Milwaukee Brewers honor 8-year-old Cooper Roberts injured in Highland Park shooting

The Milwaukee Brewers placed a ceremonial jersey in their dugout Friday to honor an 8-year-old fan of the team who was wounded during the July Fourth mass shooting in a Chicago suburb.

Cooper Roberts took bullets in the chest during the shooting at a parade in Highland Park, Illinois, that left seven dead. His family said his spine was severed and he is paralyzed from the waist down. The Brewers hung a jersey in their dugout with the name Roberts and Christian Yelich’s jersey number, 22.

Cooper’s family said Friday that he had regained consciousness for the first time since the shooting. They said doctors don’t believe he suffered any brain damage.

“The strength to go through something like that is unimaginable,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said before the team’s game Friday night against the Pittsburgh Pirates. “We’re doing such a small thing, but hopefully it can maybe make one part of the day for them a little bit better.”

The Brewers said in a statement that “we are working on other initiatives to connect players with Cooper and his family, but the priority for now is to focus on their recovery.”

“We’re happy he’s a Brewer fan and want to recognize that and let their family know we’re thinking about them,” Counsell said.