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Need new gear

C CaseBaseball201210+ posts
I need new gear and was looking at either all-star, which is a little pricey or rawlings, which is a little less costly. I was wondering if anyone has any experience with either and could give any advice on which to get or any other opinions. Any help is appreciated,
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NP13NP13100+ posts
I noticed there are very few fans of Mizuno eguipment on this site, is it a reason, is it significant step down?

My son has always used Mizuno and will be due for new stuff after the season. Is there a reason I should encourage him to move away from their products?

Mizuno Pro GMP 20 mitt was his Christmas present. He had to work hard to break it in, but he loves it.

Thanks for you opinions!
SA S. Abrams100+ posts
Mizuno-butt ugly helmet; shin guards fair to ok; chest protector extremely hard and not the best looking. (Opinions of kids at our HS.)

That said, my son kinda likes Mizuno but prefers their old chest protector (leather look) and hates the helmet. He likes the shin guards. He also likes Easton alot but the shinguards don't fit him well as they seem short from knee to ankle. Still wears Easton Stealth helmet.

Personally, All Star all day long though I like the look of the Wilson gear also. Used to wear Rawlings back in the Stone Age but to me they seem to be playing catch up these days. Never thought I would say this but the more I see of the Nike gear, the more I like it .
Catch43Catch43500+ posts
I recently went to a baseball store and tried on all except for All star and Rawlings, which they didn't have. They didnt have the top of the line rawlings.

Anyway, I tried on Nike (only 20" though, so i can't judge), TPX, Easton, Wilson, and I think that's it. TPX blew me out of the water, it was great. Chest protector was extremely comfortale, and I didn't get a great feel for shin guards bc i wasnt wearing proper pant, but thats what I bought in the end.
E ericpd10+ posts
I could use some advice from this thread. I got my 10 year old son a new Catchers Mitt (Akadema CGA-98) and a set of Easton Youth Stealth Shin Guards and Chest Protector. The mitt and the shin guards are perfect, but the chest protector turned out way too big for him. I've since noticed that most manufacturers turn out 13.5 or 14 inch chest protectors for their youth lines while Easton's Youth protectors weigh in at 15 inch. Since Easton is out, I'm kinda stuck between Mizuno's 14" youth G2's and All-Star's CP912APRO Youth Chest Protector @ 14.5". I like the All-Star protector, but at 14.5", I'm not sure I'd be steppin' in the same poop I did with the Eastons. All-Star's CP79APRO protector, their next smaller unit, is 13.5" and I'm afraid that might be too small. His league supplies the All-Star CP55 model from their 'League Series', which in my opinion doesn't offer kind of protection I'd like for my son to have behind the plate. Some of these guys are really throwing the ball and swinging the bat, especially the guys on his travel team. So I've learned that simply going by a label that reads 'Youth' in some cases can get you in trouble,... AND 14 inches over here may not be in sync with 14 inches over there. I think I'll go with the Mizuno, since it matches what the tape measure tells me, but I wish the All-Star CP912APRO's were 14 instead of 14.5. If I'm making a mistake, please stop me! Thanks again.
C CatchingCoach05100+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by ericpd:
I could use some advice from this thread. I got my 10 year old son a new Catchers Mitt (Akadema CGA-98) and a set of Easton Youth Stealth Shin Guards and Chest Protector. The mitt and the shin guards are perfect, but the chest protector turned out way too big for him. I've since noticed that most manufacturers turn out 13.5 or 14 inch chest protectors for their youth lines while Easton's Youth protectors weigh in at 15 inch. Since Easton is out, I'm kinda stuck between Mizuno's 14" youth G2's and All-Star's CP912APRO Youth Chest Protector @ 14.5". I like the All-Star protector, but at 14.5", I'm not sure I'd be steppin' in the same poop I did with the Eastons. All-Star's CP79APRO protector, their next smaller unit, is 13.5" and I'm afraid that might be too small. His league supplies the All-Star CP55 model from their 'League Series', which in my opinion doesn't offer kind of protection I'd like for my son to have behind the plate. Some of these guys are really throwing the ball and swinging the bat, especially the guys on his travel team. So I've learned that simply going by a label that reads 'Youth' in some cases can get you in trouble,... AND 14 inches over here may not be in sync with 14 inches over there. I think I'll go with the Mizuno, since it matches what the tape measure tells me, but I wish the All-Star CP912APRO's were 14 instead of 14.5. If I'm making a mistake, please stop me! Thanks again.


My advice to catchers is get the smallest chest protector you can that you are comfortable with. I tell them to not pay too much attention to the inches, etc. Get a nice fit, no extra bulk, and go from there.

Former MLB catcher Brent Mayne used to wear a specially made little league youth sized chest protector because he wanted it was small as possible.
E ericpd10+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by CatchingCoach05:
quote:
Originally posted by ericpd:
I could use some advice from this thread. I got my 10 year old son a new Catchers Mitt (Akadema CGA-98) and a set of Easton Youth Stealth Shin Guards and Chest Protector. The mitt and the shin guards are perfect, but the chest protector turned out way too big for him. I've since noticed that most manufacturers turn out 13.5 or 14 inch chest protectors for their youth lines while Easton's Youth protectors weigh in at 15 inch. Since Easton is out, I'm kinda stuck between Mizuno's 14" youth G2's and All-Star's CP912APRO Youth Chest Protector @ 14.5". I like the All-Star protector, but at 14.5", I'm not sure I'd be steppin' in the same poop I did with the Eastons. All-Star's CP79APRO protector, their next smaller unit, is 13.5" and I'm afraid that might be too small. His league supplies the All-Star CP55 model from their 'League Series', which in my opinion doesn't offer kind of protection I'd like for my son to have behind the plate. Some of these guys are really throwing the ball and swinging the bat, especially the guys on his travel team. So I've learned that simply going by a label that reads 'Youth' in some cases can get you in trouble,... AND 14 inches over here may not be in sync with 14 inches over there. I think I'll go with the Mizuno, since it matches what the tape measure tells me, but I wish the All-Star CP912APRO's were 14 instead of 14.5. If I'm making a mistake, please stop me! Thanks again.


My advice to catchers is get the smallest chest protector you can that you are comfortable with. I tell them to not pay too much attention to the inches, etc. Get a nice fit, no extra bulk, and go from there.

Former MLB catcher Brent Mayne used to wear a specially made little league youth sized chest protector because he wanted it was small as possible.


Thanks for the advice. We went to a local batting cage that carried the Mizuno chest and tried on the G2 model. It fit him very well,... a little on the tall side but the girth was perfect. The All-Star was a little loose in his opinion and crept up under his chin when he went down into his squat. So we made a B-line back to the house and ordered the Mizuno online from HRS. The sport shop wanted almost $30 more than average online price. He's only got 1 or 2 in-house games he'll have to wear the league supplied chest before it arrives. I'm more concerned about his travel games.

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