Watch CBS News

Fan who died in fall at Atlanta Braves game identified

ATLANTA - Authorities in Georgia have released the identity of the fan who plunged to his death from an upper deck at Turner Field during a game between the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees.

Gregory K. Murrey, 60, of Alpharetta, Georgia died after falling during the seventh inning of Saturday's game into a lower-level stand, according to Mary Beth Hauptle, an investigator with the Fulton County Medical Examiner.

The fall immediately followed the introduction of Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez as a pinch hitter. The game wasn't delayed while medical personnel treated the man for about 10 minutes, applying CPR before putting him on a backboard. Murrey was pronounced dead at Grady Memorial Hospital a short time later.

While officials said foul play is not suspected in Murrey's death, Police Sgt. Greg Lyon told CBS News the Fulton County Medical Examiner's office will conduct an investigation, including toxicology tests.

The man fell close to the area where players' wives and families sit, and there was blood was on the concrete surface around the seats.

Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius was standing on second base, following his double, when he saw the man fall.

"I was thinking about it the whole time," Gregorius said after the Yankees won 3-1. "All I can say is my condolences to the family. It was right in front of the camera in the press box. He hit the wires."

Major League Baseball said it had been in contract with the Braves and was monitoring the situation.

A sellout crowd of 49,243 was the largest of the season at Turner Field. The Braves are set to move into a new suburban stadium in 2017.

A fan died at Turner Field on Aug. 12, 2013, after falling 85 feet from a walkway on the fourth level of the stadium. Investigators from the Fulton County Medical Examiner's office later ruled that the death of Ronald Lee Homer Jr., 30, was a suicide.

Police said Homer, of Conyers, Georgia, landed in the players' parking lot after a rain delay during a game between the Braves and Philadelphia.

Two fans died at major league games in 2011.

In Texas, a man fell about 20 feet to the ground beyond the outfield fence trying to catch a baseball tossed his way by Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton. Shannon Stone, 39 and a firefighter in Brownwood, Texas, was attending the Rangers game with his young son.

Earlier that year, a 27-year-old man died after falling about 20 feet and striking his head on concrete during a Colorado Rockies home game. Witnesses told police the man was trying to slide down a staircase railing at Coors Field and lost his balance.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.