CHICAGO — White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf is pushing back on the possibility that a shooting at Guaranteed Rate Field came from a gun inside the ballpark.
Two women were injured in a shooting during the team’s 12-4 loss to Oakland last week. Chicago police are investigating what happened, including whether the gun was fired inside or outside of the facility.
Fred Waller, interim superintendent of Chicago Police Department, said Monday that investigators have nearly ruled out the possibility that the shots came from outside the ballpark.
“I spoke with Superintendent Waller last night, and he authorized me to say that regardless of what anybody has said, up ’til now, they have not ruled out that the shots came from outside the ballpark,” Reinsdorf said Thursday in a rare media session in his office at Guaranteed Rate Field.
“They’re still investigating. I don’t want to get into specific facts while they’re investigating,” Reinsdorf continued, “but we’ve really done a deep dive into this and I don’t see any way in the world that the shots could have come from inside the ballpark. But let’s let the police continue with their investigation.”
Both wounded women, ages 42 and 26, were expected to recover from the shooting that occurred during the fourth inning. Police said the 42-year-old sustained a gunshot wound to the leg and the 26-year-old had a graze wound to her abdomen. The 26-year-old refused medical attention, according to a police statement.
A Chicago police spokesman said Thursday that the investigation is ongoing, and they had no update at this time.
Major League Baseball has had mandatory metal detection in place since opening day in 2015. Big league clubs had between the 2013 season and 2015 opening day to meet the metal detection screening requirements.