quote:

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Atlanta Braves minor league manager Luis Salazar has lost an eye after he was struck in the face by a line drive while watching a spring training game.

Braves general manager Frank Wren said Wednesday that doctors were unable to save Salazar's left eye after the accident, which happened March 9. The former major league player is otherwise recovering from his injuries and expects to manage Lynchburg of the Class A Carolina League this season.

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http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/spring2011/news/story?id=6223098

I read about that too. I wonder if there will be a "Mike Coolbaugh movement" to make the dugout more safe in the future. There always seems to be several screamers every year into the dugout, and all it takes is one second of looking at a score card and not the ball for something like this to happen.

my first thought is that dugouts...need to be dug out. Not these walk in dugouts at playing field level. There should be 2 or 3 steps to go down into the dugout, so if someone is standing they see the field below the top and middle dugout rail or through the netting.

I don't know off-hand how many MLB dugouts are walk-ins. Perhaps not that many. Maybe it's minor league parks that have the bigger problem.

I hate to hear that.

I agree with you, W. I would venture to guess that most major and minor league ballparks have true dugouts, but maybe at some of the multi-purpose stadiums (thank goodness they're disappearing for multiple reasons), the dugouts are actually walk-ins.

Remember that hard line drives fly around foul territory at college and high school games, too, and very very few high school parks have real dugouts.

It sucks that he lost his eye, but he's lucky to be alive.

I don't know if anything will happen from this across baseball, but all it takes is one. I might look like a tool, but I always take my glove when we sit down the lines and my kids/wife are with me.

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Remember that hard line drives fly around foul territory at college and high school games, too, and very very few high school parks have real dugouts.

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yup. Happens alot. In my experience...around the Austin and surrounding area where I played HS ball, I remember a lot of fields having high fencing covering the front. Sure, some schools or ISD stadiums didn't have it, but A LOT did. Which helps.

If they aren't going to raise the fencing in "non dug-out dugouts," then they need to lower them by a few steps and actually dig them out like was discussed.

I'd say from the HS level on, this needs to be something schools and ISD stadiums should look at. Like previously posted, all it takes is one. The easiest fix is raising fencing in the front, and it's not very expensive at all.

[This message has been edited by J Peterman (edited 3/16/2011 11:30p).]

Just to throw this out there, I wonder how many people have been hurt by falling down the steps in a dugout? From entering the dugout or by trying to field a live ball.

Moe Vaughn comes to mind. I'm sure there have been plenty of others.

leonard, my husband does too, not worth taking chances and hey we might end up getting a nice souveneir (sp)

My high school baseball coach lost his eye standing behind the pitchers mound and the catcher tried a pickoff attempt at second base during live BP.

awful.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/spring2011/news/story?id=6250099