Rays wisely add more protective netting following injury to fan

The Tampa Bay Rays have added extra protective netting at Tropicana Field following an incident that left one fan injured on Friday.

The unidentified woman was seated in the second row near the Rays on-deck circle on the first-base side when Steven Souza Jr. fouled off a 97-mph pitch from Chris Sale that slipped through a small opening in the netting and stuck her near the left eye.

[Related: Fan injured after ball slips through netting at Tropicana Field]

The fan was tended to at her seat for several minutes, which delayed the start of the eighth inning. She was eventually taken from the stadium on a stretcher and transported to a nearby hosptial, where she's reportedly listed in stable condition. 

Given the seriousness of the incident, the Rays are taking no further chances before Saturday's game. According to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, they installed an extra portion of protective netting overnight that should prevent another baseball from slipping through that same opening. 

The odds of a baseball slipping through the original opening were slim, but Major League Baseball would rather see too much protection than not enough. Even if fans like Stephen King aren't happy with a slightly obstructed view, fan safety comes first.

As for Souza, he was understandably shook by Friday's incident. He actually went into the stands to check on the fan, and according to Topkin has remained in contact through the team's PR on Saturday.

The two most important things now are the long term health of the fan injured, and eliminating the possibility of another injury in the future. The Rays have done their part to ensure the latter, and we'll continue hoping for good news on her condition.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813