The dangers of wooden bats

There was a very scary incident during the Cubs-Marlins game this past Sunday. You can watch the video by clicking here. Tyler Colvin was the runner on third base, when Wellington Castillo hit a line drive into the left field corner. Normally on a play like this, there is no danger for the runner on third base, as he can just jog home and score easily. On this play, Wellinton's bat broke, and a piece of it hit Colvin in the chest, right under the clavicle. Colvin was watching the ball to see if it would be fair or foul, and did not see the broken bat flying towards him. The puncture wound caused by the broken bat allowed air to enter the pleural cavity, basically trapping air in the space between the lung and chest wall, causing a pneumothorax. If not treated immediately, the lung on the side of the injury will collapse, resulting in pain, difficulty breathing, and a lack of oxygen. Colvin received immediate medical attention and was transported to the hospital, and he will make a full recovery and be able to play again next season. Hopefully this incident will cause Major League Baseball to re-examine the quality of bats used by players, especially the maple bats.

Hyperextension ACL Tear

I've blogged a few times in the past about ACL injuries, including Chipper Jones and Wes Welker. Both of these injuries were non-contact ACL tears. On Sunday, Leonard Weaver of the Eagles suffered a contact ACL injury when his knee was forced into hyperextension. You can watch the video here. I'll warn you, it is a pretty gruesome injury. His left foot is planted in the turf and the motion of his lower leg is stopped by the tackler as his upper left leg and body continue to move forward, forcing his knee into hyperextension and tearing the ACL. This is actually a good example of inertia (resistance to change in motion); his lower leg was stopped by the force applied from the defender, but his upper leg and upper body continued to fall forward due to their inertia (there was not a force applied to stop their motion), causing a bending moment at the knee, resulting in the hyperextension. Basically, the knee is not designed to bend in that direction, and when it does, an injury will occur. Many knee injuries in football are caused by blocking or tackling below the knee. There are some rules in place to prevent this from happening (chop blocks, clipping), but these injuries will always be a part of football.

It has began

The college football season began last night. While my first Alma mater, Southern Miss, did not play well at all, this is still an exciting time of the year. After spending parts or all of the season working with football teams at Southern Miss and Auburn as an athletic trainer during the middle of the past decade, it's nice to be a fan and just watch the games. However, many people take college football way too seriously, and forget that these are 18-22 year old student athletes. They are not paid to play football like players in the NFL. In addition to the countless hours spent on the practice field, film room, and game room, they also have to take 5-7 classes a semester. They are going to make mistakes on the field, and many fans get extremely upset when this happens. It's ok to get excited when good things happen and upset when they don't, but the outcome of a football game should not affect your mood for the entire week or cause you to yell derogatory comments at the players or other fans. Enjoy the game, but when it's over, remember that it is just that, a game.