Batting helmet
"[2] Roger Bresnahan, Hall of Fame catcher who was injured after being struck in the head with a pitch, developed a leather batting helmet in 1908 which he began using.
"[2] In 1914, minor leaguer Joe Bosk, playing for the Utica Utes, wore a protector after being severely injured when he was struck in the head by a pitch in 1911.
That year, a syndicated news article claimed several baseball executives—including New York Giants secretary Frank McQuade—were trying to mandate the use of batting helmets.
Disregarding the doctor's advice, Wells wore a modified construction hard hat as protective gear in a game the next day.
[7] After Mickey Cochrane, a Hall of Fame catcher for the Detroit Tigers, suffered a career-ending and near-fatal skull fracture on May 25, 1937, on a pitch by New York Yankees' pitcher Bump Hadley, there was a strong call for batter helmets.
[2] In 1941, the National League adopted the use of a helmet, designed by George Bennett, a Johns Hopkins University brain surgeon, for use by all teams in spring training.
On April 26, 1941, the Washington Senators joined the Dodgers as the only two teams to fully adopt the batting helmet for regular season use.
[2] Though many thought this would be the time when support would be strong enough to develop widespread usage, again tradition won out, and it was not until 1953 that the Pittsburgh Pirates mandated their players wear helmets.
Soon after, the Ottawa Citizen wrote that "Major League clubs are becoming quite interested in a new type of plastic protective cap which has been put on the market recently."
On July 23, 1961, catcher Earl Battey was hit in the face with a pitch, fracturing a bone, and 10 days later returned to the field with a makeshift earflap to protect the injured area, though he only wore it for one game because he complained of difficulty seeing while wearing it.
[2] Tony Oliva also wore a makeshift face protector during batting practice, as did the Twins' Jimmie Hall in the 1965 World Series.
[11] Ron Santo was also an early pioneer of wearing earflap helmets at the major league level, upon returning to action after having his left cheekbone fractured by a pitch in 1966.
[13] Robert Crow was a plastic and reconstructive surgeon working for the Atlanta Braves in the 1970s when he invented a device that could protect players who were coming back from facial injuries.
Other notable players to utilize non-C-flap modified batting helmet include Gary Roenicke (1979), Ellis Valentine (1980), Charlie Hayes (1994), and Otis Nixon (1998).
The first known player to wear the C-flap was Oakland A's catcher Terry Steinbach after breaking an orbital bone due to a freak pregame accident in May 1988.
Other players would follow C-flap utilization, including David Justice, Kevin Seitzer, Mike Devereaux, Marlon Byrd, Chase Headley, and Jason Heyward.
Players to do this include Willie McGee, Terry Pendleton, Vince Coleman, Mark Bellhorn, Shane Victorino, Orlando Hudson, and Jed Lowrie (all of which are switch hitters).
One example is former major-league player John Olerud, who started doing so after undergoing emergency surgery for a cerebral aneurysm while attending Washington State University.
An earlier example was Richie Allen,[failed verification] who decided to wear a helmet in the field after at least one incident of being hit by objects thrown by fans.
Such practice began when umpires Mike Estabrook and John Tumpane opted to use a black helmet with their face mask while they were behind the plate.
[20] Major League bat-boys/bat-girls and ball boys/ball girls are required to wear a helmet rather than a cap while performing their duties while on the field of play.
[22] In 2009, Major League Baseball decided to take action and protect players from the increasing number of concussions and head injuries.
[26] In 2018, several Major League Baseball players including Mike Trout and Bryce Harper began wearing the C-flap, an attachment to the earflap covering the jaw, invented by Markwort.
On May 28, 2018, Philadelphia Phillies slugger Rhys Hoskins fractured his jaw when he fouled a ball off his own face against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
