Meet Dave Huyette (middle), the St. Louis Cardinals fan that returned David Freese's historic 11th inning home run ball. The only thing he asked in return was a signed bat, signed ball by the whole team, and to meet a few of the players in the clubhouse. A small price for a ball that might some day sit in the Hall of Fame.
Yahoo MLB - "Every time there was a chance there could be a walkoff home run, Jeremy
reminded me that there was a grassy knoll right next to us," said
Huyette, a 39-year-old radiologist from Maryville, Ill. "We're out there
and I just assumed the position to get ready each time. At one point
Albert (Pujols) had the chance to win the game and we thought that was
going to be the time that it happened. But it didn't, he was
intentionally walked.
"Then Freese came up in the 11th and I heard the crack of the bat and
everybody cheered and it was kind of in slow motion. I jumped over the
fence and (the ball) kind of landed right there. I just tumbled around
it, expecting to getting pummeled and beaten to death."
Did he?
"No, because what I did was shove it down my pants right away. I don't think anyone realized I had it."
Obviously Huyette could have kept the ball and probably made a pretty penny selling it on the internet. He decided to give it to Freese for a small price, and that is something we can all respect. Freese was probably baffled that he didn't want any money for the historic piece. A true Cardinals, and a true baseball fan.
The best part of the story is Huyette's friend rolling around the clubhouse taking pictures in a Chicago Cubs t-shirt. I guess you really can't hate on him for it since they haven't won a title since 1908.
