Softball Face Masks - Should They Be Mandatory?

For the last few years, the use of facial protection by both batters and defensive players have become more and more prevalent, especially at youth level.

Some organizations, and it is a good thing in my opinion, now make face protection on batting helmets mandatory.  You also see more and more pitchers and corners using face mask  like Game Face shown on  the picture.

The evolution of technology (better bats, balls with more pop) along with players constantly getting better have made this game even more dangerous. So, in my opinion, facial protection should be mandatory at the youth level (14U-16U and lower).

Here is an article about an accident that happened in the last few days where facial protection would have been useful:

Need for Fastpitch Softball Face Masks