This week the baseball community is mourning the suicide of Cincinnati Reds utility man Ryan Freel who was found dead in his apartment. His suicide brings up questions of the more than 10 concussions he sustained throughout his career and if these brain injuries may have contributed to him taking his own life.

Freel, who was 36, was a popular player due to his reckless style. Fans loved his no fear attitude toward the game, but it may have led to his death.

There has been no official cause of death or whether the baseball player was suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which is a degenerative brain disease caused by repeated head injury. With his death, more focus will be put upon the long-term effects of head injury.

The Sports Legacy Institute is conducting a lot of research about the disease. It is difficult to identify if concussions are the sole or even the main cause of suicide. What they have found is that "the brain degeneration is associated with memory loss, confusion, impaired judgment, paranoia, impulse control problems, aggression, depression, and progressive dementia."

The focus has been on football players rather than baseball players, but the similarities are that concussions are happening to the athletes playing these sports. People who are involved in a variety of sports can face concussions and the degenerative brain disease that seems to develop later in life from multiple concussions.

The best advice is to wear protective gear and if you suspect that you have sustained a concussion, take the steps needed to make sure that your brain has time to heal.

Source: Bleacher Report, "Ryan Freel: Tragic Death Reminder That Head Injuries Are Danger to All Athletes," Ben Chodos, Dec. 24, 2012