Baseball Helmet History
In the sport of baseball, the hitter--or batter--stands 60 feet and 6 inches away from a pitcher. The pitcher throws the baseball, which is a small, extremely hard object, in close proximity to the batter's body and head at speeds ranging from 50 to 100 miles per hour. In such a situation, it would behoove the hitter to wear protective gear, such as a helmet. Though batting helmets are now required tools of the game, it took nearly a century for this rule to be put into place.
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History
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As baseball became a game of prominence in the late 1800s and early 20th century, equipment was sparse and basic. Hitters dug into the batter's box, wearing only a simple wool cap on their head. They devoted little thought to any potential injury. Safety features like protective helmets never sprang forth--until a head injury sparked an idea.
Early Helmet
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New York Giants catcher Roger Bresnahan, hospitalized after taking a pitch to the head in 1905, toyed with the idea of a batting helmet and eventually produced one with the help of a sporting goods company. "It was like the leather football helmet of the period sliced vertically: one half for covering the left side of a right-handed batter's head, the other for the lefty hitter," according to The Baseball Library. "Although bean balls were frequent, the idea did not find favor."
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Fatality
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Ray Chapman of the Cleveland Indians was the first, and only, major league baseball player to die from injuries sustained from an errant pitch to the head. He died in 1920, one day after being hit by a ball thrown by New York Yankee pitcher Carl May. Rather than mandating protective headgear in response to the tragedy, baseball authorities instead outlawed the use of the spitball, the pitch Mays threw, reasoning that Chapman could have avoided a less dangerous ball. The concept of baseball helmets remained dormant for 30 years.
Learning Curve
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Longtime Pittsburgh Pirates executive Charlie Muse receives the majority of acclaim for developing the modern helmet. Muse worked with other designers to develop a protective helmet. Although it was initially ridiculed, the device debuted in 1953 with the Pirates as the first team to employ the gear.
Major league players were not required to wear batting helmets until 1971. Even then, the usage of helmets was grandfathered in, allowing players already in the big leagues to decide whether they wanted to wear one. Boston Red Sox catcher Bob Montgomery was the final man to bat without a helmet on September 9, 1979. More than half of a century had elapsed since the first major league fatality.
Modern Developments
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According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, even after the mandatory implementation of helmets, the sides of the head were left unprotected until a 1983 rule instituted protective ear flaps. Today, recognition of the need for head protection has moved beyond the batter's box. Soon after the 2007 death of a minor league first base coach struck by a batted ball, all base coaches throughout professional baseball are required to don helmets while on the field of play. Manufacturers continue to develop helmets capable of withstanding the impact of baseballs traveling at speeds of 100 miles per hour and higher.
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References
- Photo Credit Baseball Helmets image by Pezography from Fotolia.com
