Finding the “All In” in Chicago
June 15, 2015How the Indians reeled in Mudcat Grant: Reliving Yesteryear
June 15, 2015Tuesday, June 9, 2015 began as a normal day for 24-year-old insurance agent Jacob McMichael. Nothing out of the ordinary foreshadowed the incredible night that was to follow. Perhaps the out of the ordinary should have been expected for Jacob, as he has attended Cleveland Indians games since 1995, when his first game coincided with Albert Belle’s 50th home run of that season.
Some two decades after watching Joey belt hit 50th, McMichael had another memorable night at the ballpark. Though the Indians lost to the Seattle Mariners, Jacob caught two Yan Gomes home run balls in a single game.
Perhaps there is a certain amount of mystique in the mid-week June games for Tribe fans. Almost exactly five years earlier (on Wednesday, June 10, 2009), Larry Quesenberry, a retired Ford worker, caught two home runs in one game at Progressive Field. Like McMichael, Mr. Quesenberry was also seated in the first row of the left field bleachers. However, he was seated in Section 182, Row A, and both souvenirs came in the top of the fourth inning. In addition, both came off the bats of the opposing team1 .
Jacob McMichael, a Streetsboro native, grew up a fan of the Indians. Every season, his grandparents were sure to bring him to a game, and he still has vivid memories of the Game 6 home run by Tony Fernandez in the 1997 ALCS against the Baltimore Orioles. Of course, as a true Cleveland fan, he has equally vivid memories of being devastated and crying when that team eventually lost to the Florida Marlins in Game 7 of the World Series.
On the current team, Jason Kipnis has been his favorite player, though he loves to watch Corey Kluber pitch and Yan Gomes’ mastery behind the plate. His favorite team to follow in his lifetime is still the 2007 Indians with Travis “Pronk” Hafner, Victor Martinez, and Grady Sizemore that came within one win from defeating the Boston Red Sox to face the overmatched Colorado Rockies in the World Series, which Jacob earnestly believes that the Indians would have won.
Jacob and the best man for his upcoming wedding, his cousin Paul, arrived at Progressive Field early so that they could take their time to enjoy the new Right Field District. It was the first game they went to together since last summer, when the duo had traveled to Wrigley Field to watch the Indians take on the Cubs. Paul came back to Ohio with a souvenir foul ball that he had caught. Jacob, however, had yet to catch a foul ball or a home run in all of his years of attendance.
Upon arriving behind right field, he had more pressing matters to ponder: what to eat. He chose the Barrio location in right field, unable to pass up the chicken nachos, which he dubbed “Probably the best nachos I’ve ever had.”2 He then admired the self-serve taps from a distance but decided to order his favorite beer, Brew Kettle White Rajah, from the full-serve bar.
Jacob and Paul went out to their seats. They were in the third row of Section 184 in the left field bleachers, from where they enjoyed a spectacular view of the field, save for plays up against the wall. Jacob enjoyed watching the debut of Giovanny Urshela and the opportunity to see Corey Kluber pitch. The best part, however, came when Yan Gomes stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the second inning. “Yanimal” drove a ball to deep left field. Jacob did not initially think the ball was coming close enough to catch, and was more focused on whether or not it would clear the fence for a home run.
Then, fate stepped in. A man in the first row of Section 184 leaned out with his hat, trying to make a circus-style catch. He couldn’t secure the baseball and it bounced up toward Jacob and Paul. It was only a matter of reflexes that allowed Jacob to snare the ball before his cousin could grab it for his own. The cousins celebrated with high-fives and man hugs. However, Hat Guy was not particularly amused byhow the situation played out.
Though he only seemed to be at the Indians game as a way to kill time before Game 3 of the NBA Finals next door at the Quicken Loans Arena — he left before the Tribe game finished — Hat Guy attempted to buy the ball, and was still angry when he left in the middle innings despite Jacob’s attempt to smooth the situation over by buying him a beer. Hat Guy’s parting shot was telling Jacob that he was in for some bad karma for not giving the ball back to the guy who could not catch it on his own3 .
Given that the first row seats were now vacant, Jacob and Paul moved themselves down into Hat Guy’s seats to enjoy the rest of the close game. The Indians were down 3-1 in the ninth inning and a loss seemed imminent despite Yan Gomes coming to the plate. However, Gomes found a pitch to his liking and took a similar swing to his second inning blast. So similar, in fact, that the ball took a near-identical trajectory as the home run in the second inning.
Jacob stood in shock, thinking, Is this really happening again? The ball hit the second row of the bleachers and Paul managed to graze it with his finger, but once again, the ball ricocheted right into Jacob’s outstretched hand. The celebration was much more subdued this time as things were more tense with the Indians now just down a run, and Jacob was in too much of shock that he had caught another ball at that particular moment anyway. The Indians would go on to lose the game, but the story goes on.
Oftentimes, social media can serve as breeding ground for horror stories. Players read mean tweets, shame cycles make a bad situation even worse with an overreaction, and any mistakes made have the potential to be much more public than any era in the past. However, there are wonderful advantages to social media as well. People can demonstrate support for others going through hard times, people can find others to discuss topics of interest, and social media offers the opportunity for organizations to become more closely in tune with their fans.
In the case of Jacob McMichael, he merely tweeted out a request to @Indians and @Yan_AGomes in the hopes that they might reach out to him about signing the home run balls that he caught. The tweet was then directed to @joelhammond — Joel Hammond, Communications Co-ordinator for the Cleveland Indians — who sent Jacob a direct message on Twitter.
Hey @Indians, I caught both of @Yan_AGomes HRs tonight. Any way I could get these autographed to complete the memory? pic.twitter.com/UPIA6eZ1Nf
— Jacob M (@Jacob_McM) June 10, 2015
The Indians offered Jacob tickets to the Wednesday night game to get the balls signed, but Jacob also coaches the 12-and-under Mantua Mustangs Little League team4 and could not make it out to Cleveland. So, Hammond sent a staff member out to Streetsboro to retrieve the balls, get them signed by Yan Gomes, and return them to Jacob.
The entire escapade demonstrates how easy it can be for a professional sports team to create an enjoyable environment for their fans to take in a game. The Indians have cultivated portions of the ballpark to appease their fans’ appetites, have great sightlines throughout the park and, as the story of Jacob and his home run balls goes, are willing to go the extra distance to make a special night even moreso for one of their fans.
Yes, winning games is ultimately going to define a successful season, but there are plenty of little ways for an organization to claim small victories along the way. Every Cleveland fan should be able to appreciate those small victories, and the Indians achieved one with their superb handling of Jacob McMichael and his two home run catches.
- Kansas City players Jose Guillen and Miguel Olivo [↩]
- He added, “I’ve found the prices out there aren’t too bad considering the quality of food you’re getting.” [↩]
- Note: Hat Guy mentioned bad karma for not giving the ball back, but did not actually mention the fact that he was not able to catch the ball himself as a reason to give it back though it appears to be implied. [↩]
- Note: A huge thank you to any and all volunteers involved with Little League, especially those that do not have a child involved and yet are still finding time in their schedule to help out. As a Little League father, I can tell you that that help is absolutely huge. [↩]
4 Comments
Indians are good at this kind of stuff.
Back in the Muni Stadium days, they used to come out and give you a certificate if you made a sweet catch on the fly of a HR ball.
I thought they still did.
Not surprising – the Indians are certainly the kindest team around.