Aaron Judge in 2022 was a treat to the eye, and his home runs, which soon became never-ending, were a treat to the bleachers. Arlington erupted when the New York Yankees outfielder smashed his 62nd and broke Roger Maris’s 61 homers from 1961. But out of the 62 homers, not every round trip made the headlines.
And while Cory Youmans stole the show by catching Judge’s 62nd homer, a Toronto Blue Jays fan won hearts around the MLB world with his unexpected gesture, that left a nine-year-old in tears, after catching an Aaron Judge homer in Toronto.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
It’s okay to cry at a baseball game
CBS News recently uploaded a moment that went viral on Facebook and narrated the heartwarming gesture of a Toronto Blue Jays, Mike Lanzillotta. Several months back, toward the beginning of the 2022 season, Aaron Judge smashed a homer in the sixth innings of the game against the Blue Jays at Rogers Center.
After catching the ball, Mike Lanzillotta gifted it to a nine-year-old New York Yankees fan, Derek Rodriguez, decked in an Aaron Judge jersey. The gesture left the nine-year-old kid in tears, which was recognized by the New York Yankees front office and the eventual 2022 AL MVP.
As a result, Mike and Derek got the opportunity to meet Judge the next day. Moreover, the two families received a future invitation to watch a game at the Bronx as the present New York Yankees captain watched the video after the game, and lauded, “That’s what’s special about this game.”
How did fans react to this adorable resurfaced Aaron Judge moment?
Parallel to the initial reactions to the video, even today, New Yorkers, and even rival fans applauded the alluring gesture by Mike Lanzillotta, who the nine-year-old Derek Rodriguez dubbed as his best friend.
Amongst the many reactions to the video uploaded on Facebook, one fan said, “I am a Red Sox fan but I love Judge and what he’s done to bring kids back to baseball!” And other fans praised Canada, and Canadians: “it was a very Canadian thing to do.”, “Canadians are just the sweetest.”
While another said, “Omg I was crying just seeing the jays fan and kid hugging but to see the rest of video I was balling like a baby!!!!!”
9 year old Derek Rodriguez is about to meet #Yankees Aaron Judge.
He called #BlueJays fan Mike Lanzillota his new “best friend” after he gave him Judge’s HR ball. pic.twitter.com/iEtQXEbL14— Hazel Mae (@thehazelmae) May 4, 2022
Similarly, responses to this post are filled with praises for Mike, and Aaron Judge, who’s palpably adding a new emotion to the game. Another fan said, “Goosebumps You all rock. This is the way to do life! That young man will now follow your lead. He will be sharing this story forever.” And another said, “Love that he has a great passion and a great role model! And there are still truly great people in this world. Kudos to the catcher of the ball!”
WATCH THIS STORY: Top 5 Most Electrifying Home Runs By New York Yankees Star Aaron Judge
When all’s said and done, as we approach the new season, this moment definitely stands out as amongst the greatest from 2022. What do you think about it? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Written by
Edited by
Abhishek Kumar