A 37-year-old healthcare executive is suing the New York Yankees for $10 million, alleging that an errant bat that flew into the stands during a June game caused a traumatic brain injury and left her unable to return to work.
Stephanie Duluc, chief of staff at Bronx-based SOMOS Community Care, was seated in fourth-row seats directly behind home plate on June 2, 2026, during a game against the Cleveland Guardians. The seats belonged to her employer. In the fifth inning, Guardians third baseman José Ramírez lost control of his bat on a swing. The bat cleared the protective netting and struck Duluc in the head with significant force, knocking her from her seat to the ground, according to the complaint filed in Manhattan federal court.
The lawsuit, filed August 1, claims Duluc suffered a traumatic brain injury and concussion, severe and persistent post-traumatic headaches, disabling light sensitivity, injuries to both hands, and a neck injury. She remains unable to resume her professional duties and continues to experience residual deficits including headaches, light sensitivity, balance problems, and cognitive impairments, her attorney has stated.
Duluc’s complaint names the New York Yankees Partnership, Yankee Stadium Holdings LLC, Promats Athletics LLC, Sportsfield Specialties Inc. (involved with the stadium’s netting system), and unidentified “John Doe” netting defendants. It alleges the protective netting in front of her section was “materially lower” than the netting shielding adjacent sections behind home plate, creating an unprotected opening that allowed the bat to pass through. The filing describes the incident as “violent and entirely preventable” and notes that the area behind home plate is the location where the law has long required stadium operators to provide adequate protective screening.
The episode was captured in part on the YES Network broadcast. Announcers described the bat going into the stands over the screen and later noted that a woman had been hit but was back on her feet.
Nearly two months after the incident and less than two weeks before the lawsuit was filed, Duluc appeared on PIX11’s “Monica Makes It Happen” segment. She discussed a company-sponsored event at Fordham University while on camera under studio lighting. Her attorney, Jon L. Norinsberg, has rejected suggestions that the appearance undercuts the injury claims, stating that a brief television appearance does not mean she has recovered or is capable of performing her professional duties on a sustained basis.
Duluc’s case is expected to face a significant legal hurdle under the long-standing “Baseball Rule.” This common-law doctrine generally shields teams and stadium operators from liability for injuries caused by foul balls, broken bats, or similar projectiles, provided the operator has furnished adequate protective screening in the most dangerous areas—typically behind home plate. Courts have frequently dismissed similar claims against the Yankees and other clubs under this principle. The central factual dispute is likely to center on whether the netting configuration at Duluc’s seats met the required standard of adequacy.
Major League Baseball has expanded protective netting in recent years across all 30 parks following high-profile fan injuries. Configurations still vary by stadium, and lawsuits alleging inadequate protection continue to test the boundaries of the Baseball Rule.
The case remains in its early stages in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Talkin’ Yanks on X (formerly Twitter): “37-year-old healthcare executive Stephanie Duluc is suing the Yankees for $10 million after she claims getting hit by an errant bat caused a traumatic brain injury, concussion, severe light sensitivity and permanent damage to her neck and hands, leaving her unable to return to… pic.twitter.com/AEsoZNjWmK / X”
37-year-old healthcare executive Stephanie Duluc is suing the Yankees for $10 million after she claims getting hit by an errant bat caused a traumatic brain injury, concussion, severe light sensitivity and permanent damage to her neck and hands, leaving her unable to return to… pic.twitter.com/AEsoZNjWmK
