One of the most heart-warming elements of professional sport is when a player, through circumstance, is suddenly catapulted to a level that they never expected to be at.
It can often happen in football when a team is in desperate need for a striker due to injuries and they have to sign a player who is used to paying at a much lower level.
When that player then scores and becomes a hero, albeit briefly, it can be a reminder of what makes sport great.
Casey Schmitt, a 24-year-old third baseman, was drafted by the San Francisco Giants to play in the Major Leagues out of Triple-A Sacramento.
The player was selected in the 2020 MLB Draft but had spent his entire career in the lower divisions until his debut on Tuesday at San Francisco’s Oracle Park in a 4-1 win over the Washington Nationals.
In his first chance at bat, Schmitt made good on the Giants’ mid-season gamble on him and managed to hit the ball out of bounds, and his family in the stands couldn’t believe their eyes.
