Thursday night, the Texas Rangers had a make-up game against the Oakland Athletics ("A's"). The previous game had been rained out and this game would kick off another series of the Rangers vs the A's. Early in the game, a foul ball was smacked into left field. It bounced off the wall and Josh Hamilton scooped it up to toss it to the fans behind him. One man and his son had called for a ball earlier but Josh had thrown it the other way. This time, he tossed it to them. However, the toss wasn't long enough. The man, a firefighter, reached for the ball and fell over the railing onto the concrete below. He was awake as he was rushed to the hospital, but later passed away of serious brain injuries. He was with his 6 year old son. They had stopped on the way to the game to get a glove in hopes of catching a foul ball.
I have never been so sad and so heartbroken for strangers.
The man, Shannon Stone, and his son were going to the game and wanted to enjoy some father-son bonding. They didn't even get through half the game when this horrible incident happened. The family, expecting the father and son to come home maybe with a baseball, is now missing a member. It's just so dang sad.
Josh Hamilton, famed outfielder and someone who is probably going to make it to the Hall of Fame one day, was the one who threw him the ball. Though it isn't his fault that the man died, I have no doubt that he took the blame for it in his head and heart. I don't know if he slept that night and I don't know how he dealt with this, but I wish I did. I wish I knew exactly how to pray for him. I wish I knew how he was dealing with this.
Last night, at the first "official" game of the series, he hit a line drive right into the audience, hitting a man in the head and he had to get stitches.
I won't lie; I would've thrown down my bat and hung up my jersey--for good. I would have been done. Take me out of the lineup. Put someone else in left field. I'm moving back home.
But he didn't. And tonight, he won the game. It was your classic bottom of the ninth, two outs, down by a run, and your fastest runner on base. And Josh slams one to the upper deck where it is caught safely by someone sitting in what is called "Homerun Porch".
When Josh hit home plate, the whole team was waiting for him. The only time I have seen such a celebration was when the Rangers beat that gross team from the Bronx. This didn't have the ginger ale or the confetti, but it had the victory. It was like God was saying, "It's okay. I've got it. It's okay, Josh."
Cornball, I know.
When he was interviewed right after, he sounded emotional. He sounded like he really needed that smash out to centerfield. He sounded like he was digging his fingers back to the top of the hole so he could try to get out. Obviously, God was going to give him a boost (like a homer, for example), but this was just so...beautiful. In a weird, melodramatic, baseball-y sort of way.
My heart goes out to the Stone family. My prayers are with them. But my prayers are also with Josh Hamilton. Healing needs to go out to all parties involved. Death is...hard. But beauty and love comes in strange places and in surprising ways.
"I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world." John 16:33
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