NET TIME IS NOW!
Judge liner must be last straw
SHAME ON the Yankees if Aaron Judge’s screaming line drive into the seats just beyond the home dugout Tuesday night doesn’t finally convince them to follow the Mets’ lead and extend the protective netting at the Stadium.
Does anyone really need more evidence that someone eventually is going to get killed if precautions aren’t taken?
As it is, a man was hit in the head by the ball, and video from WNBC-TV showed him walking up the aisle with his head wrapped in bandages and his shirt covered in blood, after emergency responders attended to him.
Considering that Judge’s foul ball left the bat at 105 mph, according to MLB Statcast, it could have been worse.
Much worse, according to at least one fan sitting close to the victim. Here’s what Rich O’Toole, a country singer who has recorded five albums, tweeted a few minutes after the incident:
“The guy next to me just got crushed by a foul ball hit by Aaron Judge. Very lucky to be alive. Tough guy!”
The Yankees said the fan “was given first aid at the ballpark and received medical attention elsewhere following the game.” As has become standard in these situations, they cited the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act as reason they couldn’t provide more information.
Whatever, the point in this case is that nobody in baseball hits the ball harder than Judge, according to exit velocity numbers. On the MLB Statcast leaderboard, in fact, he owns the top four hardest-hit spots, on balls hit at 121.1 mph, 119.8 mph, 119.4 mph, and 119 mph.
Only two of those were home runs, and the one recorded at 119.8 mph was a single. That’s relevant because if Judge is just a little late in connecting with a fastball, as he was on the ball he hit Tuesday night, he’s capable of hitting a ball that hard into areas around the dugout.
That’s a frightening thought for anyone sitting in those seats, even for people paying close attention, because there is so little reaction time to a ball hit that hard.
And if you think otherwise, Brett Gardner says it’s probably because you’ve never had one hit at you.
“People don’t realize, those balls are coming in hot, man,’’ Gardner said on Wednesday. “You put me or any professional baseball player in that same seat with a glove and we might not catch it. That’s how fast the ball is coming in there.’’
Gardner watched Judge’s scorcher go over the dugout on Tuesday night and, as always, said he just hoped the fans somehow got lucky and it missed them.
“It happens multiple times a game, every game,” he said. “It’s tough to watch, man. I know I wouldn’t let my wife and kids sit above the dugout without a net in front of them. Not for any amount of money.”
With all of that in mind, Judge’s sudden ascent to prominence this season ought to cement the need for the Yankees to act responsibly and add protection for fans sitting close to the field, something that is gradually becoming a trend around the majors.
Earlier this month, the Mets became the 10th MLB team, in fact, to take such a step, going beyond the basic recommendation by MLB and unveiling 30-foot-high netting that extends to the far ends of the camera wells beyond each dugout. Of course, the Mets acted only after New York City Councilman Rafael Espinal essentially threatened them and the Yankees in May with the introduction of a bill that, if it became law, would force both teams to extend netting all the way to each foul pole.
Espinal told the Daily News at the time he was hoping to negotiate with each team to add netting so the bill wouldn’t be necessary. By June, the Mets had agreed and on Wednesday Espinal said via email that he remains hopeful the Yankees will do the same.
“What happened last night (Judge’s foul ball) highlights the importance of protective netting for fan safety, not only here in New York City but across the country,’’ he said.
“The legislation I introduced still stands, but the Yankees have given their word that they will study the issue and extend their netting, so I would like to give them every opportunity to do so in the way that is best for their stadium, team, and fans.”
Yet the Yankees aren’t showing any urgency.
Last week, COO Lonn Trost was quoted in the New York Times saying the team has “taken notice’’ about how many fans have complained that the Yankees are considering adding the netting, and indicated that nothing would be changed until next season at the earliest — even though the team does put temporary netting up during batting practice well past the dugouts.
The Mets, meanwhile, installed new netting at Citi Field in early July while the team was on a road trip and had it ready after the All-Star break.
On Wednesday, a Mets spokesman said the team preferred not to comment beyond the statement it put out previously, which, in part, said, “fan safety continues to be our top priority.” One thing is for sure — players want it done. Judge, given the day off on Wednesday, wasn’t in the clubhouse during media access before or after the game, but Gardner summed up the feeling of players who want to see fans protected with more netting.
“It’s hard to believe it hasn’t been done everywhere yet,’’ he said. “It shouldn’t be a city councilman issue, or even a Yankees thing or a Mets thing — it should be all across Major League Baseball that nets should go down the line.”
It should be, but for now MLB is leaving it up to individual teams, and if Judge’s 105mph laser didn’t scare the Yankees into acting quickly, it’s pretty clear what it actually would take.