A little bit high and inside...

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014




The Cubs' Sammy Sosa recoils as a pitch from the Pirates' Salomon Torres shatters his helmet in the fourth inning in Pittsburgh. Sosa left the game.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 21
    defiantdefiant Posts: 4,876member
  • Reply 2 of 21
    jeffyboyjeffyboy Posts: 1,055member
    Ditto



    Baseball has always scared the heck out of me. I'd rather catch a football over the middle against Ray Lewis than face Randy Johnson at the plate or try to catch a line drive up the middle. Classic "scared of the ball" kid and never grew out of it.



    Jeff
  • Reply 3 of 21




  • Reply 4 of 21
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    What's amazing is Sosa didn't even get knocked down...he sorta stumbled back then knelt down... He went to the hospital for some cursory examination and came back to the clubhouse before the end of the game.



    In that photo, the ball is recoiling backward after hitting his helmet, by the way.
  • Reply 5 of 21
    murbotmurbot Posts: 5,262member
    Oh, I thought it was the energy field around the ball hitting him before the ball got there.







    Eh, if it was hockey he'd get some smelling salts on the bench and be back in there. Unless it's a friggin Swede!!



  • Reply 6 of 21
    paulpaul Posts: 5,278member
    Getting hit in the face with a baseball is NOT fun (I foul tipped a ball right into my right eye in junior year, my eye-socket didn't fracture but I had a hellofalot of swelling...) but it can also be relatively painless (a friend of mine took a sharp 1-hop ground ball right on the cheekbone, you could see the seams on his cheek... he was fine, nothing even puffed up)

    I'm sure Sammy will be fine, esp if he came back to the stadium before the game was over...

    were there any retaliatory pitches from the cubs?

    he was probably hanging over the plate anyway... with all the armor they wear now...
  • Reply 7 of 21
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by murbot

    Oh, I thought it was the energy field around the ball hitting him before the ball got there.







    Some people might have assumed Sosa was batting lefty and the ball shot right through the visor. :P
  • Reply 8 of 21
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Paul



    I'm sure Sammy will be fine, esp if he came back to the stadium before the game was over...

    were there any retaliatory pitches from the cubs?

    he was probably hanging over the plate anyway... with all the armor they wear now...








    Yeah, his head was in the strikezone, not. Don't be ridiculous. The anti-armor argument is ludicrous. You've just seen the power of a wild fastball, and you're going to bring up the armor argument? If armor goes, then helmets should go too because they're just another form of armor.



    And yes, when Salomon Torres came up to bat, he was beaned in the knee. There should have been an ejection right there.



    BTW, do you see any armor on Sosa in that photo other than the helmet?
  • Reply 9 of 21
    defiantdefiant Posts: 4,876member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by murbot

    Oh, I thought it was the energy field around the ball hitting him before the ball got there.



    I thought exact the same thing, and wanted to write a reply to Eugene, but you catched me first..
  • Reply 10 of 21
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    for a second i thought this thread was about drugs in prison



    then i realized it's as hard to be "a little bit" high as it is to be "a little bit" pregnant



    hockey players have the option of a full face shield or cage helmet (required in junior)



    baseball equipment options seem more limited despite similar tech and high impact projectile risk
  • Reply 11 of 21
    mggmgg Posts: 124member
    Ya, its been quite the wild week in MLB as far as people geting drilled. One game emptied the benches two times due to pitcher/hitter fights.
  • Reply 12 of 21
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by MGG

    Ya, its been quite the wild week in MLB as far as people geting drilled. One game emptied the benches two times due to pitcher/hitter fights.



    I caught the Diamondbacks vs Cardinals fight where Batista threw the ball at Tino Martinez after Tino started charging...and he missed!!! He was about 2 feet away! No wonder the D'backs are in last place...they can't throw strikes!
  • Reply 13 of 21
    matsumatsu Posts: 6,558member
    Anyone ever been killed at the plate? It's not really that far fetched, if not in the pros, in some local league. A girl died at an NHL game last year, hit with a puck.



    What would it take? Helmet slips a little, an off balance batter catches one in the temple. Batters almost always pick up the ball in time to react at least a little, but it's possible that a guy could lapse just enough to really get creamed.
  • Reply 14 of 21
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Matsu

    Anyone ever been killed at the plate? It's not really that far fetched, if not in the pros, in some local league. A girl died at an NHL game last year, hit with a puck.



    What would it take? Helmet slips a little, an off balance batter catches one in the temple. Batters almost always pick up the ball in time to react at least a little, but it's possible that a guy could lapse just enough to really get creamed.




    Ray Chapman was killed in 1920 by a pitch that cracked his skull.
  • Reply 15 of 21
    There has only been one player killed from a beaning during an MLB game. Ray Chapman roundabout 1920 or so. Back before they used helmets. Might have been before the rabbit ball as well which was introduced at about that time. I don't know but I would presume that the deadball was a bit heavier but also not quite as tightly wound so that it would give more on impact. Not sure aobut that the ball at all though.



    Kids die on occasion at other levels of baseball, both hitters and pitchers who get hit with batted balls. Not common but it happens every few years at least.
  • Reply 16 of 21
    Eugene beat me to it while I was looking for a link but anyway, here is a link:



    http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml96/96140.html



    Interestingly, of the 68 deaths, half were from getting hit in the head but the other half apparently were from getting struck in the chest. I would have presumed most deaths were from getting hit in the dome.
  • Reply 17 of 21
    powerdocpowerdoc Posts: 8,123member
    It's a pity to see WOMD use in USA
  • Reply 18 of 21
    matsumatsu Posts: 6,558member
    Now that you mention the chest thing, that's right, I remember a case not too long ago about a kid getting hit in the chest and dying as a result, Aparently, that one is a real fluke, and the impact doesn't have to be very hard at all it just has to hit in the right spot during a specific point in the heart beat. Very rare, but not rare enough.
  • Reply 19 of 21
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Eugene



    And yes, when Salomon Torres came up to bat, he was beaned in the knee. There should have been an ejection right there.





    I suppose but even at the risk of an ejection the Cubs pitcher had to retaliate. Hitting someone on the knee isn't anywhere near as serious as taking a fastball to the head. And with Sosa being the Cubs best player, their pitcher just had to stand up for his guys.
  • Reply 20 of 21
    ast3r3xast3r3x Posts: 5,012member




    i've seen somone get hit in teh eye before and there was SO much blood it was sick



    wonder if he'll be hesistant next time he is up to bat
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