catcher headgear and safety

This is a link from a study done about this topic. 

 

Sorry deleted link its old.  There are several threads you can go through. 

 

My 2016 uses the two piece in the summer. Much more comfortable according to him. No impact issues that he has seen. 

I was actually just telling play_baseball this earlier today.. I suffered two in high school from foul tips.

 

Maybe your son has heard of a guy by the name of Mike Matheny? Had his career ended from post-concussion syndrome from foul tips. Or maybe Kerwin Danley who is an MLB umpire? The Boston Red Sox catcher who has suffered two this year?

Thanks Bulldog.  In the cases of Matheny and Danley, I can find older pictures of them wearing the traditional mask, then more recent pictures wearing the hockey-style helmet.  That's telling.

I'm a long time lurker, this is my first post here. See the link for what I felt was some good info on the subject. Hope you don't have to cut and paste.
http://community.hsbaseballweb...s-maskskull-cap?nc=1

My kid likes the skull cap as well, as pulling the hockey mask off hurriedly -- as catchers do -- caused injuries to his ears.  He wears it any time it is legal.  However, the kid needs to be a very experienced catcher because some less experienced catchers will turn their head when ball hits the ground, which is disastrous with a skull cap  As for concussions from bats, I cannot opine on that.

 

Thank you EL.  I should have found that myself.  That discussion pretty much covers everything.  Bottom line, I think he will always be at risk with either headgear style.  Both appear to offer pretty good protection, and though the hockey style does have advantages, I won't be overly concerned if he ever chooses the traditional style.

 

Ask him why he is pulling his mask off in the first place... There really isn't any need to take the hockey-style mask off. In fact, the only time I would even consider doing so would be a Popfly and I'm not sure I'd do that. When I caught, the mask didn't come off.

That's how he was taught and now it is ingrained. 

Texas v A's    Anyone see the A's catcher got hit today by bat. Good thing he was not hurt to bad

I know that this is an old topic but I've just joined and wanted to throw my 2 cents in. The hockey style helmet is designed so it is to never leave the head during play. That is where you get the benefits of that style of helmet. When I played (1999 grad) the cost, lack of availability of the hockey style helmet, and having a large melon prevented me from using it.

As for those having worries about the lack of ear protection on the traditional style masks. Teaching proper blocking techniques is the most important thing to do. Chin down and follow the ball to your chest. The head turn does more that expose the side of the head it exposes the throat area, which is even more dangerous.  I had a good friend of mine, who I had played little league with and was playing against at this time in high school, lift his head and catch a ball in the dirt directly in the throat. I was on deck and immediately ran towards him, he stood up looked right at me and collapsed on the field. This can happen with both styles of masks.

So... use whatever feels comfortable. They both have benefits and drawbacks.

Just ask Alex Avila if concussions are possible, sure looked a bit loopy during Sox series. I looked into getting my 2016 the "pro style" but after a little web surfing I felt it that it was better not to chance it.  Another factor was the way the pro style seemed to move around so much: ie. throwing down to second etc. Much better for those collisions at the plate, maybe a thing of the past with the new rules. But in the end it comes down to personal preference.