Short Hop

I was in Cleveland’s Jake at the Lake, now named Progressive Field, working with a kid, on a story for Sports Illustrated for Kids magazine. 

Ryan, along with his dad, went to every major league ballpark that summer. Keeping a daily diary, he reported, i.e. opined for kids, on his favorite ballpark amenities---food, autograph locations, batting and throwing machines, best seating, latest electronic games, best places to catch batting practices balls.

Sports Illustrated sent photographers to dozens of these parks to catch the kid in action. I met them in Boston, Baltimore, Atlanta, St. Louis, and Cleveland.

In Baltimore the shutterbugs caught him sitting on the Oriole’s bench interviewing Cal Ripken. There was a nice shot of him lounging in the Texas bullpen with Roger McDowell, a real bullpen character, secretly spraying shaving cream on the kid’s baseball cap.

A fun story with great photography but the highlight, at least for me, took place in Cleveland at Jake at the Lake.  I had Ryan leaning over the leftfield fence, baseball glove outstretched, attempting to catch a batting practice homerun ball.

I was lurking behind him, hiding in the shadows, when Sandy Alomar, the Cleveland catcher, hit a shot over the kids head that whizzed past me and came flying back at me off a cement wall.

I somehow managed to short hop this blast which may well have been the catch of my life.

Suddenly from down by the outfield fence a man who was being interviewed by a TV guy, turned and shouted, “Hey, great catch!”

It was Tommy John!

Needless to say, I pranced down and said, “Well, when Tommy John says ‘Nice Catch’ I’m going to have to have you sign the ball.”

I’d like to say that I suggested that had the ball damaged my wrist or forearm that I was sure that he had a list of surgeons that he could recommend.

But frankly, I was so taken by the compliment, and who it came from, that I just held up the ball for my “Cub Reporter,” and said, “Ryan, how about giving our SI photographers a shot of a grab like that.”