During Tuesday's game against the Washington Nationals, Mets star shortstop Francisco Lindor belted a solo home run to give his team a 2-0 lead just moments into the contest. When the ball landed in right field, one unlikely fan ended up getting his teeth on the ball.
That's right. A golden retriever named Renegade actually ended up with Lindor's home run ball once it made its landing in the seats.
Francisco Lindor goes back-to-back with Brandon Nimmo!
— SNY (@SNYtv) October 5, 2022
(and a furry friend got the ball 🐾) pic.twitter.com/pTE4oRuqVV
Chris Howland owns Renegade's brother, Doak, but Renegade, Doak, and a third dog were actually all originally adopted by Howland's girlfriend's father, Jon, when they were all born six years ago.
"Lindor hits the home run. I see it coming and I guess my dad instincts took over," Howland told MLB.com. "It was literally going right for the dogs. I don't need them taking a 110 mile an hour baseball in the stomach. So, I reached over my girlfriend, it hit off my finger, hit off the seat and landed on the ground. We're scrambling for it. I came up with it and I gave it to the dog."
Even though the lucky dog didn't actually catch the home run ball, Renegade still became a viral star.
"In the moment I was like, 'This is way funnier if I give [the ball] to him,'" Howland added. "So, I handed it to him and he was cool about it, right? He was holding onto it, chewing on it. They're both obsessed with balls to begin with, so one of them was gonna take it."
Howland said that he plans to keep the ball on the mantle since it'll make for such a great story. It'll certainly make for a "Bark in the Park" night to remember.
