12-Year-Old Boy Dies in Freak Baseball Accident After Getting Hit in the Neck by a Ball
- Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:39pm by
Madeleine Morgenstern
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Eric Lederman, 12, died Thursday after a baseball hit him in the neck. (Image source: Chicago Tribune)
OSWEGO, Ill. (NewsCore) — A 12-year-old sports fanatic has died in Illinois after being hit in the neck by a baseball while warming up for a game this week.
Eric Lederman, a sixth-grader from Oswego, Ill., roughly 50 miles southwest of Chicago, was hospitalized after being hit while throwing a ball with a teammate Wednesday night before a league game in Wheaton, the Chicago Tribune reported.
He died Thursday night, leaving his local community in shock.
“He was an inspiration to his teammates, coaches and baseball family,” Brian Zacker, the coach of Eric’s baseball team, told the newspaper. “He played with an infectious smile and played the game with tremendous passion and heart.”
Oswego Softball and Baseball Association executive director John Thorson told the Chicago Sun-Times that officials were working on plans to set up a memorial for the Lederman family.
“I‘ve played baseball many years and in college and I’ve never seen anything like this,” he said.
“It’s a tragic freak accident. But right now we’re concentrating all our efforts on the family and the team and the coaching staff. They are all literally beside themselves.”
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Comments (50)
trueamerican40
Posted on April 15, 2012 at 12:48amMay God bless this family until they are reunited in heaven with our Lord Jesus. Amen.
Report Post »ProPatriaVigilans
Posted on May 11, 2012 at 1:21pmSo god kills / allows to be killed a 12 year old child, but now he’s going to bless the family. That’s rich
Report Post »LeadNotFollow
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 10:19pm…
This precious innocent child is gone, but many evil, hate spewing, liberals, are still using up air.
Satan is working overtime.
May God comfort this child’s family and friends.
Report Post »THXll38
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 10:14pmSo sad. I had this happen when I played little league in the early 80s. I was playing center field, and there was another game going on next to us. A twelve year old boy got struck by a fly ball when he missed the ball and hit him in the head. I seen it happen, but didn’t think of it much until the ambulance came. It was indeed a sad day for us all. I really hate when freak accidents happen to good people.
Report Post »AncientKnight
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 8:56pmEric is with all his baseball heros that passed on.Babe,Clemete,Shoeless Joe Mickey and many many more will play ball with him now.May God help the family in their time of loss.
Report Post »TeslanEdison
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 8:37pmWell I think that’s why there is a “SOFTBALL” I mean really I played catcher in fastball and from experience that ball isn’t your friend. The average teen can pitch close to 75mph, off a bat it’s even faster. The best idea is that if you can’t catch it duck or get out of the way, kids actually need to be taught there are places you don’t let the ball hit you, I‘m pretty sure that’s what dodge ball is about, I saw a pretty bloody dodge ball incident once… life isn’t safe, you can’t make it safer, if it‘s not a baseball it’s a disease if not a disease something else. I feel for the family, but it really could be worse, at least he died doing something he loved, rather than in some obscure manner where nobody notices. Would you choose to die in the process of doing something you love, or die as the result of a progressive degenerative disease culminating in cancer and pneumonia?
Report Post »South Philly Boy
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 8:20pmIt’s sad.
Report Post »Marengo Ohio Patriot
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 7:55pmbaseballs don’t kill, people with baseballs kill!!
Report Post »G-WHIZ
Posted on April 15, 2012 at 12:02pm…Naaaa! Bush did it!
Report Post »Patriot of My America
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 7:55pmThe Holy Scripture is clear. Any child that may perish prior to the age of puberty ( 13 ) according to the scripture is in the realm of the Lord. Innocent as driven snow. This child is with the Lord as surely as the Sun will shine and surely as the Scripture is!~!
Report Post »Cincybearcatfan
Posted on April 16, 2012 at 8:18amWhat scripture are you looking at? Where in the Bible do you see that? I don’t see that anywhere.
Report Post »COFemale
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 7:46pmRest in peace, rest in peace. Such a heartbreaking story, life is indeed very short and we must embrace the time we have, because it can be gone in an instance.
Report Post »PeachyinGA
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 9:05pmTruly tragic.
Report Post »rochrealtor
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 7:19pmEric, God has you and we can only hope after our lives we will meet. I am praying for your parents and friends who will suffer with out you. I am sending my angels to your family.
Report Post »SickandTiredAmerican
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 5:44pmMy thoughts and prayers go out to this boy’s family. This is truly a tragic story.
My kids all play softball and have been injured several times, thankfully, not seriously. My wife, their coach, was hit in the jaw with a ball right off the end of a bat yesterday. Again, thankfully, it was not serious. We can’t raise our children (or live our lives) in a bubble to protect them and things happen that we can’t control. Unfortunately, in this case, a young boy lost his life.
Report Post »Chromo200
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 7:19pmwell said.
Report Post »Paul
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 5:23pmQuick ! Outlaw Baseball !!
Prayers to the Family…
Report Post »vtxphantom
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 5:03pmRIP young man.
Parents may want to wrap their kids in bubble wrap. Don’t, it’s against our nature.
Report Post »Annika2011
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 4:46pmA sad, heartbreaking, terrible tragedy.
Report Post »Condolences to the family. May God comfort them.
What a beautiful child, and a shocking loss.
FreedomPurveyor
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 4:12pmThere is inherent risk in all athletics. This is tragic, but hopefully no one uses it to try to over regulate the sport.
Report Post »RightPolitically
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 9:35pmThere is risk in everything, even breathing. But don’t worry, the “do-gooder” liberals will find a way to regulate over this somehow. Terrible tragedy!
Report Post »FloridaFarmGirl
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:52pmThis is really too common. I personally know a family who at the ballpark with our sons, their son was hit in the chest by his brother with a baseball and it killed him. Can’t imagine the pain. My prayers go out to this family! You never know what might happen. I always thought if I kept my sons busy with sports, etc. they would be too busy to get into trouble. You never know.
Report Post »Al J Zira
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 4:32pmI’s sorry for your friends loss, that is a tragedy. Anytime a child dies it’s extremely hard to comprehend. I raised my kids with the same though process that by keeping them involved in sports it would keep them out of trouble. I have to say that I was glad I did it. It’s easier to lose a child to drugs and violence than it is a freak accident in sports. Thank God almighty I have three great kids who have grown to be good young adults. One Nurse, one Marine and one accountant to be; I guess that the most important thing to parents, that their kids turn out OK and get to have a good life. God Bless the parents of this child.
Report Post »whatthecrazy
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:26pmHeartbreaking, I’m so close to my son who is seventeen ,when he was this young boy’s age around twelve i was taking him to a skating rink and he told me that the drive there was good bondage time for us,I just laughed and could not bring myself to tell him that he means bonding time.He brought this up to me just resently and thought it was funny but a smidge embarrasing. It’s those moments that those parents will remember about thier boy, the good time memories are all they have now God Bless them and thier little ones soul………
Report Post »Ruler4You
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:50pmLet’s see, I’m betting body armor is going to be required to play base ball now.
Report Post »Rowgue
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:19pmThis isn’t really a freak accident. People are killed from getting hit by baseballs on a regular basis. You‘re playing a game where you’re throwing and hitting a rock hard object at high speed. People are going to get hurt and people are going to get killed. Unfortunate but it’s a risk anyone that plays the game accepts.
Report Post »Itsjusttim
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:35pmYeah people with brains know it’s not a freak accident, but the league will call it a “Freak” accident because they don’t want to be regulated, and the lawyers will call it a freak accident because he should have had neck protection or something, and the vulture lawyers will fly, and the vulture politicians will fly to where the corpse is all wanting a piece of the pie. The liberal lawyers who hate America will fly at the chance to doom an American sport. And God is crashing your entire system to smack you all out of the sky.
Report Post »Itsjusttim
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:38pmWhat a bunch of disgusting pieces of human waste. They need a corpse and tragedy to justify their own existence.
Report Post »hcartexas
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:45pmTIm….. please take your meds.
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 7:04pmI swear Tim, I dont know how you get your arms out of that straightjacket…
Report Post »SilentReader
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:18pmWhat a tragedy! RIP Eric! My condolences go to his family and friends!
Report Post »blackyb
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:12pmMaybe they can have some type of neck protecting equipment that will not hamper their playing. I am saddened to hear this. God bless his little heart and the family as well.
Report Post »disenlightened
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:26pmIt costs so much for these kids already – fee to play, uniform, glove, bat, helmet, cleats. Imagine having to wear a neck collar too. May as well end the sport and train the kids to be community organizers for the party. Walking door to door is good exercise.
Report Post »kickagrandma
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:30pmOhhh, puleeze! People have played baseball ever since it was created/invented. We skated without knee and elbow pads, and yes we were hurt, scraped, bloodied, lost teeth, broke noses and some of our friends died. They also drowned. ohhhhh, yes, they did. We swam without safety devices. Our parents thought we could sink or swim, so by golly, we did. Oh, my, speaking of that, some of us even water skied, without all sorts of safety crap wrapped around us, and most of us swallowed lakes of water up our noses at one time or another. Guess what???? Most of us are still here. Some are not. Some have died from all the bs generated from the left. Arghhhh!
Report Post »VTDave
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 4:58pmFirst off my prayers go out to the Lederman family. I cannot imagine the pain they are going through right now.
Now in response to BLACKYB…… Really? A neck protector now?!!!! Should they also wear protective padding up their whole body to protect them from fast pitches while up to bat? Accidents happen and always will. Those that feel compelled to “bubblewrap” the rest of us at every damn opportunity they get, in the end, do more damage than good. We, as a people, are becoming too damn soft as it is. I do not mean to jump your “S” but there is already too much regulation going on.
Report Post »Bad Kitty
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 6:05pmbut you know, a george zimmerman will alway try to shoot your child cuz of race
Report Post »Suzanne D
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 8:17pm@ BadKitty: zimmerman didn‘t shoot martin because of martin’s race. he shot him because he was an over zealous guy who used incredibly poor judgement by staking a young man and needlessly provoking him to fear. get your story straight.
Report Post »Ishmot2
Posted on April 15, 2012 at 1:55amBAD KITTY but you know, a george zimmerman will alway try to shoot your child cuz of race
Not my kid; because I know where my kids are, and their not out casing the neighborhood. I’m going to be starting a Zimmerman watch in my neighborhood! Oh, People get hit on every part of their body when playing baseball, just like bull riders sometimes get stomped on; if you don‘t want to get hit with the ball don’t go to the park! If you don‘t want to get stomped on don’t get on the back of a bull; and if you don‘t want to get shot by neighborhood watch don’t go out casing neighborhood and assaulting neighborhood watchmen.
Report Post »TheSoundOf Truth
Posted on April 15, 2012 at 6:37pmSuzanne, he shot him because martin attacked him.
Case closed.
Report Post »disenlightened
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:02pmMy condolences to the family . . .
Report Post »but the ******** in Illinois will now require full body armor to play baseball – or they’ll do away with it all together.
Baddoggy
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:12pmThey do not realize…We all die sometimes. We cannot save lives. Lets say they actually banned baseball…A lot of kids would die from heart attacks from no exercise that would not have normally die.
Report Post »Its like the seat belt laws. It causes some people to drive faster because they feel more secure and they end up killing more people. Preventative injury laws are stupid…Some people need to die because they are dumb, like speed freaks…Just sayin.
Balpit
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 3:00pmIt’s so awful when a child dies. I can’t imagine the pain his family is going through.
Report Post »thegreatcarnac
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:57pmI like the way the stories on the news are getting more and more generic. You never quite know what happened and they read like a police blotter…just barely enough facts. The only time you get the whole story is if they think a white person fought back while being attacked by a ‘poor innocent black’ BTW…I am sorry for the kid and his family..
Report Post »hoss_cartwright
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:56pmso i guess the ‘baseball control’ groups will be out in force(is this their ‘trayvon’ moment?)
Report Post »spirited
Posted on April 14, 2012 at 2:56pmOh Dear Lord –
Report Post »Help the Lederman Family…..