D-Wright wears new helmet for safety, everyone laughs anyway

Holy helmets, Batman! We think that's David Wright(notes) sporting the new safety-conscious Rawlings S100 that we were telling you about earlier this week. Hey Dave? You in there? Hello?

Oh we kid, we kid. Wright, of course, was wearing the new helmet on Tuesday night in Colorado because of the concussion he suffered after being hit in the head by a Matt Cain fastball on Aug. 15. The new helmet contains extra padding, which gives it the odd bulky look that players have previously publicly complained about and Rawlings says it allows the player's noggin to withstand a pitch of up to 100 miles per hour.

Of course, It also made Wright the object of undeserved ridicule from his fellow players, like he was a Little Leaguer wearing Rec-Specs or something.

From MLB.com:

The new helmet has also predictably received its share of laughs in the blogosphere, where it has spawned a new line of "David Wright's helmet is s-o-o-o-o big, it ..." jokes.

Elsewhere, one Phillies fan said he couldn't wait to view it from a satellite, another wondered how it'd fit Barry Bonds' huge head and everyone on the Internet made the following comparison between Wright and two fictional characters that were all about head safety :

We can all laugh it up right now, but the truth is that we're also going to have to get used to it sooner or later. Wearing a S100 will be mandatory in the minor leagues in 2010 and we could see them required in the majors after that if all goes well.

As the first high-profile player to wear the lid, Wright says he plans to continue donning one, but he also thinks a few changes might be necessary. It slipped down on his head while he was running the bases and then flew off completely as he slid into a base.

If only the Mets' pizza patch or giveaway t-shirts were this utilitarian.