First home run ball, priceless?
Nope. Not by a long shot.
Eric Saldana and Alex Espinoza were sitting in Section 125 of the field level Friday night at Petco Park, just inside the right-field foul pole, when Dodgers rookie second baseman Alex Freeland stepped into a sweeper offered by Padres starting pitcher Yu Darvish.
“I was on my phone,” Saldana said. “Then I looked up and I’m like, ‘Yo, the ball’s coming.’ I stuck my arm out. It bounced off the dude to my right and then it comes back to me.”
Saldana said it was the first time he’s ever gotten a ball, fair or foul, though he was not overly attached to teh souvenir when Dodgers officials came out to their seats and asked for the ball.
The request was due to it being Freeland’s first career home run.
Saldana was happy to oblige — on one condition.
“I asked for a (signed Shohei) Ohtani ball,” said Saldana, who lives in Anaheim. “They said no.”
It didn’t seem to help that both men are former Angelenos who were decked out in Dodgers gear.
Espinoza countered with something that apparently would have been easier than acquiring an Ohtani autograph.
“I have three daughters,” said Espinoza, who lives in San Diego. “I said we’d take a first-born son.”
Anyway … The Dodgers instead offered a bat and ball, both autographed by Freeland.
“Whatever,” Saldana said. “It’s not a bad deal. The bat looks super nice, unused, like it’s straight from the store.”
The ol’ ball game
By the way, Saldana had to stop by security after the game to pick up the bat and ball. It seems fans can’t be trusted with such objects during a game.
Dodgers fans have only themselves to blame.
For an explanation, let’s go back three decades to Dodger Stadium. The St. Louis Cardinals were in town for a game on Aug. 10, 1995. It was ball night and souvenir baseballs were given to the first 14,000 fans to enter the stadium.
Umpire Jim Quick was behind the plate and made several calls that didn’t sit well with the Dodgers — or their fans.
In fact, Dodgers first baseman Eric Karros and right fielder Raul Mondesi were ejected at one point. Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda came out to argue as well and was given the heave-ho.
The Dodgers fans (disregarding pleas not to throw objects on the field) responded by littering the field with baseballs.
The game was stopped once to clear hundreds of balls from the field. Then a second time. Then a third, with one out in the ninth inning and St. Louis leading 2-1.
At that point, a forfeit was declared, handing the Cardinals the victory. It was the first forfeit in the majors in 16 years. There hasn’t been another one since.
MLB decided balls should be distributed after the game to avoid similar such situations in the future.
Did you know?
A fun feature on the Petco Park video board is the little nuggets about each player that accompany their picture and statistics. For instance:
The one for Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts read: “2023: Rented an Airbnb just in case rumors of ghosts at the team hotel were true.”
For Padres third baseman Manny Machado: “Leads the National League with 213 hard hit balls (95+ mph).”
For Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman: “Grew up in Fountain Valley as an Angels fan.”
For Padres first baseman Luis Arraez: “His 93 three-hit games since 2019 rank second in the majors (Freddie Freeman, 95).”
For Dodgers right fielder Teoscar Hernandez: “His favorite Marvel Comics character is Captain America.”
Then there was this for Dodgers catcher Will Smith: “Played baseball at the University of Louisville (2014-2016).”
Yawner.
How about this instead … “Has never slapped comedian Chris Rock.”
Parting thought
The stock market hit an all-time high Friday, with the Dow closing at 45,631.74. It’s up 7.6 percent since the beginning of the year.
If only one could invest in downtown parking futures.
Street parking rates in the “special event zone” near the ballpark are jumping to $10 an hour on Sept. 1, when the Padres return against Baltimore for their next homestand. That’s a 400 percent increase from the current one-hour rate.
Not that there’s a lot of open spaces, anyway. Seems like the closest open street parking is a mile away at the 100 block of Ash Street.
Originally Published: