Texas Ranger Josh Hamilton
Josh Hamilton is "very distraught" over his throw, which indirectly resulted in the death of a Rangers fan. Reuters

Texas Rangers may have beat Oakland 6-0, but at the cost of an ardent fan who breathed his last after trying to reach a foul ball tossed up to him by Josh Hamilton during Thursday’s game.

The person, who was later identified as Shannon Stone, a 39-year-old firefighter from Brownwood, died in front of his six to eight-year old son who saw his father tumbling from a height of about 20 feet onto concrete.

In the second innings of the game held at Rangers Ballpark stadium, All-Star outfielder Hamilton threw a foul ball that caromed out to him from Oakland’s outfielder Conor Jackson in to the stands.

Stone leaned over the front-row to catch the ball tossed by Hamilton. Stone caught the ball, but fell head first into the opening behind the scoreboard. He was pronounced dead at a Fort Worth hospital less than an hour after he fell.

We had a very tragic accident tonight and one of our fans lost their life reaching over the rail trying to get a ball,” Rangers president Nolan Ryan told reporters after the game.

“As an organization, our team members and our staff, we are very heavy hearted about this. Our thoughts and our prayers go out to the family. Our thoughts are with them, Ryan added.

Several players who witnessed the fall were visibly shaken when informed of the news after the game.

It is the second fatal accident at a major league stadium this season. In May, 27-year-old Robert Seamans of Pueblo, Colorado, died after falling about 20 feet and struck his head on concrete during the seventh innings of a Colorado Rockies game. Witnesses told police that the man had been trying to slide down a staircase railing at Coors Field and lost his balance.

Watch the below video to see the latest accident at Rangers Ballpark:

MLB