The e-mail ends:

“Jonathan hugged that glove after the game as if it were attached to his body. He was trembling with emotion. He told me it was one of the greatest moments of his life.”

Dodger reliever George Sherrill made the unique moment happen on May 5 at Dodger Stadium. After giving up two runs in the ninth inning to the Milwaukee Brewers, Sherrill walked toward the dugout to a chorus of boos.

Yet one 14-year-old boy named Jonathan Kramer stood up and shouted: “Don’t worry, George, you’ll get ’em next time!”

Sherrill looked up to the boy and tossed him his glove, prompting a letter from a Dodger season ticket holder named Bruce Nash, who was sitting with the boy.

“Once a year or so, a glove kind of runs out of outs so I toss it away,” said Sherrill. “After something like that, you definitely hear a mixture of stuff, guys rooting you on or the others booing and stuff. It’s definitely nice to have fans like that who stick by you no matter what. That’s definitely what you need more than a fair-weather person. It’s definitely great to make a kid’s day like that.”

The next night, Sherrill met Jonathan before the game and left an even greater impact on him with his outgoing personality. The following night, as Sherrill was exiting a game into the Dodger dugout, he tipped his cap in the youngster’s direction as a salute to his biggest fan.

Nearly two weeks later, Sherrill read the letter. It left an impact.

“You want to keep the future of the game going and there’s no telling what a certain kid’s going through. Any little thing you can do can help,” said Sherrill. “To us it’s just a glove, but to them, it could mean something more.”

Sherrill had just one concern, though.

“I hope he’s left-handed,” he said.”

Christy Moya said there have been hundreds of dance practices and recitals in her 10-year-old daughter Alexandra’s past and maybe more in the future. But according to her mother Christy, anything that has happened in the past or will happen in the future pale in comparison to Alexandra’s experience as a Jr. Dodgers Dancer.

 

Alexandra joined the Jr. Dodgers Dancers last year and was able to perform at Dodger Stadium, prior to a game, and this year accepted an award from legendary Dodger Don Newcombe.

 

The Jr. Dodgers Dancers experience was rewarding on multiple levels, both for Alexandra and her parents.

 

“It was like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Christy. “It was the coolest thing because it was a way for us and for her to express her love for the Dodgers and feel a part of their organization, not just to be a fan from a distance.”

 

Christy added that the pride wasn’t only felt by the Moya family, but by their neighbors, who came out to the game to support her.

 

“It almost became like a community thing,” she said.

 

One other advantage was that it gave her daughter a sense of belonging and helped her develop a new love.

 

“It’s a good way for girls to embrace the love of sports,” she said. “It piques their interest in baseball as well.”