Blue Jays Stadium is renowned for at least three things. It is the only Major League Baseball stadium outside of the United States. It was the first stadium to include a hotel with large floor to ceiling windows that looked out over the entire field, allowing visitors to watch the game while still in bed. And, it was the home of back-to-back World Series champions in 1992 and 1993. There are more famous stadiums, there are older stadiums, there are even much larger stadiums. But, there are few stadiums that could match the home town crowd for heart, at least on Tuesday night, May 4th 2022 when Yankees’ right fielder, Aaron Judge, drove a home run into the stands.
Blue Jay fans share the reputation common to many Canadians–of being very polite. But baseball is baseball and home team loyalty is as strong in Toronto as anywhere. So, when a young fan, wearing both a Yankees hat and a Judge 99 jersey, showed up to watch the game, he was taking a chance. It’s not always the wisest choice to wear the opposing team’s hat, never mind the whole getup. But this little boy was there to see his hero–from the visiting team.
As the home run ball soared into the stands, another man, sitting in front of the boy, reached up and snagged the ball. Baseball fans will know that one reason to sit in certain areas of the stadium is for this exact possibility–to snag either a home run or, in other seats, a foul ball. After all, a major league ball from a major league game is still a big deal.
But that’s when everything changed. Without hesitation, the man who caught the ball turned and handed it to the little boy in the Judge jersey. The little boy threw his arms around the man and cried. Commenting to sports media, on being told about the event later that night, Judge commented, “That’s what’s special about this game. Everybody’s fans. Everybody appreciates the game.”
Sometimes being “with” someone is accidental. It’s all those times whether catching a ball for a young fan, holding open a door for a UPS driver overloaded with packages, or calling a neighbor to let them know their sprinklers are running and it’s raining outside–it’s all “with”. Sometimes we intentionally focus on talking, working, building or being with someone–sometimes the universe just opens us up to the opportunity.
(drawn from www.people.com, Alexandra Schonfield, May 2022)
