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Safety Equipment some good, some not so good

Discussion in 'Softball Forum' started by rhughes18, Oct 28, 2012.

  1. softballphreak

    softballphreak Full Access Member

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    That doesn't make sense that you would allow the elbow pads only after the person was injured!

    The players are much more important than any advantage they might gain, if any, other than the confidence that they won't be injured.

    Again, the sport's not about how tough or daring you are, it's about how skilled and game-intelligent you are.

    That's why girls don't have to wear cups; their brains are in their heads.
     
  2. viking1

    viking1 Full Access Member

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    I totally disagree on the elbow pad. My DD got hit on the elbow, it was not fractured, but she was out till we found a good elbow pad. My main concern is, Is not safety the first rule of thought for our girls? If you are an umpire, why should you wear all that protection behind the plate? Its only a soft-ball! If its not broken, why fix it!
     
    Last edited: Nov 4, 2012
  3. rhughes18

    rhughes18 umpire

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    Teach the kids the proper way to protect themselves on pitches that come close to them. Tuck the lead elbow in, raise the lead shoulder to protect the face and slightly turn the face away and down!

    My issue with elbow pads is with batters who hang their elbows out over the plate or slappers that run inside toward the pitch instead of straight out.

    Barry Bonds is a great example of a batter that used the elbow pad as an advantage. He would get up on the plate and dive in on pitches.
     
  4. PhoenixPhan

    PhoenixPhan Full Access Member

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    According to baseball-reference.com, Bonds had 12,606 plate appearances (PA) and was hit by a pitch only 106 times in his 22 year career. That is once in every 119 plate appearances or .8%. Advantage? Derek Jeter has been plunked 269 times in 11,895 PA (2.4%). A-Rod has been plunked 167 times in 11,193 (1.5%). By contrast, Hammering Hank was only hit 32 times (.2%) and The Babe was hit 43 times (.4%).
     
  5. rhughes18

    rhughes18 umpire

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    Thats 4.8 HBP per season, not sure of your point!

    He must have been getting hit in the elbow, or taken a shot hard enough to make him want to wear it.

    My point is he learned he could avoid that risk by wearing the pad, therefore allowing him to stay out over the plate without risk of injury to the elbow. This gave him an advantage on outside pitches, and also removed the fear of inside pitches.

    If pad use of this nature was not allowed he would have most likely moved a little back off the plate, and not dove in so hard. Or he would have weighed the risk to reward factor, and stood according to his feeling on the issue.
     
    Last edited: Nov 5, 2012
  6. softballphreak

    softballphreak Full Access Member

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    I don't know of many players who would do what you
    describe. Most players I know want to hit the ball.

    But even if they like to get in close to the ball that is no reason to deny them safety.

    Part of an umpire's responsibility is to help keep the game safe.
     
    Last edited: Nov 6, 2012
  7. PhoenixPhan

    PhoenixPhan Full Access Member

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    My point is that if Bonds was crowding the plate and "diving in", I would have assumed that he would have been hit much more often that the stats show. Jeter has been hit over twice as much. Whether you wear an elbow pad or don't wear an elbow pad, it isn't going to help you swing the bat. Did the majors mandating a batting helmet many years ago all of a sudden give the batters an advantage by reducing fear? If so, just imagine what kind of numbers The Babe would have put up!

    I don't want to sound ... but, you are comparing grown men professional athletes (of similar skill levels) to our daughters that can be on the field with athletes with a wide range of skill level. Our girls are tough, but no one wants to see them injured or injure someone else accidentally and if we can prevent that, we should.
     
    Last edited: Nov 5, 2012
  8. rhughes18

    rhughes18 umpire

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    I see your point about comparing youth athletes to professional athletes. Its more of the way some use the pads, them the pads themselves.
     
  9. betterbatter

    betterbatter Full Access Member

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    The notion that an elbow pad on a batter's front elbow creates a disadvantage for the pitcher is ridiculous! What is also ridiculous is creating a rule that would either prohibit or require what is now sensible but optional safety equipment. A 60+ MPH softball square on the unprotected elbow can put a batter at a serious disadvantage for 10 days to 2 weeks while a deep bruise to the elbow tendon heals. We've been through that in our program several times. While it shouldn't be required, any the player wants to protect herself with this kind of safety equipment, she should have that option.
     

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