"When he gloves the out to end an inning, Jason Bay often makes a point to throw the baseball into the stands. If he's jogging back across the diamond, he flips the ball over the dugout. If he heads toward the left-field line or to the wall behind him, he'll flip the ball to the fans in that corner.

He understands the danger inherent in the endeavor, what with fans leaning over railings sometimes 20 feet above the playing field. So Bay empathized with Texas outfielder Josh Hamilton, who the day before had turned and flung a foul ball to a man trying to secure a keepsake for his son. The fan, a 39-year-old firefighter named Shannon Stone, tumbled over the outfield fence at Rangers Ballpark. He was later pronounced dead.

"Through no fault of his own, you're trying to do something nice, and then that happens," Bay said. "I wouldn't be surprised if a few guys might think twice about maybe getting it a little deeper into the stands."

The sadness of the incident in Texas shook the baseball world today. The Rangers set up a memorial account in Stone's honor. Players grieved for the family. But baseball would carry on. Manager Terry Collins did not address his team about it. There was nothing to say, he explained before tonight's game against the Giants. Before the season begins, MLB officials caution players not to throw baseballs full force into the stands, Collins said. But there was not much of a way to prevent accidents like the one Thursday night. "