History will show that the Texas Rangers defeated the Oakland Athletics 6-0 on July 7, 2011. An insignificant occurrence in the grand scheme of things if there ever was one because if nothing else, sports are a momentary distraction from the things that do matter in life.
But for one family and in particular, one son, this day from here on out will carry so much more significant. It began as so many other days do across our fair country, with a father taking his young son out to a ballgame, and ended with said young son leaving the ballpark alone, unsure of what just happened and a family wondering how they’re going to explain to him that his father is dead.
In the top of the second, A’s outfielder Conor Jackson hit a foul ball just like he has hundreds of times throughout the course of his career. The fan in question, who the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram has identified as Brownwood, Texas firefighter Shannon Stone was reportedly yelling at Rangers star outfielder Josh Hamilton from his perch in the left field bleachers to throw him a ball the same way many fans do during a game. It was by all accounts an everyday occurrence with an tragic outcome.
The video of the incident shows everything you need to know, and knowing the outcome makes it all the more cringeworthy. Stone leaned over the railing in left field with his son by his side. He catches the ball but appears to lose his balance, grasping at the left field wall and disappearing into a space between the seating area and the wall. The broadcast didn’t show Stone falling in real time, but as the camera is on a tight shot of Jackson, you can hear an audible groan. Fellow fans reportedly tried grabbing in vain after Stone to help prevent him from falling. He reportedly fell 20 feet to the ground below, maintaining consciousness and asking paramedics to look after his boy.
Stone’s death marks the second time a fan has fallen to his death at a ballgame this season. Back in late May, Robert Seamans was trying to slide down a staircase at Denver’s Coors Field when he lost his balance and fell 20 feet to his death. One fan dying at a ballgame is one fan too many, but the fact of the matter is that these kinds of things do happen over the course of a season.
Nobody in this situation is to blame for what happened, and here’s hoping Hamilton doesn’t hold himself responsible for Stone’s death. Hamilton was just doing what hundreds of players across the country do across the country every single day — reward a fan for spending his hard earned money on a ticket to a game with a memory for a dad and his son.
And while Stone’s son may never quite reconcile what happened tonight, hopefully he’ll understand that his dad died trying to put a smile on his face, that up until the very end he was looking out for his best interests.
Condolences from all of us here at Bloguin are with Stone’s family, especially his son, as well as the A’s pitchers who witnessed the fall from their bullpen perch and Hamilton himself, who must now be going through an untold amount of grief. And those of you who are able to, make sure you hug your father/son a little tighter while cherishing the moments each of you gave to make the other happy.
Author’s Note: ESPNDallas.com is reporting that Shannon Stone’s widow Jenny is asking the news media to stop showing videos of the incident out of respect to her son. The original version of this story had a link to a YouTube video showing footage of the incident. Out of respect to the Stone family, we have decided to remove the link from our report.
