An Alabama grandfather trying to give away a bucket of used baseballs went viral this week for the heart-felt note he attached to the bucket.
Montgomery, Alabama native Randy Long rounded up some baseballs he used to pitch batting practice to his son and grandson. He took the balls to the local batting cage hoping some other baseball players could find a use for them. Long left a handwritten note on the bucket that drew tears from some that read it.
“My grandad left an old bucket of balls at the batting cages we used to go to with this note on them,” Long’s grandson Ethan Anderson says on Twitter. “I’m not crying, you’re crying.”
Grandfather Reminisces of Baseball Memories
Long’s note is emotional as he explains the joy he got from playing catch with his children and grandchildren. He exclaims he would give most anything for another round of batting practice.
“Hope someone can use some of these baseballs in the batting cages. I found them cleaning my garage,” Long writes in the note. “I pitched them to my son and grandson for countless rounds. My son is now 46 and my grandson is 23. I am 72 and what I won’t give to pitch a couple of buckets to them. They have both moved away. If you are father cherish these times. You won’t believe how quickly they will be gone.”
He concludes the message with “God Bless” and “P.S. Give them a hug and tell them you love them every chance you get.”
Long’s note appeared on Twitter last weekend and has since garnered over 220,000 likes and 33,000 shares.
A baseball player in high school, Anderson told ESPN his grandfather was a big influence on his athletic success and life.
“When I was a kid we would usually go a few times a week to hit in the cages,” he said. “Many times I didn’t even want to go, but he always wanted me to be the best player I could be.”
H/T: Fox News
