Ok...3/4/3....or 2/3/2??
 

I am talking indicators, of course.....

Some of the *ahem* more advanced umpires in our local group chide me because I am stubborn and still use the 3 strike/4 ball/ 3 Out indicators, as opposed to the '2/3/2' clickers. Maybe it is because it was I was 'brought up' on, but I STILL believe that:

there are <b>3</b> strikes for a strikeout

there are <b>4</b> balls in a walk

and there are <b>3</b> outs in an inning, and we as officials should have all that on our 'official scoreboards'

I also think it makes too easy to 'click ahead' and muck things up

Personally every year I buy the Franklin 'official MLB' metal indicator - nice big numbers....and a nice big fat click with every turn. NO innings...no fancy 'day glo' numbers..no friggen clock for petes sake! Nice...basic...and it lasts all through my season.

And do not get me started on the new ones with the s/b/o's in supposed 'proper' order either!


god...Im gettin to be an old fart....:D

I bought a new one. Nice brand new with bright green insides, only 2/3/2/9.

I pick it up, click it a few times.. then put it back in my bag and grab my trusty, tried and true, faded 3/4/3/9.

The only thing I'll never understand about my indicator and indicators like it is why in the heck do they list strikes first..

:confused:

What is it to them what indicator you use? I use both and always with the strikes on top, outs on the bottom and the balls where they belong, in the middle.

The inning? Who cares? The winning team will tell you when the game is over.

Anyone who nit-picks over indicators has too much time on their hands (no pun intended).

I don't care if your indicator has 2 or 3 strikers, 3 or 4 balls, 2 or 3 outs, or a running tally of how many hot dogs you've eaten at the tourney. As long as it helps you, rock on. :)

I've got 4 indicators, and all are 3/4/3/0-9.

And actually, in games where I'm the umpire AND scorekeeper, the inning wheel helps a LOT to keep track of runs.

http://www.honigs.com/img_item_full/K49up421.jpg
http://www.honigs.com/detail.asp?Cat=2&Sub=38&Item=393

That doesnt have innings.

By 'chide' I mean the normal b@// busting that goes on at meetings, in the parking lot where there are multiple fields, etc....it's not serious..just good old fashioned ump horse play...although there is one guy who is fairly serious about it...he has an ego as big as his belly anyways...:p

I carried one of those 'innings' clickers ONCE - I got so flummoxed trying to remember to change it after the bottom of every inning, I IMMEDIATELY went back to a 'normal' one. Besides, don't you know in your head what inning it is? I love surprising people who havent have had me for either a partner, or as a player , by just casually telling them 'top 5' or such - I have just developed my own little clicker in my brain to keep track I guess!

SHould be easier to use for you, just make the innings on the clicker match what inning you know it is in your brain.

My dream indicator...

http://sabian.whispers.org/indicator.jpg

Relace Hot Moms for Hot Dogs and Honig's would have a best seller!:D

Fair enough... Have both. ;)

I could barely fit the text in there. Photoshop is a wonderful tool.

http://sabian.whispers.org/indicator2.jpg

For years, I've used the +POS 3-2-2 indicator and the Honig copy of it. This year, I switched to a 3-4-3 indicator because I wanted to try something smaller. I initially got confused using it - roll the wrong wheel, read the indicator and read a 1-2 count as 2-1. Old dog and new tricks problem that is now mostly gone away...

Besides the re-training issue, the only real gripe I have for the 3-4-3 is that the degrees of turn between numbers is noticeably smaller, especially on the balls wheel (less than a 1/4 turn between ball counts) and I have a tendancy to roll it for 2.

I also find the double "click" minimum to reset the count annoying (that is say the count is 3-2 and the batter ends her at-bat however she does- you have to roll to 4 and then to 0, roll to 3 and then to 0...)

Picky stuff, but if I could find a smaller 3-2-2 indicator, I'd buy it.

Many SP leagues now start with a 1-1 count. Maybe there's money to be made in indicators with no zeroes for ball and strike. And with no strike 3/ball 4, you'd need only strikes 1 and 2 and balls 1, 2, and 3.

Another business opportunity: indicators for 1-pitch tournaments.

If you can't count to one, you need more help than an indicator can provide. ;)