Pitcher who got hit in mask at Pekin OK?

[westwind]

Saw a pitcher take a shot in the mask last weekend at Pekin, does anybody know how she is?

Rumor was that they took her to hospital with broken nose, hope she is doing well.

[OnSun14]

I believe that you are probably referring to the Streator 12U pitcher on the weekend of March 1-3... I heard that the pitcher did suffer a broken nose, but was otherwise OK. Kind of a freak injury...heard that she actually knocked her own mask off with her glove as she was trying to catch the ball - then the glove/ball hit her in the nose. Scary deal.

[westwind]

We were warming up close to the field she was on, saw the commotion and saw she was down for a long time. Sure hope she is doing well, hate to see any kid get hurt.

[Slugger9]

I'm the head coach for the Capital City Blitz which is the team Streator was playing at the time. I was coaching 3rd base when the incident occurred. I can tell you that it was extremely scary. I've seen a lot of girls get hit before, but nothing like this. The line drive hit her right in the mask and the mask went flying off about 15 feet behind her. One of our parents is a fireman and attended to her immediately.

The good news is I've had a couple of conversations with the coach since then and the pitcher is doing well. As we suspected, she did fracture her nose. They were planning on slowly entering her back into the rotation of pitching as she is a little nervous. Any pitcher that does not wear a mask this was definitely a huge wake up call. I can say my daughter does not, but after seeing something like that happen certainly changed my opinion and made the decision easy.

[B-Dad]

Glad to hear she is doing ok. That must be a terrifying experience. Let her know folks in IL are pulling for her. I'm sure it will be tough getting back in the circle.

You said the ball hit her mask and she still suffered a fractured nose? I have to admit I figured those masks are pretty good at preventing fractures, but guess if conditions are right the kid could still have injuries. What kind of mask was it and was it on correctly?

Another poster said they thought she knocked the mask off accidentally when trying to field the ball and then the ball/glove hit her. Is that not correct?

This past weekend I saw a high school pitcher in Phrophetstown get hit on the chin with a line drive. She didn't have a mask on and it wasn't a square on hit. Only guessing maybe less than a quarter of the ball hit her on the chin and it ricocheted onto her shoulder. She had the seam marks on her chin. Hope she is doing ok. Was talking to her Dad once the kid got back to the dugout and he made a comment to her like "maybe now you'll wear that mask." I asked him if one is in the bag and he said yes. Just goes to show what we all know. They are a good safety device, but kids just don't want to wear them. My DD included, but I force her.

[OnSun14]

That "other poster" is back...my daughter is one of the pitchers for the Blitz...she was telling me that she thought the ball and glove hit the mask at about the same time. Not sure what really knocked the mask off for sure. I can say that my daughter does wear a mask at all times though - whether pitching, at 1B, or in LF. She was hit squarely in the mask twice by line drives while pitching at 10U. Both times, her RIP IT mask saved her nose and teeth. I am a firm believer of masks for pitchers and corner infielders and would support ASA making it mandatory. I've just seen too many injuries that a mask would have prevented. Well worth a $40 investment.