NEW YORK (AP) — A fan fell off the 21-foot-high Clemente Wall at Pittsburgh’s PNC Park on Wednesday night, prompting recollections of past incidents at major league stadiums where spectators have tragically lost their lives in similar falls. Kavan Markwood remained in critical condition as of Thursday after tumbling onto the warning track in right field just as Pirates’ Andrew McCutchen hit a two-run double in the seventh inning, giving Pittsburgh a 4-3 lead. Markwood received medical attention for about five minutes from the Pirates and Cubs training staffs, as well as PNC personnel, before being carted off the field and taken to Allegheny General Hospital’s trauma center. Pittsburgh Public Safety, including Pittsburgh Police and EMS, confirmed on Thursday that the incident is being treated as accidental.
Fatal falls have occurred at ballparks in Arlington, Texas, in 2011 and Atlanta in 2015. Safety measures implemented by MLB and its teams include:
Ballpark railings: Railing heights are determined by individual teams based on local laws and codes. The railing along the Clemente Wall stands at three feet (36 inches) in height, exceeding the required building code of 26 inches, according to Pirates VP Brian Warecki. Rail heights have been scrutinized at other ballparks following tragic incidents. The Rangers increased the front row railings’ height by up to 12 inches to 42 inches in 2011 after a fan fell about 20 feet. The Atlanta Braves settled a lawsuit in 2018 following the death of a fan who fell over a 30-inch rail at Turner Field.
Foul ball netting: MLB urged teams to extend netting or screens from dugout-to-dugout behind home plate in 2015 after multiple incidents of fans being hit by foul balls. By 2018, all 30 ballparks had netting that reached to the far ends of each dugout. In response to a 2019 incident where a 2-year-old girl was injured by a foul ball at the Houston Astros’ stadium, MLB announced expanded netting in 2020. Seven teams extended netting to the foul poles, while 15 others increased coverage generally to where the stands angle away from the field.
Alcohol sales: While MLB doesn’t mandate alcohol sales cutoffs, most teams traditionally stop serving alcohol around the end of the seventh inning. Some clubs extended alcohol sales to the end of the eighth inning in 2023 before reverting to the seventh-inning cutoff following changes aimed at shortening game times.
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