Baseball has had some special Mother’s Day moments over the years, most notably Dallas Braden’s tear-jerking perfect game in 2010. ESPN closed the holiday this year with an emotional surprise on Sunday.
In a pregame interview with “Sunday Night Baseball” analyst Eduardo Perez, Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar was saying how much he admires his mother, Kumi Enokida Nootbaar, not knowing she was about to be brought onto the broadcast live.
MORE: Inside the pepper-grinder celebration Nootbaar taught Shohei Ohtani at WBC
“She’s everything to me,” Nootbaar said before seeing his mother’s reaction and asking, “Is this live right now?”
This Mother’s Day surprise 🥹
📺: ESPN pic.twitter.com/i5PTSq3Lj0
— ESPN (@espn) May 14, 2023
Nootbaar was visibly emotional seeing his mom, and, according to her, it wasn’t anything too unusual.
“He’s a crier. He cries a lot,” she said.
“I only get emotional when I see her,” Nootbaar added.
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Nootbaar’s mother is Japanese, and her heritage was the reason he played for Japan during the World Baseball Classic in March. She was born and raised in Japan before coming to the U.S. for college.
Nootbaar became a celebrity in Japan during the tournament. His social media following exploded, and he helped Japan win its first WBC title since 2009.
Sunday night’s surprise was a closer look at why representing his mother’s home country was such a meaningful decision for Nootbaar.
Published at Mon, 15 May 2023 01:23:20 +0000
