Ball Bag Color HS: Blue, Grey or Black
 

Is there a specified color for the ball bag(s) while working a HS game?

Blue with navy or HS blue shirt, black with black, cream or polo blue shirt.

No, unless your local (or state) association has such a policy.

I use what Klokard does.

Some follow the "wear black; you purse should match your shoes" philosophy.

I have to recant my black only stance.

Last week a friend of mine was working the dish wearing the GD gray pants, with matching charcoal ball bags. Now that's a sharp looking combo.

Too bad the GD ball bags are so inferior. Don't get started with them. You'll regret it if you do.

(This message is a public service message to all umpires from an umpire who made the mistake of believing that the Gerry Davis ball bags were professional ball bags.)

Thanks Kevin. I haven't pushed the "CONFIRM YOUR ORDER" button on them yet. I'm down to my last set of black +POS bags though, and will need some sort of replacements.

I used to follow your blue/black policy. Then I realized that I didn't change my belt and shoes to match my shirt, and began wearing black bags exclusively. It certainly makes it easier matching them in pairs in a dark laundry room.

But I don't think choosing a ball bag color is a defintive moment in an umpire's career, unless, of course, he chooses gray. :D

Check these out.

Jim Evans Academy of Professional Umpiring

Honig's are the definitive ball bags. Excellent fabric and double stitching. I haven't tried the new Ump Attire deluxe ones, but they were modified to comply with the professional appearance standard and are extremely well made.

MrUmp. Please tell me you don't wear black hats with HS light blue or navy shirts? True, it's always black belt and shoes, but I contend the ball bags MUST match the hat and shirt. Not that others must follow, but that's how I will always dress out.

It's also what most associations require. If your uniform's color requires you to wear a navy cap, wear navy ball bags.

I wear charcoal ball bags with navy shirt, black with all other shirts.

My ball bags are Gerry Davis. What don't you guys like about them? I haven't had any problems.

For baseball: black, all the time. But as always with uniforms, if your association wants something specific, go with that.

Not that it matters, but black bags look fine with the blue shirts and caps the PCL guys wear.

Looks fine on the pros in the IL as well. Again....hardly an issue to get heartburn over.

I follow the match the cap theory.

There are widespread reports that the seams come apart at the edges (the stress points that the baseballs make) far too quickly. It's a problem that could easily be solved by a needle and thread to reinforce the seams, but that really should be done at the factory to start with.

Where do you base your information on? I have worked for two different state associations and never heard such a requirement?

Peace

20 plus years of doing this , I have NEVER heard ONE person complain about the color of a black, blue, navy or grey ball bag yet.

If thats the only thing you get wrong for each game, then your doing a hell of job. One exception though, if this is your full time job, do as the boss says.

Oh, I rotate between navy and black depending upon what comes out of the the equipment bin first. And yes I have accidently worn both colors at the same time and still, no comments. HMMMM!

Once My cousin noticed one one my socks had a navy blue reebok logo and the other black. I didnt notice when I put them on. I told him I had another pair at home, just like them.
Only he would have noticed!

The ultimate ball bag by ump-attire.com is nice. I just picked one up. A bit pricy, but good material, a waterproof lining and nice looking.

Ump-Attire Bags are the best made bags, period.
 

I met the owner of Ump-Attire at the Chicago NCAA meeting. Jim Kirk is a great guy to talk to.

I had purchased some Ump-attire bags when they first came out years ago. I didn't really like them, but they were okay. Jim sent me a set of the new bags, and they are wonderful. They are very close to the old Kangaroo bags of the early 1980's, the best bags ever made for baseball. I put my Carlucci bags in the extra equipment bin, these are top-notch bags.

I have used the bags for two college DH's, and several cage sessions. They hold a lot balls, they don't bulge out, they have great pockets in them for indicator/brush, etc.

I'll post a full review after a few more games, but these bags blow Honig's bags away. The Honig's bags are good, I rate them one level below my Carlucci's. The Ump-attire bags are just flat out better than anything else out there by a wide margin. They are expensive, but worth every penny you pay for them.

As to color of bags, IMO you match the hat and shirt. That means for me black for college, navy for HS, and probably black for summer ball unless we use blue, then it's navy again. I am not a fan of gray ball bags since no matter what color you have, you will never get a perfect match. There are just too many shades of heather or charcoal to match up your bags with your pants. A contrasting color does not have to exactly match to look good.

After researching the various brands, this one will be my choice when I equip my "comeback tour." I also like the zipper pocket location.

Hehehehee,
 

I don't own any navy ball bags. Makes my decision pretty easy.

Regards,

I work in a tiny area with about 10 million people, and their association says wear navy because black is not recognized yet as an official color. It is only an alternate. I like black and wear it whenever possible. But when a partner has only blue and I need to wear blue, I wear navy ball bags. And it truly is no big deal.

As for the Gerry Davis bags: Steve just about nailed it. They are flimsy, single-stitched bags, which come apart at the single-stitched seams. After five games, the interior pocket started to tear away on one, so I had to repair it and reinforce the other. (After you pay $15 for a ball bag, you have to work on it.) The tunnel loops are so thin that they bunch up, and they're so poorly sewn that your belt catches this flap of fabric as you try to slide it through. They're terrible. There's nothing about them that's even passable. They are inferior to Honig's in every way.

I'll replace the pair that GD sent me to replace the pair that sucked (a remedy that I still don't understand). And I'll probably get the reinvented Ultimate ball bags from Jim, instead of another set of Honig's. I didn't like Jim's old design with the thin loops and the elastic gather, but they looked like the best made ball bags I ever saw. The new ones are even better. And Jim deserves a lot of credit for listening to us and reinventing these bags.

I subscribe to the "match the bag(s) to the hat" idea.
With that being said, I can't remember the last time I wore navy bags because I also can't remember the last time I wore a navy shirt.

When I first started umpiring I bought a single grey ball bag and ditched it after my first game because I though it looked awful.

I wish some places would ditch the "navy only" rule. I think navy jackets look sharp, but the shirts not so much. Black and MLB blue are the sharpest looking shirts IMO.

You use a purse instead of a ball bag? Interesting!

Bob

The IHSA (Illinois) gives umpires the choice of navy or gray ball bags for baseball, and requires navy for softball. I use gray for baseball and navy for softball. They should update the Officials' Handbook since they are now allowing any color of umpire shirt for regular season baseball (as long as all umpires match).

But isn't it funny that when the navy pullover shirts replaced the Elbeco shirts, everyone thought they were very sharp?

Got that right, Steve. If MLB Umpires wore purple Honigs would sell out in a week. The red was hot for a season when the MLB umps wore it.

I haven't been around long enough. What were the Elbecos? I may have seen them on umpires when I was playing though.

One color I don't have that I like is the gray. I don't know anyone who has it, but if people did I would wear it.

http://www.mattspenandpaperheroes.co...ohn-Kibler.gif

THAT'S an Elbeco shirt.

Absolutely!

I still like that gray that they wore for awhile a few years back. We wear that now and then.

Elbeco is a brand name of shirts. Any short sleeve light blue dress shirt was acceptable for a uniform shirt. People often mistook us for the mailman :).

Oh, nevermind. I'm not old enough to have seen those when I played. Did they double as auto mechanic shirts as well? :D

Why buy an imitation when the original is available? Check out the "Dry-Lo" ball bag at Evans store.

We couldn't move to the navy pullovers fast enough! If given the choice between an Elbeco and a navy pullover, I'll take the navy anytime. ;)

As far as ball bags go, I only wear leather. :D

You know, I was just kidding when I said we hadn't had a good ball bag thread in a while...

And it's patent leather to match your shoes. :p

I loved the old button-ups. Still have a couple in the wardrobe, hoping to pull them out one day for a special occasion.

When properly maintained and ironed with a sharp crease on the sleeve, they really looked sharp. Call me old-fashioned, but I think professionalism took a step back when we went with the pullovers. Kinda like casual day at work.

You're old-fashioned! ;)

Ouch...can someone pull me out from under the bus? ;)

And belt too....of course.

What will be real cool is when they come out with the patent leather Plate Coat too. Far out.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Uniform stores still sell them as they are USPS required uniform.
I recall a rookie umpire wearing his new Elbeco shirt not realizing they are very sheer. His choice of undershirt had the slogan "Sh*t Happens" on the back. (without the *)

We can take the field looking as cool as this guy:
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r...ger_Cheers.jpg

Cliff Clavin is a legend, but I'm afraid he'd be the ultimate Smitty.

You can just imagine some of the interpretations he'd come up with on the ball field! :eek:

The guy in the middle looks like a football player..... ;)

And, for those that remember "Hill Street Blues", the guy on the left looks like a basketball player!

That is Michael Warren, who portrayed Officer Bobby Hill on the series. Warren played basketball at UCLA, and was on two NCAA championship teams coached by John Wooden. he is in the Pac-10 Hall of Fame.

The football guy, Ed Marinaro played college ball at Cornell, set many NCAA records, was the first college back to rush for over 4000 yards and was the runner-up to Pat Sullivan in the 1971 Heisman Trophy voting. He played pro ball for six years and appeared in two Super Bowls while with the Vikings.

Thus, just go with whatever colour your high school association wants you to wear.

Hey, why did you reel us in and get us back on topic? We were just about to start a great debate on guys who should have won the Heisman, but got hosed.

Feel free to continue debating, but within a few more posts we will probably find ourselves with another locked thread.

Why would the thread be locked? Sure, it drifted off-topic but the discussion hasn't been antagonistic at all. The threads that get locked are the ones that degrade into a cat fight.

btw - I loved Hill Street Blues.

Can't wait till the season gets in full swing. No more bag colors and shoe string length threads.

.......what kind of cup do you guys wear?:D

Banana cup!

A ball bag thread that drifted off topic...pity.

No love for Cliff Clavin nor Hill Stree Blues I guess. :rolleyes:

This thread will not degrade into a cat fight or any type of flaming.

I remember back in my younger days when I worked on the "Dark side" I went to do an ASA state tournament, and they actually checked to see if it was a genuine "Elbeco" shirt you wore. It seems that some people (including me) were sold shirts legal for the USPS that looked like the Elbecos, but were not. So they checked collars to make sure you were legit.

A couple of days later a local guy and I were talking about umpiring. He was the Chief umpire at the Pan Am games in 1982 (I think), and he said; "You are never going to be a good umpire until you stop doing SB and work only BB." 1+1=2, and since I was bored stiff by SB, I stopped doing it and never looked back.

It seems that some things never change, now ASA and NCAA SB wants robots with the hammer instead of umpires, and they can make people do anything they want to go up the ladder. I'm glad I got out.

I'm glad I took his advice, but I guess I will never get to do the Pan Am games.... at least until I get my ABUA membership!

I didn't know that working a sport other than baseball made one a bad baseball umpire.

I don't thing that was the point. The post was specific to softball.

While it is not universal, most of the worst umpires in my association also work softball and have been unsuccessful in leaving softball mechanics on the softball field.

I understood his point. My point was I don't believe that being a softball umpire makes one a bad baseball umpire per se.

You should thing twice about making a comment like this.

There are also quite a few very good baseball umpires that also work softball. I know several baseball umpires who have worked multiple state championships that also umpire softball in the fall.

I don't see any correlation between how good you are in baseball and whether or not you do softball. If you're bad, you're bad. If you're good, you're good.

:D:D:D:D

I'll do the thinging around here, Babalooey!!!

Signed, Quickdraw McGraw

Close:

"Now hoooooold on thar, Baba Looey! I'll do the "thinnin'" around here, and doooon't you ferget it!"

Edited to add:

Congrats on your two success stories so far, San Diego. Keep it up. You can do eet.

How in the world can a ball bag color post get 5 pages of responses? Wait, it's because of guys like me that keep it going!!! Just a note on some of the uniform nazis out there. I got dinged last year at a camp I attended for using black Carlucci bags. The evaluator had never seen them before and said they didn't look "uniform." What ever that meant. I still use them as I feel they are the best ball bags ever. Cece will be missed when I need new gear. I want to try some new bags so I can keep my Carlucci's in good shape. Getting back to the original post, what is the preferred bag now days? What I like best about the Carluccis besides the quality is the perfect size and depth of the inside pocket for my plate brush.

Scratch this. I sold my Davis bags on eBay and got the Ump-Attire Ultimate bags. I switched to navy and black instead of charcoal and black.

It is amazing how much better the Ultimates are than the GD's. First, I like the fact that they're bigger. They also don't bunch up on a belt and don't sag with baseballs in them. The materials and construction are also MUCH better.

I'd easily recommend the Ultimates if anyone needs new bags. They're really nice.

I bought 4 black Dry-Los from Evans and discarded the rest. I'm done matching bags to hats and all that nonsense. If the AAA guys can wear black bags with navy shirts, I can too and I don't have to worry about grabbing the "right" bags.

I've never worried about that, and never had anyone comment about it.

Of course, in my association I'm the picture of sartorial splendor. :D

It always amuses me how we obsess over some of the stupidest things. I'm guilty of it as well. Black out the white on your shoes, ball bag color, you're a dork if you wear a beanie behind the plate, no indicator in the field etc. I also do basketball and officials in that sport are no different. You'll be identified as a poor official if you wear belted pants, the wrong shoes, whatever. I'll admit it, I spend the extra money on beltless pants because I guess I'm a sheep too.

What is the overall dimensions of these bags?

MTD, Sr.

If you go with gray bags be sure they match your pants. I saw a guy the other day with new charcoal pants and heather gray bags it was not a good look.

We wore black recently, and my partner wore a faded purple beanie and navy ball bags. He also called an unexpectedly good game.

P.S. on the new Ultimate Ball Bags:

They are now the best that I have seen or tried.

1. New Ump-Attire Ultimate
2. Honig's
3. Jim Evans Dri-low
4. Smitty's
5. Generic homemade bag made by a partner's wife
6. Diamond
7. Gerry Davis (the cheapest, worst performing ball bag of them all)

Gray
 

I like the gray as long as it is the same shade as the pants. I never really saw any reason for the ball bags to stand out.

Honig's has nice and durable ones.

http://www.cantstopthebleeding.com/img/knotts0225.jpg

I kinda like this as an alternate uniform.

The best I have owned and used:

1. Dry-Lo (by Mark Lolo, an Evans Instructor)
2. Honigs
3. Plus Pos
4. Ump-attire
5. Davis

This is true to an extent. The problem is basketball does not have all the variations of uniforms and styles. There are basically only two choices in pants, and with baseball people get all crazy over two types of dark grey pants (which cracks me up when people actually try to match), heather grey pants and multiple shirt color combination that people have to match the ball bag or their hat. The thing that really gets on my nerves is how everything must match with umpires. We do not have to match color and style on a basketball court. Even as a football official, there is nothing to match, we all look the same. Now how you decide you want to look in your uniform is a different story. ;)

Peace

No doubt it is much worse in baseball. I carry two shirt colors; the standard navy blue and powder blue. My partner should always have one of those two with him. I use navy blue ball bags with either shirt. I'm no fashion plate I guess, and I'm not really anything special as an umpire but I get offered more games than I could ever work so I don't worry about it. :) But I fall into the trap as well. When I see a guy show up in a pair of grey pants that were obviously bought off the rack at K-Mart and his shin guards are about to rip through the fabric, my first thought is that he probably won't be very good. I think that is why we try so hard to look the part. Perception is a big part of how you will be evaluated as an official, fair or not.

aren't there variations in socks (football)

Not within a level. High School officials wear one style, NCAA wears a different style.

I have belonged to basketball associations that wear two different shirts, though. The traditional black and white and a grey shirt.

Gray looks bad either way.

NCAA wears the same style as high school. The NFL wears a different striped sock, but they were a lot of stuff different now.

Peace