CHICAGO (AP) 鈥 Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier has played through the scenario in his head. There is a big cheer from the crowd, and he sees a fan running toward him.
鈥淓very time I hear the fans go crazy out of nowhere I always turn around,鈥 Kiermaier said. 鈥淥ne of these days I feel like someone is just going to come running at me."
That's what happened to Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acu帽a Jr. on Monday night in Colorado, to the grass in Colorado. And the episode with one of the favorites for NL MVP occurred just a few days after a Guaranteed Rate Field.
While Major League Baseball is on track for a marked attendance increase this year, the pair of high-profile incidents raised questions about safety of players and fans inside and outside big league ballparks.
鈥淚t鈥檚 always kind of scary when you have situations like we had in Chicago, especially watching the video and I鈥檓 sitting there in left field playing a baseball game and all those activities are going on," Oakland's Tony Kemp said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a little bit scary. That bullet could鈥檝e hit me, and you know, I have a family and I have people that care for me and I care for them.鈥
The Major League Baseball Players Association said the union takes player safety 鈥渧ery seriously" and that it reviews club and stadium protocols throughout every season "to mitigate the possibility of similar future incidents.鈥
Chicago Cubs outfielder Ian Happ, a member of the union's eight-player executive subcommittee, called the situation with Acu帽a 鈥渁 scary moment.鈥 But he cautioned against connecting what happened with Acu帽a to the shooting at the ballpark.
鈥淚 think they're very different,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 think each probably has to be evaluated on its own.鈥
Acu帽a was approached by two fans during the middle of the seventh inning in Atlanta's 14-4 win over Colorado.
One fan got his arms around Acu帽a in right field before security personnel quickly grabbed the man. A second fan then sprinted toward the group, knocking down Acu帽a, and that fan was tackled as a member of the security staff chased him down.
鈥淚 was a little scared at first,鈥 Acu帽a said through an interpreter. 鈥淚 think the fans were out there and asking for pictures. I really couldn鈥檛 say anything because at that point, security was already there and we were already kind of tangled up, but security was able to get there and everything鈥檚 OK."
The two fans are facing charges of trespassing and disturbing the peace, according to the Denver Police Department.
鈥淭hankfully, they weren鈥檛 trying to hurt Acu帽a in that situation," Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Brandon Lowe said. "Then again, if this happens again, you can鈥檛 be certain that a person is going to have some ill will towards that guy. It鈥檚 definitely concerning and hopefully there are steps taken to make sure it doesn鈥檛 happen again.鈥
Fans running on the field is nothing new for baseball. Players are instructed during spring training to do whatever they can to get out of the way whenever it happens.
鈥淭hey tell you there could be an urge to tackle them or something like that,鈥 Phillies outfielder Jake Cave said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e like please do not do that. You never know what somebody has on them. Something sharp. You could get hurt.鈥
Field intruders generally are turned over to police before being ejected from the ballpark. Clubs may separately penalize field intruders by banning them from their ballparks.
The commissioner鈥檚 office reviews all incidents and may impose further penalties, up to and including a lifetime ban from all MLB ballparks and facilities.
But it was unusual to see two fans make contact with a player, knocking him down.
鈥淚鈥檓 glad everything was OK but that鈥檚 not OK,鈥 Kiermaier said. "It seems like security always takes a little bit longer than what鈥檚 needed at most places, or security guards aren鈥檛 fit for chasing certain people. I鈥檝e seen it plenty over the years.
鈥淚鈥檝e seen some senior citizens who are security and other people just don鈥檛 seem like they鈥檙e physically fit for that to happen.鈥
The incident with Acu帽a occurred on the same day that Chicago鈥檚 interim police superintendent said a shooting that wounded two women at Friday night鈥檚 Athletics-White Sox game most likely involved a gun that went off inside Guaranteed Rate Field.
Both wounded women, ages 42 and 26, were expected to recover from the shooting that occurred during the fourth inning. Police said the 42-year-old sustained a gunshot wound to the leg and the 26-year-old had a graze wound to her abdomen. The 26-year-old refused medical attention, according to a police statement.
A spokesperson for the Chicago Police Department said Tuesday that the investigation remains active.
If the gun went off inside the home of the White Sox, the focus turns to how it was brought into the facility. MLB has had mandatory metal detection screening in place since opening day in 2015.
鈥淚 think anytime you hear that it鈥檚 going to alarm not only you for your safety but your family as well,鈥 Texas Rangers outfielder Travis Jankowski said. 鈥淲e have loved ones in the seats almost every home game we play and a lot of road games, too. So it鈥檚 one of those things that you hope that MLB and trust that MLB security is taking care of it."
It also raises questions about the decision to continue playing the game. Fred Waller, interim superintendent of the Chicago Police Department, said police initially requested that the game be halted after the shooting was discovered. that they were not aware at first that a woman injured during the game was shot, and that police would have stopped play if officers thought it was unsafe to continue.
鈥淚 mean, the baseball field should be an area of safety and we should feel the utmost security out there,鈥 Kemp said. 鈥淪o, yeah, definitely a little bit of a scary week.鈥
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AP Baseball Writers Mike Fitzpatrick and Ronald Blum, AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston and AP freelance writers Cameron Van Til and Ian Harrison contributed to this report.
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