A 12-year-old boy from New Jersey is fighting for his life in hospital after being accidentally struck in the neck with a baseball on Tuesday. According to reports, Xavier Taylor is in critical condition following the freak accident in South Jersey, where he was warming up ahead of a game for Maple Shade Youth Baseball.
The Incident
After being hit by an errant throw, Taylor was reportedly airlifted to Cooper University Hospital, where he remains in the intensive care unit. His father, Greg Taylor, expressed his determination, saying, 'My son Xavier loves this game. He will play this game again.'
Community Support
Hundreds of friends, neighbors, and teammates gathered for a prayer vigil filled with music, candles, and messages of hope at the field where the incident occurred on Thursday night. Many wore shirts with his No. 6 jersey number. One speaker stated, 'Tonight, we are here to lift him up in prayer, strength, hope, and love. Baseball teaches us about teamwork, showing up for one another, and never giving up, and tonight, that's exactly what we're doing for Xavier.'
Supporters also organized a meal train for the family and raised over $60,000 to help them. Greg Taylor expressed gratitude: 'I could not have asked or ever dreamt of support like this right now, but our end goal is for our son to be back on this field or whatever field is next destined for him.'
In a Facebook post, Greg added: 'There can be no words our family has of the outpouring of love, visitors, support, donations, thoughts, and prayers to our family over the last few days. We believe and come into agreement that miracles do exist and a miracle will happen for our Xavier.'
