Cleveland Guardians fan Max Quinn apologizes for…
The grownup Cleveland Guardians fan who ripped a home run ball away from an 11-year-old lady during Monday’s recreation acknowledged it was a “bad decision” as he faces a wave of online backlash.
Max Quinn said it was a “heat-of-the-moment thing” while discussing his actions during the underside of the fifth inning after the Guardians’ Daniel Schneemann hit a two-run home run to proper area at Progressive Field on Monday.
“I’m so utterly sorry for everything that’s transpired,” Quinn told WJW on Wednesday. “I made a bad decision; a lot of bad decisions. I’m paying for it online.”
Max Quinn said it was a “heat-of-the-moment thing” when he ripped a home run ball away from an 11-year-old lady during Monday’s recreation. Fox8
The viral video — which was captured by the Rays broadcast — confirmed Quinn bobbling the home run catch before the memento landed close to a younger lady, Evelyn, who was coming down the steps to attempt and get the ball, only for Quinn to run over and snatch it away.
Quinn insisted he “didn’t realize it was a little girl” at the time, saying all he may see was an outstretched glove going for the ball.
The 11-year-old’s youthful brother approached Quinn and requested for the ball back — a request Quinn flatly refused.
“I made a lot of mistakes that night,” he said.
The Cleveland Guardians fan said he didn’t understand the severity of what he had completed until he acquired back to his seat.
“I heard it from the fans and the people. … I was sitting there, and I’m like, ‘I won’t be able to sleep at night if I don’t give this ball back,’” he told the outlet.
The viral video — which was captured by the Rays broadcast — confirmed Quinn bobbling the home run catch before the memento landed close to a younger lady, Evelyn, who was coming down the steps to attempt and get the ball, only for Quinn to run over and snatch it away. Fox8
Quinn finally returned the ball to Evelyn after realizing his blunder, but acknowledged he ought to have completed so immediately.
“I didn’t do it in a timely fashion. I didn’t do it in the right way. If I could do it all over again, I would have just grabbed it, given it to her and been done with it,” he said.
The fallout, however, didn’t end with the ball being returned.
Quinn’s store, Uncover Vintage in Lakewood, was bombarded with 1-star Google reviews following the incident, which had been later eliminated, and he was pressured to delete his social media accounts because of threats and harassment he’s acquired, WJW reported.
Quinn said he didn’t understand the severity of what he had completed until he acquired back to his seat. Fox8
“It’s been a rough 24 hours — 36 hours,” he said. “I’ve also learned the internet is a very mean, scary place. A lot of people have said a lot of really mean things.”
Quinn said he’s “tried to block it out and get away from it,” but people are still discovering methods to contact him.
While the incident set off a firestorm online, Evelyn said she forgives him for the error.
Appearing in a recorded video shown to him during his interview with WJW, Evelyn thanked him for giving the ball back and hoped others would observe her lead.
“Hi Max, thanks for giving us the ball back. We forgive you for it,” Evelyn said. “We know the internet has been going wild over this. We hope they forgive you.”
Quinn insisted he “didn’t realize it was a little girl” at the time, saying all he may see was an outstretched glove going for the ball. Fox8
Evelyn’s mother Nikki DeVore appeared on a local radio show earlier Wednesday, where she also said they’ve “no ill feelings” in the direction of Quinn and pleaded with others to stop harassing him over his mistake, WJW reported.
Rays reporter Ryan Bass delivered baseballs to Evelyn and her brother after the Tampa Bay broadcasters witnessed the now-infamous second.
“Cleveland Mom Here,” DeVore wrote in a separate post on the Tampa Bay Rays Fan Club Facebook web page. “You all watched the person steal the ball from my daughter. You know my son went to ask him for the ball, which was so courageous. I just have to say thanks to Tampa for broadcasting it, when the Cleveland broadcast cut to puppies slightly than show the person stealing the ball from a youngster.
“I can’t thank [Rays reporter] Ryan [Bass] and Tampa enough for making issues proper. Thank you all for looking for ALL younger baseball followers. It is top notch sportsmanship. My daughter and I cried glad tears. I’m so proud of my youngsters for how they dealt with tonight, and so proud of Tampa and its followers for standing up for my youngster.
“The pressure resulted in the man giving her the home run ball back 4-5 innings later towards the end of the game. It wasn’t the same, but we appreciated him doing the right thing… I may be Ohio Grown and forever Cleveland (Jose!!!!) but I will be a Tampa fan on principle alone.”
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