Pete Alonso didn’t mean it, he swears.
The New York Mets first basemen seemed unaware on Friday night that an infield hit by St. Louis Cardinals prospect Masyn Winn was the first of his Major League career. And that tracks, because why would Alonso then toss it right into the stands?
Fear not. It appears the ball — which you’d normally toss to the dugout for the player to keep — was retrieved and all is well.
But the incident itself? Kind of a wild sequence of events.
First, there was Alonso tossing the ball into the stands, definitely an OOPS moment:
NO SHOT PETE ALONSO JUST LAUNCHED MASYN WINN’S 1ST CAREER HIT INTO THE STANDS pic.twitter.com/VNEv1P59uJ
— Addison (@YankeeWRLD) August 19, 2023
Then? It got retrieved after the fan finally gave it up:
Mets broadcast calls the aftermath of Pete Alonso throwing Masyn Winn's first career hit into the stands
🎙️ Gary Cohen
🎨 Keith Hernandez#stlcards pic.twitter.com/SSuhyPqIlY— VHS (@VanHicklestein) August 19, 2023
Alonso felt so bad about it:
"I feel horrible. I feel awful. I know it sounds stupid, but it's just a bad brain fart."
Pete Alonso says he feels "terrible" for throwing the ball from Masyn Winn's first hit into the stands: pic.twitter.com/KCAsECWK84
— SNY (@SNYtv) August 19, 2023
As for how Wynn felt? No hard feelings. Via MLB.com:
“I think everybody will remember their first big league hit or first big league strikeout, and I’m super excited that I got the ball back,” said Winn, who went 1-for-4 in the Cardinals’ 7-1 loss to the Mets at Busch Stadium. “I was trying not to crack up laughing as soon as I heard [Busch Stadium fans yelling for the ball to be returned]. It was very funny, and I’m really glad [she] gave it back and that I got to sign a ball for her.”