On Saturday night, Phillies shortstop Freddy Galvis hit a line drive foul ball into the stands at Citizens Bank Park. Sadly, the ball struck a young girl who was injured and taken to Children’s Hospital for treatment.
After the game, Galvis pleaded for the Phillies to expand protective netting so that it at least covers the fans behind the dugout. He said, “What year is this? 2016? It’s 2016 and fans keep getting hit by foul balls when you’re supposed to have a net to protect the fans.” He continued, “Safety first. Safety.”
Another fan was injured by a foul ball at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday, Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. It was near the same area as Saturday’s incident. According to Breen, Galvis threw his hands up in the air when he saw where the ball went.
As Breen details, the ball was headed towards a six-year-old girl, but her mother pushed her out of the way and took the bullet, metaphorically speaking. The mother, Erin Neyer, was taken to the first-aid station at Citizens Bank Park. Neyer suffered from swollen lips as well as cuts and contusions in her mouth. She would see a dentist on Monday, but only after first showing up at a job interview.
The Phillies have, unsurprisingly, not said anything about immediately extending the netting but one wonders if foul ball-related injuries on back-to-back days along with the public comments made by Galvis will be enough to convince the organization into action.