Big league slugger Bryce Harper isn't just hitting home runs – he's now helping teenagers score dates to the prom. In what could easily be mistaken for a plot from a high school movie, Harper, first baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies, turned into a cupid-esque figure for a local high school senior looking to make a big impression with his promposal.
Jake Portello, a student at Haddonfield Memorial High School, took a swing for the fences when he decided to enlist the help of Harper, not expecting that the star athlete would step up to the plate so quickly. According to a really interesting story told on The Phantastic Sports Show, Portello recounted the tale of knocking on Harper's door without any certainty of success but with that youthful mix of hope and brazenness that could make even a skeptic smile, miraculously he ended up walking away with more than he bargained for.
"I knocked on his door, he seemed cool with it at first, then he was like ‘can I get your email so we can plan this out?’ and as I was leaving he was like ‘why don’t we do this right now," Jake told The Phantastic Sports Show in an interview broadcast Monday night as reported by FOX29. This impromptu collaboration highlights a certain human side of the celebrities we so often put on untouchable pedestals.
The play-by-play of the promposal aid delivered by Harper remains under wraps, but one thing is clear - this isn't a typical move for a high-level athlete. Still, we've seen this kind of off-field assist from other players who understand that small gestures can have a profound impact on fans, and Jake's story certainly hit a home run in showing that pros can be heroes in more arenas than one. Meanwhile, it leaves us all wondering if the high school senior's date was as impressed by the promposal as we are by Harper's willingness to step up to the plate.
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