A man is suing the Los Angeles Angels and former Angels outfielder Juan Lagares after being blinded in the left eye by a baseball that Lagares allegedly hurled into the crowd last season.
Attorney Rob Marcereau filed the civil complaint in Orange County Superior Court Tuesday on David Mermelstein’s behalf. The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages.
The complaint says that Mermelstein’s left eye was “crushed” when he was struck by a ball in the crowd during a game at Angel Stadium of Anaheim last June.
Lagares had just caught the third out to end the top of an inning and “randomly hurled the ball into the stands at high velocity,” according to Marcereau. Mermelstein, seated in the outfield bleachers, had been looking down to eat some peanuts before lifting his head and getting beamed by the ball, the lawsuit said.
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The lawsuit alleges that in giving away a souvenir ball, Lagares “had a duty to do so reasonably and safely” instead of throwing the ball “with such force and velocity that it traveled over the outfield wall, up 10 rows and smashed into the eye socket of an unsuspecting fan.”
The Angels’ guest guide states that “fans should remain alert of the game at all times as bats and balls have the potential to leave the field of play.” Marcereau argued that Mermelstein’s injury occured after play had been stopped and came from a player voluntarily as opposed to a ball in play that made its way into the stands.
Mermelstein’s friends invited him to the game “to get his mind off troubles for a few hours,” according to the lawsuit. Marcereau said that Mermelstein’s father had recently died and Mermelstein himself had been recently diagnosed with brain cancer.
