BALTIMORE -- The odds of such an occurrence seem
insurmountable, yet Jay Gibbons pulled off the unimaginable feat:
He hit a foul ball that injured his wife.
The scene occurred in the ninth inning of the Baltimore Orioles'
game against Minnesota on Saturday. Gibbons fouled a ball straight
back over the screen and into the rib cage of his wife, Laura.
"She's just a little bruised up. She's going to be OK,"
Gibbons said Sunday.
Long before the matter became personal, Gibbons had asked team
officials to do something about making it safer to sit in the seats
behind the plate. He contended that the 20-foot screen just doesn't
offer enough protection from hard-hit foul balls.
"It's something you think about every day here. Obviously, it's
something I've talked about [to] deaf ears," said Gibbons,
Baltimore's designated hitter and player representative. "I've got
players coming to me every day saying that one of their family
members got hit or almost got hit. I had an usher take one for my
wife the other day."
Gibbons has suggested that the screen be raised or that the team
insert an overhead screen that would extend to the back of the
lower deck.
"If they're worried about the sight line, which I've heard, all
they have to do is throw a net straight back. One of these days,
somebody's going to get hurt really bad. That's all I've got to
say," Gibbons said. "I'm confused on what's going on [and] why
it's so hard just to make an adjustment. It's just a matter of time
where a kid's going to get hit."
Gibbons has also inquired about the possibility of a day care
center, so the players' wives don't have to put their kids at risk.
"It's either come to the game and play Russian Roulette with
your 3-year-old or stay home," Gibbons said. "That's what we're
dealing with. Or move the family section, but then you've got other
fans that are endangered."