MLB yesterday held a Town Hall session regarding head safety at FanFest prior to the All-Star Game, representing one of the league’s most public efforts to date to address the rising incidence and detection of head injuries. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred was joined by a group that included Chief Baseball Officer Joe Torre, Chief Medical Advisor Dr. Gary Green, Consumer Safety Product Commission Chairman Elliot Kaye and former Olympic softball player Lisa Fernandez. The group spent a large portion of the session discussing the use of age-appropriate equipment in youth leagues, particularly properly fitting helmets and softer-density baseballs at younger levels of play. MLB has used a concussion protocol since ’11, but is now tying in awareness of head issues with its ongoing youth engagement push through Play Ball and other initiatives. “You want to make sure you have the appropriate soft core balls for your age group,” Kaye said. “That’s important. I’ve seen and we’ve all seen balls that come off these bats very, very fast. That’s good, and that is a sign of talent, but it can be scary and we don’t want it to be deadly.”
