Fans Call For MLB To Extend Netting Following Incident In Cubs Astros Game Wednesday Night
(CBS Local/CBS Chicago)- Wednesday night's game between the Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park took a scary turn in the fourth inning when a line drive foul ball off the bat of Cubs outfielder Albert Almora Jr. struck a young girl. Almora was visibly shaken after the incident, going and asking the security guard near the section about the girl after the inning ended.
Credit: Bob Levey/Getty Images
The incident ignited a conversation that has been circling around Major League Baseball over the past few years regarding fan safety. Should the league extend the protective netting even further down both baselines in order to protect fans from hard hit foul balls? The league did implement a new rule in 2018 that required teams to extend the netting to the end of the dugouts on both sides of the field of play, but several people, including Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant, think that it should be extended all the way to the foul pole.
Bryant and commentators weren't the only people voicing their concern last night. Fans from across the country took to Twitter after the incident to express their desire for the netting to be further expanded in order to protect fans.
The call for more netting isn't universal however as there were several fans that say the warnings on the tickets regarding the possibilities of balls and bats leaving the field of play should be enough.
There has been no statement as of this writing from the league regarding last night's incident, but the Houston Astros released the following:
