NJ Little Leaguer Critically Hurt While Warming Up for Game

A Little League game in New Jersey turned life-threatening for a 12-year-old after a pre-game warmup throw struck him in the neck, sending him into cardiac arrest, his father says. Xavier Taylor of Maple Shade Youth Baseball was walking back to the dugout at Fellowship Columbia Bank Field on May 26 when a teammate's ball hit him; his father, Greg Taylor, a retired firefighter, performed aid on the field before Xavier was flown to Cooper University Hospital in Camden, USA Today reports. He has remained in the ICU on a ventilator and in "extremely critical condition," Greg told CBS Philadelphia.

Greg, who describes the incident as a freak accident with no one at fault, says he has spoken with the player who threw the ball, NBC Philadelphia reports. The Maple Shade community has responded with vigils at the field and outside the hospital, with players nationwide wearing Xavier's number 6 and a fundraiser topping $70,000. At a vigil, Greg shared that his son keeps the Bible verse Philippians 4:13—"I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me"—inside his cap, and said, "My son Xavier loves this game. He will play this game again." Local baseball officials have filed incident reports with league and township authorities.