After The Fall
Justin Masterson talks to Tim Tschida during Tuesday night's fan-induced delay.Sixteen minutes.
Sixteen minutes from the time Nelson Cruz’s foul ball evaded the grasp of an off-balance fan in the second deck of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, until the next pitch of the ballgame was thrown.
It was as surreal as it was spine-chilling. One moment, we were watching a normal ballgame. Normal Cruz at the plate; normal umpire Chris Guccione behind him. Normal Cleveland fielders; normal dugouts; normal crowd.
Normal foul ball.
And then, of course, it happened: a fan trying to catch Cruz’s foul ball plummeted thirty feet into the seats below. Cruz, Guccione, the players on the field and in the dugouts, and the fans throughout the ballpark reacted with horror. It was hard to watch (and listen to the commentary from Josh Lewin, Tom Grieve, Eric Nadel, and Dave Barnett) and not imagine that the fan had fallen to his death.
While emergency medical technicians treated the fan and Indians players kneeled in prayer at their positions, first-base umpire and crew chief Tim Tschida consulted with his colleagues (Guccione, Tim Timmons, and Bob Davidson) as well as Ron Washington, Indians manager Manny Acta, Nolan Ryan, and other officials from the Texas organization. As their discussions ended, Ballpark announcer Chuck Morgan informed fans that the game would resume.
And so after what had to be 16 of the longest minutes ever experienced by fans watching a baseball game, Cruz stepped back into the batter’s box, and Justin Masterson retook the mound.
All things considered – and almost unbelievably – the story had a happy ending. Within an hour, the Rangers had announced that the fan was not only stable and responsive at Fort Worth’s John Peter Smith Hospital, but was also able to move all of his extremities. Four other fans hurt in the fall received treatment at the Ballpark for what were presumably minor injuries.
Well before that announcement, however, and even before Morgan’s confirmation that the game would continue, fans on online forums (and, surely, in homes and bars and at the Ballpark itself) were asking themselves whether the show really had to go on. And hours after the game’s conclusion, that question lingered: should the umpires, in consultation with the Rangers and Indians, have called the game?
My first reaction – the visceral one, the one driven primarily by disbelief and dread – was that play should’ve been stopped for the night, with the ramifications to be sorted out when a man’s life was not (presumably) hanging in the balance.*
* I’m not altogether clear what would’ve happened if the game had been called. MLB Rules 4.10 and 4.12 indicate that, since the fall took place with the Rangers up 3-1 in the bottom of the fifth, it would have resulted in a Rangers win. It seems possible, though, that the exigencies of the situation and the spirit of fairness would’ve justified a decision to resume of the game at a later date.
My second thought was that I didn’t envy the umpires or teams making that decision. As Rangers television broadcaster Josh Lewin noted during the deliberations, there are no official guidelines covering this sort of situation, and certainly no formal training or preparation that could make dealing with it in real time anything besides gut-wrenching.
The more I’ve considered it, the more convinced I am that league and club officials made the right call. Continuing play was very probably the best way to mitigate the impact for everyone involved. If nothing else, it helped take people’s minds off of the horrific scene many had witnessed. It provided crowd and players alike a chance to reestablish some semblance of normality in the midst of what by all indications appeared to be an unfolding tragedy. It permitted some, at least, to use the game as a way to cheer (and perhaps even play) for the injured fan – to channel the rest of the contest into wishes for his well-being.
Continuing the game also helped prevent every iota of media attention from being focused on the story of the fan and his fall for the next 24 hours. The fall was (and is) still a story, of course. Within minutes, every local media outlet had a blurb up about the incident; ESPN.com put a link to the story on its home page. Justifiably so. But with the game continuing, the fall was no longer the story. It wouldn’t be the only thing Rangers and Indians (and other teams’) fans would talk about until the first pitch was thrown this evening. However diminished in importance, the game’s implications for divisional races and individual lines remained. As a result, the fan (and his family and friends) would, in a perfect world, be spared at least a few lumen of the media spotlight.
I could be wrong about all of this. Perhaps the fan’s friends and family would’ve preferred the game had been called, out of respect for his circumstances. Perhaps that’s true of the fan himself. Maybe it was callous to ask players and coaches and umpires to continue to do their jobs, having seen what they saw. Maybe fans shouldn’t have been asked to care about a baseball game after witnessing that sort of event. I don’t think there are any easy answers to dilemmas like these.
What I do know is that if there’s any game that could accomplish what’s been suggested above, it’s baseball. Whether or not it’s been the one constant through all the years, I have to believe that every fan worthy of that term’s origins would agree that the rhythm of the pastime – through plate appearance and inning and game and season – is what draws and keeps them in. For a few hours each day, for a couple hundred days each year, that rhythm sets the tempo of fans’ lives.
Pitch by pitch, run by run, out by out, inning by inning, the decision to resume the rhythm last night – even in the face of tragedy – helped put those 16 minutes behind us. Until, finally, the good news could arrive.
18 Comments | in Analysis, The Season
Reader Comments (18)
Quite surreal. I was watching on TV and had the sound down. When I saw the initial reactions, combined with what appeared to be a slight shake to the camera, I honestly thought a plane had crashed or something. I immediately turned up the volume and was still stunned. I do think the Rangers handled the entire situation extremely well.
Per LSB, "First there was a man nearly plummeting to his death. Then a fight breaks out for a foul ball in the stands. That was followed by a guy body-checking a kid into the railing on a home run in an attempt to collect a ball only to get emasculated on live TV by Jim Knox. It was chaos."
Foul ball hell last night. I turned it off after play resumed. What happpened on the other two foul balls?
Fox Sports got it on video but smartly didn't cut to it. He was very lucky. Landed feet first before his head smashed into a seat.
I was completely wrong in the chat last night and I am in full agreement with Josh. I assumed it was a person leaning over the railing, which obviously is not very smart. I never took into consideration the scenario that actually happened, a fan jumping for a ball that ricocheted and then that fan losing balance causing a fall over the railing. In realizing that is what happened, the railings are obviously not high enough.
I've often wondered how it hasn't happened before now.
I was watching, and the reaction of the umpire and Lewin, and then the crowd noise and players... It was something out of the ordinary. I think playing was right, needed to give the thousands there something else to focus on. I also thought that Chuck Morgan and crew did a good job (from what you can tell on tv...). There was no music being played, a simple announcement that play would resume, and then a return to some semblance of normalcy. Thoughts are with the guy who fell, but playing mitigated the incident, and that needed to happen.
Great reaction, probably the best I've read that accurately captures the immediate reaction. Some of the Indians players, Cruz, & some of the fans right behind home plate reacted so visibly - not just the praying, but the hiding of their faces & shaking their heads immediately following the fall - it seemed like the fall must have been extremely graphic.
The only thing I can think to add about the decision on whether to continue the game, was that it seemed to me by even the point that they carried him out of the stands (which was shown on FSN) that he was actually alive. If he had immediately fallen to his death, they would've cleared entire sections out, and presumably not carried him out on an uncovered stretcher. If he had fallen to an immediate death, I don't think there's any question the game would've been suspended just because you can't have an entire stadium looking live at a cleanup scene. But I can't help but think that the officials on the scene knew to some extent that he wasn't in immediately critical condition, and on account of that I think their decision was fairly straightforward.
I think the railing is too low in most of the ballparks I've been to. Sitting front row in the 2nd or 3rd deck is something I don't like to do. Yes they are the best seats to see the game, but I know that if a foul ball came my way instinct would take over and I would lunge for it. It's tough to balance the line of sight issue with the safety issue. The best solution may be a "ledge" of steele mesh that would extend out 4 or 5 feet below line of sight.
The scene really shook me up last night. I knew what happened as soon as the umpire covered his head. Just glad they didn't show it. Still don't feel right talking about it. Thank God the fan is alive and praying for a speedy recovery.
I was watching in the control room at the 33 News as everyone was getting ready for the 9 o'clock news. The sound was muted so when I saw Trevor Crowe on the ground and a group of people in the crowd I figured someone had thrown something at Crowe. It really was a chilling 16 minutes watching it back, but I agree that the game needed to go on. After Cruz's homerun I believe he pointed in the direction of where the fan fell though I haven't read anything that confirms it, but that gives credence to Josh's "playing for the fan" theory.
Is that fact rangers100? If he landed on top of 4 other people, it doesn't seem to add up with your description. Just wondering..
That's from Kurt Deichert, Drew.
Only one kid got a bruise on his face. No one else was really hurt. He probably made contact with the others, but for the most part he missed them. It was feet first that saved him.
Fox 4 confirming the Deichert version of the tape FSSW has:
Tyler Morris, a 25-year-old firefighter, was listed in fair condition at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth. He suffered a head injury and a severely sprained ankle, according to family friend Ben Westcott, but is expected to make a full recovery.
Seeing the reactions from Trevor Crowe and Jason Donald is what struck me the most. Crowe was actually on his hands and knees in prayer and Donald was bent down with his head bowed. These guys were doing the only thing they could to help out. I'm sure a lot of us would have done the same in that situation, but to me, it showed a lot of character. It really puts things in perspective when a couple major leaguers show that kind of emotion and care for a stranger in an opposing stadium.
I posed a related but somewhat different question last night in the chat -- if (and I'm obviously thankful this didn't happen, but let's just say it did for the sake of debate) the fan in question had died en route to the hospital, should the Rangers have passed along word to the fans/players and called the game out of respect for him and his family? In other words, would/should the situation have been handled differently if the fan hadn't made it?
I also thought that Chuck Morgan and crew did a good job (from what you can tell on tv...).
I think that if some sort of panic/emergency were to break out at a major league sporting event (e.g. a verified large tornado moving towards the stadium, or something), Morgan would be right up there among the top guys that you would want in the PA booth taking control of the situation and directing fans/personnel to safety, not only because of his reassuring voice but also because he is always very even-keeled.
If I recall correctly, when one of the umpires died during a game it was halted immediately. A bit different, but you really can't expect human beings to go on playing a game when someone has died. I know I am a dinosauer, but I was also trying to remember many years ago when a wide receiver died on the field after running a route....
If I recall correctly, when one of the umpires died during a game it was halted immediately. A bit different, but you really can't expect human beings to go on playing a game when someone has died. I know I am a dinosauer, but I was also trying to remember many years ago when a wide receiver died on the field after running a route....
I was expecting them to halt the game until it could be confirmed the guy was alive.
I was thinking of the Richard Zednik injury a couple years ago. Same silent shock fell over the crowd, thinking they might have just seen someone die, and the game was not restarted until it was confirmed and publicly announced that Zednik was at the hospital, had been stabilized and would likely live.
Not that it matters, but on the ticket (the hardline a few minutes ago) they were reporting the guy landed parallel, horizontal to the ground. If he actually landed feet first, from that height, wouldn't his legs have been broken immediately? Anyways, it's irrelevant and thankfully he's going to be fine. It's amazing how everybody was pretty much expecting the guy to have died instantly, and why not when you fall that far to concrete and what not below. It has to be somewhat of a miracle that he will come away from this with nothing more than minor injuries (physically at least).
24 hours later and the image keeps playing through my head. I was sitting about a section or two over from him on the front row. It may be the most panic stricken I've ever felt; it was all I could do to keep my composure after screaming louder than I ever have.
Yes, it was the ricochet of the ball that had him leaning in sort of backwards motion and stretching for the ball while looking upwards. He seem to get his balance, then in a moment over he went. He probably saved his life by getting a grip on the rail for a split second. His grabbing the rail caused his momentum to slam into the ribbon board then bounce out and continue his fall. If not for that split second, he may have landed on his head.
As for the game going on....I'll sort that one out later. By the game continuing, it at least helped clear some of the cobwebs out. Although, there was a nervous feeling from most people everytime another foul made its way to the club level again.