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Helmet on the pitcher

M

mbil

BamaNation Citizen
Mar 14, 2010
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I think the pitchers in college ball should wear a protective helmet similar to the ones the base coaches wear. The kid in Cal who got his melon cracked is just another example of how dangerous it is for the pitchers in the college game as long as the aluminum bats are around.
First baseman in the big leagues wore them. John Olerude is the last one I can remember wearing one however. Any thoughts on this?
 
Well Olerud wore won for health reasons, not because he wanted too. The best way to fix this problem is to deaden the balls. Even with wooden bats, I have seen some balls that are still impossible for pitchers to catch with a glove.

I coach middle school ball here in Georgia and all the time we see pitchers getting buzzed by balls (one gets hit every now and then) that have no chance of catching. The kids are even using drop 3 bats but the weaker pitching just can't stop the good hitters on this level and we are talking kids 12-14 years old. Pitchers are at 54 feet now and I want them moved to 60 feet 6 inches, that way I think kids will pull the ball more instead of go up the middle so much. Just my thoughts. It seems like it always takes people getting hurt or killed before something is done. Truly sad imo.
 
crimsonkelly said:
Well Olerud wore won for health reasons, not because he wanted too. The best way to fix this problem is to deaden the balls. Even with wooden bats, I have seen some balls that are still impossible for pitchers to catch with a glove.

I coach middle school ball here in Georgia and all the time we see pitchers getting buzzed by balls (one gets hit every now and then) that have no chance of catching. The kids are even using drop 3 bats but the weaker pitching just can't stop the good hitters on this level and we are talking kids 12-14 years old. Pitchers are at 54 feet now and I want them moved to 60 feet 6 inches, that way I think kids will pull the ball more instead of go up the middle so much. Just my thoughts. It seems like it always takes people getting hurt or killed before something is done. Truly sad imo.
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Thats the thing... Hitting coaches coach the kids to hit up the middle, so to ask the kids to pull the ball would make them one dimensional hitters. Deadening the balls would make the game less interesting aka fewer home runs.
Seems like someone could devise a safer, comfortable well fitting baseball lid for pitchers. I think if a young pitcher felt more comfortable on the mound we might see better mechanics and better pitching overall.

Hey CrimsonKelly; ya'll have a baseball program in middle school in Georgia?
 
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IMHO, the aluminum bats are not the issue. Kids are bigger and stronger, but the mound is still no more than 60' 6" away. It's bound to happen, and it surprises me that it doesn't happen more often than it does.

It's probably even more dangerous if you get hit right in the area of the heart.
 
I have to disagree on the bats NOT being the issue. I'll preface this with I only deal with kids 9 to 12 years old, however, I'm seeing kids that that aren't "bigger and stronger" hitting the ball "faster and farther". 2 examples that I can give off the top of my head...1) my 8yo playing machine pitch 40mph at 40 ft. He has hit 2 pitches 175'+ in games. I've dealt with that age group for 4 years and in those years, I've never seen shots that far. He's swinging a really nice comp/alum mixed bat. My older son was "bigger and stronger" just 3 years ago when he went thru it but didn't have the cutting edge bats and didn't come close to shots like that. 2) watching kids in 11u travel ball...boney little kids swinging the ultra light alum/comp bats hitting 250'+ shots. These aren't roided up beasts...just kids with good coaching swinging bats with LOTS of pop. The ultra light weight allows for more bat speed. More bat speed = harder hit balls. If there wasn't a difference in the bats, there wouldn't be a $250 difference in the price.

Do away with the ultra thinwall alum bats...deaden the composite bats...and make them swing heavier bats and you won't have to deaden the ball or move the mound. Just my $.02.
 
My experience, other than playing, is with high school and college kids during the summer. Let me just say from personal experience that getting hit doesn't cross a pitcher's mind. I've been hit numerous times by line drives. I have dead spots on my shins where line shots killed the nerves. I laced them up this summer and pitched for my team against a JUCO summer team. Getting hit never crossed my mind. I don't see how you could make a comfortable helmet that could be worn while pitching. It would move around too much. For it to not move it would have to be bulky like a batting helmet and be strapped on. Wearing one would only make the pitcher more self conscious about wearing it and being hit. It wouldn't make a pitcher more confident or help them have better mechanics. The only the thing makes better mechanics is practice and working with someone who knows what they're doing. The confidence part comes from having faith in knowing what you're doing and working on the mental, as well as the physical, aspect of the game. I so no to helmets for pitchers.
 
I would bet that if from day 1 you taught a kid to pitch with some kind of protective gear on his head he would be just as athletic on the mound with it on as he would with it off. It is a radical idea, but one that makes good common sense. Hitters get along well with wearing a helmet and it takes just as much athleticism to hit a ball as it does to pitch it. It is an oxymoron of the game that we insist hitters and base coaches wear helmits and we don't afford the same safety features for the player on the mound. Sometimes a pitcher receives a comebacker to the mound at greater velocity from which it was pitched. You still have to be tuff as nails to pitch but why do we subject our pitchers to the possible death blow when we can take a reasonable precaution to remidy that situation.
 
mbil said:
Thats the thing... Hitting coaches coach the kids to hit up the middle, so to ask the kids to pull the ball would make them one dimensional hitters. Deadening the balls would make the game less interesting aka fewer home runs.
Seems like someone could devise a safer, comfortable well fitting baseball lid for pitchers. I think if a young pitcher felt more comfortable on the mound we might see better mechanics and better pitching overall.

Hey CrimsonKelly; ya'll have a baseball program in middle school in Georgia?
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Yes, we do. Most schools have them now a days here anyway, well probably 65% do.

And yes, I coach my kids to hit up the middle...:rolleye2: Hey, its the easiest place to get a base hit!

And I was referencing to about moving the mound back to HS distance is maybe the hitters would be slights ahead of it and have a tendency to pull it rather go straight up the box with it. I also figure it would help the pitchers out in the long run by making their arms stronger by throwing it further.
 
crimsonkelly said:
Yes, we do. Most schools have them now a days here anyway, well probably 65% do.

And yes, I coach my kids to hit up the middle...:rolleye2: Hey, its the easiest place to get a base hit!

And I was referencing to about moving the mound back to HS distance is maybe the hitters would be slights ahead of it and have a tendency to pull it rather go straight up the box with it. I also figure it would help the pitchers out in the long run by making their arms stronger by throwing it further.
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I agree that moving the mound back at that age group would make the pitchers safer. As a coach I would instruct my players to be patient and wait til the ball gets in on you and still drive it up the middle. Eventually the strength of the hitters would catch up to the added distance of the mound.
Its an interesting debate. If we can't use a helmet on the pitcher all we can do is teach pitchers proper mechanics of follow through and readiness after delivering the ball.
Maddox of the Braves is one I would try to imulate for young pitchers. He was always squared up athletically after delivering the baseball. Sekf defense is the pitchers best option with the way things are now.
 
They already require it in dixie youth 5/6 and 7/8. Both are machine pitch leagues and the "pitcher" is required to wear a helmet w/ face mask. It wont be long before they'll have them in full body armour on the field.
 
gman4tide said:
They already require it in dixie youth 5/6 and 7/8. Both are machine pitch leagues and the "pitcher" is required to wear a helmet w/ face mask. It wont be long before they'll have them in full body armour on the field.
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If its a machine pitch league where is the pitcher playing? Is he right next to the machine?
I think its a good idea for young kids at that age, but I don't think full body armour is an option. LOL!
 
mbil said:
If its a machine pitch league where is the pitcher playing? Is he right next to the machine?
I think its a good idea for young kids at that age, but I don't think full body armour is an option. LOL!
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They have to stand w/in 5' of the machine and cannot be "in front" of the wheel.
 
The NCAA, NFHS (High school), and MLB all have ongoing studies about this subject. There is no single answer to the problem -- it's a combination of bat design, ball COR, and batter strength & conditioning. These have all been addressed in the past sevarl years.

The best thing coaches can do is to teach pitchers to get into a good fielding position after delivery. This allows pitchers to have a chance to knock the ball down, or "hit the deck" to avoid being hit.

The second-best way to avoid being hit is to throw quality pitches to begin with.
 
BamaGoose said:
The problem with wood bats is cost.
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Not to mention broken wooded bats can be deadly when the splinters fly everywhere. Metal bats are too, but break much less frequently than the wooden counterparts.

I know when I was in high school I was going from first to second when the guy at the plate broke an aluminum bat the barrel missed me by a few feet. I'm just glad I was taught proper base running so that I knew to be looking at the hitter in that instance. If not, it could have been a very bad ending for me on that play!
 
the cost of wooden bats isn't the reason, the effectiveness of aluminum bats being lighter and being able to create more bat speed is the reason. I umpire at the hs level and also park ball, and I could fund a nice 401k with the cost of the bats in most dugouts.
 
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