With the bases loaded in bottom of the sixth inning and trailing the Kansas City Royals by a score of 5-4, St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina stepped to the plate on Wednesday night.
But after a ball was delivered off the arm of Peter Moylan, play was interrupted when a stray feline jumped onto the field and went for a bit of a run. It was promptly retrieved by grounds crew member Lucas Hackmann, who took a pretty nasty bite for his troubles, and put down outside the stadium gate near the Stan Musial statue.
Here's our little hero, the Rally Cat (although the grounds crew guy might say differently). #STLCards pic.twitter.com/OrR2IFAv8d
— FOX Sports Midwest (@FSMidwest) August 10, 2017
One pitch after the cat had been taken off the field, it entered Cardinals lore forever as Molina belted what would be the game-winning grand slam.
Bases llenas, @Yadimolina04 viene a batear. . . ¡GRAND SLAM! ? ? ? #MLBPuertoRico #LosNuestros ?? https://t.co/rBwVMPzgcn pic.twitter.com/YEASr9zN5Z
— MLB Puerto Rico (@MLBPuertoRico) August 10, 2017
“It’s amazing,” Molina said via ESPN after the game. “You see some animal coming through a field. You expect people to jump on the field but you never expect an animal. It was fun.”
However, the story has now taken a bit of a bizarre turn.
After putting the cat outside the gate, the Cardinals say “a fan grabbed it and claimed it was hers” and then “abruptly left with the cat.”
Shortly thereafter, the cat went missing. The fan says she lost track of it in Citygarden — a park in St. Louis — and has not been able to locate it since.
The Cardinals are now seeking the help of the public.
“We are hopeful someone will find the cat and contact us so we can properly care for it,” the Cardinals said in a statement via ESPN. “Our grounds crew is working on developing a stray animal protocol to ensure the safety of both crew and animal should this happen again.
“In the meantime, the Cardinals are looking to scratch and claw their way back to the top of the division standings.”
With any luck, “Rally Cat” will be returned to the Cardinals and go on to live the life of fame it so justly deserves.
