They don't make baseball fans like Tom Sherrill anymore.
USA TODAY Sports' For the Win reported that Sherrill, a member of the Air Force and an Angels fan, was the lucky fan who ended up with the 500th home run that Los Angeles Angels slugger Albert Pujols hit off Washington Nationals pitcher Taylor Jordan during the Angels' 7-2 victory on Tuesday night.
Pujols became the 26th player to hit 500 home runs, was the third youngest ever to reach the milestone - behind Alex Rodriguez and Jimmie Foxx, according to another USA TODAY Sports report. Pujols also was the first player ever to hit his 499th and 500th homers in the same game.
But Sherrill became as much a part of the story in retrieving Pujols' milestone blast. Sherrill said he was going to give the ball back to Pujols without seeking any compensation.
But the story doesn't stop there.
The Washington Post's Dan Steinberg posted two Vine videos tracing the ball's descent into the left-center field bleachers.
The videos show a man who had appeared to be in the perfect position to catch the ball, only to have the ball hit him in the stomach, causing him to lose his balance and sprawl down on the steps, allowing Sherrill to catch the ball on a bounce.
"I was watching the ball thinking, 'I got this,' " Gordon said, according to For the Win.
He got a welt on his stomach, two scraped knees and a scraped elbow that he had to have attended at a first-aid station.
Sherrill, however, invited Gordon and his sons to join him when he went to give the ball to Pujols. Pujols autographed hats and baseballs for all involved.
"What a great night," said Gordon, who insisted to For the Win that he too would have handed over the milestone ball.
Would you have given Albert Pujols back his 500th home run without asking for anything in return? Comment below or tell us @SportsWN.
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