Boston police: Fan hurt by bat expected to recover

BOSTON — The woman struck by part of the shattered bat of A’s third baseman Brett Lawrie in the second inning of Friday’s game against the Red Sox in Fenway Park was listed in serious but stable condition Saturday.

Identified by The Boston Globe as Tonya Carpenter, the woman bled heavily after being struck by the fragment of the bat and the game was stopped for several minutes while paramedics tended to her and took her to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

She had been sitting in the second row between home plate and the visitor’s dugout on the third base side of the diamond, and she was just beyond the netting that shields fans from the field.

Friday night, the woman’s condition was called life-threatening, but by Saturday, Boston police spokeswoman Officer Rachel McGuire said she is expected to survive.

Lawrie, who was not in Saturday’s lineup, expressed concern for the woman’s well-being while suggesting more extensive netting was appropriate.

“You have limited netting here in Boston,” he said. “When you are behind home plate and you are along first base and third base sides, you’ve really got to be heads-up for foul balls and anything coming into the stands because it’s so close that there’s really no time to react.”

Multi-piece bat failures are down about 50 percent since the beginning of the 2009 season, MLB spokesman Michael Teevan said.

“You have a ballpark here that’s how old, and it’s close, you have some maple bats that break. I think MLB and the players’ association have talked long and hard about how they can try to keep this from happening,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said.

Though dozens of fans at big league ballparks are struck by foul balls each season, there has been only one fatality, according to baseball researchers — a 14-year-old boy killed by a foul line drive off the bat of Manny Mota at Dodger Stadium in 1970.

DEVELOPMENTS

Dodgers activate Puig: The Los Angeles Dodgers activated Yasiel Puig for their game against the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday night.

Puig was slated to bat third and play right field.

Puig missed 38 games because of a left hamstring strain.

Los Angeles optioned outfielder Scott Schebler to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Puig last played on April 24 and was batting .279 with two homers and four RBIs when he was hurt.

Two-time All-Star Andre Ethier batted .285 with six homers and 19 RBIs starting in Puig’s place. The Dodgers went 20-17 in his absence.

Briefly: The Arizona Diamondbacks have activated third baseman Jake Lamb from the 15-day disabled list and designated backup catcher Jordan Pacheco for assignment. Lamb, the starter at third when the season began, has been sidelined with a leftfoot stress reaction since the injury since April 19. ... Rico Brogna is back with the Los Angeles Angels after surgery for testicular cancer. The nine-year major league veteran, who became the Angels’ player information coach this year, left the team in early May in the middle of a game and had surgery May 13. Brogna said doctors told him the cancer was encapsulated and his prognosis is good.