Durbin, Duckworth Push MLB To Expand Protective Netting In All Ballparks
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Illinois U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin are urging Major League Baseball to expand protective netting at all 30 major league ballparks.
The Chicago White Sox have already decided to extend netting all the way down to the foul poles later this season. Currently, netting at MLB parks extends to the end of the dugouts.
A toddler hit by a foul ball during a Chicago Cubs-Houston Astros game in Houston last month suffered a skull fracture.
A law firm representing the family said the two-year-old girl was sitting a few rows from the field when she was hit by Albert Almora's foul ball.
Besides the fracture, she also had bleeding in her head and brain swelling.
"Clearly, more needs to be done to put the safety of fans first," wrote Durbin and Duckworth. "Players are hitting balls with a velocity of more than 100 miles per hour onto the field and into the seated areas. A Bloomberg analysis found nearly 1,800 people annually have suffered foul ball-related injuries while attending games. Extended netting could help prevent many of these injuries."
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A Chicago White Sox fan was also hit by a foul ball earlier this month. The woman, who was sitting several rows from the field, was bleeding from her head, but was alert. A White Sox spokesman said she was conscious and coherent when she was taken to the hospital to be evaluated.
The Washington Nationals also have announced an extension of the protective netting to the right and left field corners, and the Texas Rangers' new stadium will have this feature.