Twins to become first team with netting above dugouts

The Minnesota Twins have heeded the suggestions put forth by Major League Baseball to improve fan safety at the ballpark following a series of ugly incidents in 2015 in which spectators were badly injured by foul balls and/or broken bats.

Team president Dave St. Peter announced Sunday that the club will install protective netting above the Target Field dugouts, with installation scheduled to begin in mid-March despite concern among certain fans as to the effect the nets will have on the field-level view.

"We just think it's the right thing to do," St. Peter said. "We understand we might lose some season tickets with that. I hope that doesn't happen, but it may. It's one of those issues for us (where) we think it's probably better to lead on than follow on."

Matt Hoy, the club's senior vice president of operations, said the netting won't be quite as thick as the traditional safety net behind home plate, and will be affixed to the front of each dugout, putting it out of reach of fans sitting in the first row and making it "less invasive to sightlines." The seven-foot netting won't obstruct cameras located along the baselines, and won't enter the sightline of fans seated more than 20 rows above each dugout.

While certain fans also expressed concern that the netting will compromise their "connection to the players," the Twins expect other MLB teams to follow suit, and St.Peter said he'll encourage his players "to be mindful" of how the new netting affects the ballpark experience for fans seated behind the dugouts.

"People are still going to get hit by foul balls," he said. "This net is not the end-all. However, we do think it gives us the best chance to protect those fans most directly in the line closest to home plate. That's the intent here. We'll see how it goes in Year One."