Hample Sets New Single-Game Playoff Record
New York Ballhawk Snags 13 in ALCS, Also Breaks Comerica Park Record
by Alan Schuster, October 19, 2011Hample poses with the Hamilton foul ball, snagged amidst a crowd of over 40,000.Just when you thought Zack Hample was done breaking records this season, here he goes again. Hample, who drove over 600 miles to attend the ALCS in Detroit last week, snagged 13 balls in a single game to break two records -- the single game playoff record and the single game Comerica Park record. Hample was in the zone with his glove trick, snagging a total of six balls with his device. He also managed six toss-ups to finish BP with 12 balls, breaking the Comerica Park record of 11 balls set by Oliver Rowles in 2010. By reaching double digits Hample also set a new record for the post-season, breaking the previous record of 9 balls (held by Hample and Angel Arroyo). His best snag of the night came in the seventh inning of the game when Josh Hamilton sent a foul ball sailing in his direction. Hample negotiated his way through stairs, seats, and other fans and outreached the competition to make the snag. "Part of me was stunned; I'd actually managed to impress myself," Hample wrote in his analysis of the snag. "But the other part of me just shrugged it off; I was, after all, standing in a high-probability spot, so what was the big deal? Even though I didn't *know* that Hamilton was going to hit a foul ball, I was more prepared for it than anyone else around me, so that's why I'd gotten a good jump on it." Hample now has snagged 26 game balls this season, and he continues to add to his single-season record for total balls, currently at 1,143. He is planning to make an appearance in Texas this weekend at the World Series. Read more on Zack Hample's Blog