Keeping a Colorful Eye on the Ball

At the Jewish Community Center in North Miami Beach, professional football and baseball players from all over the country come to train with Pete Bommarito.

He works with them on speed and strength. But some athletes are turning to colored contact lenses called Sports Tints to give them an edge.

NFL wide receiver Jason Hill is a believer. He has played with the San Fransisco 49ers and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“It made a huge difference for me personally. I felt like a new player out there," Hill said. "The grass was greener, everything was brighter more vivid."

The lenses come in several hues. The color used depends on the sport. Football players usually wear blue, golfers gray-green, and baseball players amber.

Ophthalmologist Linda Kaplan fitted 20-year-old Max Pomeranz with amber contacts to help with his baseball game.

“When I’m batting and looking at the pitcher trying to see what pitch is thrown I want to be able to read the seams coming off the pitcher's hands,” Pomeranz said.

Dr. Kaplan explained that the red seams on the baseball stand up when you're wearing the amber lenses.

Right now Bommarito is focusing on the physical, but is looking into the possibility of using visual aids to enhance performance.

“Vision training has definitely come into the forefront," he said. "I couldn’t speak in terms of brand because we are still in the evaluation process."

Bommarito adds that he has ordered some Nike Vapor Strobe Eyeglasses, which are supposed to increase reaction times, to test out.

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