Cups
 

do y'all wear protective cups when you're working the plate?

John,

Is that some sort of "trick question"?

Of course.

JM

Where is Tim Christensen when you need him?

Do y'all mean a "breathing apparatus"? If so the answer is YES!!
MTD, Sr.

I would imagine that on this forum you'll get an unanimous "Yes" to that question (at least from the male umpires!).

Have I ever know guys that didn't? Yes. They are fools.

Up until now I was in agreement with those who say there are no dumb questions.

~Sigh~
 

I wear a cup when I watch baseball on TV.

Full credit to: Dave Heaverlo (Oakland A's/Seattle Mariners).

T

This ties for the dumbest question ever asked on the internet.

Thank you.

T,

I couldn't argue with that, and you know how much I like to argue!

When JohnDorian recently made his "debut" on the board, I was actually kind of impressed.

Though obviously a "new guy", I thought his questions were unusually "intelligent".

I find myself "rethinking" my initial assessment after this one.

Perhaps it is just the "illusion of invulnerability" that afflicts all youth, to a greater or lesser degree from one to the next.

There are, in fact, dumb questions.

JM

John,

When you work a plate game, you stand between the catcher and the batter with your legs spread apart and crotch exposed. You do this for 200-300 pitches. There are a whole lot of ways your balls can get all bashed apart.

You would have to be out of your mind to get back there without a cup.

This. When Crawford or Beltre was injured for not wearing a cup, someone on the team was quoted, "I wear a cup to the team photo." I can't remember who it was, and a search is eluding me.

dash,

In my experience, you definitely "feel it", even when your ARE wearing a cup!

I don't even want to IMAGINE what that would feel like without a cup.

Of course, at my age I'm kind of a pu$$y about having a baseball smash into my nuts. Even if the "bounce" did slow it down to 60-70 MPH.

JM

JM,

Have you tried the Nutty Buddy? I took one 90+ direct to the upper center of the cup. The ball rebounded to the mound. I heard "Oh my God" from one of the dugouts. I called the catcher back before he got to the mound and kept the game going. No problem at all. It was like being hit by one of those plastic beach balls with very little mass.

I still don't know how well it dissipates the energy in a ball from down under. It would be ok with me if that remained a mystery.

oops. the next one will be better.

And I thought he was talking about working the buffet plate. :D

jicecone can vouch for the fact that there used to be 2 guys in our association that never wore a cup, shin guards, or a chest protector. One of them didn't wear a mask for little league either. After a couple years in the association I couldn't stand to watch that from the field so tried to work the plate with them.

WOW! I'm sure they're reasoning was "I've never been hit before."

Same here. Everytime an umpire tells me he doesn't wear one when he works the dish I just shake my head.

But, I do tell them that if they go down because they take a shot to the jewels that I'm not gearing up...they are on their own!

Yowsers!

If it's Little League, all the gear is required by rule. The locals are running a HUGE risk when, not if, this kook gets clocked.

When I was managing 13-14's, we ran across a guy who didn't wear shinguards. He just hid behind the catcher, and claimed to have never been hit. Fair enough.

So I instructed my catcher to set up a foot off the plate for every pitch. Not shift over, but to squat straight down in the other batter's box. Sure enough, DumbDumb was calling strikes a full foot off the dish all day long.

We never lost a game when this guy was calling. Loved 'im. But what a tool.

what if the question were changed to "do you wear a cup in the field?"

we would get some who say they do and some who say they don't.

i will bet the ones that have seen someone hit or been hit would say yes and the others would be future victims.

I wore one before I was hit. It's a risk/reward thing. For me, the "discomfort" of wearing the cup in minor compared to the large cost of getting hit times the (low) probability of getting hit.

Others may reach a different conclusion.

I wear a cup when watching ESPN!

I know a guy that doesn't wear one. He got bashed a few years ago and started wearing one for couple of months and then went back to working without one. I could never do it, but to each their own.

I always wear a cup behind the plate, but tell the hot moms that I'm not !! :):):)

What about on the bases? I personally don't wear one but I know guys who do. I wore one when I played but that was when I was trying to get in front of the ball. Now I try to avoid it.

I wear one every time I step onto the field.

It's the ethical and morally responsible thing to do. :p :rolleyes: :D

Years ago when I was only a middle-aged bald geezer and not the bald old geezer that I am now I used to officiate H.S. soccer.

The OhioHSAA plays it boys' and girls' H.S. soccer in the Fall and one year I had a boys' JV game in early October when some early Winter weather came through NW Ohio. Everybody from both teams were bundled up wearing stocking caps (which it made it somewhat difficult to tell who had long hair and who had really long hair), long sleeve undergarments, and gloves. I was checking the Home teams shows and reminding them not to wear jewelry when I made the comment (thinking that I everybody on the team was a male): "I hope everybody is wearing their fur lined cups." No sooner had I said it a very feminine voice said: "I don't know about my teammates but my cups are fur lined." Everybody burst out laughing, even me.

It started snowing half way through the first half and never stopped the rest of the game.

MTD, Sr.

I once worked a university game behind the dish without one, but didn't realize till I went to take it off.

I will seldom wear one on the bases.

I wear them occasionally on the bases, but usually either when the AAA and Elite (both wood bat), which is peppered with ex-bigs/minors/D-1 types who can still flat out rake, or AA with guys who should be in wood bat leagues, but choose to play in metal bat leagues, and can send lasers to B and C.

In going on 4,000 games, I've been hit twice:

1. In a Senior LL game in C with a sharp ricochet off the side of an extremely tall and steep pitchers mound that took a funny bounce and I moved right into it.

2. In a HS varsity game (enter former major league player's name here), who I think delighted in taking aim at me on the bases (I worked quite a few of his games), nailed me in the right instep with a rocket while standing in C. It went straight from bat to just below the ankle before I could move my foot. He made me (and I'm sure many other umpires) dodge a few liners down the line in A too!

No.

But I do wear a protective shield.

Because sometimes the umpire gets hit in the box.

Rita

Post of the year :o

Shock doctor midget cup.

Love the pants, that cup is rediculously narrow. It is just not compatible w/ XL tights. Keeps wanting to turn sideways in the pocket. Absolutely sucks. Love the pants though. Nutty Buddy on the way.

What discomfort? I took a direct one hop cup shot about 4 weeks ago. Even then left jewel was sore for about a week. I hate to think...

:p

And the only time I ever went behind the plate without one (partner didn't so up and somehow I didn't have one?) I get tagged.... Trust me when I say it is not worth hearing the Dr. say "don't worry, many men continue to function well with only 1 test ti cul" I know TMI but still got 2 and now wear my cup in the shower listening to games on the radio just in case:) I am however interested in the nutty buddy. Have read so mush on the forum about it and think it might be a good investment...

I think I would refuse to work with idiots.

That's what all my partners say.

?????

Must be his way of describing the slot?

Rita

Wearing the Nutty Buddy for the first time this year. Have about 6 plates in so far this year. Love it. Haven't been hit yet...so I can't comment on the protection, but it's a much nicer fit.

I once worked with a moron who did not wear shin guards or a cup because the kids were only 12u....I told him the baseball was still very hard.

He regretted both choices in the first inning.