PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Philadelphia Phillies did not have the best weekend on the field in Atlanta. They lost two out of three games to the Atlanta Braves, and frankly might have been swept if not for a massively controversial ruling near the end of Sunday Night Baseball.
Nonetheless, while the baseball world will be discussing whether Alec Bohm touched home plate in Truist Park, the best Phillies story of the weekend was 14-year-old Phils fan Joshua Scott.
During Friday night’s game, Joshua had a chance to catch a home run ball hit by the reigning National League MVP, Atlanta first baseman Freddie Freeman. Unfortunately, the ball bounced off Joshua’s glove.
After several attempts to retrieve the ball from someone trying to throw it to him, Joshua was finally able to get a grasp of the souvenir.
But he didn’t keep the ball for long. He gave it to a young Braves fan wearing a Freeman jersey. Video of the gesture went viral that night.
Both clubs reached out to Joshua’s father, James, and the two were invited back to Sunday night’s nationally televised series finale. They also teamed up to give Joshua a signed ball by Freeman and Phillies star Bryce Harper.
Joshua also got to meet Freeman before the game.
NBC10’s Rosemary Connors caught up with the generous father-son duo Sunday.
“You guys really caught Josh in his normal life rhythm,” James said. “This is kind of who this kid is.”
“I feel as though they could like see this as a big deal because I’m a young man and also, Philly fans have a very bad rep,” Joshua said, with his father laughing in the background.
“So, we’re known for running on the field, doing crazy stuff, fighting a lot. Now, hopefully people look at Philly fans as the best fans, because we truly are.”
While the Phillies lost the series in Atlanta, Joshua and his father got the last laugh of the weekend thanks to that wild Phils win, one that featured home runs from Harper, Didi Gregorius and Rhys Hoskins.