Father of young girl hit by 105-mph foul ball at Yankee Stadium: ‘She’s doing all right’
A young girl was hospitalized after being hit in the face by a 105-mph foul ball Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium.
The child’s father spoke with reporters briefly at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center later that night.
“She’s doing all right,” he told WABC-NY. “Just keep her in your thoughts.”
When asked if his daughter would require surgery, the man, who declined to give his name, said, “It’s too early to tell.”
Following the game against the Minnesota Twins, Yankees Manager Joe Girardi told reporters that members of the team’s security staff had informed him that the girl was doing all right.
The Yankees said in a statement that, because of federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, the only information they could release about the girl is that she received first aid at the stadium and was taken to a hospital.
The foul ball came off the bat of Yankees third baseman Todd Frazier during the fifth inning. He was one of several players visibly upset during the ensuing four-minute delay of the game.
“It was terrible,” said Frazier, who has two children under age 3. “I was shaken up a little bit. I hope she is all right. It is something that I wish never happened. It was tough. Tough to watch. Tough to be a part of, to be honest.”
Twins second baseman Brian Dozier and the Yankees’ Matt Holliday were in tears at second base before play resumed.
The girl and her grandfather were in lower-level seats behind the third-base line, just beyond the far side of the dugout. The protective netting at the stadium only extends between the home plate sides of the dugouts, although the Yankees said in a statement last month that they “are seriously exploring extending the netting prior to the 2018 season.”
After Wednesday’s incident, some players said the time for such a move has come.
“Either, one, you don’t bring kids down there, or No. 2, every stadium needs to have nets,” Dozier said. “That’s it. I don’t care about the damn view of a fan or what. It’s all about safety.”
Yankees slugger Aaron Judge said of extended netting: “We need it.”
Twitter: @chewkiii
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