HOUSTON -- Humberto Quintero's return from the disabled list following a concussion also ushered in a change for the Astros catcher.

After he was hit in the head by a bat on July 1, Quintero now wears a hockey-style mask mask -- the same one worn by teammate Brad Ausmus behind the plate.

Quintero formerly wore the traditional helmet-and-face-mask combination that featured a wire cage across the face with straps wrapped around the back of the head. But since then-Dodger Luis Maza's follow-through clocked him across the left side of his head, just above the forehead, Quintero wanted a bit more protection.

He is now using Ausmus's backup mask and added even more cushioning to the top of the helmet.

"It feels better, like it's got more safe stuff for my head," Quintero said. "The other [mask] moved around a lot."

The hockey-style mask, which is modeled after those used by the NHL, stays on the catcher's head all the time, even for pop-ups. The old style has to be flipped off the head in order to catch a popups.

Ausmus said he began using his in 1997, the year after he saw former Blue Jays catcher Charlie O'Brien sporting the new design.

"I liked the protection, and quite frankly, it's more practical," Ausmus said. "You don't have to take it off all the time for popups. The lines of sight are a lot better. It's very practical. I think it provides protection for the entire head, rather than just the front. The mask-and-helmet combination leaves the sides of your head open."

Although Ausmus has never suffered a concussion due to a bat or ball, he has had one from a collision at the plate. He said he's been hit by bats and balls before, but has tried to be aware with how he felt afterward.

Astros hitting coach Sean Berry said Maza's bat was going approximately 31 mph, or 45 feet per second, when it made contact with Quintero, who said he does not remember what happened immediately after he was hit.

Manager Cecil Cooper talked to Quintero while he waiting for an ambulance and asked him if he knew where he was and who was around him. But when he talked to him the next day, Quintero could not tell him anything following the concussion.

"I tried to look for the ball, and then I was gone," he said. "When I woke up everybody asked what happened, and I said, 'I don't remember nothing.' I got scared because I never came out of a game like that. No matter what, I played."

Quintero said he was worried he would never play again, something that had happened to one of his former teammates.

"It's weird for me -- it's scary," he said. "That was my career. If something happened to my head, I could not play anymore."

Quintero was placed on the 15-day DL the next day after he woke up with dizziness and a headache. Because of those symptoms, which lasted several days, doctors had to clear Quintero before he could play again.

He made two rehabilitation starts at Double-A Corpus Christi before returning to the Astros' lineup on Tuesday. He said he's fine now, although he is still a little shaky behind the plate.

"I'm scared a little bit, because I don't want to get hit," he said. "I go back [further behind the plate] a little bit more now. But I feel fine now -- I'm not scared anymore."