An adult Washington Nationals fan was caught on video snatching a baseball thrown by outfielder Joey Meneses toward a group of youth softball players from Virginia who were in the stands last Thursday.
The Nationals invited the Shenandoah Rec League Babe Ruth 10U All-Star Softball team to Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., for a night game against the Oakland Athletics on Youth Champions Day Sept. 1.
Regina Hilliard recorded video of her daughter, Avery, urging Meneses to throw the ball her way. The video shows Avery with her glove ready to catch the ball thrown by Meneses. Suddenly, a man in a Nationals jersey blocks Avery and catches the ball himself.
Hilliard shared the video on Twitter with the message, “@Nationals, can you get Joey Meneses to sign a baseball and send it to my daughter?”
After ten years in the minor league, Meneses is enjoying a surge of stardom since being called up to the majors on Aug. 2.
The viral video caught the attention of the Nationals, who responded to her on Twitter. Hilliard said the team reached out and was sorry to hear their experience was negatively impacted. “They are sending something our way and hope that this can serve as a symbol of a good experience at the park rather than a bad one,” Hilliard said.
