On Sunday afternoon, Albert Pujols made Major League Baseball history by hitting his 697th home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates, passing star slugger Alex Rodriguez on the all-time home run leaderboard, and pulling within just three home runs of the elusive 700 home run mark.
It was a joyous occasion for Pujols, and he decided to share it with someone he thinks needs it more than he does.
According to St. Louis Cardinals beat reporter Jeff Jones, Pujols’ home run ball was caught by Pirates fans Matt and Samantha Brown, who met with the Cardinals star after the game to give the historic ball back to them. But after learning something about their family, Pujols told them to keep the ball.
Matt and Samantha Brown caught Pujols’s 697th homer. Samantha’s
father passed away one year ago today. They met with Albert to give him the ball back — he told them to keep it and signed two more for them. Said it would mean more to her than to him. pic.twitter.com/FuXXFiYCIa— Jeff Jones (@jmjones) September 11, 2022
“Matt and Samantha Brown caught Pujols’s 697th homer. Samantha’s father passed away one year ago today. They met with Albert to give him the ball back — he told them to keep it and signed two more for them. Said it would mean more to her than to him,” Jones shared on Twitter.
It’s a classy and heartwarming decision from Pujols that the two will likely remember for the rest of their lives. Hopefully, Pujols gets some good karma as a result and eclipses 700 home runs in the last month of the season.
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