Tag: baseball equipment

It’s in the gear: Roberto Perez

As Corey Kluber, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen were mowing down hitters one-by-one during Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday night, you had to wonder… maybe it had something to do with the target.

If the All-Star System 7 Catcher's Gear set is good enough for Roberto Perez, it's good enough for you.
If the All-Star System 7 Catcher’s Gear set is good enough for Indians catcher Roberto Perez, then it’s good enough for you.

Behind the plate was unquestioned Game 1 hero Roberto Perez, clad in his All-Star Catcher’s Gear, managing his pitchers through the most important game of the season. The Indians catcher watched as they struck out 15 batters, cooling off a red-hot Chicago Cubs team that had just plated 23 runs in three games to reach the Fall Classic.

Perez provided the pop on offense too, clubbing a solo shot in the fourth to fire up the Cleveland fans early and adding a three-run blast in the eighth to essentially put the game away.

Was it in the gear? Perez was wearing perhaps the best catcher’s set in the game. The System 7 is chosen by catchers across the highest level of baseball for its incredible level of craftsmanship and exceptional durability. The two-toned helmet is both stylish and lightweight, while the chest protector provides a consistent rebound.

While his pitchers weren’t missing the zone often, Perez had the support of triple knee protection in his shin guards to block errant balls. A four-point harness system allows for the best fit and oversized perforations keep players from overheating. It’s a set that’s been popping up around the major leagues and for the second year in a row is showcased in the World Series.

So what are you waiting for? Also offered as a camo catcher’s set, the System 7 is one of the most popular pieces of equipment at Sports Unlimited. Check it out, along with our vast selection of catcher’s gear, today!

 

Avoid a Jose Canseco moment with Unequal Technologies

Sports can strike a cord in all of us for a variety of reasons.

The history, the nostalgia, the wow factor. Great players coming up with big plays in big moments and teams capturing our hearts on championship runs.

Joy, anger, elation and sadness all have big roles in sports. And so too does laughter. Nothing showcases that as much as bloopers.

But with increases in technology and the rise in the skill level of athletes, we’re left with far less to laugh at these days. In fact, some companies are making it their business to make the blooper reel no laughing matter.

HPZ Halo

HPZ Halo by Unequal Technologies

 

 

 

 

 

Take, for example, Unequal Technologies  and their recent introduction of helmet and hat pad reinforcers to the market.

I know what you’re thinking. Why would anyone have any need for an additional liner in their baseball hat? You’re not getting a ball thrown at you and you already have your glove to protect you. And to that point, I give you Jose Canseco.

Now known more for blowing the lid off the steroid scandal than for blowing the cover off the baseball, there was a time when Canseco was among the best in the game. The first player to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases in a single season, Canseco was named to five all-star teams in his first eight years in the majors with the Oakland A’s.

After reaching three straight World Series from 1988-1990, the A’s fell from prominence, and, to a large extent, so did Canseco. He was traded from Oakland to the Texas Rangers late in 1992 and bottomed out in May of 1993 when he lost track of a Carlos Martinez fly ball, which hit him in the head at the warning track and bounced over  the fence for a home run.

Jose CansecoThree days later, he pitched the eighth inning of a blowout loss to the Red Sox, injuring his arm and requiring Tommy John surgery in the process. He missed the remainder of the season and though he bounced back to win the Comeback Player of the Year award in 1994, he was never the same player.

Had he installed a HPZ Halo helmet pad in his cap on that fateful day, maybe he wouldn’t have become a sideshow. Maybe he would have played out the ’93 season, and gotten closer to the 500-home run mark (he ended his career 38 dingers shy, despite playing just 60 games that season). Maybe he wouldn’t have had a need to thrust himself back into the spotlight with a book exposing baseball’s dirty secret. And maybe, just maybe, the course of baseball history would have been changed forever.
By Lou Rusnock
Lou is a writer at Sports Unlimited.