Friday’s Hot Clicks: Fan Who Hit 96 on Stadium Radar Gun Signs MLB Contract

It’s like something out of a movie.

Nathan Patterson

It’s like something out of a movie

A 23-year-old who hasn’t played competitive baseball since high school just landed a contract with the A's, thanks mostly to the internet.

Nathan Patterson went to a Rockies game last month and decided to step up to the radar gun set up on the Coors Field concourse. With a bit of a crow hop, he was able to top out at 96 mph. Patterson’s brother, Christian, filmed the display and the footage went viral on Twitter. 

Fast forward two weeks and Patterson put pen to paper for the A’s. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Nathan Patterson (@njpatterson12)

Patterson explained to MLB.com that he first began to think his baseball dream was within reach when he went to a Nashville Sounds game last summer and topped out at 96 on the gun. 

He started training and showcasing his stuff on an app called FlatGround that lets pitchers who slipped through the cracks get in front of scouts. Even when he was hit by a car and needed surgery on his non-throwing wrist, Patterson kept plugging away. 

Patterson’s first contact with the A’s organization came in February, according to MLB.com, but things heated up after Christian’s video took off. Patterson told MLB.com that he went to the game, did his thing and “a few days later the A’s gave me a call.”

It’s not quite the same as that that Dennis Quaid movie where the guy throws at a radar gun on the road, but it’s still awfully inspiring. 

The best of SI

Former Cavs GM David Griffin made a lot of news with his comments in this article. ... Can Graham Harrell’s Mike Leach-inspired Air Raid save USC? ... The biggest questions remaining after the MLB trade deadline. 

Around the sports world

The Senators are using some dirty tricks to get around the NHL’s salary floor. ... Pathetic Knicks owner James Dolan has recently kicked at least three people out of his doofy band’s shows. ... Schools with big football programs carry enormous women’s rowing rosters just to satisfy Title IX. ... A New Jersey man was awarded $3.65 million in damages after getting hit by a golf cart. 

Now that’s using your environment

This should end well

Wow, NFL history

The time Shaq and Dale Jr. had a shooting contest

These Sixers throwbacks are amazing

The Grizzlies are throwing it back to their Vancouver days

DeMar DeRozan is a good sport

More players should match their hair to their jerseys

Mullets are back

Louisville’s new court is pretty sweet

Isn’t that what caddies are for?

He’s a football guy

Not sports

DFW airport is getting a combo Buffalo Wild Wings-Topgolf. ... Doctors in India found more than 500 teeth inside a seven-year-old boy’s head. ... A man discovered a rare, untouched video game in his mother’s attic that could fetch $10,000 at auction. ... Two relatives of the notorious gangster John Dillinger claim the FBI shot the wrong man and the body in his grave is someone else. ... Another guy was caught trying to bring a rocket launcher through BWI airport. ... A Canadian woman scared a mountain lion away while walking her dog by blasting Metallica. 

Hey look, another war movie

Getting revenge on the scammers

A good song

Email dan.gartland@simail.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.