throat guard
{{See also|Neck guard}}
File:Bautista_and_Pena_get_into_an_argument_after_a_play_at_the_plate._(9188259614).jpg
A throat guard is a piece of protective equipment worn in various sports, including baseball, ice hockey, and lacrosse. Throat guards can be made of metal, leather, and/or plastic, and may be built in to a mask or attached separately.
The guard was invented in 1976 by Los Angeles Dodgers trainer Bill Buhler after catcher Steve Yeager was impaled in the throat by pieces of a broken bat. It was designed to hang from the bottom of the catcher's mask and protect against foul balls.{{cite web |last1=Bush |first1=Frederick C. |title=September 6, 1976: Dodgers' Steve Yeager suffers near-fatal on-field accident |url=https://sabr.org/gamesproj/game/september-6-1976-dodgers-steve-yeager-suffers-near-fatal-on-field-accident/ |website=Society for American Baseball Research |access-date=16 February 2023}} This guard was compared to a goat's beard.{{cite book |last1=Dickson |first1=Paul |title=The Dickson Baseball Dictionary |date=13 June 2011 |publisher=W. W. Norton |isbn=9780393073492 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ceeU7xSLw5kC |access-date=16 February 2023|edition=Third }}
The guard is now required in numerous youth and amateur baseball leagues, including Little League. The NCAA requires it for baseball and softball.{{cite book |last1=Anderson |first1=Marcia |last2=Barnum |first2=Mary |title=Foundations of Athletic Training: Prevention, Assessment, and Management |date=17 May 2021 |publisher=Wolters Kluwer Health |isbn=9781975161392 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CvwuEAAAQBAJ |access-date=16 February 2023}} Numerous umpires across the world opt to use the guard as well.