One day after a line drive that left the bat at 105 mph struck Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Jameson Taillon in the head, the teams athletic trainer said the point of impact was the logo on the back of Taillons cap.Ive been in baseball 18 years -- 10 in the majors -- and its the first time Ive seen a pitcher get hit in that particular place, Todd Tomczyk told ESPNs Outside the Lines on Wednesday.Milwaukees Hernan Perez hit the second-inning line drive that struck Taillon in the back of the head. The rkie right-hander stayed in the game, allowing only one run over six innings.Hes doing well today and were monitoring him, Tomczyk said.There were four barriers, Tomczyk said, that helped prevent a brain injury to Taillon: The cap itself, the logo, his hair and his skull.Every time a pitcher gets hit in the head by a line drive, the protection question arises. According to Tomczyk, the protective headwear Major League Baseball and the players association introduced in February would not have provided additional protection where Taillon was struck.?About two-dozen pitchers were given the MLB/MLBPA prototype in spring training, but none of them have decided to wear it in a game.Tomczyk said that in the spring all Pirates pitchers were encouraged to consider the MLB/MLBPA hybrid of a cap and helmet -- as it was described in February to Outside the Lines by MLB vice president Patrick Houlihan. The customized hats are about 0.7 inches thick and weigh 10 to 12 ounces, have a carbon fiber shell and roughly resemble sun visors with extended forehead and temple coverage, with single earflaps like batting helmets.Pirates righty Jared Hughes told Outside the Lines on Wednesday he likes the MLB/MLBPA prototype, but spring training wasnt enough time for him to get sufficiently used to it to wear it in games. He said he expects to work out with it extensively this offseason and will seriously consider wearing it next year.Hughes chin and cheek were grazed by a liner last August; he put his glove up in time to partially deflect?the drive. He said he never watches the video of that incident.Its just scary, Hughes said of the Taillon incident. You immediately start praying.Many pitchers have said the lk of any headwear product is an important factor in whether theyll wear it, but Hughes said that means zero to him. He said the prototype, developed by the California-based company Bmbang, was comfortable for him in spring training bullpen sessions and simulated games, but that he needs more time.It provides protection for the temple on the side you pitch from, so its a pretty smart thing, in my opinion, Hughes said. Im going to give it a fair, fair shot, and if I can get used to it, Ill wear it [in games] and maybe other guys will follow.Protective headwear is optional, and pitchers can wear any type they like, with or without league approval, as long as it doesnt interfere with play or violate licensing agreements. To date, the only other approved product was the bulky foam isoBLOX cap that was only worn in the majors by former Padres and Mets left-hander Alex Torres, who is now a minor leaguer.Houstons Collin McHugh wears a carbon fiber partial insert made by Safer Sports Technologies, whose CEO?said Wednesday that he or McHugh might contact Taillon about considering the product.Tomczyk said Taillon tried on the MLB/MLBPA helmet-cap in spring training, but unlike Hughes and teammates Juan Nicasio and Mark Melancon, he didnt wear it for any workouts.No current Pirates pitcher, Tomczyk said, is wearing any protective headwear.Contacted Wednesday by Outside the Lines, MLBs Houlihan said, We feel comfortable about where we ended up with the product. Its protective and lightweight, would get the job done [on batted balls that strike it] and we hope players consider it.Jason Adam Blue Jays Jersey . - NASCAR announced a 33-race schedule for the 2014 Nationwide Series with virtually no changes from this years slate. Jesse Barfield Blue Jays Jersey . That left plenty of energy for pitching bks and swatting away free agency questions. Anthony had 24 points and nine rebounds, and the Knicks avenged an embarrassing home loss with a rout of their own, beating the Boston Celtics 114-88 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory. https://www.cheapbluejays.com/ . Vettel, who has already clinched his fourth straight F1 title, enters the finale with a chance to equal Michael Schumachers 13 victories in a year and match the record of nine consecutive wins by Alberto Ascari in the 1952 and 1953 seasons. Billy McKinney Jersey . "Were just throwing s--- at the wall hoping something sticks," said Tortorella about the possible line combinations for Fridays game against Columbus. The Canucks have lost five straight games and six of their last seven, leaving them in a logjam in the Pacific Division, currently sitting fifth - gd for ninth in the Western Conference. Anthony Bass Blue Jays Jersey .C. -- Rodney Hd connected from all over the court while freshman Jabari Parker was busy swatting shots and scoring in transition.Ross Brawn believes it is entirely possible one team will dominate under next years rule changes in the same way Mercedes dominates under the current set of technical regulations.Mercedes has won 50 of the 58 races since the last major regulation change in 2014, with only Red Bull (five wins) and Ferrari (three wins) scoring victories in the same three-year period. The domination has its foundations in the work conducted under Brawns leadership ahead of the last regulation change, and the former team principal can see another team doing the same in 2017.I think there are definitely some positives to whats happening in 2017, he told ESPN in an exclusive interview. I think the reality is the longer you leave the regulations the same, the closer the teams get -- and you are starting to see that now. Mercedes is still winning but people are starting to nip at their heels and more time with the same regulations would make that even closer Im sure.When new regulations come, someone gets on top of them quicker than the rest and that was always what I tried to do, but that slope that comes flattens off and everyone else catches up. But what you may well see next year is somebody takes an interpretation of the regulations, gets ahead of the game and has a big advantage. I dont know who that might be, but you could easily see someone disappearing [ahead].Red Bull or Mercedes?Red Bull was one of the main instigators for change ahead of the drafting of the 2017 regulations and its expertise in aerodynamics have led to the belief it will excel next season. However, Brawn believes Mercedes is just as likely to find the key to 2017 success as Red Bull.Dont underestimate Mercedes, its a strong outfit and a gd car. There are four teams with Mercedes engines and only one that is winning, and there is a reason for that: its a gd team and a gd car. Dont underestimate what Mercedes can achieve. But Red Bull would have been one of the main protagonists behind this rule change, which is why I say that the political element is always there in Frmula One.ddddddddddddFaster cars but at what cost?Aside from one team dominating the sport, Brawn is also concerned about the impact it has on racing. The 2017 regulations should see lap times reduce by as much as five seconds per lap next season, but much of that lap time will be found through enhanced aerodynamics. At the start of the year, several F1 engineers raised concerns over the problems that could create for cars following one another and Brawn also has his doubts about the new regulations.What one hopes is that it improves the racing from the point of view that it is much more challenging for the drivers physically. To drive that car at maximum speed for 50, 60 or 70 laps is going to be very challenging for the drivers. Therefore, I think youll see more variation during a race of drivers fatiguing and losing performance -- that will be a positive element.Most of the performance gain -- there will be some gain from tyres -- but most of the performance gain appears to be from aerodynamic benefits and Im always a little bit nervous about that because of the relationship between the cars on the track.The more aerodynamic performance you create, the more sensitive you are to the wake of the car in front. Its not always the case, because the aerodynamics can be profiled and shaped and managed to reduce that impact, but inherently that is the case. So I hope these regulations arent going to impact the ability of these cars to race together.And they are going to be very quick! If everyone was saying the target was going to be three seconds per lap then you can guarantee it will be five seconds, because that is Formula One. In the calm of a meeting rm, everyone can agree to the changes that they think mean three seconds a lap, but once the engineers get stuck in after a year of two it will be five seconds a lap. So the cars are going to be very quick next year.Interview conducted by Jennie Gow ' ' '