Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City will be one of at least three ballparks in Major League Baseball to extend protective netting from behind home plate to span the length of the dugout on either side.
The Royals, Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers have announced the additional safety measure. Several others teams, including the Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners and Chicago Cubs, are known to have at least investigated installing more protective barriers prior to the 2017 season.
Texas officials said the new netting at its ballpark will be six feet high above the dugouts. The nets will extend about 68 feet from the previous end of the home plate screen on both sides.
The Royals open defense of their World Series title on April 4 against the New York Mets. Texas opens play at home against Seattle on the same date and Minnesota begins the season on the road before facing the Chicago White Sox on April 11 in its opener at Target Field.