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Charlie Neibergall / AP
Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton blames his blue eyes on some misses at bat.
Texas Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton is blaming his lousy daytime batting average -- less than a third of his nighttime average this season -- on his baby blues.
He claims his blue eyes are super-sensitive to sunlight.
I’m not sure I buy it. After all, Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr., he of the palest of pale blue eyes (be still, my heart) actually hit slightly better during the day over his career.
Dr. Calvin G. Eshbaugh, whose 13-year-old son worships Josh Hamilton, by the way, thinks there may be something to the claim.
“The deal is, if someone has less pigment in their iris, they could potentially be more sensitive to sunlight,” although not every blue-eyed person would be equally affected, says Eshbaugh, vice-chair of clinical affairs in ophthalmology at Scott & White Hospital in Temple, Texas. There are other factors involved in light sensitivity besides eye color, he says, such as the density of rods and cones — the light receptors — in your retina.
Matt Slocum / AP
Cal Ripken Jr. was one of the best ballplayers in history -- and had swoon-worthy pale blue eyes.
Maybe Ripken wasn’t as sensitive and benefited from what Eshbaugh calls the pinhole effect (remember making pinhole cameras in grade school?). Everybody sees better when they squint. Well, when you stand in bright sunlight, your pupil shrinks down to a pinhole.
We do have some suggestions that might help improve Hamilton’s performance on sunny days: Heard of sunglasses? What about that black stuff athletes like to smear under their eyes to reduce glare? A wide-brimmed batting helmet, perhaps?
Or maybe Hamilton could try to get traded to the Seattle Mariners.
Do you have blue eyes? Are they extra-sensitive to sunlight? Tell us your blues in the comments area.
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My two blue's and light skin looks just as these two players; both skin and eyes feel extremely sensitive to sun- and sometimes it's the worst on overcast days. Some days there is heavy tearing, without haze/smog present. Since I was a kid, had to keep a constant squint going and finally I've learned to wear the darkest driving shades possible from dawn until sunset, unless inside the house with curtains or shades partially down.
No doubt in my mind, this is a legitimate problem for some, and it's always amazing to me to see all the lucky folks who never seem to need to wear shades during the day and don't squint.
I have always thought that light colored eyes would be more light sensitive but I have suffered from migraines my whole life and only figured out a few years ago that my dark brown peepers are extremely light sensitive which is one of the things that triggered my migraines or made them worse. My eyes are also almost always very very moist, so much so that so-called water proof liners and mascara don't stand a chance. Go figure!
I haven't suffered migraines, but for my entire life I always wondered why I'd squint a lot in daylight where other people don't.
So, I don't buy that his eyes are blue that causes it, but I definitely believe that he can be fare more sensitive to bright light than average.
I am very sensitive to light and usually wear sun glasses and hats because of it. My eyes are brown.
Me, too ... 2 blues and pale skin, and very light-sensitive. Takin bilberry supplements has been very helpful, so much that if I miss taking them for 2-3 days, I'm fiercely squinting outdoors.
I have light green eyes and I've always been more light-sensitive than most other people. I have to wear sunglasses on bright days or I'm miserable, and prefer to wear them even on gray days.
So I think there could be something to what he's saying. You'd think an eye doc could come up with something that would help - tinted contacts? (It's probably not safe to wear sunglasses when someone is whipping a baseball toward you at 90 mph.
The eye doctors have already invented tinted contacts a long time ago. They are called Ultra Flex transitional and they have 100% uv protection.
I have fairly light blue/green eyes and they are supersensitive. Living here in the south-west, I wear very dark sun glasses over my transition lenses at all times. It's even worse when I'm tired or headachy. My husband also has blue eyes (actually lighter than mine), but his eyes are not half as sensitive. Be that as it may, I sympathize with Josh Hamilton. This sensitivity is nothing new; I read it years ago and am amazed anyone is surprised.
Ultraflex contact lenses, made by Cooper Vision, are transitional, yes, but those are multifocal lenses, for people with presbyopia. They are not transitional in the sense of becoming darker when you are in the bright light. Tinted lenses do not cover the whole eye (FDA rules), and contact lens wearers are advised and cautioned that they do not take the place of sunglasses.
Blue and green eyes are more sensitive to light and more prone to damage from light than darker colored eyes.
I do believe that brown eyes are better for a batter, having something to do with the number of rods and cones in the eyes.
Has he ever had brown eyes? Green eyes? Dark blue eyes? How does he know he is more light sensitive than other people? Maybe they deal with the sun better. Maybe he should try colored contacts.
Funny, my eyes are brown and I am very sensitive to light. Guess I'm an oddity.
I believe him and really it isn't just eye color. Different people are more sensitive to that just as they are to sunlight, sound, or other things due to various issues. I am brown-eyed (well, hazel really now as I get older since my green has shown up more...but still mostly brown) and my eyes are very sensitive to bright light. Not only does it hurt my eyes and make them water, but the bright spots from shiny objects or the lights stay for a long time so I can't see well until they clear. I always wear sunglasses driving out outside...not sure why the article had to have a snarky tone. Sure, it does sound like an excuse, and sunglasses are the obvious answer, but it is a big deal if you happen to be sensitive...only really dark glasses help me, too...not those lighter designer ones.
The statement fits the reality. Blue eyes on a Texan is one sure thing ,Most texans have brown eyes [due to being Full of C--P]. when you have one with blue eyes it just means the subject is a Quart low!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
my husband and 3 children all have blue eyes and tend to be a little more sensitive to sunlight...eye doctors have even told us that we need to make sure we have really good sunglasses because people with lighter colored eyes are more sensitive to light and are more prone to cataracts
I totally get it. I have dark brown eyes and they too are incredibly light sensitive. Unless I am wearing sunglasses, I absolutely cannot be out in any type of sunlight without be extremely uncomfortable. My fiance on the other hand has very light green eyes and he has no problem at all with bright sunshine. Let's maybe cut Josh some slack, everybody's different.
I have very green eyes and am extremely photophobic.....I use a 40 watt light bulb to read and even that is rather bright. Some people simply cannot handle light. Not sure it has anything to do with the eye color either as my one son has eyes that are almost black and he too is a photophobe! It is very painful indeed to deal with light when you have eye sensitivity to this level....
As Kyle pointed out, a lot of this is relative or about perception. That is, one man's sensitivity is another man's no issue. However, there exists an interesting way to shed more light on the subject :) A number of people have one blue and one brown eye. Some of their experiences might be relevant.
I have pale blue eyes and am very sensitive to sunlight. I can totally "see" where he is coming from. If I am out in sunlight in the summer time and come into the house, I am essentially blind for a few minutes and can only see black/grey and shadows. I will stumble into furniture. My oldest son, who has hazel eyes, seems to have inherited this light sensitivity. His is so bad that he has to wear sunglasses. He also sneezes when he looks at the sun. I have heard this is a gene carried by Germans. I am of German background. My husband is of Middle Eastern descent.
I agree with Josh Hamilton. My eyes are light to medium blue, and I can't even sit in a restaurant near a window or in my home under a skylight on a sunny day without sunglasses. I wear them all day and into the evening if there's any glare at all. My eyes are most vulnerable when there's snow on the ground because of the reflection. If I don't wear sunglasses, they often tear up, and sometimes I see "spots." I was told the spots are an ocular migraine and can be triggered by light. I think sunglasses can make it harder to see detail, so I don't know if this would work for Josh Hamilton.
My eye doctor said it's more common if your eyes are light to be sensitive, but persons with dark eyes can be also. All I know is that my eyes are somewhat light blue with yellow rings and the sunlight kills my eyes! If it's too bright out, my eyes will close on me without my permission, just like they say peoples eyes do in a house fire due to smoke etc. It hurts! So I believe him.
I have blue eyes and the sunlight bothers me. I have to have sunglasses especially if I will be out for a while. Sun reflecting of the snow has often made me have to pull my car over because I could not see and had tears going down my face. My hubby has brown eyes and has not issues with the sun like I do.
What's next; his skin was so white, the sun's reflection off of it blinded him?
My green eyed wife is always complaining about brightness and has to wear sunglasses most daylight hours. I have brown eyes and never wear them.
My husband has pale blue eyes, and he cannot go outside without sunglasses- even on cloudy days. I have green eyes and hardly ever wear sunglasses. My husband had a brain tumor when he was 18, so that may have something to do with his sensitivity. I don't think it has to do with eye color. I think it's the size of the pupil and the number of rods and cones.
Some people have more sensitivity to sunlight than others - it doesn't matter what color their eyes are. Baseball players have hats with brims and sunglasses, even the batting helmets have pretty generous brims. There's also the eye black that football players use to cut glare.
It sounds like this player is looking to blame something other than his skills for not getting the stats he should.
I have light blue eyes. I can barely go outside without sun glasses on. 75% of the pictures of me outside show me squinting. In my case its part light sensitivity and part allergies (that further increase light sensitivity to painful levels)
I have hazel (pale green) eyes. When I wore contact lenses, it seemed to make me extremely sensitive. I've always been a fan of sunglasses and wore them when playing men's slow-pitch softball when I played the outfield, but not when playing 1st base or catcher.
I have blue eyes and am pretty sensitive to light too. Sunglasses all the time, especially on gray days which can seem brighter. On a side note, the natural eye color for humans is brown. Anyone with any other eye color has inherited a genetic mutation from 10's of 1,000's of years ago. Pretty interesting!
I have dark brown eyes and any bright light is painful so I asked my ophthamalogist who looked in and then explained that I have a couple of things going on. One is that my pupils are a little bigger than average and let in more light than usual, not a lot but enough. Also she said I probably have more rods than average, not freakishly but a tad more. The combination of the two gives me really great vision in the dark or low light but makes me sensitive to bright lights which is why I hate, hate, hate driving at night because of the headlights from other cars... she did say I could wear sunglasses at night.
But none of that has any correlation with my eye color.
Man you sound like me! I should ask my eye doc. I too HATE driving at night its torture.
I too have blue eyes and am very sensitive to light. My ophthalmologist told me years ago, after testing my eyes, that my eyes stay overly dilated. Even in sunlight, my eyes stay more dilated than they should. Therefore I had to wear soft contact lenses - could not wear hard lenses because at that time, the hard lenses were too small and would not cover my pupils when I was in bright light. As for night driving, I found that the sun glasses that have yellow lenses are good for night driving. They cut the glare, but are not so dark that it is hard to see if there are not a lot of cars. I do believe him and it may not be an easy fix considering his profession. I would think some enterprising doctor would come up with a solution.
I cannot speak for others, but I have very light blue eyes and have difficulty playing tennis on bright days. I play much better at night under the lights. I see the ball better, perhaps because I am not squinting so hard. Sunglasses do not seem to help. I don't suppose this proves anything, but I'm just putting my two cents in for the sake of discussion.
Sun solution: I wear dark brown contacts over my pale green eyes when playing tennis. Sunglasses just don't work when playing tennis!