Seattle's Luke Raley Launches Home Run With Hilarious Back Story
Homecoming's are almost always reason for celebration.
But for Seattle Mariners' outfielder Luke Raley and his family, the story of his most recent trip to Cleveland will probably live on at family barbecues for a long, long time.
Raley grew up in Hinckley, Ohio in the Media school district and attended Highland High School. Cleveland Guardians play-by-play announcer Tom Hamilton shared on the radio Tuesday evening that Raley's family had reportedly bought 89 tickets to Wednesday's game, but there was quite a contingent present on Tuesday too.
That included Scott Profitt and his wife Laura. Laura and Luke Raley's mom Beth are sisters.
With one out in the top of the fifth inning, the left-handed hitting Raley launched a rocket to left field that just kept climbing in the muggy summer air. Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan prepared to play it off the top of the fence, but it sailed just over the black metal railing for a home run ... a ball that was momentarily caught, bobbled and ultimately dropped back onto the field ... by his Uncle Scott.
"I knew it was going to be close and I wanted to catch it," Profitt said. "I had a shot! In my hands and out."
"The home run ball was straight in my uncle's hands and he dropped it," Raley laughed afterwards. "He'll be hearing about that at Thanksgiving ... he was yelling down to me later when I was in left field and letting me know that it was right in his hands. I actually saw it on the iPad in the dugout when I watched the swing and I saw him laughing. It was cool to hit it right at him."
Raley went on to say that he eventually got his uncle a ball to take home with him, even though it wasn't the actual home run ball. Still, a great consolation prize.
Profitt and his wife Laura were beaming with pride in watching their nephew play Major League Baseball in their hometown, and they reminisced about all of the times they had seen Luke play as a kid. But Scott told me nothing like that had ever even come close to happening.
"I'm not even quite sure (how many family and friends I had here today)," Raley said postgame. "There were probably at least 50 or 60 of them."
Raley is actually one of two Cleveland natives playing back in Northeast Ohio this week at Progressive Field, a stadium where they attended countless games as kids watching the Indians play. Perhaps there was a little more attention coming into the series on Raley's teammate Dominic Canzone, who is playing in Cleveland as a Major Leaguer for the first time in his career. Canzone is a former Ohio State Buckeye after he was a standout player at Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls.
But Raley stole his spotlight on Tuesday night because of what happened ... and what didn't.
Profitt joked about the unbelievable luck that nearly came his way.
"What can I get on FanDuel for those odds?!"
BRENDAN GULICK
Brendan Gulick is the publisher for BuckeyesNow, Cleveland Baseball Insider and Cavs Insider on the FanNation Network. He is also an accomplished host and play-by-play voice on TV and radio, including on Big Ten Network and NCAA.com where he's called 45 NCAA national championships. Gulick is an update anchor and fill-in host at 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland, Ohio.