Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevin Finnerty
All right, so I'll agree with you if that's what you need. So an exposed skull is better and safer than a skull protected by a hard plastic shell. And for that matter, exposed ears are a safer way to go than ears protected by a hard plastic shell.
I like a mask better too, but I wouldn't argue that they are safer. That's just ridiculous. Do you argue for the sake of argument? The All-Star and Wilson top-of-the-line HSMs are also safer against concussions than masks. And the view is better. But I still don't like them or the way they feel, despite the fact they are safer. To each their own.
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You don't wear a protection piece for your back do you?
I have no reason for the back of my head to be covered, so I don't take any measure to protect it. I also have no reason for my ears to be covered, so I don't take any measure to protect them. If someone hits me in the back of the head with a beer can, that's a risk I was willing to take and someone got me on it. If I stood on top of the catcher and was within earshot of a swing (ba-dum-chh), yeah I'd probably want to protect my ears, but I'm trained a little better than that, and have no problem there. I understand people work different fields, including those clamshell backstops or backstops that are very close to them...but I do not, and therefore I do not need that type of protection.
I have heard a lot of people talk about HSMs really being safer against concussions, but have seen no real definitive backing on the physics aspect of this other than a small paragraph on the tag and people on internet message boards boasting about them. Sure, looking at it, it's pretty sleek. Does that prove anything to me? No. Has anyone
proven anything to me on this topic? No. I wear a properly adjusted traditional style mask and have not had a problem. That's not to say I won't ever have a problem, but I don't feel the HSM gives
me anything that I don't already have.
Also, I have debated the "better view" point for probably five years on this board and another board, and I'm not entirely interested in rehashing the topic, but in short summary: if you can already see everything you need to see, is it really "better" to be able to see even more? I don't need to see inside the dugout, but with an HSM there won't be a bar obstructing my peripheral vision directly to the right and left of me...yippie.