Former San Francisco Giants outfielder Mac Williamson is suing the San Francisco Giants, multiple media outlets reported Tuesday, arguing that a bullpen mound just off the field of play at the team’s home ballpark prematurely ended his career.
Williamson was playing left field for the Giants on April 24, 2018, when he tripped over a bullpen mound while in pursuit of a foul ball hit by the Washington Nationals’ Bryce Harper. His momentum carried him head first into a short wall separating the stands from the field of play.
Williamson continued to play in that game but then didn’t play for another month as he spent time on the concussion-related injury list. He ended up appearing just one more season, at age 28 in 2019, splitting time with the Giants and the Seattle Mariners.
Williamson said the incident left him with permanent injuries that have affected his personal life.
“I suffer nausea, trouble sleeping, mood swings, and other issues,” Williamson said in a statement. “I wake up every day hoping that today is a better day and that I will get closer to how I felt before the injury.”
Last offseason, AT&T Park relocated the bullpen mounds beyond the center field wall.
Williamson hit 17 home runs in 160 games over five major league seasons, batting .203 with a .348 slugging percentage.
“Everybody’s career ends at some point, but to have it taken from me because the bullpen mounds were unnecessarily placed on the field is very hard to cope with,” Williamson said. “Although I will never be made whole, my intent on filing the lawsuit is holding park owners accountable for not only taking away my career, but carelessly risking every other great player’s careers by needlessly placing the bullpen mounds on the field.”
In a statement, the Giants suggested that a lawsuit was not the proper channel for a grievance against a former club.
“MLB and its clubs have a longstanding practice of addressing claims arising from player injuries through the collectively-bargained grievance procedure and the worker’s compensation system,” the team statement said. “Williamson’s claims are properly resolved through these processes, not through the courts.”
