Blue Jays extending protective netting at Rogers Centre, Dunedin Stadium

The Toronto Blue Jays have announced that the protective netting, which is hung behind home plate to protect fans at Rogers Centre, will be extended farther down the baselines next year.

The same safety implementations will also take plate at Dunedin Stadium, where the Blue Jays hold spring training.

“Fan safety is paramount to the Blue Jays and we believe that fans should feel protected and secure during our games,” Andrew Miller, executive vice president of Business Operations for the Toronto Blue Jays, said in a statement on Tuesday.

“Extending the protective netting at Rogers Centre and Dunedin Stadium is a clear next step for our organization and one that reflects our team’s values. As fans and followers of the game, it is vitally important for us to preserve and enhance the live baseball experience, while also ensuring everyone who visits our ballparks can do so safely.”

This comes after players and the MLB have called for extended netting to protect fans from foul balls.

Last month the Washington Nationals and Chicago White Sox became the first two teams to extend netting all the way down each foul line in their home ballparks.

The Blue Jays say it has yet to determine how far down the baseline the netting will extend at both parks. Currently the netting at Rogers Centre extends to the dugouts.

The organization says a design plan is currently being developed that will both protect fans and maintain “the standard Blue Jays fans expect” at the ballpark.

The new netting will be in place for the start of the 2020 Spring Training and regular seasons.

We will extend the protective netting at Rogers Centre for the start of the 2020 season. While the exact configuration is TBD, the netting will extend farther down the baselines. pic.twitter.com/92IJmithp1

— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 6, 2019