“If it’s your child, it’s your whole world”
-Jill Levine, mother of Little League player Robbie Levine, who died on the field in 2005
April 22, 2007 interview with the New York Times [1]
Please Remember Me
A warm spring day. A young boy steps up to the plate, bat in hand. He glances up at you in the stands, turns toward the pitcher and squares off to play ball.
This could be your son or mine.
He’ll come home with you after the game to talk about his homer or the “ball that got away” or maybe he’ll go out with his pals for ice cream. But, for many grieving parents, this never happened.
Since 1961, at least 63 players have died playing or practicing Little League baseball
This information comes from sources such as the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) documents, newspaper accounts and Little League Headquarters’ own studies and reports.
I would like to stress that the information presented here is not referring to all youth baseball in the generic term, ‘Little League’ - it specifically refers to the Little League organization with headquarters in Williamsport, PA.
Little League International representatives have acknowledged the deaths of over 30 of these children at or around the time they happened to the media. However, through the years, most of these fatalities have disappeared from their records.
Boys who have died during Little League play and practices baseball seem to have vanished from Little League’s corporate records.
The deaths Little League representatives have acknowledged include:
1961:
Barry Babcock, age 9, of Temple City , CA
Sources:
Al Millham, President of the Temple City
Edward Martins, District 45 Little League Representative [8]
Lance van Auken, Little League Media Director, and his wife Robin’s book, “Play Ball!” - The Story of Little League Baseball [9]
Little League Headquarters in Philadelphia
Larry Richards, age 13, of Bloomfield
Sources:
Coach Ernest Ruby [11]
Coach Blakeman Clark [12]
Edward Martins, District 45 Little League Representative [13]
George McCormick, age 10, of Hinckley Park , IL
Sources:
Robert Stirrat, Little League Inc. Director of Public Relations [14]
Lance and Robin Van Auken’s book, “Play Ball!”- The Story of Little League Baseball [15]
Brumit Estes, age 12, of Cocoa , FL
Sources:
Cocoa Little League Team Manager Charlie Williams [16]
Lance and Robin Van Auken book, “Play Ball!”- The Story of Little League Baseball [17]
George Munnoch, age 10, of Ottawa Canada North America in 1961 and listed as the first fatality in the Canadian Little League.
Sources:
George Lavigne, President and Manager of the Carlingwood Little League [18] [19]
John Singleton, Canadian Director of Little League [20]
Robert Stirrat, Little League Inc. Director of Public Relations [21]
Patrick H. McCormack, age 12, of Kalamazoo County , MI
Source:
Lance and Robin Van Auken’s book, “Play Ball!”- The Story of Little League baseball. [22]
1962:
Little League Headquarters reported two deaths in 1962
Sources:
Stars and Stripes, July 15, 1963 [25]
Frederick Post, July 13, 1963 [27]
1963:
Bruce Sloat, age 12 of Jackson , MS
Sources:
Little League Headquarters (unnamed source) [28] [29]
L.S. Seward, President of the Forest Hill Little League [30] [31] [32] [33]
1964:
John Lutz, Jr. age 11, from Providence , RI
Sources:
William Carey, President of the Fox Point-East Side Little League [34]
Dave Texeira, Manager of the Fox Point-East Side Little League team [35] [36]
Little League District One Administrator Settimio Ricci [37]
Robert H. Stirrat, Little League International Public Relations Director [38]
1971 and 1973:
Two unnamed players suffered batted ball deaths in 1971 and 1973
Source:
Little League International Communications Division [39]
1977:
Thomas Steck, Jr., an eight year old from Lemont , IL
Source:
The Lemont Park District Little League dedicated their safety plan to his memory: Their current website, lemontlittleleague.com states:
“This Safety Plan is dedicated to the memory of Tommy Steck, a Lemont Little Leaguer who died during the course of a Little League game in 1974. We hope that by this dedication and the grace of God such a tragedy will never happen again.” [40]
1980:
Gerald Piotter, Jr., a nine year old from Macy , IN
Upon the occasion of William “Ryan” Wojick’s death in 1990, Daniel Kirby said:
“A death during a Little League game has happened only once (prior to Ryan’s death) in the organization’s history.”
Gerald’s death is on file with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) [41]
Source:
Little League Inc. Risk Manager Daniel Kirby [42]
1985:
Jeffrey Jameson, an 11 year old from West Milford , NJ
Jeffrey’s death is on file with the CPSC. [43]
Source:
Stephen Keener, Public Relations Director for Little League Headquarters. (Keener is now Little League President and CEO.) [44]
1987:
Shaun Frederic, an 8 year old from Beacon, NY, killed April 22, 1987 by a thrown baseball to the head. He played for his town Little League’s Red Sox team.
Shaun’s death is on file with the CPSC [45]
Sources:
Dave Eraca, Shaun’s coach [46] [47]
Bob Ferrone, Beacon Little League spokesman [48]
John Donnelly, Beacon Junior Baseball League Board of Directors [49]
1987-1996:
Thirteen members of Little League Inc. teams were killed during this period.
The causes of death:
Pitched balls - 3
Sliding - 2
Thrown balls - 2
Batted balls - 1
Collision - 1
Falls - 1
“Other” - 3
No identities or a list of which years for what incidents appear in this study.
From the causes of death, we know that 11-13 players died during this period. The reason for this range is because Shaun Frederic died from a thrown baseball in 1987, and Ryan Wojick, below, from a pitched baseball in 1990.
Even if both boys were to be included in this study, that would still leave 11 deaths unaccounted for.
Source:
‘Injuries in Little League Baseball from 1987 Through 1996 Implications for Prevention’, a study conducted by Daniel P. Kirby, the Risk Management of Little League Baseball, Inc., study and two prominent youth sports injury researchers, Dr. Frederick O. Mueller and Dr. Stephen Marshall.
Dr. Mueller is Professor and Chair of the department of exercise and sport science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and current Chairman of USA Baseball’s Medical/Safety Committee. Dr. Marshall is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill . He is also a Core Faculty member and a biostatistician at the UNC Injury Prevention Research Center
The study was released in 2001. [50]
1989-1999:
Five players were killed during this period.
Their causes of death were:
Pitched balls - 2
Thrown balls - 1
Pitching machine - 1
Running bases - 1
The report indicated that one of the fatalities occurred in 1990, two in 1993 (one was from a thrown ball) [51] [52] and two in 1994. Details as to which incidents occurred on which dates were not provided in this report.
Factoring in the overlap of time, this indicates that three players died between 1987-1989*:
Pitched balls - 1
Thrown balls - 1
Sliding - 1
*Pitching machine and running bases might have fallen under the heading of “other” from the 1987-1996 study and the years of each incident are not provided. Therefore, we know that at least one more death is unaccounted for.
Source:
A Little League Inc. report submitted to USA Baseball’s Medical/Safety Committee and dated June 12, 2000. Contact person is listed as Stephen Keener, President/CEO of Little League Baseball. [53]
1990:
William “Ryan” Wojick, a ten year old from Citrus Park , FL
Sources:
Fred Bloomingdale, coach of the Cardinals [54] [55] [56] [57]
Don Martin, Little League umpire [58]
Chuck Olson, President of the Citrus Park
George Glick, Indiana District 10 Administrator and a member of the Little League International Board of Directors [60]
Dan Kirby, Insurance Coordinator for the National Little League [61]
Steve Keener, National Spokesman for Little League [62] [63] [64] [65]
Ryan’s death is on file with the CPSC [66]
1993:
Van Auken said that the last Little Leaguer killed at a game was a 9-year-old in New York
Source:
Lance Van Auken, spokesman for Little League International [67]
2000:
Devin N. Beck, an 11 year old from Ammon , ID
Devin’s death is on file with the CPSC. [68]
Source:
Frank Smith, Idaho Regional Manager of the Western Boys Baseball Association, which oversees Ammon Little League. [69]
Little League representatives and officials acknowledged these 31 deaths at the time that they occurred-why aren’t these included in the total number of fatalities they report?
Why do some official Little League representatives seemingly contradict themselves in the figures they present?
“(George) Glick said (William Ryan) Wojick was the only known Little League player to be killed by a game-related injury.” [70]
“(Daniel) Kirby said a death during a Little League game has happened only once in the organization’s history (prior to William Ryan Wojick’s death.)” [71]
In his testimony before a Congressional Committee in 2007, Little League President Stephen Keener stated that injury data has been kept on record at Little League International only since the early 1960's - how could Kirby know about deaths since Little League’s inception in 1939 when President Keener said they didn’t keep records until the 1960’s? [72]
Three years earlier, on the occasion of Shaun Frederic’s death in 1987:
“Kirby said that between 1963-1987, there were 42 fatalities on Little League fields throughout the world. The 42 fatalities included 13 head injuries, 7 lightning deaths and 22 from heart conditions. The fatalities included players, umpires and coaches…
‘Considering that 2.5 million children play in Little Leagues every year [73], Kirby said, the number of deaths is small.’ ” [74]
The number of deaths is small?
The Little League Communications Division has said:
“Little League International understands that injuries are part of the game, but let it be known that the governing body for the largest youth sports organization in the world sees even one injury as too many to dismiss as acceptable.” [75]
If Little League considers one injury as “too many to dismiss”, how can all these deaths be?
Please review the following quotes and note the discrepancies there are regarding numbers and dates of deaths within the Little League organization itself:
“Little League has been insured for 30 of its 56 years, and in that time, there have been only three instances in which a batter died from the impact of a pitched ball,’ (Dennis) Sullivan (Little League spokesman) said. ‘Most injuries or deaths occur when a player is struck in the field.’ However, Sullivan said he had ‘no idea’ how many Little Leaguers have been fatally injured under those circumstances.” [76]
- Interview with Little League spokesman Dennis Sullivan
“The last Little Leaguer killed at a game was a 9-year-old in New York
- Little League spokesman Lance Van Auken
“In fact, not a single play-related death occurred in a Little League game or practice during the 1990’s” [79]
- Little League Vice President of Communications Lance Van Auken
“There has not been a single play-related death in a Little League practice
or game since 1990.” [80]
- Little League International Communications Division
“The organizations' records show no one has died during official league play” [81]
- Little League spokesman Chris Downs
After William Ryan Wojick’s death in 1990, Little League was given a copy of a federal study from 1986 which “documented nearly two dozen cases in which children died after being hit in the chest by baseballs”, according to an article in the St. Petersburg Times. Little League officials acknowledged that they had read the report soon after it was published. A month later, “(Little League) officials rechecked their records this week and now say Wojick was the third Little Leaguer in 30 years (1960-1990) who died after being hit in the chest with a ball.” [82]
Dr. Albert King, dean of bioengineering at Wayne State University in Detroit
“Little League should acknowledge this situation (baseball impact to the chest) and do something to help prevent it because it is preventable,” he said. “It's just a logical thing for them to seek ways to prevent it instead of burying their heads in the sand.” [83]
After the records were rechecked and additional deaths recorded, National Little League Spokesman Stephen Keener said:
“These were isolated incidents-freak things. To take drastic measures seems inappropriate.” [84]
Five years earlier, when Little Leaguer Jeffrey Jameson died, Keener said: “It was rather a freak accident and no one can be blamed for it.” [85] [86]
Par Troy West Little League’s Manual had this to say about ‘freak accidents’:
“Ignorance of the many dangers in baseball and the easy ways to prevent them
For example, never encourage a youth player to "take one for the team." About three or four youth players are killed every year when hit by normal pitches traveling 40 to 50 miles per hour. They suffer fatal ventricular fibrillation or, in other words, their heart muscle contracts improperly. This is a health problem caused by unique physiology of children's bodies.
Would you believe there are 35,000 youth baseball eye injuries a year? That's about one for every eight teams per season. And almost every coach thinks the one that occurred on his team was a "freak accident." [87]
President Keener has said, “Little League will continue its strong commitment to player safety, and we feel our well-documented record of safety in youth baseball speaks for itself.'' [88]
But as you saw above, Mr. Kirby and the Little League Communications Division each released a publication that states that there have not been any deaths in a Little League practice or game “since 1990.”
Also, as you saw above, Mr. Keener discussed Ryan’s death shortly after it happened, but Little League records do not reflect his death.
How is their record of safety well-documented when the deaths of so many players are forgotten?
William Ryan Wojick of Tampa , Florida
In the fourth inning and it was his turn to bat. Ryan was struck in the chest by a pitch. His coach, Fred Bloomingdale, said, “Nobody dreamed that it would come to this.”He lost his breath, and everyone thought he had the wind knocked out of him," he said. "He was gasping for air . . . and then he went down on the field." [90]
Ryan was pronounced dead in a hospital emergency room approximately 45 minutes later. He died March 18, 1990. He was ten years old.
His death is on file with the CPSC. [91]
There have been at least seven other children who have died while playing or practicing Little League baseball since 1990 alone.
Justin McQuillen was another. He played for the Tigers, a Honey Brook, PA Little League team. Justin was up at bat when he was struck in the chest by a baseball. [92]
“The hardball hit him in the chest -- smack over the heart. He fell to the ground, first crying, then suddenly silent. Frantic coaches and parents rushed to give him CPR, but Justin never regained consciousness.” [93]
By the time he got to the hospital, he had suffered irreversible brain damage. He was on life support for eight days before he died on May 11, 1994. Justin was nine years old. [94]
Justin’s death is on file with the CPSC. [95]
The other players killed during this time are:
· Brian Korbon, age 9, died May 8, 1993 [96] [97] [98]
· David L. Lendermon, Jr., age 8, died June 4, 1997 [99] [100] [101]
· Jacob G. Watt, age 6, died June 4, 1998 [102] [103] [104] [105] [106] [107] [108]
· Jason L. Mallone, age 11, died June 29, 2002 [109] [110] [111] [112]
(Note: Jason died while in the on-deck circle, [113] [114] [115] [116] [117] [118] seven years after the on-deck circle had been banned for safety reasons by Little League headquarters for those 12 and under, in 1995. [119] [120])
· Robbie Levine, age 9, died September 27, 2005 [121] [122] [123] [124] [125] [126] [127] [128] [129]
There are many other fatalities that Little League International has not acknowledged.
How is their record of safety “well-documented” if they are they unaware of all of the children who died while playing baseball for their own organization?
These players include:
· Albert Amieble, age 9, killed June 8, 1962 by a thrown ball/collision [130] [131] [132]
· Russell Robison, age 12, killed May 17, 1963 by a batted ball to the head [133] [134] [135] [136] [137]
· Peter Tocholonis, age 11, killed July 18, 1963 by a batted ball to the head [138]
· John J. Metz, age 11, killed June 20, 1964 by a batted ball to the chest (related to heart condition) [139]
· Ted Gabriel, age 9, killed May 12, 1965 by baseball impact to his head [140]
· Daniel Odekirk, age 8, killed May 26, 1965 by a batted ball to the chest [141] [142] [143] [144]
· James F. Heath, age 12, died June 4, 1966 died from a brain-related injury on the field (related to undiagnosed brain condition) [145]
· Terry Loeschen, age 7, killed July 13, 1966 by baseball impact to the chest [146] [147]
· Tighe McLaughlin, age 9, killed August 15, 1967 by a pitched ball to the chest [148]
· Thomas F. Brunn, age 9, killed April 13, 1968 by a pitched ball to the neck [149] [150] [151]
· James E. Kimball, age 10, killed May 7, 1968 by a batted ball to the chest [152] [153] [154]
· James R. Bender, age 10, killed June 19, 1968 by a batted ball to the chest [155] [156]
· Richard G. Wallace, age 9, died April 10, 1969 when he collapsed on the pitcher’s mound (autopsy was inconclusive) [157] [158]
· Gregory J. Lennon, age 9, killed April 11, 1970 when he was hit by a thrown bat [159]
· Kurt Salha, age 9, killed May 18, 1970 by a pitched ball to the chest [160]
· Duane C. Benson, age 11, killed April 18, 1971 by a batted ball to the neck [161] [162] [163]
· John C. Adams, age 11, killed June 16, 1971 by a thrown ball to the chest [164] [165] [166]
· Identity not provided by Little League report-a player was killed in 1971 by a batted ball injury [167] [168] [169]
· Ronald E. Laws, age 12, killed June 23, 1972 by a pitched ball to the chest [170] [171] [172]
· A player died in 1973 from a batted ball injury. Their identity was not provided in a Little League report [173] [174] [175]
· Vincent V. Torres, age 13, killed May 1, 1975 due to a collision with a player [176] [177] [178] [179]
· Robert Roggatz, age 10, killed June 21, 1978 by a thrown ball to the chest [180] [181] [182] [183]
· Identity not provided in CPSC report: 9 year old boy was killed April 18, 1981 by a pitched ball to the chest [184]
· Identity/age not provided in CPSC report: Little League player killed May 1, 1982 by a pitched ball to the chest [185]
Little League cannot learn from these deaths, honor these children or act to prevent similar future deaths if the way that they monitor fatalities does not change. They must reform their methods of finding out about deaths, tracking them, noting any trends and acknowledging the players who died.
HAYDEN WALTON, AGE 13 FROM WINSLOW, AZ, DIED FROM A PITCHED BALL TO THE CHEST ON MAY 31, 2011. [186] [187] [188] [189] [190]
Who'll stop the pain???
You can
Please sign the petition addressed to Little League's President Stephen Keener.
The link to it can be found on the front page of this blog.
Sources:
1 Winerip, M., (2007, April 22), A Son’s Death Inspires a Mission
2 Author not indicated, (1961, May 19), 52 Pound 9-year-old is First Boy Ever Killed in Little League Tilt, Appleton (WI) Post Crescent
3 Author not indicated, (1961, May 19), Little Leaguer dies in Ump’s Arms, Abilene (TX) Reporter News
4 Author not indicated, (1961, May 26), Sport: The Littlest Player, Time Magazine
5 Author not indicated, (1961, May 18), Little Leaguer Loved Game, Dies of Injury, Reno (NV) Evening Gazette
6 Author not indicated, (1961, May 19) Little Leaguer Hit in Chest by Ball, Dies; Father Hopes Game Won’t be Curtailed, (Butte
7 Author not indicated, (1961, May 18) Pitched Ball Kills Little Leaguer, Daily Inter Lake , (Kallispell , MT
8 Hoos, S. (1961, June 18), Little League Arms its Critics, Daily Review (Hayward , CA
9 Van Auken, R.and Van Auken, L., (2001) “Play Ball!” - The Story of Little League Baseball. University Park , Pennsylvania : Pennsylvania State University
10 Author not indicated, (1961, May 19), Little Leaguer dies in Ump’s Arms, Abilene (TX) Reporter News
11 Author not indicated, (1961, May 26), Wild Pitch Kills Boy, 13, Stars and Stripes newspaper
12 IBID
13 Hoos, S. (1961, June 18), Little League Arms its Critics, Daily Review (Hayward , CA
14 Author not indicated, (1961, June 4), Freak Accident Cause of Munnoch’s Death, Ogden (UT) Standard Examiner
15 Van Auken, R. and Van Auken, L. (2001) “Play Ball!” - The Story of Little League Baseball. University Park , Pennsylvania : Pennsylvania State University
16 Author not indicated, (1961, June 15), Little Leaguer Fatally Hurt by Pitched Ball, Weirton (WV) Daily Times
17 Van Auken, R.and Van Auken, L. (2001), “Play Ball!” - The Story of Little League Baseball. University Park , Pennsylvania : Pennsylvania State University
18 Author not indicated, (1961, June 23), Little Leaguer Dies After Being Hit by Baseball, Kingsport (TN) Times
19 Author not indicated (1961, June 25), Fourth Little Leaguer Killed When Struck, Abilene (TX) Reporter News
20 IBID
21 Author not indicated, (1961, June 4), Freak Accident Cause of Munnoch’s Death, Ogden (UT) Standard Examiner
22 Van Auken, R. and Van Auken, L. (2001), “Play Ball!” - The Story of Little League Baseball. University Park , Pennsylvania : Pennsylvania State University
23 Author not indicated, (1963, July 13), Diamond Fatalities Rise to Five, Portsmouth (NH) Herald
24 Associated Press, (1963, July 13), Death Claims 2 Young Players Within 24 Hours, Pittsburgh
25 Associated Press, (1963, July 15), Baseball Mishaps Kill Two, Stars and Stripes Newspaper, Pacific Editions
26 Associated Press, (1963, July 13), Baseball Injuries Kill Five in 1963, Abilene
27 Associated Press, (1963, July 13), Baseball Fatalities Increase to Five, Frederick (MD) Post
28 Associated Press, (1963, July 13), Death Claims 2 Young Players Within 24 Hours, Pittsburgh
29 Associated Press, (1963, July 13), Baseball Fatalities Increase to Five, Frederick (MD) Post
30 Author not indicated, (1963, July 12), 11 Year-Old Boy Killed by Baseball, Kingsport (TN) Times
31 Author not indicated, (1963, July 12), Baseball Fatally Injures Youth, 10, Eureka (CA) Humboldt Standard
32 Author not indicated, (1963, July 15), Baseballer, 11, Fatally Injured, Nevada State Journal
33 Author not indicated, (1963, July 12), Little League Player Killed by Pitch, Times Record (Troy , NY
34 Author not indicated, (1964, June 10), Say Little Leaguer Was Killed by Ball, Providence (RI) Evening Bulletin
35 Author not indicated, (1964, June 10), Little Leaguer Collapses, Dies After Stealing Base, Providence (RI) Journal
36 Author not indicated, (1964, June 10), Say Little Leaguer Was Killed by Ball, Providence (RI) Evening Bulletin
37 IBID
38 Author not indicated, (1964, June 11), Little League Inc. Plans Death Probe, Providence (RI) Journal
39 ‘Hits and Runs…Bumps and Bruises: Health, Safety and Injury Prevention are the Keystones to Little League’, 2008, Little League International Communications Division publication
41 Consumer Product Safety Commission Death Certificate File, 1981
42 Arvack, K. and Duryea, B., (1990, March 20), Family, Ballplayers Struggle with Little Leaguer’s Death, St. Petersburg
43 Consumer Product Safety Commission Incident Investigation Report, 1986
44 McGreal, E., (1985, June 9), Child’s Death Raises Safety Questions, Suburban Trends (NJ)
45 Consumer Product Safety Commission Death Certificate File, 1987
46 Author not indicated, (1987, April 24), Little Leaguer Killed by Ball, News Record (North Hills , PA
47 Lynch, W., (1987, April 24), Little Leaguer Remembered by Community, Newburgh-Beacon (NY) Evening News
48 IBID
49 Associated Press, (1987, April 24), Boy, 8, Hit by Baseball Dies, Syracuse
50 Injuries in Little League Baseball from 1987 through 1996 Implications for Prevention. Mueller, F.O., Marshall, S.W. and Kirby, D.P., Physician and Sportsmedicine Journal; 2009; 29: 41-48.
51 Gephart, G., (2009, July 5), Little Leaguers Join in National Effort to Honor Boy Hit By Lightning, Star-Gazette (Elmira , NY
52 Mummolo, J., (2009, June 12), Lightning Victim's Team Gets Widespread Support, Washington
53 National Amateur Baseball Catastrophic Injury Surveillance Program Final Report 1989-1999 by USA Baseball Medical/Safety Advisory Committee, National Center for Catastrophic Injury Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill dated June 12, 2000
54 Author not indicated, (1990, March 20), Little Leaguer Dies, Times Daily (Florence , AL
55 Author not indicated, (1990, March 20), Little Leaguer Hit by Ball Dies, Miami (FL) Herald
56 Author not indicated, (1990, March 17), Baseball: Little Leaguer Hit in Chest with Ball Dies, Sun-Journal (Lewiston , ME
57 Author not indicated, (1990, March 17), Little Leaguer Dies From Impact of Pitch, The Telegraph (Nashua , NH
58 Arvack, K. and Duryea, B., (1990, March 20), Family, Ballplayers Struggle with Little Leaguer’s Death, St. Petersburg
59 IBID
60 Denney, M., (1991, July 20), Baseball Teams Opt for Safety Concerns About Injuries Addressed, Fort Wayne
61 Arvack, K. and Duryea, B., (1990, March 20), Family, Ballplayers Struggle with Little Leaguer’s Death, St. Petersburg
62 Author not indicated, (1990, April 20), Little League Decides Against Extra Protective Gear, Mohave Daily Miner (Kingman , AZ
63 Associated Press, (1990, March 21), Officials Probe Player’s Death, Ocala (FL) Star Banner
64 Associated Press, (1990, April 20), Death May Renew Call for Chest Protectors, Pittsburgh
65 Author not indicated, (1990, April 22), Alarm Bells Sounded, Nevada Herald (Nevada
66 Consumer Product Safety Commission Incident Report, 1990
67 Mummolo, J., (2009, June 12), Lightning Victim's Team Gets Widespread Support, The Washington
68 Consumer Product Safety Commission Death Certificate File and Reported Incidents Reports, 2000
69 Anderson, T. and Taule, C., (2006, May 26), Community Copes with Boy's Death 11-year-old Dies After Baseball Hits Him in the Throat, Idaho Falls Post-Register
70 Denney, M., (1991, July 20), Baseball Teams Opt for Safety Concerns About Injuries Addressed, Fort Wayne
71 Ovack, K. and Duryea, B., (1990, March 20), Family, ballplayers struggle with Little Leaguer's death, St. Petersburg (FL) Times
72 Little League President/CEO Stephen D. Keener’s testimony before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives’ Children and Youth Committee. Keener appeared before the Committee on Sept. 27, 2007, in Harrisburg
73 According to the Little League Inc. website, international membership of Little League baseball and softball was 2.1 million in 1987 and did not reach 2.5 million until 1991.
74 Yanarella, J. and Saltzman, J, (1987, April 24), Untitled, USA
75 ‘Hits and Runs…Bumps and Bruises: Health, Safety and Injury Prevention are the Keystones to Little League’, 2008, a Little League International Communications Division publication
76 Granberry, M., (1995, May 8), 'Safety' Ball Strikes Out in Laguna Niguel, Los Angeles
77 Gephart, G., (2009, July 5), Little Leaguers Join in National Effort to Honor Boy Hit By Lightning, Star-Gazette (Elmira , NY
78 Mummolo, J., (2009, June 12), Lightning Victim's Team Gets Widespread Support, Washington
79 Lance and Robin Van Auken, Play Ball: The Story of Little League Baseball (Pennsylvania
80 “Hits and Runs…Bumps and Bruises: Health, Safety and Injury Prevention are the Keystones to Little League”, 2008, Produced by the Little League International Communications Division
81 Yoo, I., (2004, July 1), Rare, Fatal Injury Baffles Science, Sports, USA
82 Author not indicated, (1990, April 20), Little League Officials at Odds with Statistics on Deaths of Players, St. Petersburg (FL) Times
83 IBID
84 IBID
85 LaPlaca, B., (2010, June 13), Back in the Day: Ball Kills Boy, Suburban Trends (NJ)
86 McGreal, E., (1985, June 9), Child’s Death Raises Safety Question, Suburban Trends (NJ)
87 Par Troy Little League Safety Manual ID # 230-01-15, 2009
88 Associated Press, (2008, May 17), Boy’s Baseball Injury Raises Bat Safety Questions, NBCSports.MSNBC.com
89 Fred Engh, Why Johnny Hates Sports (State: Square One Publishers, 2002), 183-4
90 Author not indicated,(1990, March 19), Boy Dies After Being Hit by Pitch, Los Angeles
91 Consumer Product Safety Commission Reported Incidents Report, 1990
92 Consumer Product Safety Commission Incident Investigation Report, 1994
93 Edelman, S., (1994, June 30), Danger on the Diamond, Bergen County
94 Consumer Product Safety Commission Incident Investigation Report, 1990
95 Consumer Product Safety Commission Incident Investigation Report and Reported Incidents Report, 1994
96 Gregg Korbon, M.D., Beyond Reason: Lessons from the Loss of a Gifted Child (IN: Iuniverse.com, 2009), 13-15, 24, 148-151
97 Santos , C., (1994, May 13), Littlest Ballplayer Remembered: Community Unites to Dedicate Renovated Field, Richmond
98 Author not indicated, (1993, May 9), Boy, 9, Dies of Heart Attack Playing Baseball, Roanoke
99 Ramos, D., (1997, June 6), Boy Dies After he is hit by Baseball, Times-Picayune (New Orleans , LA
100 Ramos, D., (1997, June 7), Few Baseball Injuries Put Life at Risk, Experts Say; Accidents Usually Occur in Practice, not in Games, Times-Picayune (New Orleans , LA
101 Author not indicated, (1997, July 6), Field to be Named for Boy who was Killed, Times-Picayune (New Orleans , LA
102 Author not indicated, (1998, June 18), A Pitch that Kills-Boy, 6, Among Victims Felled by Blow to Chest, Chicago (IL) Sun-Times
103 Author not indicated, (1998, June 20), ‘Concussion of Heart’ Study Related to Tragedy, The Pantagraph (Bloomington , IL
104 Consumer Product Safety Commission Reported Incidents Report, 1998
105 Consumer Product Safety Commission Incident Investigations Report, 1998
106 Author not indicated,(1998,June 9), Boy’s Brief Life Celebrated in Lexington , The Pantagraph (Bloomington , IL
107 Author not indicated, (1998, July 24), Cause of Boy’s June Death Ruled Concussion of Heart, The Pantagraph (Bloomington , IL
108 Ross Valley Little League (CA District 3) 2010 Safety Manual, Rossvalleylittleleague.org
109 Author not indicated, (2002, June 30), Berea Little Leaguer, 11, Collapses and Dies, The Plain Dealer (Cleveland , OH
110 Author not indicated (2002, July 1), 11-Year-Old Baseball Player Dies On Deck, Washington Post
111 Associated Press, (2002, July 1), Briefly in Sports, Topeka
112 Author not indicated, (2002, June 30), 11-Year-Old Dies After Collapsing at Ballgame, Newsnet5.com website
113 Author not indicated (2002, July 1), 11-Year-Old Baseball Player Dies On Deck, Washington Post
114 Author not indicated, (2002, July 1), (Meriden , CT
115 Associated Press, (2002, June 30), 11-Year-Old Dies after Collapsing at Ballgame, Newsnet5.com website
116 Author not indicated, (2002, June 30), Berea Little Leaguer, 11, Collapses and Dies, Plain Dealer (Cleveland , OH
117Author not indicated, (2002, June 30), Child Dies after Collapsing at Little League Game, WDIV-TV (Detroit , MI
118 Consumer Product Safety Commission records
119 Barnstable , Massachusetts
120 Little League online, Stephen D. Keener Biography
121 Winerip, M., (2007, April 22), A Son’s Death Inspires a Mission
122 Frazier, M., (2005, September 29), Angel in Infield, Merrick Boy, 9, with a Passion for Baseball Collapses at Practice After Rounding Bases; Cause of Death Unknown, Newsday (Long Island , NY
123 Weir, R., (2005, Sept. 29), Lil' League’s Big Tragedy Boy, 9, Dies at Practice, New York Daily News
124 Author not indicated, (2008, June 6), CNN Heroes, CNN.com
125 Merrick/North Merrick (NY) Little League team website, www.eteamz.com/MERRICKLITTLELEAGUE.com
126 Merrick Resident Jill Levine named “2009 New York
127 Little League safety newsletter, ASAP, Defibrillators can Save Lives, (2007, April), Vol. 14, No. 3
128 Louis J Acompora Memorial Foundation website, LA12.org
129 Consumer Product Safety Commission records
130 Author not indicated, (1962, June 16), Little Leaguer Dies, Inquest is Ordered, Bridgeport (CT) Post
131 Author not indicated, (1962, June 19), Little Leaguer Dies of Injury During Contest, Nevada State Journal
132 Author not indicated, (1962, June 15), Injuries Fatal to Little Leaguer Dies of Injury During Contest, Daily Intelligencer (Doylestown , PA
133 Author not indicated, (1963, May 19), Little League Player Killed, Delaware County Daily Times (Chester , PA
134 Author not indicated, (1963, May 18), Little Leaguer Fatally Injured, Indiana Evening Gazette, (Indiana
135 Author not indicated, (1963, May 18), Little League Player Fatally Injured in Game, Times Record (Troy , NY
136 Author not indicated, (1963, May 18), Little Leaguer Struck on Head, Dies of Injury, News Palladium (Benton Harbor , MI
137 Author not indicated, (1963, May 18), Youth Dies from Injury in Baseball, Mason City (IA) Globe Gazette
138 Author not indicated, (1963, July 20), Little Leaguer Dies After Game, New Castle (PA) News
139 Author not indicated, (1964, June 22), Little Leaguer’s Catch was his Final Action, Stars and Stripes newspaper
140 Author not indicated, (1964, June 22), Indiana Briefs, Vidette Messenger (Valparaiso , IN
141 Author not indicated, (1965, May 28), Little Leaguer Dies After Blow by Ball, The Victoria (TX) Advocate
142 Author not indicated, (1965, May 28), Youngster Dies After Being Hit by a Baseball, Post Crescent (Appleton , WI
143 Author not indicated, (1965, May 27), Little Leaguer Killed by Ball, El Paso (TX) Herald-Post
144 Author not indicated, (1965, May 28), Little Leaguer, 8, Hit by Fly Ball, Dies, Los Angeles
145 Author not indicated, (1966, June 5), Little Leaguer Dies Saturday, High Point (NC) Enterprise
146 Author not indicated, (1966, July 14), Little Leaguer Killed, Edwardsville (IL) Intelligencer
147 Author not indicated, (1966, July 15), Little Leaguer Killed, Southern Illinoisan (Carbondale , IL
148 Author not indicated,(1967, August 16), Little Leaguer Dies, Kingsport (TN) Times
149 Author not indicated, (1968, April 14), Little Leaguer Killed in Game, Daily Review (Hayward , CA
150 Author not indicated,(1968, April 15), Little Leaguer Dies After Practice Injury, Bridgeport (CT) Post
151 Author not indicated, (1968, April 14), Little League Ball Player, 9, is Killed, Modesto (CA) Bee and Herald-News
152 Huntley, D., (2008, July 28), Baseball Fans Gather up the Worst Bounces Ever, Charlotte (NC) Observer
153 Author not indicated, (1968, May 9), Little Leaguer Dies After Hit in Chest with Ball, El Paso (TX) Herald-Post
154 Author not indicated, (1968, May 9), Little Leaguer,10, Hit by Pop Fly, Dies, Los Angeles
155 Author not indicated, (1968, June 20), Little Leaguer Dies in Freak Mishap, Evansville
156 Korb, D. (1990,, July 14), New Award Will Honor the Memory of a Little Leaguer, Evansville
157 Associated Press, (1969, April 10), Death Claims Little Leaguer, Ocala
158 Author not indicated, (1969, April 10), Little Leaguer Dies on Mound, Corpus Christi (TX) Times
159 Author not indicated, (1970, April 12), Bizarre Bat Mishap Kills Boy, Daily Review (Hayward , CA
160 Author not indicated, (1970, May 19), Los Banos Little League is Hit by Baseball, Dies, Fresno (CA) Bee
161 Author not indicated, (1971, April 19), Little Leaguer Killed in Tryouts, Post-Register (Idaho Falls , ID
162 Author unknown, (1971, April 19), Foul Tip Kills Boy at Little League Field, Herald and News (Klamath Falls , OR
163 United Press International, (1971, May 20), Two Oregonians Die in Crash of Light Plane, Eugene
164 Gorman, R.M. and Weeks, D., (2008), Death at the Ballpark: A Comprehensive Study of Game-Related Fatalities, p.39
165 Author not indicated, (1971, June 18), Little Leaguer Hit by Baseball, Dies, Los Angeles
166 Author not indicated, (1971, June 18), Baseball Kills Youth, Daily Review (Hayward , CA
167 Walker , M., (2006, June 11), Wood Works for This League, Boston
168 Little League Inc. Press Release, (2007, March 23), Non-Wood Bats Statement, www.Littleleague.org
169 Little League President/CEO Stephen Keener’s testimony before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Children and Youth Committee. Keener appeared before the Committee on Sept. 27, 2007, in Harrisburg
170 Author not indicated, (1972, June 26), Baseball Kills Boy, Billings (MT) Gazette
171 Author not indicated, (1972, June 26), Boy Hit in Chest by Baseball, Dies, (Butte
172 Author not indicated, (1972, June 26), Boy Fatally Injured by Ball, Daily Inter Lake (Kalispell , MT
173 Walker , M., (2006, June 11), Wood Works for This League, Boston
174 Little League Inc. Press Release, (2007, March 23), Non-Wood Bats Statement, www.Littleleague.org
175 Little League President/CEO Stephen D. Keener’s testimony before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Children and Youth Committee. Keener appeared before the Committee on Sept. 27, 2007, in Harrisburg
176 Author not indicated, (1975, May 3), Little Leaguer Dies After Collision, St. Petersburg (FL) Times
177 Author not indicated, (1975, May 4), Freak Accident, Boca Raton (FL) News
178 Author not indicated, (1975, May 2), Little Leaguer Killed, Evening Independent (St. Petersburg , FL
179 Author not indicated, (1975, May 2), Baseball Injury Kills Boy, Ocala (FL) Star-Banner
180 Author not indicated, (1978, June 23), Death Takes Big Day from Little Leaguer, Chicago (IL) Tribune
181 Author not indicated, (1978, June 23), Little Leaguer Dies Playing the Game he Loved, The Ledge (Lakeland , FL
182 Author not indicated, (1978, June 22), Little League Player, 10, Killed by Ball, Chicago (IL) Tribune
183 Author not indicated, (1978, June 22), Little Leaguer Dies, Reading (PA) Eagle
184 Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Incident Investigation, 1981
185 Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Incident Investigation 1982
186 Myers, A., (2011, June 3), Ariz Little Leaguer Killed After Pitch Hit Chest, Sacramento
187 Pouliot, M., (2011, June 3), 13-Year-Old Dies After Being Hit By Pitch, NBCSports.com
188 Little League Communications Division, (2011, June 3), Little League International Mourns the Passing of Hayden Walton, Littleleague.org
189 Conner, S., (2011, June 8), Winslow Turns Out to Mourn Little Leaguer’s Tragic Death, Arizona Journal
190 Nowak, J., (2011, June 4), Little Leaguer Dies While Trying to Bunt,MLB.com
