Catching Gear Advice

[#19Catcher]

My daughter who's 14 is due for some new gear, we pretty much buy her a new set every winter with the amount of catching she's doing. However, two years in a row-for the last 2-3 months prior to getting new gear-she's complained the side of her knees are hurting from blocking. She gets a visible bruise and swelling and it's from her knee banging into the gear when she's firing a block, guess the padding in the knee has worn away. She has used the Easton Synge intermediate shin guards for 2 years now-same problem.

Looking for some reviews or recommendations on shin guards with max comfort for the knees? Looks like the All-Star and Under Armor have great knee cushions/protectors. Any solid recommends out there for this issue?

 

[ArkFastpitch]

+1 on the UA gear..

 

[chazbz1]

The DD loved Easton through the years and it saddens me greatly to report that Easton has really gone cheap with their patella protection. The padding in even their top of the line shin guards is very poor and offers little protection. I like to keep an eye on gear and got to check out the vendors at last years NSC Clinic in KC. I also check out some of the local sports stores to see whats available. All Star, Under Armor, (Made by All Star) Schutt and Rawlings have extremely good patella protection with D30, gel or heavy foam cushioning in the knee pads. Under Armor has the weakest patella protection of this group in my opinion. (Still much better than Easton)

More importantly is making sure your catcher's gear fits correctly. Even the best gear won't protect the knee as designed if not fitted properly. We have seen catchers actually get cuts in their knees from shin guards that were too short and the plastic knee caps would cut right through the fabric padding. We posted Fitting Shin Guards to assist catchers in getting shin guards that fit correctly. Gear fit is one of the first things we cover with new catchers. (The knee should be centered in the knee cup, not towards the upper edge) We just took delivery on two pair of Schutt's S-3 shin guards.

 

[#19Catcher]

Thank you both and agree chaz-thank you. We went with the All Star.

 

[Grogger31]

chazbz1 (or anyone else) ...

Any experience with Mizuno gear, specifically the shin guards?

 

[Rooster98]

UA gear is All Star gear. You are paying for the UA name thus the difference in price.

 

[ScottyDont]

chazbz1 (or anyone else) ...

Any experience with Mizuno gear, specifically the shin guards?

I know I saw an awful lot of girls wearing them at Diamond 9 earlier this month. Of course, a lot of those teams are sponsored by Mizuno.

My youngest daughter wears the Samurai G3s and loves them. My oldest uses the Wilson Hinge FX and loves them. As long as they're properly sized, any decent shin guard should be fine.

 

[Grogger31]

As long as they're properly sized, any decent shin guard should be fine.

Emphasis on "decent". My DD has a set of Easton's that are fine for deflections, but have ZERO padding for dropping and blocking. They are really holding her back, IMHO.

 

[WARRIORMIKE]

My professional opinion, Go with Schutt

 

[chazbz1]

Any experience with Mizuno gear, specifically the shin guards?

I have an issue with Mizuno chest protectors for fastpitch. The padding is too stiff and firm. When a pitch hits the C/P such as when blocking, two things happen: The full impact goes right through the C/P and into the chest, causing substantial discomfort for female catchers. The stiff padding also causes the ball to deflect harder and roll away from catchers in blocking situations. (Our goal for our catchers is for a blocked pitch to be within arm's reach when it stops)

The last time I took a look at Mizuno's shin guards was last January. I was not impressed with their patella padding. I think they have come out with "K-Pads" that appear to provide better patella cushioning. I haven't seen these up close yet. I will be on the look out at the NSC clinic in January at exhibitor's row.

One last note.... Mackenzie had her Schutt shin guards delivered to her at college and was very impressed with the fit and patella gel pads.