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It's been announced that first- and third-base coaches this year will have to wear helmets. Of course this is the policy response to the death of Tulsa Drillers first-base coach Mike Coolbaugh, who died last July after being struck by a hard foul in a Texas League game. Some are not happy about it.
Also, coaches will have to actually stay in the coaches' boxes, at least until the batted ball passes them.
I welcome the rule keeping coaches in their boxes. I'd have taken it a step further, and required them to stay in their boxes at all times when the ball is live. (Except for diving out of the way of the hard fouls!) I've found it slightly ridiculous that official boxes are chalked out on the field and many coaches seem to prefer standing anywhere but inside them. I do find it inappropriate when base coaches rush forward so close to the play that they practically become part of it. As for observing fielding positions, well, Connie Mack could do that from the dugout, so I reckon behind the line of the coaches' box affords a fine view.
The rule on helmets, though, is ill-advised. Like many things in life, baseball can never be made perfectly "safe," at least not without dismantling its essential nature. The rulesmakers' response to the Coolbaugh incident is a nanny-state response, maybe deriving more from public-relations than anything else. (In fact, since Coolbaugh himself was hit below the ear, he could have been wearing a flapless helmet, in accord with this rule, and it wouldn't have made any difference.)
Some of the coaches have pointed out that umpires are not required to wear helmets. I would add also that pitchers do not wear helmets, and they are in the line of fire from considerably more hard-batted balls than anyone! We can all recall certain terrible injuries to pitchers from batted balls. Some pitchers have had to battle real fears about this. As someone who has been hit by a ball or two, off bats considerably shy of the bigs, I know this is nothing to snicker about. But folks, this is baseball.
From a fan perspective, though, the worst part of this development is this:
No. No! NOOOOOOOO! 
I already have a hard time finding unobstructed-by-netting views at some minor league parks! If this design became standardized--if fans were literally caged-off from the action throughout the leagues--part of the reason for attending games would be lost to me. I go to games to get closer to the action.
Of course I'm aware of the potential; two times, somebody sitting directly in front of me has been nailed, hard, with a foul ball. One tough lady left to have her cheek and jaw examined, before returning, with a big ice pack, to watch the rest of the game. She got a big cheer from our section. :cap: But considering the number of games I've attended, the fact that this has happened only the twice suggests that it's really not a danger crying out for remedy. While I don't have the data, I suspect that perhaps more people have been injured in car wrecks on their way home from those games I attended. Frankly, the awareness of the (small) danger of the hard fouls for me serves to help keep me in the game, closely attendant upon the action on the field. That's what I want. That's why I'm there.
Mike Coolbaugh's death was a tragedy, but things happen in baseball, as in life. The appropriate response of the rulemakers, and ballpark staff, is simply to remind everybody to be on their toes when the pitch is delivered. If you're not inclined to follow the game closely, there are plenty of places in the ballpark you can sit and have virtually no chance of being hit with anything. On those occasions when I have my smaller children with me, I too will sit behind the screen.
I guarantee the base coaches have been on their toes since last July. So should we all. That's enough.
Also, coaches will have to actually stay in the coaches' boxes, at least until the batted ball passes them.
I welcome the rule keeping coaches in their boxes. I'd have taken it a step further, and required them to stay in their boxes at all times when the ball is live. (Except for diving out of the way of the hard fouls!) I've found it slightly ridiculous that official boxes are chalked out on the field and many coaches seem to prefer standing anywhere but inside them. I do find it inappropriate when base coaches rush forward so close to the play that they practically become part of it. As for observing fielding positions, well, Connie Mack could do that from the dugout, so I reckon behind the line of the coaches' box affords a fine view.
The rule on helmets, though, is ill-advised. Like many things in life, baseball can never be made perfectly "safe," at least not without dismantling its essential nature. The rulesmakers' response to the Coolbaugh incident is a nanny-state response, maybe deriving more from public-relations than anything else. (In fact, since Coolbaugh himself was hit below the ear, he could have been wearing a flapless helmet, in accord with this rule, and it wouldn't have made any difference.)
Some of the coaches have pointed out that umpires are not required to wear helmets. I would add also that pitchers do not wear helmets, and they are in the line of fire from considerably more hard-batted balls than anyone! We can all recall certain terrible injuries to pitchers from batted balls. Some pitchers have had to battle real fears about this. As someone who has been hit by a ball or two, off bats considerably shy of the bigs, I know this is nothing to snicker about. But folks, this is baseball.
From a fan perspective, though, the worst part of this development is this:
Everyone seems to agree on one thing: Baseball shouldn't stop at protecting the coaches on the field.
What about the guys in the dugout? What about the fans sitting in the lower decks? What about the umpires?
"I know the fans along the foul lines and above the dugouts are pretty exposed," Hill said. "Every year someone gets hit. Every time a ball shoots over the dugout or gets pulled down the line, there's a sick feeling that happens to my stomach, and it's (the same) every single time. Every single time."
The newer, retro-style ballparks have been designed with much less foul territory, bringing fans closer to the action but also leaving them more vulnerable to line drives that zing into the stands with a split-second's notice. Gallego suggested extending the screen behind home plate down the foul lines.
What about the guys in the dugout? What about the fans sitting in the lower decks? What about the umpires?
"I know the fans along the foul lines and above the dugouts are pretty exposed," Hill said. "Every year someone gets hit. Every time a ball shoots over the dugout or gets pulled down the line, there's a sick feeling that happens to my stomach, and it's (the same) every single time. Every single time."
The newer, retro-style ballparks have been designed with much less foul territory, bringing fans closer to the action but also leaving them more vulnerable to line drives that zing into the stands with a split-second's notice. Gallego suggested extending the screen behind home plate down the foul lines.
I already have a hard time finding unobstructed-by-netting views at some minor league parks! If this design became standardized--if fans were literally caged-off from the action throughout the leagues--part of the reason for attending games would be lost to me. I go to games to get closer to the action.
Of course I'm aware of the potential; two times, somebody sitting directly in front of me has been nailed, hard, with a foul ball. One tough lady left to have her cheek and jaw examined, before returning, with a big ice pack, to watch the rest of the game. She got a big cheer from our section. :cap: But considering the number of games I've attended, the fact that this has happened only the twice suggests that it's really not a danger crying out for remedy. While I don't have the data, I suspect that perhaps more people have been injured in car wrecks on their way home from those games I attended. Frankly, the awareness of the (small) danger of the hard fouls for me serves to help keep me in the game, closely attendant upon the action on the field. That's what I want. That's why I'm there.
Mike Coolbaugh's death was a tragedy, but things happen in baseball, as in life. The appropriate response of the rulemakers, and ballpark staff, is simply to remind everybody to be on their toes when the pitch is delivered. If you're not inclined to follow the game closely, there are plenty of places in the ballpark you can sit and have virtually no chance of being hit with anything. On those occasions when I have my smaller children with me, I too will sit behind the screen.
I guarantee the base coaches have been on their toes since last July. So should we all. That's enough.
And, yes, he did say that. I read that in the paper yesterday. 
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