Kasey

I believe it was Saturday's game when Sammy hit #60 - that one was down the LF line and deep.  We're talking house-across-the-street deep.  I've got a couple fun stories about that one, but will hold off on the chance that makes the list.  #61 landed on the NW corner of Waveland and Kenmore and bounced down Kenmore on the sidewalk next to the yellow brick building.

It was clear to me that Sammy was being very methodical - down the line followed by straightaway left.  It was logical to assume he'd go left-center next.  So that's where I positioned myself - in front of the Budweiser house, just east of the big tree.  Waveland and Kenmore was very crowded but there were surprisingly very few people around me.

Plunk delivers, Sammy connects and the crowd roars.  I can tell by the way the heads are turning it's coming towards me.  Then it got very quiet - I mean I could hear the crowd but it was very muffled.  Plus, everything seemed to be moving in slow motion.  Very strange but very exhilarating too.  Anyway, I see the ball coming out just left of me so I start to drift over, vaguely aware of a few people around me but I still have room to move.

The ball is getting closer and closer - everything is still in slow motion by the way and eerily quiet - and just as I'm about to catch it, I get cut under right at the knees.  My momentum keeps me going to my left and as I'm falling down I reach over with my glove.  For a few seconds, I actually thought I had caught it but when I opened my glove, nothing.  Spell is broken, everything's in real time now and very, very loud.  I couldn't see much of what was going on at this point because every time I tried to get up, somebody knocked me back down.  

Here's where Moe takes over and provides the eyewitness account.  As the crowd surged forward towards the street, Moe ran down the sidewalk, along the wrought iron fence, basically backing me up.  He saw the ball hit the ground near the big utility pole and skid towards the fence.  The ball ricocheted around a bit and ended up in the alley in deep left center.  That's where Moe caught up with it and was able to grab it in his bare hand.  Then he got mobbed and robbed.

There were easily over 100 people in that alley and at least 20 of them were piled on Moe.  I'm sure most were just happy and celebrating, but there were a few reaching in, still trying to get at the ball.  Moe could barely breathe and he thought he was going to pass out.  Finally somebody pulled back on his thumb so hard he had to let the ball go.  Here's where it gets a bit murky as in no one ever 'fessed up to ripping the ball away.  But somebody did break away from the crowd, ran towards Sheffield and sought refuge with the police, who took him away to Town Hall station.

Here's a story that gives a little more post-scrum detail:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/mlb/news/1998/09/15/sosa_ball/

A legal tug-of-war ensued for awhile, but eventually the judge strongly suggested the parties involved figure it out or he'd come up with a ruling neither of them would like.  Bottom line, the ball went back to Sammy in some sort of presentation that Moe wanted nothing to do with it.  Not sure what Sammy did with the ball.

If anyone still has the Sun-Times from the next day, there were some great photos in there of all the action.  The photographer was up in the top floor of the Budweiser house, leaning way out of the window, taking pictures like crazy.  One shows me falling down trying to make the catch.  Meanwhile there's a woman with a baby in a stroller, right in the middle of everything, just frozen in fear.  Great scrapbook stuff...