According to Foxsports.com, Major League Baseball (MLB) is looking
into protective headgear that would help pitchers avoid catastrophic
injuries. Major league sources said while
some youth leagues and high schools require pitchers to wear helmets,
MLB is looking into existing products that are worn
under a pitcher’s cap and would not dramatically change the cap’s
appearance. Baseball’s Medical Advisory Committee has plans to address the issue when it gathers at the MLB Winter Meetings in December.
The ramifications of MLB researching pitcher headgear and potentially introducing such gear in the future has interesting implications for youth baseball at the college, high school, travel and recreational levels. MLB-mandated pitcher's gear could encourage more widespread usage in the amateur ranks. However, usage of pitcher's helmets in MLB would need to be initiated in youth leagues first. “A helmet still would offer the best possible protection, but such a transition likely would need to start at the youth level and become common in amateur baseball before being adopted by the majors,” wrote Foxsports.com's Ken Rosenthal.
into protective headgear that would help pitchers avoid catastrophic
injuries. Major league sources said while
some youth leagues and high schools require pitchers to wear helmets,
MLB is looking into existing products that are worn
under a pitcher’s cap and would not dramatically change the cap’s
appearance. Baseball’s Medical Advisory Committee has plans to address the issue when it gathers at the MLB Winter Meetings in December.
The ramifications of MLB researching pitcher headgear and potentially introducing such gear in the future has interesting implications for youth baseball at the college, high school, travel and recreational levels. MLB-mandated pitcher's gear could encourage more widespread usage in the amateur ranks. However, usage of pitcher's helmets in MLB would need to be initiated in youth leagues first. “A helmet still would offer the best possible protection, but such a transition likely would need to start at the youth level and become common in amateur baseball before being adopted by the majors,” wrote Foxsports.com's Ken Rosenthal.
The full article is here.
