MLB and MLBPA have adopted a series of protocols under their new joint policy regarding concussions, which will be in effect tomorrow at the start of the season. The policy covers both Major League and Minor League levels. It includes mandatory baseline neuropsychological testing requirements and protocols for evaluating players and umpires for a possible concussion. Protocols are also created for clearing a concussed player or umpire to return to activity. A seven-day disabled list for concussions has also been established (THE DAILY). YAHOO SPORTS' Jeff Passan reported MLB is "formalizing education plans that include concussion webinars with team medical staff throughout the season, live training during the winter meetings and the distribution of concussion posters throughout clubhouses." The league also soon "will distribute a memo reminding players" of the availability of the new Rawlings S100 batting helmet, which "protects heads significantly better than the traditional helmet." Twins 1B Justin Morneau, who missed half the season last year due to a concussion, has been wearing the helmet throughout Spring Training, and MLB "hopes others will follow" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 3/29).
NEW DL A NICE OPTION TO HAVE: In L.A., Bill Shaikin notes MLB teams and players "have been reluctant to use the 15-day disabled list" for concussions "since symptoms are often resolved in five to seven days." The seven-day list "should remove temptation for players to downplay their symptoms and return to the lineup rather than wait two weeks." Dodgers GM Ned Colletti: "They don't have to rush back. They can do what's best for them, which is what they should do" (L.A. TIMES, 3/30). Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said, "The one thing is does do is give you a chance to take a player and check him out without having to put him on a 15-day DL and waiting two weeks. ... (It) gives him a chance to regroup and see where he's at at the end of seven days" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 3/30). Yankees manager Joe Girardi said that the seven-day DL "will provide teams with roster flexibility." That could, in turn, "cause teams to treat concussion victims with greater care, because a disabled list stint may not force them to lose a key player for two full weeks." Girardi: "Sometimes that two or three, or four or five days when a guy can't play, can really put you in a hole, where you don't want to send him down for 15 days" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 3/30). UCLA Brain Injury Research Center Dir David Hovda: "This is a fantastic contribution to the appreciation of the severity and issues surrounding concussion." However, Hovda said that "one potential problem with the new disabled list" is that teams "could rely on seven days being enough for all concussions to heal, although each injury and athlete is different in his response and recovery time" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/30).
NFL INSTITUTES STANDARDIZED APPROACH: USA TODAY's Gary Mihoces reports NFL players "who have suffered possible concussions will be put to tests" on the sideline beginning next season. Concussion tests "aren't new to NFL athletic trainers and doctors," but what is new is "what the league calls a 'standardized' approach to using them." The NFL said that its "sideline concussion assessment protocol" is an "outgrowth of a survey of team medical staffs and input from the now-decertified players union." It "mirrors many aspects of a 2008 protocol issued by the international Concussion in Sport Group in Zurich." The protocol states: "If any significant abnormality is found, a conservative 'safety first' approach should be adopted. An athlete suspected of suffering a concussion is a 'No Go' and does not return to play in the same game or practice." The protocol lists six "No Go" signs (USA TODAY, 3/30).
