Fans of the Texas Rangers turned a statue of deceased fan Shannon Stone and his son Cooper into a trash can as Opening Day got underway at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.
In 2011 Shannon Stone fell to his death trying to catch a ball from then outfielder Josh Hamilton. In April of 2012 the Rangers revealed the statue, shown above, honoring Shannon who had been a firefighter of 18Â years in Brownwood, Tx
The Rangers released a statement on twitter noting that the trash pileup at the statue had a lot to do with the number of fans entering the ballpark.
The Rangers Fans statue is a cherished component of the ballpark & the club will make certain this situation does not occur in the future.
— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) April 1, 2014
“The Rangers certainly regret & apologize for the trash that accumulated on the Rangers Fans statue at the home plate gate. With thousands of fans, many of whom had been tailgating, entering the park 30 minutes before game time,large amounts of cans, bottles, & other items that are prohibited in the park, accumulated at all entrances.
“Many calls came into the maintenance dpt. during this time, & the club utilized a many employees to continually remove the trash. The debris on the statue was removed in a timely manner but it should not have been allowed to be placed there in the first place. The Rangers Fans statue is a cherished component of the ballpark & the club will make certain this situation does not occur in the future.”
