Infield Face Masks and College

[PA SB Dad]

Just so people on the board understand the mentality of the NJ.com Forum re facemasks

Here are some recent posts (again, I say it is strictly for amusement, not real information!!):

64018.3. QUESTION
by FP_FAN, 03/14/12 12:15 AM
Re: Why dont boys wear masks in the field? by badballinnj, 03/14/12 12:15 AM
Maybe the question should be "why DO girls wear masks"? I see a girl with a mask and i wonder why ?? is it because they have no faith in their ability or are they timid?? What is that thing made of leather on their hand for?? I can see a pitcher wearing one at the short distance but why any others?

64018.3.1. Why Mask? Braces
by leftout2, 03/14/12 5:57 AM
Re: Why dont boys wear masks in the field? by badballinnj, 03/14/12 5:57 AM
My daughter wears a mask because she has braces. No player stops 100% of the balls hit to them.

Why does this bother so many people?

And why do boys wear cups? Shouldn't that glove save them, too?

64018.3.1.1. odd analogy
by facemaskLOL, 03/14/12 7:40 AM
Re: Why dont boys wear masks in the field? by badballinnj, 03/14/12 7:40 AM
while your premise might have some sound reasoning....last time I checked the face wasnt a reproductive organ

the make cups for girls you know

and by the way not all boys wear cups I never needed one thing was to uncomfortable thats what the rest of the body is for on bad hops

64018.3.1.1.1. answer man
by sp06, 03/14/12 9:27 AM
Re: Why dont boys wear masks in the field? by badballinnj, 03/14/12 9:27 AM
You do have an aswer for everything the cup analogy was spot on, republicans need a good candidate you should hop in the race

64018.3.1.1.2. Reproductive organ is irrelevant
by noclue2012, 03/14/12 12:08 PM
Re: Why dont boys wear masks in the field? by badballinnj, 03/14/12 12:08 PM
If the player has the skill, and glove to make the necessary play, then a cup is useless. If he needs a cup, maybe he shouldn't be playing that position.

64018.3.1.1.2.1. I believe facemasklol
by 14uSEcoach, 03/14/12 12:30 PM
Re: Why dont boys wear masks in the field? by badballinnj, 03/14/12 12:30 PM
has a little too much testosterone in his brain rather then his ....

64018.3.1.1.3. Why does it bother you?
by leftout2, 03/14/12 7:39 PM
Re: Why dont boys wear masks in the field? by badballinnj, 03/14/12 7:39 PM
you still didn't answer that? (what do you care?)

My DD was hit w/ a line drive. She won't play w/o a mask. So, she chooses to play w/ a mask instead on not playing. So, she's not D1 scholarship material. Guess what, neither are many of the other players here. But, shhhhhhh. don't tell the parents.

 

[Bouldersdad]

How in the world did any of us kids survive the 50,s 60,s and 70,s without all the regulations. If you listen to parents now and what we heard growing up, it is entirely 2 different worlds. Sometimes I wonder which world was best suited for raising kids in. I appreciate the trying to protect the kids from themselves but I sure do remember the freedom of being a kid also. Maybe a little more freedom to make mistakes is what produces common sense. Maybe im off track and have a dinosaur mentality. Just seems that protection like anything else in this world can go a little over the top.

Tim

 

[jacketsfan]

It's always interesting to watch this mask vs. no mask debate pop up here every few months.

Typically, it starts, like this one did, with a question about whether college coaches see a mask as a sign of insecurity. Normally, the answer is yes, but that may change as younger kids who grew up with masks enter the older ranks.

Then, the thread degenerats into a "people who allow their kids to not wear masks are idiots", and "the game has changed since your DD's played".

If you want your kid to wear one, then do it. It's America - you have that right.

But, if you ask "Do college coaches care", and some people say yes, then don't flame the people saying so. If you don't want that answer, don't ask that question.

 

[shockcoach]

UW head coach,Heather Tarr said as long as they can field their position, she could care less.

 

[quincy]

10YOA DD wears a mask when on the field, parents’ decision. The only other player that consistently wears a mask got clobber at a fielding clinic no less, so she wears one full time too. A lot of time it seems like it takes a player getting hurt or witnessing another players being taken off the field in an ambulance when a mask might for mitigated the injury.

Opinion right now is DD is going to wear a mask based on the old parents’ decision until HS. Once she hits HS, it will be up to her. I would like it to be her decision and not be pressured to have to take it off because she is perceived as weak. I can understand pressure from the other Players, they are at that age, would not be happy hearing that she was getting pressure from the staff.

 

[quincy]

A little different but the protective undershirts are becoming more popular, is this because since they are hidden they are OK?

 

[Coach JV]

#1 Until your DD is hit by a line drive, it is impossible to pass judgement.

#2 Pulling from the clouds a statement that wearing a mask impacts a
college recruiter decisions is absurd. Last I checked, colleges were interested in
skills, ability and other assets that an athlete possesses to help his/her team
win. If a player proves herself capable of being a stud with a mask that she
wears for protection, then a coach who passes on her is the loser.

#3 This thread is comical.
I watched a D1 game last year and the starting SS wore a mask while playing deep
in the hole. When asked about the mask,coach's reply?
"She was hit in the face as a freshman and suffered a broken cheekbone and eye socket.
The mask helped her get her confidence back, I don't care if they wear masks or not"

Please bear in mind: Just because you read it on-line does not make it factual

 

[00fpdaddy]

How in the world did any of us kids survive the 50,s 60,s and 70,s without all the regulations. If you listen to parents now and what we heard growing up, it is entirely 2 different worlds. Sometimes I wonder which world was best suited for raising kids in. I appreciate the trying to protect the kids from themselves but I sure do remember the freedom of being a kid also. Maybe a little more freedom to make mistakes is what produces common sense. Maybe im off track and have a dinosaur mentality. Just seems that protection like anything else in this world can go a little over the top.

Tim

Not a dinosaur mentality, but when a kid losses a tooth or teeth, or gets a ball the face, or stitches, and have to goto a doctor or medical facility the visit costs a lot more now than the 50s, 60s 70s 80s 90s 00s. Even with insurance. With high composite/metal bats and better balls and the instruction the hitters are getting and sometimes playing on crappy field conditions sxxt happens. To each their own.

 

[jacketsfan]

A lot of time it seems like it takes a player getting hurt or witnessing another players being taken off the field in an ambulance when a mask might for mitigated the injury.

Personally, I could care less if kids wear masks or not. But.....

This is always an interesting argument that gets raised in the mask vs. no mask debate.

Are these injuries more common than they used to be? Are grown men hitting balls too hard at 10 year old kids? How does this happen?

I have 3 DD's. 2 played LL and TB for 6 years, the other for 10. 1 is still playing LL, and 1 is playing in college. When you add all of that up, it's close to 30 year round seasons.

In all of those games, the only time I have ever seen a player get hit in the face was on a between-innings catcher throw down after the pitcher had warmed up. The ball took a hop, and broke the SS's nose.

The only time a player ever left a field in an ambulance was on an extremely hard field, when a play at the plate ended up with the player's head hitting the clay (more like concrete) very hard, and she was loopy, so we sent her off for concussion checks.

I've seen the pitcher get hit in the back by the throwdown 3 times, and I've seen many kicks in the jaw while sliding, one broken ankle while sliding, a broken elbow when a coach walked behind a player taking warm up swings, and she hit the coach in the elbow, and that's about it for anything more than a sprained ankle.

How are these kids getting hit in the face these days?

 

[3'sDad]

When I played LL baseball, back when we used wooden bats, I was on deck when my team mate hit a ball back at the opposing pitchers face. The result was a broken nose, several lost teeth and any future baseball potential ruined as the poor kid was so gun shy of being hit again in the face he would step and bail out on every inside pitch while batting.

The DD began wearing a mask when she moved up to 14U when she pitches or plays the infield (not when she is in the OF). The choice was hers.