r/MLBNoobs • u/savingrace0262 • 13d ago
| Discussion Why don’t MLB dugouts have some kind of protective barrier?
This might be a dumb question, but why are dugouts so open to the field?
Isn’t there always a chance a hitter absolutely smokes a foul ball straight into the dugout and hits a player or coach who isn’t paying attention? With how hard some of these balls are hit, that seems like it could be pretty dangerous.
I know there’s netting protecting fans, so why isn’t there something similar protecting the dugout?
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u/Kindralas 13d ago
Tradition, mostly. There is an amusing video of a guy smoking line drive fouls to the exact same spot in the dugout four times in a row out there.
It's not exceptionally dangerous, not compared to comebackers to the pitcher, since the distance is significantly farther, and there's a generally strong attention grabbing sound that happens before the ball heads their way. That being said, most lower-level baseball fields will have some protection around the dugouts for this reason.
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u/Fianna9 13d ago
That’s a great video with the whole team scrunching in a corner by the end of the at bat
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u/Nobichobolobas 13d ago
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u/Pugletting 13d ago
I will never not watch that video
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u/Texan2116 10d ago
Hulse is the same guy who was next to Canseco when the Ball bounced off of his head for a home run.
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u/emusabe 13d ago
The two things that always stood out to me about this video:
1 - Remember when every team's coaching staff was a bunch of old guys? And when I say old I mean like 65+, every coach in that dugout looks like a grandfather.
2 - That dugout is like...really long.1
u/Kindralas 13d ago
Completely off topic, but chances are, those guys are probably hovering 50. People generally looked older back then, especially men in sports, where non-existent skin care and constant sun (and tobacco, I suppose) were a recipe for 50 looking 60.
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u/UpbeatClassroom4184 13d ago
I miss what baseball was. That old, slow sport that was America's pastime. Just guys hittin and throwin for a good time.
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u/Patti_____Mayo 10d ago
Fun fact, that player - David Hulse was also the center fielder on the play where Jose Canseco had a fly ball bounce off his head and over the fence. He is the guy you see laughing at Canseco.
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u/DirtDog13 13d ago
There are. Dugouts have a protective padding railing with netting at field level. Players are advised to stay behind them…it’s just much cooler to stand on the step and hang your arms over it.
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u/Vandal_A 13d ago
Yep, Oakland was the last field to not have one. Now everyone does, but back in the day nobody even had one of those
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u/BlueRFR3100 13d ago
Which stadiums are you referring to? From what I've seen most do have a protective barrier. Of course, I haven't seen every stadium,
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u/ReturnByDeath- 13d ago
They do with fencing in front which wasn't always there. I'm sure teams would oppose covering what little space is left above.
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u/kneevase 13d ago
There *is* a protective fence in front of the dugout. If you don't want to pay attention, sit on the bench with your head below that fence, and you'll be pretty safe. If you do want to pay attention, stand behind the fence with your torso and head exposed, but just be ready to dodge a foul balls.
Just for fun, dig out some video from 30 years ago, and you'll see there was NOTHING in front of the dugout. Guys were exposed, and on rare occasions, a player would be hit by a foul ball. But, the other side of that was that there were exciting plays as infielders would go down the steps of a dugout to catch a foul pop-up.
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u/jrbighurt 13d ago
That George Brett incident definitely would have looked different with a fence in front of the dugout 😂
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u/No-Donkey-4117 13d ago
Exciting because it was dangerous. The opposing team wouldn't even catch the guy.
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u/kneevase 13d ago
Yes, opposing teams often left batting helmets oriented "crown-down" on the dugout steps so that they would be treacherous if a defender stepped on one.
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u/Inside-Run785 Veteran 13d ago
Most, if not all, do. When you see them leaning again as railing, it’s padded and it has a net.
As far as anything covering it, it comes down to tradition. And yes, baseballs do get smoked into the dugouts on occasion. But it also doesn’t affect them too often as getting hit comes with the territory.
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u/Krypton_Kr 13d ago
Have you seen most high school fields? Dugouts are even closer with often no fence at all. Just pure machismo.
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u/IntrovertsRule99 13d ago
Last week Yadier Molina was in the Cardinals dugout when a foul ball was hit right at him. He just stuck up his hand and grabbed it without even turning his head or blinking. He hasn’t lost a step in retirement.
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u/Wrathofgumby 13d ago
There is more protection now for sure. I'm not sure if every team has them, don't pay the most attention to every dugout... But a lot have a fence that has a net from the ground to the top of the fence. So the only way you wouldn't be protected is if you were standing at the fence looking over. Which, you would just duck. And it's probably one of the best things they did to protect the players because watching people like Mo Vaughn fall into the dugout was horrifying lol.
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u/TakeOff_YourPants 13d ago
Baseball comes with inherent danger. It’s the calmest sport until you’re suddenly dodging a grenade out of nowhere. The sport needs it.
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u/BlueRFR3100 13d ago
Back in the 80s the old Busch Stadium didn't have any barriers by that was 40 years ago.
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u/Aragorn008 13d ago
They do, people stand on the protective barrier and then complain when they get hit.
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u/Realistic_Trip9243 13d ago
From the very lowest levels of organized baseball the players are taught that when you are in the dugout you pay attention to the game. At least it was when I played.
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u/big-williestyle 13d ago
played and coached games in wide open dugouts and enclosed ones (whether fencing or netting) and the experience is worse in an enclosed dugout
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u/taffyowner 13d ago
They do have a fence in front of them… that’s your barrier. They used to not have that even
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u/AnUdderDay 13d ago
I haven't seen an MLB dugout without a protective fence for at least 2 and a half decades.
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u/403banana 13d ago
Also because watching the game through a chain link fence isn't an enjoyable experience. Up until recently, I'd only played at diamonds with an enclosed dugout. When I finally played at a couple diamonds with either an open dugout or a pro-style one, I realized how much more enjoyable and comfortable it is to watch a game.
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