Man saves boy from being hit in face by bat at spring training game — VIDEO
Baseball season has officially started with spring training games, and already there are some close calls with equipment flying into the stands.
A man attending the Pittsburgh Pirates-Atlanta Braves game on Saturday saved a young boy from being hit in the face with a bat that had flown into the stands. The man stuck out his arm as the bat came toward them to protect the boy from being hit.
The boy, who was seated right next to the man, appeared to be looking down at his cellphone when the bat slipped out of Pirates outfielder Danny Ortiz’s hands during his at-bat.
Just want to RT this awesome photo by @Hornerfoto1 of dude saving kid from facial surgery during Sat #Pirates game pic.twitter.com/hD35aZTVQU
— Rob Biertempfel (@BiertempfelTrib) March 6, 2016
“I didn’t know what happened, if it (hurt) the boy or anything,” Ortiz told the Tribune-Review. “I went home and my wife said to me, ‘You almost killed that kid!’ ”
A photographer for the Tribune-Review caught the action in two pictures.
@BiertempfelTrib The two frames showing just how close the bat was to the boy's head. pic.twitter.com/7VwnfWp8L1
— Christopher Horner (@Hornerfoto1) March 6, 2016
The boy wasn’t the only fan to almost be hit by the bat. Several fans sitting in the first few rows are seen ducking to avoid it.
“I saw the picture. It was crazy,” Ortiz told the Tribune-Review. “That guy took (a blow) for the kid. The father, or whoever he was, he protected that kid.”
The man and the boy have not been identified.
Contact Kira Terry at kterry@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @kiraterry
