All the time we hear about player safety. Why are there so many places in baseball that an outfielder can come into contact with brick wall? The young man broke multiple bone in his face and will be in the hospital all night.
I’ve always thought baseball fields could be made much safer for players & spectators alike without hurting the integrity of the game at all. Fortunately, we don’t see as many bad injuries in baseball as other sports, but any preventable one is one too many. Walls should be farther from the field of play or they should be heavily padded. It’s only recently we’ve seen batting helmets come down below the ears. They need to be well padded.
Many ballparks don’t extend netting at the seats far enough down the baselines. A line drive fouled just past 1st or 3rd bases can badly hurt a spectator. There was never a good reason to keep those just behind home plate.
It’s impossible to eliminate all risk without hurting the game, but those things would go a long way toward it. I’m glad they toned down the bats in college baseball a few years ago. Balls coming off the bat could badly hurt a pitcher.
I agree, Neastarkie. I understand the brick look and the idea that if a fair ball were pulled down the line that it might bounce off the wall in a strange way and cause some unique hits. That said, it’s not worth the potential injuries. Players deserve to be safe, and so do the fans for that matter.