Markwood can talk and encourage others to support him during his “next phase of recovery.”
PITTSBURGH — The man who fell on a warning track at PNC Park from the top of a 21-foot-high wall during a game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night is awake and wary.
Organizers of the GoFundMe page for 20-year-old Bag Markwood, who slid down the railing and field during the seventh innings of his 4-3 victory with the Pittsburgh Cubs, shared Saturday’s update, where Markwood is improving.
Markwood has made great strides since being admitted to Allegheny General Hospital’s Trauma Center in a critical condition on Wednesday, according to fundraiser Jennifer Phillips.
“After everything he has experienced since the accident on Wednesday night, this progress is nothing but a miracle,” wrote Phillips, who taught Markwood. “He still has a long way ahead of him, but today it brought us a moment of hope that we all hold.”
Phillips added that Markwood could talk to others to support him during his “next phase of recovery.”
As of early Saturday, GoFundMe had raised over $27,000.
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The pirates conducted an internal investigation into the incident. This includes interviewing fans and analyzing credit card receipts by others in the Markwood group.
Brian Walecki, the club’s senior vice president of communications, said Markwood concluded that he didn’t buy alcohol, but consumed two beers over the course of the game.
Markwood joined the game with three other players, the club said. Credit card receipts indicated that one party in the group had legally purchased seven alcoholic beverages during the contest.
The team said they received conflicting accounts from fans who were sitting near Markwood in a section above the wall at Clemente.
One fan told the team that Markwood appears to be drunk. Others said he didn’t do anything until the moment he stood up to celebrate the hit of Pirates star Andrew McCutchen.
Pittsburgh Public Safety, which includes the Pittsburgh Police and EMS, named the incident an accident.
Will Graves
