Hole-E-Brush

Sometimes one umpire’s latest gimmick can be an essential part of another umpire’s field kit.  That is exactly the case with the “Hole-E-Brush”

As a softball umpire I am required to have access to two items at the diamond: a tape measure, and a bat measuring ring.  Once or twice a month a manager will challenge the layout of the diamond.  With so many different leagues sharing the same field often the bases are moved in or out beyond their regulation distances.  The pitching rubber could be located in several different positions.  As the umpire we are required to check the diamond before each game, but the manager is permitted to say “Prove it!”  You soon learn which managers regularly require you to pull the tape again and do the demonstration.

The other item, a bat ring, is needed usually only two or three times a season.  Safely stored In the back of my field kit a well weathered cardboard can be found.  It is dug out at those times; again when a manager has decided that a bat may not be a legal diameter for use in the league.

What is the accepted protocol for requesting a measure?  First, if the bat has the diameter stamped on it, that factory measure must be assumed to be accurate.  Metal bats easily go out of round, and there is no penalty for using a bat that is slightly out of factory specifications.  The measure is usually requested on an unmarked bat (which cannot be used in some leagues), or a wooden bat.  Second, the request can come at any time.  Managers like to wait till after an important event a double, triple or home run hoping to recreate a mini “pine-tar-incident” but the rules usually only require the umpire to simply remove the bat from further play as an illegal bat, not the harsh penalties attached to an altered bat. 

Umpires will have to check the interpretations of their league on this rule and carefully not the difference in penalties between an “illegal” and an “altered” bat.  The penalties can range from a simple removal of the bat, to as severe an ejection of the player and the manager.  This is one area an umpire who works across several leagues should be looking up in that league’s rule book prior to every game.  A bat challenge is one area where very few managers remember the correct interpretation, and where “this-was-the-rule-last-week” arguments will abound.

The “Hole-E-Brush” will replace my worn out cardboard.  It is constructed out of an almost indestructible nylon and is designed so that bats will fit through its solid measurement guides.  As a bat ring alone this product has found a place in my umpire bag.  The Hole-E-Brush is available in two sizes: one for standard softball or 2 ¼ inch bats, and the other for the newer 2 5/8 inch baseball bat standard.  No doubt, the bat challenges from softball will emerge in the baseball leagues this summer.

It is as a brush, in my opinion, that the product has its limitations.  First, it is significantly larger and thicker then a regular plate brush. (6 ¼" long, 3 ½" wide, ½" thick)  It did not slide easily in and out of my back pocket, where I normally carry my brush.  It was too large to fit into the storage pockets within my ball bag, and I found it cumbersome to even use as a plate brush.

One feature I did like was the simple pointing of one of the edges. It meant the brush also had the scraper feature that is an important part of my rainy day equipment. That aside, there was no getting around the fact that I could not get comfortable with it as a plate brush, even with the small handle-like extension. I found found myself grabbing the ring. It just did not feel right no matter how hard I tried.  It would be, like the times I have to carry the scraper brush, one of the things I would wear my second ball bag for.

Regardless, the Hole-E-Brush is a significant improvement on my worn-out bat ring, and for that reason alone will be in my field kit.

The Hole-E-Brush, available from www.lestersupstatesports.com - Lester’s Upstate Sports in two sizes: softball or youth league (2 ¼”) and baseball (2 5/8”) for $6.00.

.... reviewed on March 1, 2001