A fan was transported to the local hospital after falling 10 feet into the visitors’ bullpen. The incident took place on Wednesday during a game between the Chicago White Sox and the Kansas City Royals at the Rate Field.

“Fan taken to hospital after falling into bullpen in terrifying scene at White Sox-Royals game,” New York Post Sports reported.

According to the White Sox’s statement, the game was delayed in the fourth inning to allow the club’s personnel to treat the fan who had fallen. The scary sequence began at the bottom of the third inning.

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After the White Sox took a 3-0 lead on Chase Meidroth‘s sacrifice fly, the fan tumbled over the right-field railing into the Royals’ bullpen.

A wide-angle video from MLB.com Research showed that the fan fell over a roughly 3-foot-high barrier in the front row of Section 105 of the South Side ballpark’s right-field seats and into the bullpen. The bullpen is located behind the ballpark’s right field wall and in front of Sections 104 and 105.

The barrier base is concrete, rising about 10-12 inches, topped by a metal fence that is roughly 2 feet high. The front row of seats is about 3 feet behind the fence. The said fan fell in front of a red ad for a local butcher shop and landed in an area covered by both grass and dirt at the west end of the bullpen.

According to eyewitness Zach Kreigler, the fall was triggered by a celebration rather than a deliberate jump.

“He jumped up to celebrate on a double and fell over,” he recalled. “He just got excited and flipped over. I’ve never seen anything like that in my life. I just hope he’s OK.”

He stood to watch the ball, then fell. However, the game did not stop immediately.

Play continued into the top of the fourth inning until Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. drew a walk. Kansas City had runners on first and second with none out.

Medical personnel were seen rushing onto the Royals’ bullpen, and all eyes were on right field. Umpire crew chief Chris Conroy was seen having words with both managers. The stands were left confused until after they understood what had happened.

“From what I’ve heard, the fan was kind of standing up on the edge of the bullpen, and kind of just went over,” Royals reliever Nick Mears said. “Then saw him lying there.”

Fortunately, the visitor’s bullpen was vacant at that time, or the accident could have involved a few players.

The Royals players and staff were seen standing in front of their bullpen as the fan was treated. After receiving the initial treatment, the fan was seen being taken out on a stretcher.

“There was a little bit of talk about it in the dugout, but we really had no idea what was going on,” Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino said. “So I don’t know what’s going on now, but I hope the guy is OK.”

Even though delayed, the White Sox continued their winning streak, defeating the Royals 6-5. Before the series finale on Thursday, the clubhouse shared an update about the fan.

“We reached out to the fan to check on his well-being, and his friend was able to share a positive report. The entire White Sox organization and clubhouse are wishing him a full and speedy recovery.”

While Chicago clinched the series with their fifth straight win (6-2), Wednesday night’s incident was definitely another reminder for increased security measures in MLB ballparks.

“We were talking with the security guard down in the bullpen at the time,” Mears added. “And he said that by the time he got to the hospital, he was in much better condition.”

Time is ticking for revamped security measures.

The Royals-White Sox game is a scary reminder

A few days ago, another fan was saved from falling from the upper tier in Busch Stadium.

The fan was seen sitting on the side rail with one of its legs hanging outside. Without any security personnel, he was rescued by a few fans.

Then, a year ago, a fan named Kavan Markwood suffered a broken neck, clavicle, and back, and a punctured lung, as he fell from the upper tier in PNC Park.

Currently, MLB ballparks prioritize fan safety through mandatory, league-wide security measures, including walk-through metal detectors at all entrances, thorough bag inspections, and extended protective netting from foul pole to foul pole. All 30 MLB stadiums extended protective netting to the far ends of the dugouts, with many extending to the foul poles to protect against foul balls and broken bats. There are uniformed law enforcement and security personnel in the ballparks.

But maybe they are more inclined toward protecting the players than the fans. While that’s important, neglecting fans in the stands surely doesn’t bode well for the league. More personnel are needed across all the stands, especially in the upper tier.

Protective netting could also be used to prevent fans from leaning over the side walls.

And all these changes need to be done immediately. Till now, there’s no fatality reported, but scary scenes continue to emerge. The White Sox game served as the latest notification for the change.