Alarming Statistical Reminders of Baseball Fan Safety Risks Continue in 2024

As the MLB All-Star Game approaches next week, Foul Ball Safety Now is calling on Major League Baseball to take immediate actions to keep fans safe from dangerous foul balls and bats entering the stands, and questioning whether young fans belong in these ballparks at all.

As viewers of last year’s home run derby will recall, a young little leaguer was hit in the head by a line-drive while attempting to field balls during the contest.

“If anyone wonders whether MLB has wised up enough to keep little leaguers out of the line of fire of 100MPH line drives, recent fan injuries and close calls continue to display the league’s dangerous and cavalier attitude towards safety,” said Jordan Skopp. “The 2024 season has seen enough reminders that baseball is too dangerous and children don’t belong in the stands at all, let alone on the field.”

In recent days, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s bat flew over the net above the dugout in Seattle putting fans in harm’s way. Shohei Otani’s 27th season home run hit a young boy in the head on July 5, reminiscent of Giancarlo Stanton hitting a boy in the head with a 106MPH home run in August 2021.

Two teams with representatives in this year’s All-Star Game, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays, have each had multiple high-profile incidents involving fan injuries this season.

Last month, a woman was seriously injured by a 110MPH foul ball that struck her head at a Toronto Blue Jays game. On May 17, a Mookie Betts’ foul ball down the first base line struck a young boy in the eye.

“This dark stain on baseball dates back to at least 1970 when 14-year-old Alan Fish was killed at Dodgers Stadium. When will questions finally be addressed about young fans being injured in professional baseball facilities throughout America? Kids under 18 should not be allowed in the stands where 100MPH foul balls and home run bombs are dropping down on them,” Skopp said.

About Foul Ball Safety Now

Foul Ball Safety Now! is a campaign started by Jordan Skopp, a Brooklyn realtor, lifelong baseball fan, and author of a forthcoming book about the wildly overlooked scandal in the professional baseball industry – the all-too-frequent incidence of fans being maimed by dangerous foul balls due to the lack of extended protective netting, and related failures to educate fans about their assumed risk at the ballgame. For more information, visit Foul Ball Safety Now https://www.foulballsafetynow.com/