Quote:
Pepperoni with that? Flying pizza at Fens
By John Tomase
Boston Herald Sports Writer
Tuesday, April 17, 2007 - Updated: 12:54 PM EST
Jason Sole just wanted to catch a foul ball. Matt Madore was merely trying to eat some pizza.
Put the two together, and it sounds like the setup for a twisted Reese’s peanut butter cup commercial. But what started as a disagreement in the stands became the most entertaining moment of yesterday’s 7-2 Red Sox [team stats] victory over the Angels.
Captured by NESN’s cameras and replayed throughout the game - complete with telestrator analysis by Jerry Remy - the scene that followed J.D. Drew [stats]’s foul pop-up in the seventh inning was downright hilarious.
“I’ve never caught a foul ball in my life,” said Brookline’s Sole, 30, between innings. “It’s been my dream to catch one. That’s the closest I’ve ever come. The pizza just thwarted it.”
Here’s what happened:
Drew lofted a foul toward Box 82, which juts into left field foul territory. Sole stretched for the ball as the Angels’ Garret Anderson reached the stands. They collided, spilling beer everywhere, and the ball bounced away.
As if the slo-mo spill and requisite grimacing weren’t enough, a large slice of cheese pizza then arced perfectly through the crowd, hitting Sole’s shoulder and face. Once he realized what hit him, he went ballistic while girlfriend Anya Ho, 29, tried to wipe off his face.
A few rows away, Madore and buddy Danny Kelly beamed. It turns out Sole had given them grief about having a large pizza in the stands just moments before the at-bat. He wanted to know where they got it.
“He turned around and said something like, ‘Your mother,’ ” Sole said.
“No,” interjected Ho. “He said, ‘The pizzeria.’ ”
Either way, all parties were annoyed.
“They had been giving us (expletive) about it,” Madore said. “Next thing I know, there’s a fly ball to left field and it goes foul and my buddy says, ‘You want some pizza now?’ And he hits him right in the face. Hey, the guy wasn’t paying attention. When you’re in the stands you’ve got to be ready for anything - a foul ball, a flying slice of pizza, everything.”
Kelly, sporting a Patriots [team stats] jacket, was tossed.
“It was just a stupid thing,” he said. “It’s not something to be proud of. It was just stupidity all around.”
Madore and Sole began jawing - “He has a little bit of a temper,” Ho said - and Madore got the boot, as well.
By the time the eighth inning rolled around, however, most involved couldn’t stop laughing. Sole fielded nonstop calls from friends telling him he was on NESN, which named him “Fan of the Game.” He wondered if he could meet NESN’s Tina Cervasio.
Presque Isle, Maine, native Madore ended up at Game On, where he received a standing ovation. Friend Aaron True called the whole thing, “Pizza Bartman,” a reference to the Chicago Cubs fan who cost the team Game 6 of the NL Championship Series in 2003 by trying to catch a foul ball.
“It’s cold out here today,” Sole said. “I’m just glad something fun happened.”
I love listening to Remy & Orsillo.
