You read about the recent tragedy involving Mike Coolbaugh, the minor league Tulsa Drillers first coach who died after being hit by a line drive off the bat of one of his players. I never met Mike but knew his brother Scott, who played third base for the Hanshin Tigers in 1995.
The coroner's report said Mike Coolbaugh was struck — not in the head as first believed — but in the neck, cutting off blood circulation to his brain. While the accident was obviously a freak occurrence, it should serve as a reminder to all of us at the ballpark to pay attention to what's going on and stay alert for a possible line drive heading our way.
Until Coolbaugh's death, I had not heard about anyone being killed after being struck by a baseball, except for Cleveland Indians shortstop Ray Chapman. He was hit in the temple by a pitch thrown by New York Yankees pitcher Carl Mays in the pre-batting helmet era on Aug. 16, 1920, at the Polo Grounds in New York.