It's a hot Texas summer day in 2024. The bright sun hangs in the cloudless marine blue sky. Christopher Tobin, adorned in the standard protective armor of umpires – chest guard, face mask and knee pads – stands behind the plate calling balls and strikes at a local baseball game.
Tobin crouches down as the pitcher starts his windup. The ball enters the zone, and the batter swings, barely making contact.
Thwack!
Tobin suddenly feels a searing pain in his forearm. Without looking down he knows he’s been hit by the ricocheting ball in one of the few places without any protection.
“I didn’t know it was a bone bruise at the time, but I knew it hurt like hell,” Tobin recalled, laughing. “I took a little breather and got some ice and water. It was a shiner for sure.”
While the bone bruise would take a few weeks to heal, a nagging thought remained with Tobin for months: Why have there been so many equipment innovations for players but so few for umpires?