I went to a baseball game and a football game broke out?

Interesting article in today's NY Times about Mets'player Ryan Church, who has sustained two concussions this year, the most recent one 8 days ago. It appears he has been "cleared to play" by the trainers/medical staff, even though he is still experiencing symptoms such as dizziness, lethargy and headaches. Church has played since the concussion, going 1-4 as a pinch-hitter, but the manager and GM appear to have no idea how to manage a concussed player (citing CT and MRI results, which are negative in Mild TBI, and relying solely on subjective reports by the concussed player):

Minaya emphasized that a CT scan of Church the night of his injury showed no damage, and that a magnetic resonance imaging test Tuesday was also negative. Minaya and Manager Willie Randolph said the club had relied principally upon Church’s reports to trainers about how he felt before each game, and sometimes during it, in deciding if he was available to play.

“It’s his call,” Randolph said. He added: “He’s been feeling a little bit groggy, and most of what he feels is that uneasiness with his total, you know, mind. It’s kind of weird because he feels like he’s kind of foggy. He says he can hit, he can do that. But in the outfield, he’s unstable out there.” Randolph added: “When you’re talking about head injuries, I’m pretty lame on that. I don’t even know how to respond to, you know, when we can put him out there.”

Before almost every game, he has told reporters of symptoms. At one point he said, “I’m just sick of feeling like this.”

Further, The GM does not understand concussion testing, calling a 30-minute test "time consuming":

The Mets began having players take baseline neuropsychological tests in spring training so that they could be tested against them after an injury; however, Church did not take a test, Minaya said, because of time restrictions.

“My understanding is that it’s a long test,” he said. “If I’m not mistaken, it’s about a half-hour or more.”

Concussion experts commented on the case:

Dr. Mickey Collins: "That’s a situation that could be very dangerous... I haven’t examined this player personally, but if there were a second trauma to a person still experiencing symptoms, the risk could be much higher to a player’s health because he hasn’t healed from the first concussion."

Dr. Robert Cantu: "You’re playing roulette with your patient. You know the chances of him having another concussion are low, but you’re running the risk of exacerbating the symptoms that he does have. Now a person who would be asymptomatic in a week or two can have those symptoms go on for many months."

Perhaps most relevant is the comment of Corey Koskie of the Brewers who sustained a concussion in 2006, experienced prolonged symptoms, and eventually had to retire:

"That’s pretty much the reason I’m here today (retired) — thinking I could play through it... I think he’s nuts. He doesn’t want to get to the point where he’s not going to get better. Tell him to call me. It’s not worth it."