Friday night’s game between the Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies was briefly delayed shortly after it began as a scary moment played out in the bullpen.
Play came to a halt in the top of the first inning after a fan fell into the visiting bullpen at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park.
Medical personnel ran out to attend to the fan, who fell from an open concourse into the top level of the tiered bullpen in right-center field as Red Sox players in the pen and players for both teams on the field looked on.
Phillies starter Zach Wheeler was facing Boston’s second batter, Masataka Yoshida, when Philadelphia reliever José Alvarado ran from the bullpen into the outfield before medical workers ran out to the second level.
The fan, who was wearing a Phillies jersey, was placed on a backboard and taken out on a stretcher and cart. The Associated Press reported the fan was taken to the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital trauma center, according to medical personnel on the scene.
The Phillies said in a statement that the fan was conscious and responsive while leaving the ballpark, but the extent of the fan’s injuries was not disclosed. A Phillies employee was seen cleaning blood off the concrete where the fan fell.
NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Taryn Harper reported on the Phillies’ broadcast that the fan fell after reaching down for a tossed ball that landed in a flower bed above the bullpen. The Phillies confirmed this account in their statement.
The delay lasted about 10 minutes. The Red Sox went on to win, 5-3, spoiling Phillies star Bryce Harper’s 2023 home debut.
Contributing: The Associated Press
