Los Angeles Angels outfielder Torii Hunter made his reputation on defense by stealing home runs, and he wasn't about to come up empty this time.
And, although the ball eluded him, a surprised fan wearing a New York Yankees T-shirt did not.
Hunter's close encounter with the fan — along with his overprotective buddy — made for an extra-entertaining home run by Robinson Cano in the fourth inning Saturday night.
Watch Torii leap — then meet and greet
Hunter explained what happened as he chased Cano's fly ball toward the right-field corner at Angel Stadium:
"There's a tall wall, then there's a short wall. Out of my peripheral vision I saw the tall wall and I thought I was there," Hunter said. "I got close to catching it, but the short wall stopped me a little bit and tilted me over. It went out of my reach."
And then?
"I hit some guy. His friends were yelling: 'Get off my friend!' It was a Yankee fan."
Only a New Yorker (and possibly a Philadelphian). As you can tell from the screen cap, there were a lot of Yankees fans in the area. The entire ballpark, actually. An "infestation," Hunter jokingly called it.
"They infest everywhere. Every stadium is going to be infested with Yankees fans," Hunter said. "No mosquito repellent, nothing works on them."
They talk back, too.
It's easier to tell from the video, but note the red, white and blue uber-patriotic Mickey Mantle No. 7 batting practice shirsey the fan is wearing. I'm not saying he deserved to get fallen upon by Hunter for wearing such an abomination, but ... yes, I am. It's a major jersey violation.
Can anyone recall "The Mick" — or any Yankees player, for that matter — ever wearing a jersey that spelled out his name on the back? And don't get me started on the tacky stars and stripes coloring. The team is called "The Yankees." It's pre-patriotic. That's why the woman is pointing at him, obviously.
But he's not any worse for wear. The ball is long gone, as is Hunter. But somebody bought Mickey Shirsey a beer. And the Yankees hung on to win 3-2. Now get this guy a Yankees T-shirt without a player's name on the back. Preferably in team colors.
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