A's Fan Sues MLB Over Seating Unprotected From Foul Balls, Broken Bats

An Oakland A’s fan, saying that she fears for her family’s safety, has sued Major League Baseball in federal court in Oakland in a bid to force the organization to require more safety netting to protect spectators from foul balls and shards of broken bats.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court on Monday by Gail Payne of Oakland, described in the suit as a “devout fan” of the A’s who has season tickets at the Coliseum in an area along the first-base line that is not protected by nets.

Payne says in the lawsuit that she hasn’t been hit by a foul ball, but “is constantly ducking and weaving to avoid getting hit by foul balls and shattered bats” and fears for the safety of herself, her husband and their daughter. The lawsuit seeks to be certified by a judge as a class action on behalf of all MLB spectators who have season tickets for seats located in an unprotected area between home plate and the right and left foul poles.

The lawsuit estimates the class would number in the hundreds.

It asks for an injunction requiring the MLB to mandate that all major and minor league ballparks must extend protective netting from foul pole to foul pole by the beginning of the 2016-2017 season.

About 1,750 spectators are injured at MLB games each year, according to the lawsuit, which names New York-based MLB and Commissioner Rob Manfred as defendants.

The suit says the risk of injury to spectators has increased in recent years because of greater velocity of pitches, the use of maple bats that break into shrapnel-like pieces when shattered, and distractions from electronic devices.

“Every year, a growing number of fans, of all ages but often children, suffer often horrific and preventable injuries, such as blindness, skull fractures, severe concussions, and brain hemorrhages, when they are struck by a screaming foul ball or flying shrapnel from a shattered bat while sitting in an unprotected area,” the lawsuit says.

The amount of netting provided currently varies among ballparks, and the MLB has no standard rule, according to the lawsuit. In Oakland, the Coliseum has netting that extends only just beyond home plate, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit includes claims against the MLB and Manfred of negligence in failing to set a standard rule, fraudulent concealment of information about risks, and engaging in an unfair business practice.

MLB issued a statement saying, “Fan safety is our foremost goal for all those who choose to support our game by visiting our ballparks, and we always strive for that experience to be safe and fan-friendly.

“Major League Baseball is in the process of re-evaluating all issues pertaining to fan safety, comfort and expectations. We are discussing these issues with the clubs and the Major League Baseball Players Association also could become a party to these conversations,” the statement said.

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The case was assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Kandis Westmore of Oakland, who will hold a case management conference on Oct. 13.

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