By Steve Kallas (posted by Rick Morris)
Many of you are
familiar with the sad story of Steven Domalewski who, on June 6, 2006 (at the age of 12), was
hit in the chest with a ball hit off an aluminum bat. The resulting commotio cordis condition
caused brain damage to the point where Domalewski has had a very limited
ability to function and essentially needs care 24/7 (for a more thorough
history of the case, see Kallas Remarks, 5/25/08 and 8/2/10).
Earlier this
week, in a settlement of a lawsuit against defendants Little League Baseball
and Louisville Slugger in Superior Court, Passaic County, New Jersey, it was
announced that the Domalewski family will receive $14.5 million dollars from
the two defendants (no word on what the split between defendants is; that part
of the settlement is, apparently, not public information).
Rick Wolff, on
his excellent WFAN radio show, “The Sports Edge,” will discuss this case and
its ramifications this Sunday morning at 8:05.
WHY THE
SETTLEMENT?
Well, you can
imagine that, in any case where you have a sympathetic plaintiff (in this case,
a child who simply went out to pitch in a youth baseball game at the age of 12
and had his life significantly changed (for the worse) forever), defendants
aren’t anxious to go before a jury.
But there was
some very good lawyering done by New
Jersey attorney Ernest Fronzuto on behalf of the
Domalewski family. Domalewski was not
hurt in a Little League game, but Little League was named as a defendant
because they, essentially, claim that these aluminum bats are safe to use. As we have seen over the years, there are
certainly times when they are not. Plus,
the sizeable amount of the settlement ($14.5 million) shows that this was not a
case where a few hundred thousand was paid as a “nuisance” value.
Louisville
Slugger (official name Hillerich & Bradsby) has made these bats for years
and has paid a few judgments over the years after jury trials for damage done
to young pitchers and, in one case (Brandon Patch), for the death of a young
pitcher.
While the
money, obviously, will not give Steven Domalewski his life back as he knew it,
it will help to offset the millions in medical bills that he is facing now and
in the future.
WHAT IS THE
BIGGER MESSAGE?
It is submitted
that there is a much bigger message than the settlement of a case where a boy
is brain-damaged for life as a result of being hit with a ball hit off an
aluminum bat. For some inexplicable
reason, Little League has affirmatively decided NOT to change the power of the
aluminum bats used in the Little League Majors Division (9-13 year olds; what
you are seeing right now on the ever-present Little League World Series on
ESPN) and below. Little League has, to
some degree, introduced BBCOR bats (that is, bats that are weaker in power than
the previous aluminum bats that were used) into Junior League Baseball (the age
level above LL Majors) and has made BBCOR bats mandatory for the older Senior
League and Big League divisions.
But, in a world
where kids are growing bigger and bigger (and are stronger and stronger), it
defies logic that BBCOR bats would not be mandatory at the 13 and below level,
especially given the fact that the pitching rubber remains only 46 feet from
home plate (the shortest pitching distance there is) in the Little League
Majors Division and below.
Given the fact
that Steven Domalewski was 12 when this happened to him, here’s hoping that
Little League will (sooner, rather than later) announce that BBCOR bats are
mandatory in all Little League divisions with no exceptions.
At some point,
there will be a new standard of care in this country where the old “weapons,”
as described by many, will simply be viewed as too dangerous to allow our kids
to be on a baseball field when those types of bats are being used. As you probably know, these more powerful
bats have been banned by the NCAA in college baseball (in 2011) and by the
National High School Federation in high school baseball across the country (in
2012).
Having said
that, in the Little League lower divisions and in many other youth sport
baseball leagues and various summer travel tournaments throughout the country,
it’s still the rule that these powerful, non-BBCOR bats are legal.
The settlement
announced in New Jersey this past week should help move along a complete change
to weaker (or “truer,” as described by noted baseball pitcher and announcer Ron
Darling, since they are closer to wooden bats) BBCOR bats. Hopefully, someday, we will simply have a
return to only wooden bats.
Then, baseball
will again be played the way it was meant to be by children of all ages.
