Barton hits his first
homer
May/28/08 08:11 AM Filed in:
Brian Barton
ST. LOUIS -- Unwittingly, a
St. Louis police officer tossed St. Louis
Cardinals rookie Brian Barton's first career home
run into the stands Tuesday night.
Barton's homer against right-hander Shawn Chacon in the
fifth inning, one of the few highlights in the
Cardinals' dismal 8-2 loss to Houston, landed in the
Astros' bullpen. The policeman retrieved the souvenir
and flipped it to a fan sitting in the left-field
bleachers.
"I didn't even know it was in the crowd," said Barton,
who was fortunate enough to get the ball after a member
of the Cardinals' media relations team made a telephone
call. "It's good that I got it back. It means a lot to
me.
"One of the security guards or ushers got it for me. I
signed a few hats for a couple of kids. I'm thankful
they gave it back. I want to say thank you to them. I
don't know who they are. It's a good feeling, but at
the same time, it would have been better if we would
have had a win."
Barton was appearing as a pinch-hitter for Braden
Looper when he connected on Chacon's first pitch with
one out in the fifth. The 390-foot drive made it 8-2.
"I feel like it's been a long time coming," said
Barton, whose homer came in his 78th at-bat. "I
happened to get a good pitch to hit. He left a slider
up and I put a good swing on it. That was that.
"It was kind of like I was on a cloud. I'm quite sure
my family back home in Arkansas is pretty happy and
fired up, too."
(bnd.com)