This story caught my eye and left me smiling. I had a similar experience years ago with an opposing player being the Good Samaritan. First, this story:
Editor’s Story:
A good number of years ago, I had just started playing travel ball, and was driving to a tournament at the softball complex at Lake Elsinore, California. (Not to be confused with the minor league ballpark they built for the Lake Elsinore Storm, California league class A), but it was still a fun place to play, sitting on the edge of Lake Elsinore with some pretty scenic areas nearby.
Back to the story. I was driving an old Volkswagens to the tournament, early on Saturday morning. You guessed it, my VW broke down, on the 91 freeway, along a pretty desolate stretch near Corona CA. With little time before the first game I was supposed to pitch, I hung my jersey on my radio antenna, hoping a teammate might see it and stop. No such luck, but not too long after, a player on the team we were to play in that first game stopped. Gary Wicks, if any of you know him. He smiled, and joked that it was “too bad [I} broke down” and drove past me, laughing. He did stop though, and gave me a lift to the game. After the game, during the handshake line, Gary looked at me and told me to “Get your own [ } ride back !” Regardless, I was forever grateful for the lift.
A bit more from NPR on the story about Cardinal linebacker Jesse Luketa:
Arizona Cardinals linebacker Jesse Luketa was stuck at a gas station with less than an hour before he needed to be at the stadium for Sunday’s game. He decided to get resourceful.
Who are they? Well, Luketa is a football player from Ottawa. But it was the Phillips family who came to the rescue when he encountered some car troubles.
What’s the big deal? I mean, doesn’t it sound like some zany turn of events you’d see in an early 2000s Disney movie about family, friendship and the power of football? Or a Mastercard commercial?Luketa got a flat tire at a gas station in Phoenix with just 45 minutes left to get to the stadium in Glendale for his game last Sunday against the Rams.
He realized he’d have to act fast to make it to work on time. That’s when he noticed some fans in Cardinals gear at the pump near him, and asked if they’d give him a ride.
And they did! Luketa made it to the game, the Phillips family got some free tickets to see their team play again, and yes, the Cardinals did end up losing that day.
On believing Luketa at first:
Yeah, for sure [I hesitated] a bit because I didn’t know him, I’ll be very honest. And when I went back to the car my wife said, “Are you sure he plays?” And I was like, “Hey, either way, we’re going to give him a ride.” And that was it.