Okay, so the other day I was watching a baseball game, and I noticed something I’d seen a million times but never really thought about: those black stripes some players wear under their eyes. I was like, “Why do they do that? Is it, like, a fashion statement? Some kind of intimidation tactic?” So, I decided to do some digging.
My Little Investigation
First, I just stared at the TV for a while, watching different players. Some had it, some didn’t. It wasn’t all the guys, and it didn’t seem to matter what position they played. This wasn’t some mandatory uniform thing.
So then, I started looking all over the internet for any clue, any explanation I could find.
- I went through a bunch of sports websites.
- Read some articles that popped up on online.
- Even watched a couple of random YouTube videos about baseball stuff.
After I finish my research, I found out it’s called “eye black,” and it’s supposed to help with the sun. I mean, those stadium lights are BRIGHT, and during day games, the sun can be brutal. The idea is that the black stuff absorbs light, so it cuts down on glare. Like, instead of the sun bouncing off your cheekbones and into your eyes, the black stuff soaks it up.
It Makes sense. I’ve definitely been outside on a sunny day and had trouble seeing because of the glare. I can only imagine how much worse it is when you’re trying to track a tiny white ball flying at you at 90 miles per hour!
Putting it to the Test (Sort Of)
Now, I’m no baseball player.I get it. But I was curious. So, the next day, it was super sunny out, I grabbed some of my wife’s black eyeliner (don’t tell her!).I went outside and tried it. I smeared some under my eyes, just like the players.
Honestly, it was hard to tell if it made a huge difference. It maybe helped a little? I wasn’t squinting quite as much, but it wasn’t like I suddenly had superhero vision. And, It felt kind of weird, and I probably looked ridiculous.
My Final Thoughts
So, from my very unscientific experiment and my research, I can see why baseball players wear eye black. Does it turn them into glare-proof machines? Maybe not. But even a little bit of help when you’re playing at that level could make a difference. I guess if I were out there under those stadium lights, I’d probably give it a shot, too.
I still think some of them are just doing it to look cool, though. Just sayin’.
