It's not the color of the ball. The old style catchers masks were not attached to a helmet but were secured with a head band, so when you moved your head to make a play, the mask would often move and obstruct your vision. With a hockey style helmet, this does not occur. The problem is, old habits, and old teaching, dies hard, and does not take into consideration the history of why something was taught in the first place, and why it is no longer necessary.
Throwing off the facemask
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It's not the color of the ball. The old style catchers masks were not attached to a helmet but were secured with a head band, so when you moved your head to make a play, the mask would often move and obstruct your vision. With a hockey style helmet, this does not occur. The problem is, old habits, and old teaching, dies hard, and does not take into consideration the history of why something was taught in the first place, and why it is no longer necessary.
My experience is if a catcher wants to always shed the helmet it is because 1. obstructed vision, 2. helmet too heavy, and/or 3. improper fit (which leads to both 1 and 2). My DD has been chosing Shutt for the last couple of helmets specifically for the reasons of field of view and weight. The titanium mask takes another 4 oz off of the weight hanging out in front of the face which she notices right away. She never has to pull her mask to track a pop up foul. With that said, every girl is shaped slightly different. The correct helmet for any girl is the one that fits the best and has the best field of vision.
I am late to the party but no matter what a coach tells them, leave the helmet on! He is a picture of my DD catching in HS last season, I can not imagine how bad this would have been if she was taught to take her helmet off. All the catching coaches she has worked with, ALL taught to keep helmet on.
The other factor..."coach told me to take it off".
I agree 100% that having a helmet that fits properly is a big part of the equation.
There's another part of the equation other than safety that may have been mentioned before. If so, I apologize. I always tell my catchers that they work in tenths of seconds. For example, a tenth of a second can make the difference between an out or the runner being safe on a throwdown to second. That said, why waste a tenth or two by removing the helmet then acquiring the ball on a pop-up when it could easily be the difference between the ball being caught or it tipping off the end of the mitt?
There's many good reasons to keep it on, yet I haven't heard a valid one (IMO) to take it off. Especially if it's the newer style hockey masks.
There's many good reasons to keep it on, yet I haven't heard a valid one (IMO) to take it off. Especially if it's the newer style hockey masks.
Need help on catchers helmets
Which catchers helmet offers the best field of vision. My granddaughter is 8 and this is her first year of catching. We lost our catcher so she said she would give it a try and loves it. We have to work on her arm strength because when she goes up next year, she will have to throw to second on a steal.
Which catchers helmet offers the best field of vision. My granddaughter is 8 and this is her first year of catching. We lost our catcher so she said she would give it a try and loves it. We have to work on her arm strength because when she goes up next year, she will have to throw to second on a steal.
Greenmonsters
Wannabe Duck Boat Owner
Same issue as telling a HE pitcher with college ball aspirations to go with what she's comfortable with.
I do not worry about other pitchers mechanics. If a HE can throw a no-hitter for our team I say bring her on! I just focus on my DD and doing whatever I can to help her achieve her goals.
Greenmonsters
Wannabe Duck Boat Owner
Think about if from a safety standpoint, not a mechanics standpoint!
