CHICAGO (AP) The Chicago White Sox plan to extend the protective netting all the way to the foul poles at Guaranteed Rate Field, becoming the first major league team to take such a step in the wake of a couple of high-profile fan injuries.
The White Sox and Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, which owns the ballpark, are hoping to complete the project this summer. They say they will announce more details at a later date.
Following recommendations from Major League Baseball, by the start of the 2018 season all 30 teams had expanded their protective netting to at least the far ends of the dugouts after several fans were injured by foul balls in 2017.
But a liner off the bat of Chicago Cubs outfielder Albert Almora Jr. struck a young girl in Houston in May, and a woman was hit by a foul ball from White Sox outfielder Eloy Jimenez in Chicago on June 10. Each of the incidents occurred in the stands beyond the dugout on the third base side.
The Chicago Sun-Times was the first to report on the plans for Guaranteed Rate Field.
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