Hit by a bat at a baseball game, does he have a case?

[moshquerade]

It is a risk you agree to take at a MLB game. You may get hit by a ball or a bat, but this guy is suing based on what kind of wood the bat was made of. New production standards have now been set concerning MLB bats.

Mets fan sues team and bat-maker after getting smacked in the face


Last Updated: 2:26 PM, August 9, 2010
Posted: 2:24 PM, August 9, 2010

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A Mets fan who was hit in the face by an exploding Luis Castillo bat at a Mets game three years ago is suing the light-hitting second baseman -- and the player who lent him the bat.

In papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, James Falzon points the finger at Castillo, bat owner and then-teammate Ramon Castro, the Mets, Major League Baseball and the shattered bat's maker, Rawlings.

Falzon, 50, was in the second row -- along the third-base line with his dad, 11-year-old son and 9-year-old nephew -- watching the Mets play the Atlanta Braves on an annual family outing to Shea Stadium on Aug. 8, 2007.

Jim Falzon is suing the Mets after getting hit in the face with a broken bat.




When Castillo came to bat in the seventh, he smacked a fly ball, his bat shattered and shards flew into the seats.

"I was watching the ball," Falzon told The Post in 2008, "and [the shards] hit me in the face. It knocked me off my chair."

The disfiguring injuries left him with massive bleeding, a broken nose and eye socket, and permanent metal plates and pins. "It broke my whole face," he said.

His lawsuit, filed on Friday, says his injuries could have been prevented if Castillo hadn't been using a maple bat.

Maple bats became popular after Barry Bonds used them on his way to hitting 73 home runs in 2001, the suit says, but they're more dangerous than traditional ash bats - something both Rawlings and MLB were well aware of.

A 2005 study showed that while there was "no advantage in hit distance" using the maple bat, "the study revealed that ash bats typically crack while maple bats have a tendency to break apart or explode."

The suit seeks unspecified money damages for Falzon's physical injuries, as well as cash for the trauma endured by his son when he watched his dad get hurt.

In 2008, Major League Baseball found that maple bats were three times as likely to break in multiple places as traditional ash bats. The league has since set new production standards for bats.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/...at_maker_qYAh2JxhXEJ8K3kYDFOF8K#ixzz0wAG3zJjW

 

[spamtly]

Just like catching Bond's or Arod's 600th ball; these accidents are very rare. I think this case is going to get settled out of court; even if there is video and concrete evidence. ((Also, on the flip end - getting hit by a ball that's been hit by a metallic aluminum bat is sure death too))

 

[xSauronx]

id be surprised if they didnt settle before going to court over this.

 

[Paladin3]

MLB knows that the thrill of possibly catching a ball sells a lot of tickets, but they need to put up more nets for those seats where a line drive ball or broken bat is most likely to kill someone.

I'm sure this case will be settled out of court. MLB should have paid his medical bills and some reasonable compensation up front to keep the suit from even being filed.

 

[mcmilljb]

I figure teams have insurance for these types of cases and just settle out of court.

Suing the bat maker though? That just sounds stupid.

 

[TallBill]

 

[fustercluck]

I don't think anyone thinks getting hit by a bat is a considerable risk when attending a baseball game

 

[TallBill]

 

[TallBill]

:awe:

 

[DaTT]

Do USA'ers not realize that the entire rest of the world ridicules them for stupid law suits. Sue, sue, sue, that's the answer. He wants to even sue the fucking guy who lent him the bat....come the fuck on.

OMG, I ordered a hot coffee and my clumsy ass spilled it on myself....you know the rest.

 

[Nintendesert]

We've been playing baseball in America for well over a hundred years. There's no need for more nets and all that other BS. It's part of the experience. BAM!

 

[GasX]

That guy got jacked up!

 

[DaTT]

Also, I think someone should punch him in his broken face

 

[DaTT]

And, he wants cash for his son having to see that....as if money magically makes memories disappear.

I think that this dumbass should have to pay all the court costs AND the lawyer representing him should get a "tick" against him (this gos for any lawyer who reprensts ridiculous cases). Three strikes and he loses the right to practice law for a year.

 

[DaTT]

BTW, I feel in a situation like this, because you guys don't have free health care, his medical bills should be paid in full by the league, that's just the right thing to do.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Do USA'ers not realize that the entire rest of the world ridicules them for stupid law suits. Sue, sue, sue, that's the answer. He wants to even sue the fucking guy who lent him the bat....come the fuck on.

OMG, I ordered a hot coffee and my clumsy ass spilled it on myself....you know the rest.

Maybe if you took time to actually learn more information you wouldn't make such jackass comments. The McDonald's coffee was not supposed to be that hot, and as such the burns the woman suffered were more severe than they would have been. Likewise, the material the bats are made out of has been an issue for a while now, and you clearly didn't read this:

A 2005 study showed that while there was "no advantage in hit distance" using the maple bat, "the study revealed that ash bats typically crack while maple bats have a tendency to break apart or explode."

but you're right, that would have nothing to do with this:

When Castillo came to bat in the seventh, he smacked a fly ball, his bat shattered and shards flew into the seats.

MLB has known about this for years, and there have been other cases of similar things happening.

 

[techs]

Broken bats have become an epidemic. Especially where the bat actually separates into two pieces. This is due to the degradation in the quality of the wood and the newer design of bats.

While you do have a reasonable expectation that you could possibly be hit by a ball, or a bat at a baseball game, that doesn't mean the teams or players can act any way they want.

That said, while cases like these look like a waste of the court system, people who are so quick to try make laws to prevent them from going to court jeopardize everyones right to access the courts when they have a legitimate case.

 

[A Casual Fitz]

"cash for the trauma endured by his son when he watched his dad get hurt"

lulz

 

[DaTT]

Maybe if you took time to actually learn more information you wouldn't make such jackass comments. The McDonald's coffee was not supposed to be that hot, and as such the burns the woman suffered were more severe than they would have been. Likewise, the material the bats are made out of has been an issue for a while now, and you clearly didn't read this:



but you're right, that would have nothing to do with this:



MLB has known about this for years, and there have been other cases of similar things happening.

So, you are going to argue with me saying that suing isn't the "American way"? C'mon, you must read about stupid shit people are suing for every day in the news...unlesss....you.....nvm.

 

[Genx87]

I think he has a case. It should be settled out of court by the insurance company. I'd guess medical + a little pain and suffering.

 

[DaTT]

I think he has a case. It should be settled out of court by the insurance company. I'd guess medical + a little pain and suffering.

Pain & suffering? I still don't get it, how does money make it all better.

 

[Rubycon]

Scary!

 

[Joemonkey]

Pain & suffering? I still don't get it, how does money make it all better.

what other type of compensation would you recommend?

 

[darkswordsman17]

So, you are going to argue with me saying that suing isn't the "American way"? C'mon, you must read about stupid shit people are suing for every day in the news...unlesss....you.....nvm.

I didn't argue that point (there certainly are a large amount of frivolous cases), so whatever thinking you've got going there is wrong as well. I assume by you're trailing off that you don't even know what the fuck you were trying to say. If you're going to call a case bullshit when its not, then yeah I'm going to point out that you're wrong, or at best misguided. Maybe if people actually took the time to learn the facts we'd have less idiocy in general.

Yes, definitely some parts of this are bullshit, but that's generally just the lawyers' method of negotiating claims. The guy has no real recourse but to sue, and the lawyer is going to come up with all of the extra junk that seems to be what bothers people so much.

 

[DaTT]

Why do you need to be compensated for an accident? Life isn't easy all the time....shit happens. Like I said above, medical bills should be covered....just look at the what this guy wants compensation for.