A Waltham man flashed the leather from the stands Wednesday night, catching two foul balls at Fenway Park in the Red Sox loss to the Toronto Blue Jays.
Colin Gillis is a season ticket holder, but he says this was the first time he caught a foul ball at a game.
Gillis said the first ball came from a Blue Jays batter.
“I thought it was gonna go right over my head,” said Gillis. “But I put my hand up there anyway, and ended up coming down with it as my first foul ball catch ever.”
The second came from Red Sox rookie Kristian Campbell.
“It sounds like a cliché, everything felt like it was going into slow motion,” said Gillis. “I saw it was coming right for my head so I brought the glove up and ended up making that catch as well.”
Campbell’s foul ball clocked in at 109 miles per hour off the bat.
Gillis says he put some of his childhood skills to good use to make the grab.
“I played little league I was a catcher in 5th grade, that’s about the extent of my baseball experience,” said Gillis. “I just never thought those skills were ever gonna be necessary again, but I was glad they came back to me when I needed them.”
Gillis said fans sitting by him were happy for him with his new souvenirs.
“They were stoked. It was cool high fives all around,” said Gillis. “I was impressed with myself and it was good to get a lot of support from those guys.”
Despite losing to Toronto, Gillis says the game will be one he’ll never forget.
“I went from having caught no foul balls in my life to two in one game, which is pretty unreal.”