Millions of kids everywhere take part in youth baseball leagues every year. It is a rite of passage for many kids to come up through the youth leagues and learn America’s pass time. Baseball is usually considered a safe sport, but like any other sport, injuries can happen and having a first aid kit at practices and games is important for player safety. What items should be in youth baseball first aid kit? If you want to be prepared for some of the most common baseball injuries, here is a basic list of items you will want to be sure are included in your first aid kit.
Ice Packs
Ice packs are an essential part of any first aid kit, and they are never more important than they are in a baseball first aid kit, since they help alleviate muscle pain and inflammation. Many baseball injuries are from over use, like pitcher’s elbow or rotator cuff injuries. Applying ice to an injury will help to reduce swelling and to allow the athlete to recover faster. Icing a sore arm can help to avoid long term affects from prolonged overuse. It is easy to go through cold packs quickly, so check out the case-of-80 to refill your first aid kit.
Trainers Tape
Tape has many great first aid uses (and some non-first aid uses, hello spare shoelace) that can help athletes to stay on the field. It can be used to tape a sprained ankle, or to hold gauze on an injury. Trainers tape is one of the most versatile tools for a coach, and it should be in all youth baseball first aid kits.
Small Bandages
All children will end up with cuts and scrapes, so being sure to have an assortment of basic bandages will help you to be ready for anything. Skinned knees and small cuts are common in baseball, so having different sizes for different situations allows you to protect an small cut or scrape from dirt that can cause an infection.
Antiseptics
Any kit that is designed to treat injuries from baseball should have antiseptics of some kind. One of the most common injuries is brush burn from sliding into a base with shorts on. Players may get an open wound from sliding and there will definitely be dirt in the cut. You must use an antiseptic wash to clean put all the dirt to avoid infection. A good antiseptic is Saline Wound Wash.
Concussions
Concussions are a common sports injury and they can happen if a player is hit in the head with a ball, bat or even kicked during a slide. Possible concussions are dangerous and must be treated carefully. While there aren’t necessarily always outward symptoms, but they an be dangerous. If a player sustains a head injury, they should be removed from play until they are cleared from any possibility of a concussion. For more information, see our post on how to recognize and treat a concussion.
