Hammonton is very accomplished at producing two things: blueberries and athletes.
Both crops are usually bountiful. Folks from throughout South Jersey and beyond flock to the local farms to pick fresh blueberries that are so well-known that ABC’s “Good Morning America” featured them this summer.
Sports, especially baseball and softball, are just as popular. It dates back decades and first gained acclaim in 1949, when Hammonton won the inaugural Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania behind Nuncie Sacco, Joe Di Giacomo, Anthony Bilazzo, Charles Craig and others led the team to a 5-0 victory over Pensacola, Fla.
So it was little wonder the community was quick to shoot down the rumor that the woman who was captured on video snatching a baseball from a father and son at a Phillies-Marlins game in Miami last week was misidentified as an administrator in the Hammonton Public School District.
“The woman identified as ‘Phillies Karen’ is not and never has been an employee of the Hammonton School District,” the district said in a statement. “Anyone who works for our school district, attended as a student, or lives in our community would obviously have caught the ball barehanded in the first place, avoiding this entire situation.”
The issue surfaced last weekend, when Phillies outfielder Harrison Bader smacked a home run into the left field bleachers at Miami’s LoanDepot Park. The ball landed in front of a row of seats and bounced around while several fans reached for it.
The ball wound up being picked up by a Phillies fan named Drew Feltwell, who then ran over to his 10-year-old son, Lincoln, and handed him the ball as a birthday present.
Photo courtesy of Joe O’Brien
Seconds later, Drew and Lincoln were approached by a woman wearing a Phillies jersey, who yelled that the baseball belonged to her.
“That’s my ball!” Drew Feltwell said the woman screamed at him, according to various media outlets.
Drew handed her the baseball to avoid further confrontation and the woman returned to her seat while other spectators booed.
“Putting the ball in his glove and then taking it back out killed me,” Drew told NBC 10 Philadelphia. “I hope that ball means a lot to her.”
A stadium usher remedied the situation by presenting the Feltwell’s with a gift bag. After the game, Bader presented Drew with an autographed bat.
The incident quickly went viral on social media, with various memes cropping up. Meanwhile, folks sought to identify the woman, including a post that suggested she was from Hammonton.
As someone who covered his share of baseball and softball games in the area during the late 1980’s and early 90’s, I can positively guarantee that “Karen Ballsnatcher” never suited up for Hammonton, St. Joseph of Hammonton or any other softball team in Atlantic, Cape May or Cumberland Counties.
Both Hammonton and St. Joe fielded outstanding softball teams in that era. Anyone who couldn’t field a grounder would never have left the dugout under then-Blue Devils coach Lee Chappine.
The same goes for other local high school softball coaches at the time, including Buena’s Pam Pickett and Ocean City’s Roland Watson. If she grew up a little farther south, she no doubt would have sat the bench at Wildwood High in 1976, the year the Warriors won the State Group I championship behind coach Peggy Picketts and standouts like Jill (Alexander) Mauger, Donna Frederick and Lisa Shultz.
If she’s of a certain age, she could have played for the VFW Women’s Auxiliary Babes in the Lower Cape May Little League Softball division in 1993-94. They were an expansion team in 1993 and as such, 14 of the 15 players had never played softball before signing up that spring, including my daughter, Ashley.
But by the end of the second season, they had developed into solid players who could field, hit and throw.
They, too, would have grabbed that home run ball bare-handed with no trouble. And if not, they certainly wouldn’t have snatched the ball from a 10-year-old boy.
Come Halloween, you’re no doubt going to see a lot of “Karen Ballsnatcher” costumes, complete with a Phillies jersey, glasses, and short blond/gray hair wigs.
It’s all in good fun, but she’s giving softball/baseball players a bad name.
Not to mention Karen’s, a group that includes my wife.
Aside from her name and being a longtime Phillies fan – Tommy Hutton was her favorite player growing up – Karen (Newton) Weinberg has nothing in common with that woman.
She’s kind, considerate and nice.
And she can catch a baseball.
Local surfers excel in Belmar Pro
Ventnor’s Cassidy McClain and Ocean City’s Rob Kelly took home titles in the Pacifico Belmar Pro contest last weekend.
Cassidy won the Playa Bowls Women’s Open division for the second straight year.
Kelly earned first place in the Creatures Masters Open contest and placed second in the FINS Men’s Open division.
Local NFL update
Several former players from Cape-Atlantic League schools saw action in Week 1 of the NFL season.
Jaguars rookie RB LeQuint Allen (Millville) had one carry for 7 yards and caught a 4-yard pass in his debut during Jacksonville’s 26-10 win over Carolina. Defensive tackle Austin Johnson (St. Augustine Prep, Galloway Township) began his 10th NFL season with a pass defense for the Jaguars.
Arizona Cardinals cornerback Max Melton (Cedar Creek, Mays Landing) recorded six tackles in a 20-13 win over New Orleans.
Older brother Bo Melton (Cedar Creek, Mays Landing), who has switched from wide receiver to defensive back, suffered a shoulder injury in Green Bay’s 27-13 win over Detroit.
Chiefs RB Isiah Pacheco (Vineland) rushed for 25 yards on five carries and had two receptions for 3 yards in a 27-21 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
Cowboys DB Markquese Bell (Bridgeton) saw action on special teams in a 24-20 loss to the Eagles last Thursday.
David is a nationally recognized sports columnist who has covered Philadelphia and local sports for over 40 years. After 35 years with The Press, he has served as a columnist for 973ESPN.com and created his own Facebook page, Dave Weinberg Extra Points.
Send comments to weinbergd419@comcast.net.
