ESPN’s reporting was the first to extensively examine the danger of head injuries faced by Major League Baseball pitchers from line drives traveling at high speeds off the bats of hitters and what mitigating effect headgear might have, as well as the concerns and dissent over such devices. In its groundbreaking presentation that included on-camera interviews with three MLB pitchers who endured serious head injuries, “Outside the Lines” reported exclusively on MLB’s testing of protective cap inserts and on an analysis from five years of MLB video of the frequency with which pitchers had been struck in the head by batted baseballs. The report also provided animation in explaining the reaction time for pitchers to line drives and the area of the head left uncovered by proposed protective caps.
