It was bound to happen one day – a fan sitting near the field up the first base or third base line would get injured by a bat flying into the stands, and it wouldn’t just be a bruise. That’s what happened at Fenway Park during Friday’s game between the Red Sox and Athletics, when a woman was hit by a Brett Lawrie broken bat in the first inning and suffered what were described as “life-threatening” injuries.
Via the Boston Globe…
A woman suffered life-threatening injuries after she was struck in the face by a broken bat that flew into the stands during the Red Sox game at Fenway Park Friday night, officials said.
The woman, who was not identified, was taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, according to Boston police spokeswoman Rachel McGuire. The victim was sitting with her husband and son at the time, McGuire said.
Police said the incident occurred at about 7:40 p.m. as the woman sat in the second row of the stands along the third base line.
A security guard who witnessed the accident said the woman suffered serious injuries to her face. A boy sitting near the woman was shaken up, according to the security guard.
This isn’t good at all. Hopefully, the fan pulls through without any long-term damage.
In the meantime, I think this will finally be the incident that causes MLB to mandate that ballparks do *something* with the netting behind the plate, likely extending the netting so it stretches above the dugouts. Doing that will likely annoy some fans and raise complaints about obstructing views or limiting access to players, but health and safety is paramount.
