Catcher In The Wry

The scene is a warm summer evening (July 28, 1991, to be exact!), still very daylight, at Arlington Stadium, home of the Texas Rangers. Of course, I was there to see the visiting Detroit Tigers. This was the third game of the home stand, and my brother Clarence and I, as we did for several years, saw every Tigers game there. For the last game of each of their visits, we liked to sit in the cheap outfield seats for one very good reason: We shagged home run balls during batting practice. We caught many a fly ball at that park, as we camped out in the hot sun with our baseball gloves. Batting practice catches were nice, and snagging a foul ball from an actual game was even better, but to catch a real home run ball from a Detroit Tigers player, that would be a rare prize.

So, there we were, in the front row of the left field bleachers, rooting for our Tigers. It was the top of the second inning, and Tigers shortstop Travis Fryman was the batter. On the mound was the feared flame thrower and future hall-of-famer, Nolan Ryan. The count on Fryman was two balls and a strike. Ryan reared back and hurled a blazing fastball. Fryman swung hard and lined the ball into left field, right up into the glaring sun. It was nearly impossible to see -- I had no sunglasses, and all I could focus on was a black dot in the middle of a bright flash of light. My brother yelled -- "It's coming your way!" Indeed it was, but would it be over my head, or would it land short? Now, I played outfield for many years, but from the crowded grandstands, one can't exactly chase the ball down! Here it comes! I could now see the ball was going to be a little short, so I leaned over the short fence that lined the bleacher seats, stretched my glove out, and smack! The ball was safely in my webbing. In one motion I grabbed the homer and sat back in my seat, quick as a wink.

(Click on these photos to get a bigger picture!)

Clarence leaned over to me and mumbled "Did you get it?" He was standing right next to me, but that sun was so bright he didn't know for sure! I showed him the ball, still tucked carefully in my glove. "Cool!" he said. Then a guy behind me asked the same thing. "Yeah," I replied, trying to downplay it. Have you ever seen folks on TV grab a home run ball, after it bounced all over Timbuktu, and then they start jumping up and down like they won at Vegas? Yeah, I didn't want to do that. But when I realized that even the fans sitting closest to me didn't know I caught it, well, I decided I should tell 'em! I turned around, and sure enough, everyone in the bleachers -- thousands of baseball fans -- were looking at me! Except, um, almost all of them were Rangers fans, and there I was, decked out in a Tigers shirt and baseball cap! Oops! What else could I do, but stand up, thrust my arm high into the air, and let them know I caught that sucker! To my surprise, they all started clapping! A truly awesome sight! Feeling cocky, how could I resist pointing to the "D" on my baseball cap, so they'd all know I was a true- blue Tigers fan! Right away, the entire bleachers turned into a chorus of loud boos! Clarence started laughing! Next thing you know, they're all chanting "throw it back, throw it back, throw it back!" Yeah, right!!

Then a security guy from the Rangers came down and asked me " Are you okay?" Of course I was okay! "Well, if you want me to, I can take that ball for safekeeping. Sometimes the fans get rowdy." "No," I assured him, "this ball isn't leaving my sight. I'll take my chances!"

I later had Travis Fryman sign it for me, when the Tigers came back to town the following year. At right is a picture of the baseball Nolan Ryan pitched, Travis Fryman knocked out of the park, and I caught!

Below is a video clip I made of the home run. (approx 4 mins 15 sec)