Baseball fan dead after being struck in the head with ball during MLB game

Linda Goldbloom, 79, was struck by a foul ball during Los Angeles Dodgers' game against San Diego Padres in August last year.

Goldbloom was hit in the head after Padres star Franmil Reyes fouled off a Kenley Jansen pitch at Dodgers Stadium in LA.

This week, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner confirmed the "lifelong Dodgers fan" died from blunt force trauma and a brain haemorrhage.

Goldbloom had been the watching the game with her husband – celebrating both her birthday and their 59th wedding anniversary – sitting in the lower level.

Daughter Jana Brody told ESPN she hopes MLB teams will finally consider raising the height of protective nets to avoid any more similar incidents.

Brody said: “Ushers came down and asked if she was all right, and she said no, then EMT came and rushed her to the hospital.

“It’s heartbreaking for all of us. It was pretty rough. This was definitely not a ball that could be dodged or caught.

“We’re just hoping that they’ll double-think this. Why not make the nets higher? Let’s take another look at this antiquated law that protects teams.”

Goldbloom's husband Erwin added: “It just was one that was a real hard line drive, it came very fast, just barely cleared the screen and hit my wife in the head.

“I don’t even like to go to the places in the neighbourhood where we used to go to the restaurants because its not the same.”

Just last season, all major league teams extended their protective netting after a spate of horror injuries – including three deaths since 1943.

However, Goldbloom was sitting just above where the netting finished in a tragic twist of fate.

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