Bryan Stow: Beaten Giants Fan Turns a Huge Corner on Friday

It has been nearly four whole months since San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow was viciously attacked in the Dodger Stadium parking lot back on Opening Day. Stow has been in a coma ever since, and there have been very few positive developments regarding his condition.

Friday, however, was a very, very good day. According to a post on the Stow family's Web site (Support4BryanStow.com), Stow was able to both open and close his eyes on command today, and it sounds like he even tried to give a thumbs up with his right hand.

Needless to say, this is a huge step forward for Stow, and it's even more significant given what happened earlier this week. On Monday, Stow underwent emergency surgery after fluid built up in his head, causing a seizure. A report from the Associated Press claimed that Stow's doctor also found a growth in Stow's head that he had "never seen before."

Because of that, the odds of the 42-year-old Stow would actually make progress this week did not seem to be in his favor. So much for that, and thank goodness.

If there is a downside to today's development, it's that Stow was asleep again by the time his family arrived. They didn't seem to mind much, though, as the post on the Web site says they are "very excited!"

At the same time, Stow's family knows full well that it's not a good idea to take anything for granted:

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As always with these steps forward, we are aware that it’s intermittent, and there will still be some steps back. Even before the surgery, when he was at his best, his response to commands were not consistent. We remain cautiously optimistic.

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Meanwhile, there were also some positive developments regarding the hunt for Stow's attackers this week. Los Angeles police arrested two new suspects on Thursday night, and the word from ESPNLosAngeles.com is that police were able to make the arrests because the two suspects "made incriminating statements that implicated them in the attack."

The two men, 29-year-old Louie Sanchez and 30-year-old Marvin Norwood, both have violent pasts, and both have had several run-ins with the law. Sanchez's sister, Dorene, was also arrested on suspicion of being an accessory to the attack.

Sanchez and Norwood have since been booked on $500,000 bail. Dorene Sanchez was released after posting $50,000 bail.

In the meantime, Giovanni Ramirez, the man the police originally arrested on suspicion of being part of the attack, is no longer considered a suspect.

All things considered, it sounds like things are moving forward in both arenas. That obviously has to please the thousands of baseball fans that have been following Stow's case closely these past few months, but it also goes without saying that this is something that transcends the sports world.

Indeed, you don't have to be a baseball junkie to root for Stow.