I feel masks promote confidence in the early stages. Confidence is fragile at any age and this game is a game of failure. Play/coach the game in a manner that helps your player reach their potential and stop caring about what other people think. Maybe Major Leaguers should stop wearing leg guards when hitting and this will be a harsh reminder not to mis-hit the ball. These types of examples are as dumb as the Georgetown coach's view on masks. On the flip side, I'm not telling every smoker I see that its bad for their health.
Our experiences often shape our views and I could bore you with a few that's shaped mine, but won't. I've learned from the mistakes and misfortunes of others as well as getting a PhD from Hard Knocks University. I "encourage" all my players to wear masks. I conclude that the real issue is the bullying type stance a few have on this topic...mainly influential college coaches and those holding the keys to scholarships.
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After wearing a mask for nearly 10 years, DD has decided to not wear it anymore. It concerns DW and I, but she is 19, and we trust her judgement. No one on her college team wears a mask, but we have seen several opponents wearing them. If I had to guess, I would estimate 30% of the pitchers and maybe 15% of the corner infielders. What scares and surprises me even more is the number of players that don't wear a mask on their batting helmet. It's not a huge number, but that isn't something I would want to do. Just this past week we saw a player foul one off that deflected up into that mask. She immediately fell to the ground. When the coach and trainer came to check on her we could hear her say "it just scared me". But I would hate to see what would have happened if she wasn't wearing it.