Young Phillies fan is gifted swag after adult fan takes his home run ball
A young Philadelphia Phillies fan has been given special baseball treats after a coveted home run ball was taken away from him during a dispute that has gone viral.
Phillies outfielder Harrison Bader hit a home run during a matchup against the Miami Marlins on Friday at loanDepot Park in Miami, with the baseball flying into the stands. As fans scramble to catch the ball, footage shows, the ball appears to land one row in front of a woman while a man runs over and grabs it. After grabbing the ball, he walks back to his seat and gives the ball to a young boy.
The woman, who has been dubbed the “Phillies Karen” by some critics on social media, is then seen walking over to the man. She berates him and can be heard saying, “That was mine,” on another video clip of the incident.
“You took it from me … that was in my hands,” the woman is heard saying to the man. He then takes the ball back from the boy and hands it to the woman, who walks away with the ball.
It is unclear on the video whether the woman actually grabbed the ball once it landed or whether the man took the ball from the woman’s hand.
Nevertheless, the Phillies and Marlins teams were aware that few things are as exciting for a young fan as getting a home run ball.
An employee, described by MLB as a Marlins staffer, can be seen in one video giving the boy a Miami Marlins gift bag filled with swag after the incident, telling him “I’m so sorry. [Are] you OK?” and wishing him a happy birthday. The man, who gave the ball to the boy initially, was reported by Philadelphia TV station NBC10 to be the boy’s father, Drew Feltwell who told the broadcaster that his son Lincoln’s birthday was a few days away.
After the game, the young fan was given another memorable gift: meeting the player who hit the home run ball.
Bader talked with the young fan and gave him an autographed baseball bat.
The young Phillies fan also got to see his team win. The Phillies defeated the Marlins 9-3.
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