Major League Baseball needs to do more to protect fans from foul balls hit at big-league ballparks.

That was the consensus from several Rockies who reacted to an incident in which a young girl was struck by a foul ball during a game at Houston Wednesday night, resulting in injuries that required she be taken to the hospital.

“I think the protective netting should be at least halfway down the line,” all-star shortstop Trevor Story said Thursday before the Rockies hosted Arizona. “The game is so fast, the balls are hit so fast, there is really no way to prevent it unless you have netting.

“There are so many pitches in the game, it only takes one to do damage. I mean, you could be locked into almost every single pitch, but then in one instant, the ball’s right on you.”

Coors Field, like all major-league stadiums, has protective netting, but like Houston’s Minute Maid Park, the netting at Coors extends only to the end of the dugouts. The girl injured Wednesday night was reportedly sitting in the third or fourth row near the third-base dugout, about 10 feet past where the netting ends.

“I would be in favor of really discussing extending (the netting), for sure,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “We have seen events — foul balls — that are tragic. So it’s definitely worth a discussion of how high and how far the netting should go.”

The latest incident occurred during Wednesday’s night game between the Cubs and Astros at Minute Maid Park. A line-drive foul off the bat of Cubs outfielder Albert Almora Jr. hit the young girl, who was sitting in the field-level seats on the third-base side.

The crowd was hushed and Almora was visibly upset, throwing his hands behind his head immediately after seeing the impact. Before finishing his at-bat, Almora got down on one knee and lowered his head as manager Joe Maddon consoled him. Later in the game, Almora went to the area of the stands where the girl was hit and cried in the arms of a female security guard.

After the game, Almora told reporters: “As soon as I hit it, the first person I locked eyes on was her. Obviously I didn’t want that to happen and intend for that to happen.

“God willing, I’ll be able to have a relationship with this little girl for the rest of my life. Prayers right now, and that’s all I really can control.”

Former Rockies outfielder Ryan Spilborghs, who now works at a Rockies TV analyst, tweeted that players want more protection for fans.

Players have begged for the league for years to put up more protective netting. Watching Almora breakdown in tears, crushes me. Players feel responsible hurting fans with foul balls. I never let my family sit where I think balls might go, regardless how good the seats are. https://t.co/u633Cccm9K — Ryan Spilborghs (@spillygoat19) May 30, 2019

Rockies catcher Tony Wolters said he would be in favor of more netting, but he doesn’t want it installed all the way down the foul lines.

“Maybe it should go a littler farther, but I don’t think it should go around the whole field,” Wolters said. “I think it’s cool for fans to catch home runs or foul balls. I think it’s cool for players to be able to toss balls up to the fans.”

All 30 big league teams had expanded their protective netting to at least the far ends of the dugouts by the start of the 2018 season, after a number of injuries caused by foul balls or flying bats.

“The events at last night’s game were extremely upsetting,” MLB said in a statement Thursday. “We send our best wishes to the child and family involved. Clubs have significantly expanded netting and their inventory of protected seats in recent years. With last night’s event in mind, we will continue our efforts on this important issue.”