CPSC Warns Against Unguarded Automatic Baseball Pitching Machines
The CPSC warns that unguarded automatic baseball pitching machines can fire unexpectedly, causing severe injuries. Consumers should lock these machines away and disconnect the pitching arm cable.
What this means for you
Illness, injury, or structural failure has been reported. Stop using the product immediately and contact the manufacturer for a refund or repair.
Our severity reasoning: The source text explicitly reports numerous serious injuries, including paralysis, skull fractures, and brain damage, which aligns with the rubric criterion for 'significant injury reports' under the Severe category.
Plain-English summary
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued a warning regarding certain unguarded automatic baseball pitching machines. The Commission considers these machines extremely hazardous because the unguarded, rotating metal pitching arm can go off suddenly without warning, striking persons standing in its path. This hazard exists even when the machines are unplugged or turned off, particularly if the pitching arm is cocked in the approximately "10 o'clock position" and the machine is jarred or subjected to vibration.
The Commission has received numerous reports of serious injuries resulting from being hit by the pitching arm, including paralysis, skull fractures, brain damage, loss of sight, and broken bones. One reported incident involved a nine-year-old boy who was left a permanent paraplegic after being hit in the head. Injuries have occurred on school grounds, in city parks, and at private homes, affecting baseball coaches, high school students, Little League instructors, and small children.
Approximately 7,500 of these machines were manufactured between 1956 and 1975 and distributed nationwide. They were sold to schools, recreational organizations, and individuals under various brand names, including Olympia, Olympic, Champ, Blazer, Super Blazer, Pro-Blazer, Range Blazer, Range, Master, Mentor, Pro-Trainer, and Professional. The CPSC advises anyone possessing these machines to place them in a locked storage area where unwary persons will not have access. Before locking the machine, the pitching arm cable should be carefully disconnected from the coil spring. The Commission has filed a lawsuit seeking to compel manufacturers and distributors to provide a guard for the pitching arm at no cost to the purchaser.
The recalled product
- Product
- Blazer automatic baseball pitching machines
- Manufacturer
- Professional
Distribution
Distributed nationwide across the United States.
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