Pirates Fan Goes Viral After Bizarre Coincidence At Cardinals Game

Monday night’s game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals was a wild one. Between Willson Contreras’ ejection and Alec Burleson’s first career walk-off homer, there were plenty of fireworks in the Cardinals’ dramatic 7-6 win.

There were also some free souvenirs for fans thanks to three home runs, including back-to-back homers by Bryan Reynolds and Spencer Horwitz in the top of the third.

Reynolds’ blast, which traveled 432 feet to right field, was hit directly at Pirates fan Nathan Simon right after he appeared on SportsNet Pittsburgh’s TV broadcast at the start of the inning. Wearing a yellow Pirates jersey, black hat and brown baseball glove, he was easy to spot in a sea of red seats and apparel at Busch Stadium.

While he didn’t catch it on the fly, Simon quickly retrieved the ball and celebrated his good fortune, proudly displaying the ball to nearby fans and immediately calling his friends and family.

"And Pirate fans here inside Busch Stadium, some looking for souvenirs…"

Bryan Reynolds delivers a no-doubter souvenir right at this Pirates fan to give the Pirates a 3*-1 lead

110.8 MPH exit velocity, 432 feet, HR in 30/30 ballparks pic.twitter.com/dv8WUDQjcy

— Platinum Key (@PlatinumKey13) August 26, 2025

SportsNet Pittsburgh interviewed him during the fifth inning about being perfectly positioned for Reynolds’ big fly.

“I was excited. It’s the first Pirates home run I’ve ever gotten,” said Simon, whose reaction went viral online. “I knew Bryan Reynolds could put one out on the walkway here…It is so cool. I knew it was gone from when it left the bat. He crushed it.”

Simon, who describes himself as “Your favorite ballhawk’s favorite ballhawk” on X, revealed on X after the game that he had returned the ball to Reynolds. He also thanked SportsNet Pittsburgh for the airtime.

“Update: The ball has been returned to Bryan. That home run moved him into 11th place all time for the Pirates. All I asked is to return it myself and he couldn’t have been more polite. Thanks to @SNPittsburgh and @Pirates for the TV time. The most fun I’ve had at a ballpark.”

Getting on TV and catching a home run are both incredibly rare — two things most baseball fans never achieve in their lifetimes. In Simon’s case, he was lucky enough to do both in the same inning.

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