During this weekend’s spring training game between the Pittsburg Pirates and the Atlanta Braves, the game winning play didn’t happen on the field, but in the stands lined with fans – game winning because a kid gets to go home with an intact face and a life to look forward to.
A man’s quick thinking made this possible, when he blocked a bat hurling towards the kid’s head with his hands.
The moment was captured by Christopher Horner of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, showing how close the boy really came and how precise the hero’s prophylactic moves were.
@BiertempfelTrib The two frames showing just how close the bat was to the boy's head. pic.twitter.com/7VwnfWp8L1
— Christopher Horner (@Hornerfoto1) March 6, 2016
From NPR:
It’s always dangerous when a batter loses his grip and sends a bat helicoptering into the stands. And from what we see of this incident, it might have done significant damage to the boy, who seemed to be caught completely off guard as he held a smartphone in his seat in the stands. We’ll remind you that in the majors, players use wooden bats that commonly weigh more than 2 pounds.
Put that cellphone down, kid.

itsjim
March 7, 2016 at 3:21 pm
Give that man Most Valuable Fan. Free tickets for life.