Ex-Yankees player Andrew Benintendi had a near miss during the shooting incident on Friday night at Guaranteed Rate Field. The Chicago White Sox player was just 30 yards away from the place where it happened.
During the fourth inning of the Chicago White Sox vs. Oakland Athletics game, two fans sitting in the left-field bleachers got hit by gunfire. The White Sox players didn’t know about the shooting until the game was over, but now they’re beginning to understand what happened.
Andrew Benintendi, who played for the Yankees in 2022, told the Chicago Sun-Times that the shooting was around 30 yards behind them, which is closer than anyone would prefer.
The events of Friday night are still under investigation, but Fred Waller, the interim Chicago Police Superintendent, informed the Sun-Times that they have nearly ruled out the theory that one or more bullets were fired from outside the stadium, causing injuries to two women. According to Chicago police, a 42-year-old woman got shot in the leg during the game against the Oakland Athletics, and a 26-year-old woman had a minor wound on her abdomen. The 42-year-old woman was in okay condition at the University of Chicago Medical Center. While the police stated that the 26-year-old woman chose not to receive medical attention,
After the gunshots occurred, the people in charge decided not to cancel the game. The White Sox eventually lost by a score of 12-4. However, it raises the question of whether it was the right choice to keep playing.
According to Andrew Benintendi, it was a crazy situation and the team had to accept what happened. During the incident, he didn’t fully understand what was going on, and many players were feeling confused. The former Yankees OF hoped that it wouldn’t happen again.
A woman brought the gun to the Chicago game
According to ESPN Chicago reporter Peggy Kusinski, it was revealed on Tuesday a woman, who was hit by the bullet, actually brought the gun into the stadium. She hid it in the folds of her belly fat to evade the metal detectors. The shooting occurred due to an accidental discharge of the gun causing her to suffer a graze wound.
Law enforcement previously stated that a 42-year-old woman sustained a gunshot wound on the leg, and a 26-year-old woman also suffered a graze wound on the abdomen. Officials stated that the older woman was transported to a nearby hospital, and her condition was reported as fair. The other woman declined medical treatment.
According to NBC 5 Chicago, the shooting occurred in the fourth inning of the match against the Oakland Athletics. At first, the police suggested halting the game, but it continued as they didn’t consider it to be a significant threat. Chicago’s Interim Police Supt. Fred Waller mentioned that they allowed the game to continue in order to avoid causing panic.
Initially, there was uncertainty about whether the shooting occurred inside or outside the park. However, the police negated the theory of the incident happening outside was nearly disproven.
Early on Saturday morning, the Chicago White Sox issued a statement as the police investigation continued. The team stated that two fans who were at Friday’s game sustained injuries from bullets, but the injuries were not life-threatening. The statement indicated that there was no altercation in the incident. The White Sox security team confirmed this. The Chicago franchise expressed their concern for the victims and wished them a quick recovery as the police investigation continued.
White Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi acknowledged that incidents like this aren’t something you anticipate witnessing or hearing about during a game, but he’s relieved that everyone is alright.
Martha Rincon from Chicago was sitting in the last rows of that area, along with eight other friends during the incident. She mentioned that fans were a bit cautious about attending the game. According to her, people are aware of what’s happening around them, but they still continue with their daily lives. She humorously added that they even considered the possibility of the game giveaway being bulletproof vests with the Sox logo.
Instead of the bulletproof vests, fans received Dylan Cease bobbleheads as giveaways.
MLB security breach
Since the start of the 2015 season, Major League Baseball has required mandatory metal detection at all ballparks. From the 2013 season to the opening day of 2015, the big league clubs had time to meet the requirements for metal detection screening.
On Friday, the announced crowd was 21,906 people. A concert scheduled after the game, which was supposed to feature Vanilla Ice, Rob Base, and Tone Loc, got canceled due to “technical issues,” as stated by the team. The White Sox clarified on Saturday that the concert’s cancellation was to let the Chicago Police Department clear the areas where spectators were and to examine the bleachers with the stadium lights on. This decision was not made due to security concerns, as they mentioned.
Oakland outfielder Lawrence Butler commented that an incident like that does increase attention to safety for both the players and the fans. He mentioned that nobody wants anyone to get hurt or injured while attending a baseball game, so it’s quite concerning and scary.
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