Baseball is a traditional, all-American sport— but even though the game is rooted in our history, it appears the rules may require some modernization.
A little girl was hospitalized as a result of being hit in the face by a line drive foul ball that entered the stands during a New York Yankees game against the Minnesota Twins on September 20th, 2017.
The ball was hit by Todd Frazier, a Yankees baseman, and is reported to have been going 105 miles per hour.
As it made its way to the stands, players and spectators were horrified.
CBS Pittsburgh describes the scene, saying, “A shaken Frazier crouched with his hands over his face. The Yankees third basemen then bowed his head, walked away from the plate, crouched again and rested his head on the end of his bat.”
You can see their reactions for yourself in the video below:
Little girl hit by a line drive at #Yankees game. Todd Frazier looked really shaken up by the incident. Scary moments pic.twitter.com/1vJ5lZmYg4
— MadPicks.com (@MadpicksCrew) September 20, 2017
Frazier seems to feel incredibly guilty for being the one to have hit the ball.
With tears in his eyes, he tells CBS Pittsburgh, “I know the dad or whoever it was that was with them was trying their hardest [to protect the girl], but the ball’s coming at 120 miles an hour at them… So it’s like if you’ve never seen a ball like that, which most people in the world haven’t, it’s very tough.”
“I thought of my kids. I have two kids under 3 years old, and I just hope she’s alright.”
Frazier, not being able to get the event off his mind, even took to Twitter, writing: “I’ll be thinking about her everyday n her family. Please keep this beautiful girl in ur prayers 2nite.”
2day was tuff watching that little girl.I’ll be thinkin about her everyday n her family. Please keep this beautiful girl in ur prayers 2nite
— Todd Frazier (@FlavaFraz21) September 21, 2017
Luckily, two days later, on September 22nd, the little girl’s father updated the media, saying that she had been in and out of the hospital for the past 2 days.
“She’s stable,” he said. “It’s going to be a long process.”
The little girl’s injuries have urged people to demand the Major Baseball League enforce extended protective netting for the stands.
Although extended protective netting was recommended by the Major Baseball League 2 years ago, it has essentially been up to each individual stadium to comply.
Attorney Jack Herskowitz tells CBS Pittsburgh, “There are more fans injured in the stands than there are batters hit in the batter’s box in a given year.”
New York City Councilman Rafael L. Espinal Jr. actually proposed extended netting legislation in May; however the hearing is scheduled for October 25th, 2017.
Espinal says, “No one should ever go to a baseball game and leave severely injured. Nor should any player have to feel the guilt associated with injuring a fan, especially when that injury could have been prevented by safety nets.”
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