Dictionary definition of “tools of ignorance”

tools of ignorance

n. a baseball catcher’s mask, shin guards, and chest padding. Subjects: English, United States, Baseball, Sports & Recreation, Slang

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Citations: 1936 Arcadia Tribune (California) (May 2) “Breadmen to Face Locals” p. 1: Leroy Zimmerman, star local high school graduate, will perform on the mound for the Corpe squad with Max Purcell donning the tools of ignorance to handle his slants. 1937 Bob Ray Los Angeles Times (Mar. 27) “The Sports X-Ray” p. A11 @ ADS-L (June 3, 2004) Barry Popik “Sometimes you eat the bear…’ (1904); ‘Tools of Ignorance’”: Ball players call a catcher’s paraphernalia “the tools of ignorance.” 2003 Vince Staten Why Is The Foul Pole Fair? (Apr. 1) p. 266: Bresnahan’s shin guards were the final pieces of the “tools of ignorance,” that great descriptive phrase for the catcher’s equipment. There are conflicting stories about who came up with that wonderful moniker: Some sources credit Herold “Muddy” Ruel, a Senators catcher who caught for Walter Johnson and later became a lawyer. The more likely—and earlier—story, from the “Diamond Jargon” column in the August 1939 issue of Baseball Magazine accepts Yankee catcher Bill Dickey as the true author. Dickey supposedly coined the term while donning his gear and brooding over why anyone would want to be a catcher in July heat. I like the Dickey story because it was published sixteen years before the Ruel claim.

Posted 23 May 04 | Permalink | Tell a Friend