PITTSBURGH (AP) — A man who fell from the 21-foot-high Clemente Wall in right field at PNC Park during Wednesday night’s game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs remained in critical condition on Thursday morning.
Pittsburgh Public Safety, which includes Pittsburgh Police and EMS, posted on X Thursday that the “incident is being treated as accidental in nature.”
The man who fell was identified Thursday as Kavan Markwood, according to information supplied by the Southern Alleghany School District. District Workforce Development Coordinator Laura Thomson said in a statement that the district is keeping the “former student and standout athlete” in its thoughts and prayers. She identified Markwood was a 2022 graduate who “made a lasting impact” on the district community as an athlete and a “man of character,” and said he was MVP of the football team during his senior year.
Thomson’s statement said Markwood “is best known for his resilience, strength and kindness. He is a friend to all — someone who lifts others up and faces challenges with courage and grace.”
Markwood fell onto the warning track in right field just as Pirates star Andrew McCutchen hit a two-run double in the seventh inning to put Pittsburgh ahead 4-3. Players began waving frantically for medical personnel and pointing to the man.
Markwood was tended to for approximately five minutes by members of both the Pirates and Cubs training staffs as well as PNC personnel, before being removed from the field on a cart. He was taken to the trauma center at Allegheny General Hospital, where he remained on Thursday.
Pittsburgh owner Bob Nutting said the club was “deeply saddened” and “truly heartbroken” over what he called a “terrible accident.”
“In times like these, we must come together, support one another, and keep him and his loved ones in our prayers,” Nutting said in a statement. “We also want to thank and appreciate the efforts of the first responders who rushed to his attention and provided him with compassionate care.”
The railing that runs along the Clemente Wall in right field is three feet (36 inches) in height, which exceeds the building code requirements of 26 inches, according to Pirates vice president of communications Brian Warecki.
Fans were sitting in the front row above the Clemente Wall on Thursday ahead of the series finale between the two teams.
McCutchen, a five-time All-Star and franchise icon, said Thursday that the team was “devastated,” adding that they prayed together after the game. Asked to describe his viewpoint of the sequence, McCutchen declined, saying he is trying not to think about it and is more focused on the man’s health.
“We’re just hoping for the best for him,” he said. “I hope he pulls through because he’s the reason why we are here. He’s the reason why we play the game. People that show their support so we can do something we love, partly because of him and because of fans. So, I just pray that he’s all right.”
Pirates manager Derek Shelton and Cubs manager Craig Counsell both alerted the umpire crew of the situation immediately after the play.
“Even though it’s 350 feet away or whatever it is, I mean the fact of how it went down and then laying motionless while the play is going on, I mean Craig saw it, I saw it. We both got out there,” Shelton said. “I think the umpires saw it because of the way it kicked. It’s extremely unfortunate. That’s an understatement.”
Players from both teams could be seen praying and McCutchen held a cross that hung from his neck while Markwood was taken off the field.
The game was paused for several minutes while he received medical attention but there was no official stoppage in play.
Police said any medical update on the fan will be provided by medical personnel in conjunction with the man’s family.
Fans have died from steep falls at baseball stadiums in the past.
In 2015, Atlanta Braves season ticket holder Gregory K. Murrey flipped over guard rails from the upper deck at Turner Field. That was four years after Shannon Stone, a firefighter attending a game with his 6-year-old son, fell about 20 feet after reaching out for a foul ball tossed into the stands at the Texas Rangers’ former stadium.
Both incidents prompted scrutiny over the height of guard rails at stadiums. The Rangers raised theirs, while the Braves settled a lawsuit with Murrey’s family.
A spectator at a 2022 NFL game at Pittsburgh’s Acrisure Stadium died following a fall on an escalator.
