White Sox are MLB's first team to announce protective netting extension
Good luck catching Eloy Jimenez without a smile on his face.
The Chicago White Sox's rookie left fielder always seems to be in a cheerful mood, whether he's dancing in the dugout before a game, circling the bases after a home run or making a sliding catch.
In the Sox's June 11 interleague game against the Washington Nationals at Guaranteed Rate Field, Jimenez's face had a look of terror after he lined a foul ball into the seats down the left-field line. The drive hit a woman, who was taken to the hospital.
A week later, Jimenez was still upset.
“When I hit the woman, I was super sad for that because I knew I hit it hard and it was straight in the face,” Jimenez said Tuesday at Wrigley Field. “You know that doesn't feel good. That's why it's going to be good.”
Before opening a two-game interleague series against the Cubs at Wrigley, the White Sox announced they will become the first team in major-league baseball to extend protective netting.
Currently, all 30 teams have netting that stops at the end of each dugout.
At Guaranteed Rate Field, the netting will extend down the outfield lines to each foul pole by “later this summer,” according to the Sox.
That is going to be a relief to every player on the White Sox's roster.
“I think it's great,” starting pitcher Lucas Giolito said. “For me, I think that in today's day and age, you have a lot of young fans and guys are hitting the ball harder. I see the counter arguments like, ‘Don't sit there' or ‘Just pay attention to the game.'
“Dude, no matter how much you're paying attention to the game, if that thing's coming in 115 miles an hour with tail, no matter if you have a glove this big, it could hit you right in the forehead. For me, being around baseball for so long, I think it's a smart move because it just keeps people safe.
“I hate seeing young kids get hit, having to go to the hospital. It just leaves a sick feeling in all of our stomachs. At the end of the day, I think it's the right move.”