Catchers have to battle many things behind the plate, including the sun. Glare can make it difficult to play your best, but sunglasses don't always fit well beneath catcher's helmets and masks.
The solution to this problem is a visor (often referred to as a sun shade) that fits inside your catcher's helmet or catcher's mask.
This post reviews and gives our picks for the top catchers helmet visor on the market. Keep scrolling to learn more!
Please Note: This post may contain affiliate links. See our disclaimer for more information.
Why You Need a Catcher's Helmet Visor
If you're a baseball or fastpitch softball catcher, then know this: you have the toughest job on the field.
It's not enough that you have to battle wild pitches, foul tips and other hazards that come along with the position.
Often, you're battling the sun, too.
Glare from the sun can make a catcher's job all the more difficult.
To help combat the sun's glare, a catchers helmet visor or catchers mask visor can come in handy.
Many catchers and umpires at high levels of the game have these visors on their masks.
Sun visors for catchers helmets are typically made of a tough, tinted, and mirror like plastic that can be attached to the top half of catcher's helmets and catcher's masks.
When in use, catchers visors help to create a shaded area for your eyes, making your job behind the plate a little bit easier on those bright days.
As an added benefit, visors like these also help keep water out of your eyes when it's raining. For example, instead of water drops falling through the top of the mask's cage onto your skin, they instead hit the catchers mask visor, bead up, then fall down without getting to your eyes.
Another good aspect of these visors is that they are very affordable, making them a no brainer purchase if you're a regular catcher (or umpire, for that matter).
In this article, we scanned the market for catchers mask visors and catchers helmet visors and give our top picks - with pictures and reviews - for those interested in getting one.
Keep reading to learn more about each of our picks!
Top Overall Pick: Diamond Catcher's Sun Visor
The sun visor we like the best, made by Diamond
The Diamond catcher's sun shade is our pick for top catchers helmet visor.
This affordable visor was originally made to fit Diamond brand masks, but in practice it can fit on most types of catcher's helmets and masks.
It comes in either a grey or a multi-color, iridium tint, which helps to reduce glare. It's installed at the top opening of a mask or helmet cage so it doesn't mess up your visibility.
Depending on the brand of your headwear, the top bar of the visor may not naturally connect into the internal frame of your helmet or mask.
If this is the case, you can use zip ties to connect it to your helmet or mask.
We'd suggest using four zip ties around the top bar on the visor: two near the top middle and one at each end (see the image below for an example).
Pull the zip ties tight, then clip the ends off. You're good to go!
Pros
A great sun shade for catchers helmets and masks
Also helps keep the rain out of your eyes
Can be used in day or night games
Available in two colors
Cons
The lenses can get scratched after lots of use
Another Picture of the Diamond Catcher's Sun Visor (Gray Model)
Runner-Up Pick: All Star Mask Sun Visor
All Star's sun visor is our runner up pick
All Star, a top tier catcher's gear brand, also makes a good sun shade specifically for catcher's masks. This All Star catchers visor is our runner up pick.
This is a good quality catcher visor that will do the job of fighting the glare when catching.
This product fits All Star's traditional (FM25) and titanium (FM25TI) face masks, and it will work with any type of padding in those masks.
Please note that FM25 masks by All Star happens to be our top catcher's mask pick, which you can read more about here.
No separate hardware is needed to attach the visor to the mask. Simply use the top three straps on the mask to thread through the top bar of the visor and secure it to the inside part of the cage.
Although the manufacturer states it will only work with the two masks mentioned above, we've read feedback from others who confirm it will attach to other catcher's masks - and from others who say it only works with All Star masks.
In short, if you would like to make this visor work with a non All Star-brand mask, be warned as your mileage may vary.
Pros
Sun shade from a premium catcher's gear brand
Comes in a sharp looking gray tint
Very affordably priced
Cons
Compatible with only certain types of catcher's masks
An Additional Image of the All Star Catcher's Sun Visor
Honorable Mention: Champro Sun Visor
This sun visor gets an honorable mention on our list
An honorable mention pick of ours, the Champro Sun Visor is a good, low priced option for many buyers.
This catchers mask sun visor is lightweight, it comes in a gray tint and it has built in UV protection in the lenses.
Keep in mind that it was designed to fit inside certain types of masks made specifically by Champro. However, you might be able to make it work with other catcher's mask brands by using zip ties, as we described above.
Pros
Very affordable
UV protection built into the lens
Lenses have a gray tint
Cons
Designed for specific types of catchers and umpire masks
Short Video Showing How to Install the Visor
Frequently Asked Questions About Sun Visors for Catcher's Helmets and Masks
- Question: Should catchers mask visors be installed on the inside or outside of the mask?
- Answer: Catchers visors should always be installed inside the mask's cage to prevent it from becoming damaged from a foul pitch.
- Question: Can I use a sun visor during night games, or do I have to constantly remove it depending on outside conditions?
- Answer: For most catchers helmets and masks, you can use sun visors whether it is a day or a night game. There's no need to remove it unless it is bothering you. However, you should always test it out first to see what you're most comfortable playing with.
- Question: Will using zip ties to connect the sun visor to my helmet make it look bad?
- Answer: We don't think using zip ties to connect a visor to a catcher's helmet makes it look bad. It's barely noticeable, unless it is right in front of your face. For added camouflage effect, make sure the zip tie color matches the color of the bar on the cage that it's being mounted to.
- Question: Does Oakley make a sun visor for catchers helmets and catchers masks?
- Answer: No, Oakley does not make sun visors for catcher's helmets or masks as of the date of this article's publication. We wish they did - that would no doubt look awesome!
That's a Wrap!
We hope that this post was helpful to you and gave you the information you needed.
If you have any questions or comments for us, please feel free to reach out to us.
You can do so by going to our contact page or by sending an email directly to scott (at) catchershome (dot) com.
Thanks for stopping by Catchers Home, and we hope to see you again soon!
Scott Perry
Scott Perry is the owner and lead author at Catchers Home. He's a former baseball player, a current coach, a husband and a Dad. He remains as passionate about baseball today as he was as a kid.
