At the GM meetings this week, it was decided that the wearing of helmets by first and third base coaches will be enforced. This is in response to the death of AA coach Mike Coolbaugh who was hit by a line drive on July 22 this year.
The exact details of what they will be wearing has not been ironed out.
Ron Kremer of the Herald News agrees with the ruling. He makes his argument in his article entitled Baseball Gets With It:
The decision came four months after ex-major leaguer Mike Coolbaugh died. He was struck in the neck by a batted ball while coaching at first base during a minor league game. He was not wearing a helmet.
…except (as Kremer notes in the sentence before) Coolbaugh was hit in the neck and that helmet probably wouldn’t have saved his life.
As for the issue itself, I’m not much for mandates in isolated situations like these. If the coaches want to wear the protective devices, I’m all for it. Joe Garagiola Jr, senior vice president for baseball operations, says that there was a “sentiment that as concept, this was a good idea.” Hopefully, this sentiment extends to those who will be wearing the helmets.