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SALT LAKE CITY — A foul ball hits a food vendor on his backside, University of Michigan head football coach Jim Harbaugh stars in a rap video, a rare walk-off "Little League" home run, and a Florida official during the RNC throws shade at Cleveland while bragging about LeBron James' Miami Heat career. More fun stories from the world of sports in today’s From Left Field.
1. Foul ball hits food vendor on his backside
Bad luck is part of life.
For one food vendor at the Oakland Coliseum on Tuesday night, bad luck struck him right on the backside in the form of a foul ball.
During the top of the third inning in the Houston Astros vs. Oakland A's game, the Astros' Marwin Gonzalez hit a ball that went foul left, out of play and struck a vendor on his backside.
Poor guy. That had to hurt. All he was trying to do is sell (overpriced) ice cream to fans. Instead, he dealt with a bit of an embarrassing moment and a bruise on his backside.
But like a good sport, Mr. Vendor laughed it off and continued selling the ice cream. Give that man a promotion... and an ice pack.
2. Jim Harbaugh stars in a rap video
It’s not typical to see a college football head coach star in a rap music video.
But Jim Harbaugh isn’t your typical coach.
The Michigan football head coach recently added a new title to his resume: rap video star.
On Monday, Bay Area rapper Bailey released the video “Who’s Got It Better Than Us?” — a question Harbaugh regularly asks his players during locker room motivational speeches.
Bailey's friendship with Harbaugh led him to rewrite the song — originally dedicated to the San Francisco 49ers in 2011 when Harbaugh was the head coach — with lyrics describing Michigan Wolverines football.
Harbaugh not only screams the hook to the rap song itself, he also is in the video, riding around in a sports car and even nodding his head to the beat.
Harbaugh trying to channel his inner Drake.
With the college football season nearly upon us, Bailey and Harbaugh are trying to get you pumped for the season, especially if you’re a Michigan fan. It may not have worked, but at least they tried.
Go Blue!
3. Florida official at RNC throws shade at Cleveland, boasts about LeBron James winning his first titles with Heat
The 2016 Republican National Convention has seen a bit of everything, to say the least. From chaos on the convention floor to start the proceedings, to Stephen Colbert crashing the party to mock all, to a “cut and paste” speech. The RNC has been nothing short of interesting.
Among all of this, one Florida official decided the RNC was a good opportunity to throw a bit of shade at the city hosting the convention, Cleveland.
On Tuesday while stating Florida's delegate pledge, Florida Republican Party chairman Blaise Ingoglia mentioned his state was the place where former Miami Heat and current Cleveland Cavalier LeBron James won his first two titles (at :39).
Watch: Florida takes its turn during roll call vote (and brags about @KingJames) #RNCinCLEpic.twitter.com/iIKnmCHUyQ — Edward Colby (@EdwardBColby) July 19, 2016
After Ingoglia’s words, a few boos can be heard, most likely from Clevelanders.
Was it necessary to throw shade at Cleveland at Quicken Loans Arena, home of King James? No. But it’s OK. I’m sure Clevelanders are basking in the glory of being NBA champions and could care less what a salty Floridian who probably wishes LeBron was still in Miami says.
4. 'Little League' home run wins the game for the Pirates
It's not every day you see a "Little League" home run in Major League Baseball. But on Tuesday night, fans in Pittsburgh got the chance to see an uncommon play to end the Pirates vs. Milwaukee Brewers game: a "Little League" walk-off home run.
The simple definition of a Little League home run is when two or more errors are made on a play and the batter scores on said play.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Pirates second baseman Josh Harrison hit a deep shot toward center field. The Brewers' Kirk Nieuwenhuis was unable to make the catch, giving Harrison a chance to go for a triple. Brewers second baseman Scooter Gennett's throw was off along with third basemen Hernan Perez unable to make the grab, giving Gennett an error on the play. The ball went out of play, which enabled Harrison to score.
The Little League #walkoff HR! You love to see that: https://t.co/1U8PtPB6zKhttps://t.co/DuIt3kn1B0 — MLB (@MLB) July 20, 2016
Nicely done, Josh.
