Rockies sued for injury partially blamed on team's 'poor performance'

A Colorado man has sued the Colorado Rockies after he was hit in the face by a foul ball, in part citing the team's "poor performance" for creating an environment inside Coors Field where "spectators, particularly those in luxury suites, are less engaged with the action on the field."

According to an in-depth article in The Denver Post, a lawsuit filed on behalf of Timothy Roeckel states he suffered "catastrophic and permanent injuries" after a foul ball hit him in the face during a 2023 game between the New York Yankees and Rockies in downtown Denver.

The timing of the lawsuit is interesting as the Yankees return to Denver this weekend for the first time since that series when the injury allegedly occurred.

Roeckel was sitting in a luxury box at Coors Field when he was struck by the ball in the first inning. The lawsuit states that Roeckel couldn't see the ball because of the "architectural elements including the ceiling of the luxury box and the overhang of the stadium’s bleacher seats."

In the lawsuit, Roeckel's attorneys added that, "It was not physically possible for (Roeckel) to see the foul ball from the seat in question."

On the Rockies website, it states that "under Colorado law, a spectator of professional baseball assumes the risk of any injury to person or property resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of such activity and may not recover from an owner of a baseball team or an owner of a stadium where professional baseball is played for injury resulting from the inherent dangers and risks of observing professional baseball, including but not limited to being struck by a baseball or a baseball bat (Colorado Baseball Spectator Safety Act of 1993)."

However, Roeckel’s attorneys countered that the Rockies did not make a reasonable effort to keep the stadium safe, therefore negating the warning. Part of that lack of a reasonable effort includes, according to the lawsuit, the Rockies encouraging "non-spectating behavior" such as dining in the luxury boxes and talking with fellow fans instead of watching the game.

The lawsuit also mentions Colorado's "poor performance" on the field as the injury occurred during a 2023 season where the Rockies posted their first 100-loss season in franchise history. Since then, the Rockies have logged another 100-plus-loss campaign and are currently on pace to lose the most games in Major League Baseball history, entering Tuesday with an 8-39 record.