overly sensitive today.

I never assumed that I spoke for everyone of that they would agree with me. I fully recognize that most people are irresponsible with money and fail to intelligently meet their obligations.

Most people do not have six figure incomes. Unless otherwise stated, it is a fair bet that a poster is not in the $100,000+ range when it comes to his day job. I made the assumption that the poster was a person of average income and obligations. Obviously, that does not apply to wealthy people like you.

Peter

[His High Holiness]

Originally posted by mick
Play nicely.

Mick;

What's wrong with you today? I did not insult Kyle and he certainly did not insult me and yet you have deleted both posts.

We were having an important discussion about finances and you have mucked it up. Volunteers pay a huge price with their families over finances. I have seen the havoc that men's so called hobbies have done to families. Yet in your nanny capacity, you have decided that this discussion is not important.

Peter

[Edited by His High Holiness on Nov 16th, 2004 at 04:57 PM]

[mick]

Originally posted by His High Holiness

Mick;

What's wrong with you today? I did not insult Kyle and he certainly did not insult me and yet you have deleted both posts.

We were having an important discussion about finances and you have mucked it up. Volunteers pay a huge price with their families over finances. I have seen the havoc that men's so called hobbies have done to families. Yet in your nanny capacity, you have decided that this discussion is not important.

Peter

[Edited by His High Holiness on Nov 16th, 2004 at 04:57 PM]

Didn't want something to get started, Peter.
...Had that tone to me.
Maybe too much stress.
mick

[heykid41]

email me at [email protected]
I'll send you these babies... they are leather, shiny... all good... just give me your address.
Man, I can't believe all the crap that was pitched here!