A 79-year-old woman died last August after being struck in the head by a foul ball at Dodger Stadium, reports ESPN’s William Weinbaum. Linda Goldbloom was at the game celebrating her recent birthday and 59th wedding anniversary, her daughter told ESPN.
According to Weinbaum, on Aug. 25 a foul ball sailed to the first base side of home plate and over the protective netting into the Loge Level, where it struck Goldbloom. She was immediately rushed to the hospital. Here are more details from Weinbaum:
For three days, Goldbloom was unresponsive, said (daughter Jana) Brody, except when a nurse saw her move one finger one time upon being asked if her name was Linda. Her eyes never opened at the hospital and a ventilator kept her breathing.
On the night of Aug. 28, Goldbloom’s whole family and a rabbi gathered around her to share memories and say goodbye, before abiding by her wish that she wouldn’t be kept alive by machines if doctors deemed it impossible to restore her quality of life.
The coroner’s report lists the cause of death as “acute intracranial hemorrhage due to history of blunt force trauma.” The Dodgers made no public comments in the days following Goldbloom’s death. They issued the following statement when contacts by ESPN:
“Mr. and Mrs. Goldbloom were great Dodgers fans who regularly attended games. We were deeply saddened by this tragic accident and the passing of Mrs. Goldbloom. The matter has been resolved between the Dodgers and the Goldbloom family. We cannot comment further on this matter.”
All 30 MLB teams expanded netting at their ballparks following an incident at Yankee Stadium in 2017, when a young girl was hit in the head by a foul ball. She suffered life-threatening injuries but did survive. Most clubs expanded netting to the end of the dugout. In this case, Goldbloom was struck by a foul ball hit over the netting.
Goldbloom’s family declined to reveal whether legal action would be taken against the Dodgers or if an agreement had been reached with the club. They did tell Weinbaum they hope her death would lead to netting being increased even further at ballparks.
This is the third recorded instance of a fan dying after being struck by a ball leaving the field of play. Clarence Stagemyer, 32, died after being hit by a thrown ball at Griffith Stadium in Washington in 1943. Alan Fish, 14, died after being hit by a foul ball at Dodger Stadium in 1970.