By Michael Zuidema | The Grand Rapids Press

April 05, 2010, 12:15PM

AP PhotoAfter hitting his mom with a foul ball, Denard Span said he'd like to see fans protected better.Denard Span better find his mom the perfect Mother’s Day present. Because her spring training gift wasn’t exactly a hit.

In fact, it was a foul ball.

By now you might have heard about the ball that the Minnesota Twins’ leadoff man fouled off his mom’s chest this week. Fortunately, she was treated by paramedics and back in the stands minutes later, the Associated Press reported.

"My mom is feeling OK right now!" Span later posted on his Twitter account. (Let’s hope someone at least gave her the ball. She worked hard for that souvenir.)

"What the odds of that happening?" Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson said. "I've never seen it before. It's crazy. I'm standing there right next to it and I heard it and it's just, 'Oh no!, that didn't sound good.' She's on the ground and I'm saying, 'Please don't be the head or something' because it sounded so ugly."

Kind of makes you think twice about those groin shots that "America’s Funniest Home Videos" loved to exploit back in the day, doesn’t it?

I mean, isn’t that like showing up to watch your kid compete in NASCAR and then he runs you over?

Then again, maybe not.