This weekend, Bill and I drove to Pittsburgh for our first two Cubs games of the season. We always enjoy Pittsburgh and this weekend was no exception.

For those who don’t keep up with the Cubs, Matt Murton is the young, Opie-resembling, left fielder for the Cubs. Our first moment occurred during batting practice before Saturday’s game when I was patiently waiting to catch a ball. For whatever reason, not many balls were going out over the 410 ft. sign (which is where I was) and for the fly balls hit near us, no Cubs were tossing them to the fans. I found that to be quite annoying because there were a lot of Cubs fans around. My irritation was starting to get the better of me, but still I waited. A ball was hit to left-center and rolled to the wall. Murton trotted over to get it and I yelled “hey, Matt”. He looked up, tossed me the ball, and jogged away. It was a short moment, but through our sunglasses our eyes met and we shared something. Also, patience is a virtue.

Sunday morning, Bill and I had a leisurely breakfast and then drove over to the ball park. It was 10:30 and 3 hours before game time. I thought it was late for the players to be arriving, but what do I know as I ended up with 7 autographs. My second autograph was Matt Murton. He and Derrek Lee signed for everyone who was waiting. As Matt handed my ball back to me, I said “Thanks, Matt. You threw me that ball yesterday.” He chuckled and looked up and replied “Oh, I did?” This time, there were no sunglasses and our eyes met. I think one of my teeth sparkled as I smiled at him. A definitely momement.

I also shared moments with Derrek Lee when I thank him and wished him a Happy Easter, and when I told Ron Santo he was an inspiration. (Ron Santo, does a lot of work on behalf of JDRF and will hopefully be in the Baseball Hall of Fame in the near future.) I also got autographs from Scott Williamson, Bob Howry, Glendon Rusch, Jerome Williams, Ryan Dempster, John Mabry and Will Ohman. After Saturday’s loss, I didn’t expect the players to be so friendly, but maybe everyone was in the Easter spirit. It definitely makes my top give mornings ever. If I had gotten Todd Walker’s signature it would definitely be my number one morning in history. I’m not sure what the other four mornings on the list are.

And I think if we have one more moment with Matt Murton I definitely qualify as his stalker.