Glasses for baseball

My 12 yr old needs a pair of glasses for baseball this year. Are
goggles the only option? Where can I find something other than goggles
for him in Seattle? Oakley? Please don't tell me, Go to Pearl, or
Lens Crafters.

JaKe
Seattle

dragonlady...

I'm not clear on the question here. Are you saying he needs corrective
lenses? Or that the baseball league requires him to wear safety goggles?

If it's just the safety goggles (no correction necessary) a sports store
is your best option.

If he requires corrective lenses AND safety goggles, they DO make safety

Jeff...

It sounded like you were recommending kids' glasses in place of sports
goggles.

My apologies for misinterpreting your comments.

Jeff

dragonlady...

In California, there is a requirement that children's glasses be made of
the safe stuff.

goggles that will fit OVER regular glasses, or he could get contacts to
wear with the regular safety goggles.

If it's just a case of needing corrective lenses, talk to the optician--
the stuff they use in kids' glasses these days is pretty amazing. I've
never used one of Lenscrafters or Pearl or any of the other chains --
for my own reasons, when the kids or I need glasses, we see an
opthomologist instead of an optomotrist, and the opthomologists I've
seen have all had opticians in their office as well. However, any good
optician will be able to tell you how to make sure your son has the
safest glasses.

(Opthomologist: an MD who specializes in the care of eyes.
Optomotrist: Someone who has received special training in fitting
corrective lenses.
Optician: someone who makes corrective lenses.)

You can find opticians who make corrective goggles -- including
corrective swim goggles, which I've considered getting for myself -- but
they tend to be pretty pricey, and since 12 yo's typically require new
perscriptions every 6 months to a year, I would only spend the money on
that for a child if I were wealthy enough for it to be a non-issue, or
if my child was so gifted that they were playing at a VERY high level.

Barbara...

Try a scuba or swim shop -- many have goggles with corrective lenses,
and are not unreasonably expensive. The prescription wouldn't be
exact, of course, but it would probably be better than plain goggles.

To the OP, I've only seen kids in the goggle-type sports glasses; I'm
not sure that anything else is widely available. If I were looking for
such a thing, I'd (i) ask coaches or league officials if they have any
sources; (ii) go to a shop that specializes in the particular sport ...
not a general sporting goods store ... for ideas; (iii) contact a few
opticians, including both chains and independents, for ideas. Remember
that what you're looking for is a back piece to hold the glasses on
during play, as well as safety features so the glasses won't break (and
of course not shatter) if hit by a ball.

Barbara...

Bad nettiquette to follow up my own post, but

Banty...

My son has a genetic eye problem that requires extra protection - when he was
taking Tae Kwon Do, he had prescription sports goggles for that activity. We
got them from a small independant optician associated with our opthamologist.