Fan who scored Oakland A's contract with viral 96-mph pitch makes professional debut
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The baseball fan who landed a contract with the Oakland A’s after his 96-mph pitch at a speed-pitch radar booth at Coors Field went viral brought the heat in his professional debut.
Nathan Patterson, 23, took the mound Thursday for the first time as a minor leaguer and whiffed all three batters he faced, USA Today reported Sunday.
“I’m not gonna lie, the nerves were flowing until I threw strike one," Patterson said on Instagram the next day. “After that, I took a big deep breathe (sic) and realized all the hard work over the last year has prepared me for this moment."
FAN'S VIRAL 96 MPH PITCH CATCHES ATTENTION OF MLB TEAM, SCORES MINOR LEAGUE CONTRACT
Nathan Patterson. 23, signed a contract with the Oakland Athletics after his 96-mph fastball during a fan event went viral. He made his professional debut Thursday in Arizona. (Nathan Patterson/Twitter)
The A’s took notice of Patterson’s video of his 96-mph pitch at a Colorado Rockies game on July 15. The viral video attracted more than 700,000 views.
In a month's time, Patterson has gone from a software salesman who believed his playing days had ended in high school to major league prospect, according to the Kansas City Star.
His debut for the Athletics Gold came in the first inning of a game in the rookie-level Arizona League against a Cubs team. His strikeout victims all went down swinging, the Star reported.
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Patterson called his first professional outing "incredible and truly a blessing.”