Articles

Kopp Snags Milestone Homer, Meets Chris Davis
Baltimore Ballhawk Makes Clean Catch of Slugger's 100th Career Home Run
by Alan Schuster, June 20, 2013
Chris Davis, Grant Edrington, and Alex Kopp pose for a photo after Kopp returned the Davis homerWhen Orioles' slugger Chris Davis came to bat on Sunday afternoon, he had no idea that his next homer would mark the 100th of his career. Baltimore ballhawk Alex Kopp, on the other hand, had been closely following his home run total for weeks, salivating at the possibility that number 100 would come his way. Getting himself in a good position during Davis's at bats was key to pursuing the milestone home run, and Kopp decided that the best position didn't even have a view of home plate. "I knew Davis was sitting on 99 career homers and the flag court was very crowded," he said. "So when he came to bat I purposely stood out on Eutaw St. as I thought this would be my most likely shot at catching a potential homerun. I couldn't see anything from out there, but was watching the skies the whole at bat." Upon hearing the crack of the bat, Kopp tracked the ball to the back of the flag court and got himself in the perfect spot to make an uncontested snag. The ball smacked into his glove, and Chris Davis's 100th career homer was officially in his possession. "I then immediately turned back around to check to see that the ball was really in my glove," he said. "Immediately after that I see Grant (fireant02 on mygameballs) and he's yelling 'you did it, you did it! Oh my God' while jumping up and down with me in celebration." In a matter of minutes, Kopp was able to find an usher, get the ball authenticated, and arrange a post-game meeting with Davis to return the ball. Kopp and fellow ballhawk Grant Edington met Davis outside the locker room after the game, where Davis autographed a bat and two baseballs. Kopp relished the opportunity to meet this season's current home run leader, and he came away enthused and impressed with how Davis had handled the encounter. "I also tweeted at him later to tell him thank you etc and he soon after tweeted me back thanking me back," Kopp remarked. "What a nice guy!" Kopp was interviewed by a camera crew, and you can watch the video on MLB.com


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