A Foul Ball Hit a Girl's Head. 7 Months Later, an Update

A young girl hit by a foul ball during a Houston Astros game in May has a permanent brain injury, a lawyer for her family says. Attorney Richard Mithoff tells the Houston Chronicle that the 2 1/2-year-old—who suffered a skull fracture at Minute Maid Park in Houston on May 29 when she was slammed by a line drive hit by Chicago Cubs player Albert Almora—is still taking anti-seizure medication and may have to do so long term. "She has an injury to a part of the brain, and it is permanent," said Mithoff, who says her central nervous system was affected, much like a stroke victim's would be. As for the seizures, "that may or may not be resolved" with time.

Although they can't yet tell if she has any cognitive damage, doctors and the girl's parents say she has night terrors, headaches, episodes of staring into space, and unresponsiveness, though Mithoff adds "she is able to continue with much of her routine as a girl her age would do," albeit with "particularly vigilant" parents. The girl and her family were sitting in field-level seats just past protective netting that shields spectators from foul balls. Major League Baseball says all 30 of its teams will have extended netting put into place this year. Yahoo Sports cites a study that finds more than 800 MLB fans have been hurt by foul balls since 2012. (More Major League Baseball stories.)