A male fan appeared to be hurt badly before Thursday night’s Cubs-Braves game at Wrigley Field after attempting to jump from the right field bleachers onto the field.
During a lengthy rain delay before the game, the man ignored ushers’ orders and leaped from the wall and then clipped the “basket” extending from the wall with his foot, flipping him to the warning track below, according to people at the scene and twitter feeds from people claiming to be in the seating area.
His condition was not immediately known.
The man, wearing shorts and sneakers, lay motionless face down on the track in right-center field as stadium personnel ran across the field to assist. After checking his pulse, one of the officials waved frantically as medics ran from the right-field corner to help.
It took three people to turn the man over onto his back. They then pulled up his shirt and put on a brace to stabilize his neck before strapping him onto a backboard and loading him into a cart.
Cubs outfielder Albert Almora Jr. and pitching coach Chris Bosio walked from the dugout to check on the man.
A dip in the yellow fence line where the man had leaped was visible throughout the game.
The Cubs released a statement during the game, which read in full:
“Prior to the game, a fan was injured after attempting to jump onto the field from the Wrigley Field bleachers. The fan was taken by paramedics to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center.
“We are unable to provide further comment on his condition at this time. We will remain in contact with the fan’s family to stay updated on his progress.”
According to the Twitter account of @JoelMcKinnon, the man, wearing a Mets jersey, had been warned twice by ushers to get off the wall at the front of the bleachers and once hitting the track was unconscious.
Said one tweet from the account: “He never moved. I saw his stomach rising so he was breathing, but never responded to anything.”
Contributing: AP