Christian Yelich and artistically gifted fan make each other’s day
Usually when we hear about or witness memorable player-fan interactions, it’s the player making the fan’s day.
It was a little different though on Wednesday afternoon in Philadelphia, as Miami Marlins outfielder Christian Yelich and a talented young artist named Emily Alexander made each other’s day.
[Elsewhere: Phillie Phanatic arrests Jose Fernandez for stealing his keys]
According to MLB.com, Alexander arrived to the ballpark with a portrait she painted of Yelich for a school project. It’s actually not the first time Alexander has painted a portrait for a major-league player. In fact, she says she’s done it several times before, and some players even own pieces of artwork she’s done specifically for them. Yelich, though, was a bigger deal to her, because despite being a diehard Phillies fan, she says he’s her favorite player.
With that in mind, imagine her joy when before Wednesday’s game. Not only did her painting catch the attention of Yelich and lead to a conversation during batting practice, she got him to sign her painting.
We’re guessing she’s going to keep this one.
As for Yelich, one can only imagine the thrill it must be to know he inspired a fan to maximize her talents and create something that she’ll always hold dear, and that he’ll no doubt always remember. After all, this is Philadelphia we’re talking about. When you’re an opposing player walking into Citizens Bank Park, you don’t expect to be welcomed or to be painted in a positive light.
[Join a Yahoo Daily Fantasy Baseball contest now]
In the end though, it was Alexander who got the best of all worlds. She got to meet her favorite player. She got his autograph, too. She got to watch Yelich come through with a run-scoring double. Above all though, she got to see a Phillies 4-2 win as they continue their surprising surge in the NL East standings.
More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:
– – – – – – –
Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
