What was he thinking? Baseball fan saved from falling while trying to catch a ball days after father fell to his death from the stands

In a terrifying replay of a fatal accident last week, an over-enthusiastic baseball fan was caught and held by his friends last night as he lost his balance trying to catch a ball.

The ball had been struck into the stands at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, when Keith Carmickle climbed up on a narrow table, leaned forward and lost his balance, momentum carrying him toward a 20-foot fall and a hard deck below.



Dramatic photos show him dangling precariously over the edge of the stand while his brother, a friend and a handful of fans hold him tight.

Dicing with death: Keith Carmickle climbs onto a narrow drinks table in a bid to catch a struck ball at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. Seconds after this picture was taken Mr Carmickle lost his balance

Saved from fall: Mr Carmickle missed the catch and the momentum carried him over the railing. But the fast action of friends and nearby fans meant that Mr Carmickle was spared a potentially fatal fall

Hoisted to safety: After dangling over the drop for a few seconds, Mr Carmickle was hauled back into his seat. Despite being spoken to by security, he was allowed to stay and watch the rest of the game

The incident happened at the Major League Baseball All-Star Home Run Derby.

Had it not been for the quick reactions of the people around him, Mr Carmickle might have suffered the same fate as Shannon Stone, the Texas Rangers' fan who fell to his death on Thursday night trying to catch a ball thrown into the stands.

After the incident Mr Carmickle said: ' I stepped up on the table, I missed the ball by two or three feet and went over. I thought, "I've lived a good life".'

Seated in a small section above the right-field fence, Mr Carmickle, from Kingman, said he and his group had already grabbed home-run balls and were looking to add another to their collection when Milwaukee's Prince Fielder came up in the second round of the derby.



Long way down: A shot from further out on Chase Field shows the 20ft droop Mr Carmickle would have fallen had he not been caught by his friends

Trying to snare a towering shot by Fielder, Mr Carmickle stepped up onto a metal table about 18 inches wide and reached down for the catch.



He missed the ball, which hit the wall several feet below him, and the momentum carried him forward, headfirst over a short railing.



Mr Carmickle was headed for a hard and potentially fatal landing - the same 20ft fall that killed Mr Stone in Texas - when his friend, Aaron Nelson, grabbed his legs and his brother, Kraig, grabbed him around the arms.



Mr Carmickle dangled briefly over a deck before his brother, Nelson and a few fans pulled him back to his seat.



Tragedy: Veteran fireman Shannon Stone died after he fell from the stand in front of his young son

The incident was captured from several angles because Mr Carmickle and his group were sitting amid a bank of cameras set up to capture the action on the field.

Mr Nelson said: ' He tried to catch it, I grabbed his legs and his brother grabbed his arms. So when he went over the ledge, we pulled him back. He wasn't going down, I was holding on.'

Questions will need to be asked about crowd safety at matches after two such incidents within five days. Mr Carmickle was questioned by security personnel a few minutes after the incident but were allowed to continue watching the game with a verbal warning.

Mr Carmickle's near miss happened on the same day Mr Stone, 39, was laid to rest in Texas.

Mr Stone fell 20 feet to his death while trying to catch a ball thrown into the stands by Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton.

A matter of hours before Mr Carmickle's stunt, the widow and six-year-old son of Mr Stone walked hand-in-hand behind a fire engine carrying his coffin.



Mr Stone had taked his son Cooper to a Rangers game when he tried to catch a foul ball thrown into the stands by player Josh Hamilton.

Witnesses said Mr Stone was conscious after landing and spoke about Cooper being left alone. He was pronounced dead within an hour. An autopsy ruled the cause as blunt force trauma from the fall.

Mr Stone had been with the Brownwood fire department since 1993. He was voted Firefighter of the Year twice by his peers, according to the mayor, and had risen to the rank of lieutenant.

He also worked as a paramedic, and as a rescue technician at Texas Motor Speedway. He also was involved in disaster relief following Hurricanes Katrina and Ike, and fighting wildfires.

Stone's fatal fall - watched by a crowd of 35,041, including Cooper - has raised doubts over the safety of stadiums and the time-honoured tradition of throwing balls to fans.

In a statement, Major League Baseball said its 'players are encouraged to be fan-friendly and we will carefully review this incident with our clubs to continue to ensure a safe environment for our fans'.

Memorial walk: Family members follow the procession with the fire truck carrying the coffin of Stone after his funeral in Brownwood, Texas

Texas team president Nolan Ryan revealed that they would be setting up a memorial fund for the Stone family. He called it a 'very,very sad day for the Texas Rangers organisation'.

'It hits us at our roots of what we are,’ he said. ‘We're about making memories, about family entertainment and last night we had a father and son at the game and had a very tragic incident.'

Former president George W. Bush, who used to be the team's managing general partner and often attends games, was sitting in the front row with Mr Ryan when the accident happened.

The Rangers players are said to be distraught over Stone's death on Thursday night, and they have all been offered grief counselling.

Help: Fellow fan Ronnie Hargis, who had been chatting to the victim moments before the tragedy, leans out to try and grab him but it is too late