roothog66: nothing personal on my end, sorry you felt attacked. Although you may not have witnessed anyone seriously injured, that was not a result of anything you had control over, it just happened that way. All it takes is one, and in my opinion, at the age you described (12u) one is too many.
Also, I watched again the other night the movie "Cobb"...it reminded me how much he was liked an revered by all for his tactics...not my cup of tea. Just because someone did it along the way, doesn't justify it in my eyes. If you want to lose respect for me because of that, so be it.
I was one who watched my son carted off the field in a 12u tournament in Texas, by getting hit with a line drive from 46' while pitching. Head strapped to a gurney, on stretcher, flying down I-35 to Children's Hopsital was as frightening as it gets. I can tell you this, at that distance, whether 3B, 1B, or pitcher, or any defensive stance you want to have, a bullet is not getting snagged unless the "ball catches the glove".
In softball you see infielders with headgear, not so in baseball. To each his own, legal, strategy, or whatever anyone wants to call it, I don't like it at all.
You just have to be careful when you question the motivation of coaches who give their time and effort to the game because you don't agree with their use of a strategy that is a longtime part of the game and perfectly legal.
Cobb was just the first to come to mind, but quick-thinking players of that age often used tactics we now call bush. Many of us think of ourselves as above it, but what "bush" really means is "it doesn't work at a higher level."
I coached softball for decades and infielders weren't wearing headgear back then (well, not many, at least). Never saw an injury or anything close to one from the play. It's still used in the majors, though mostly by pitchers.
LL is behind the times. I do believe 6' 2" kids throwing 70mph to 6' 3" kids at the plate from 46 feet is a recipe for disaster. Kids are just bigger and stronger and using hottoer bats. It's time that organization get a grip on itself and make some changes.
Re-reading the post, it wasn't THAT bad, but you probably wouldn't want to tell me that I was the kind of coach you'd run the score up on.