Long encumbered by a mouthful of metal, Zachary was told by his parents Friday that he could leave his fifth-grade class early because he had an orthodontist appointment to get his braces removed. The shaggy-haired 10-year-old figured he’d be out of the chair in time to watch Game 1 of the World Series on TV.
After all, Zachary had worn Dodgers gear to school, drawing from a wardrobe that includes several shirts bearing the name of his favorite player, Freddie Freeman.
So when his father picked him up and — surprise! — showed him tickets in the right-field pavilion and headed directly for Chavez Ravine, Zachary was beyond thrilled. They met his mom in Echo Park for pregame tacos at Guisados and soon were in their seats.
But Zachary’s elation was nothing compared to what he felt in the bottom of the 10th inning when Freeman’s game-winning grand slam headed directly his way.
“When he hit the ball, we knew it was leaving the park, but we had no idea we were going to catch it.” Zachary told NBC News. “The ball bounced on the seat in front of us and rolled on the ground a little bit. Then I got it.”
Read more: Plaschke: In a year that’s been so improbable, Freddie Freeman becomes Kirk Gibson
Fans in surrounding seats were happy for Zachary, a die-hard fan who keeps a scorebook at games. And what games: He was in attendance when Fernando Valenzuela’s No. 34 was retired in 2023, and this year he was there on opening day, on Clayton Kershaw bobblehead night, and the Game 1s of the National League division and championship series.
“Everyone wanted to see the ball,” he said. Everyone wanted to take a photo with me. I was just mobbed.”
Kudos to the Dodgers faithful that no one tried to snatch the ball out of his hands.
“He had tears of joy streaming down his face and a huge smile,” said Zachary’s father, Nico Ruderman, whose family lives in Venice. “He probably had his picture taken with 100 different fans. Everybody was super excited about it. Even Yankees fans high-fived him. It was surreal.”
Read more: Freddie Freeman makes history with walk-off grand slam in Game 1 of World Series
Early the next morning, Zachary accompanied his mom, Anne, on a business trip. He wore a Dodgers T-shirt and a flight attendant asked him if he’d watched the walk-off home run.
“Yeah,” Zachary replied, “I caught it.”
The flight attendant jumped on the plane’s public address system and announced Zachary’s great fortune to the other passengers. “I stood up in my seat and everybody was cheering,” he said.
Needless to say, the entire episode feels like a dream, but Zachary has one last wish: He’d like to get the ball signed by Freeman.
Read more: Shohei Ohtani’s 50th home run ball sells for record $4.4 million. Who gets the money?
And, eventually, no one could fault him for at least considering selling it. The ball Freeman’s teammate, Shohei Ohtani, hit into the seats to make him the first player in history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in one season sold at auction for $4.4 million.
That would more than cover the orthodontics bill.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
