‘This Is Unbelievable’: Braves Reporter Scores Fan’s Number During Live Hit
The sideline reporter for the Atlanta Braves scored a fan’s number after being egged on by his broadcast partners up in the booth.
During Monday night’s game between the Braves and Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Wiley Ballard headed to the stadium’s rooftop patio for an assignment.
“Wiley, how are things up there at the Corona rooftop?” inquired play-by-play man Brandon Gaudin.
“Things are pretty great, Brandon,” Ballard replied. “We’re having a lotta fun up here at the Corona rooftop. Who do we got here? What’s your name?”
“My name is Lauren,” one of the women replied.
“Lawrence,” Ballard replied, apparently misspeaking.
“And I’m Kayla,” said the other.
“And you guys hang out at the rooftop lounge often?” he asked.
Here’s the rest of Ballard’s exchange with the fans, as well as with Gaudin and color commentator C.J. Nitkowski:
LAUREN: Once a year I come out to visit.
BALLARD: Ok, well, we timed it pretty well. All right, how are you guys feeling about rooting for the Braves today?”
KAYLA: Oof, I don’t know. I’m hoping for the best.
BALLARD: What about you? Are you a Braves fan now?
LAUREN: Not quite.
BALLARD: [to the booth] All right, I’m gonna go to work up here, guys. Good luck the rest of the way.
GAUDIN: Ok, Wiley, we got five innings, four innings to get the numbers.
BALLARD: I’m on it, I’m on it.
NITKOWSKI: Get us some more Braves fans.
BALLARD: [to Lauren] All right, so, they want me to get your number.
[LAUGHTER]
LAUREN: They want you to get my number?
BALLARD: I’m dead serious. They’re saying in my ear right now. [To the booth] She didn’t believe me because she thinks you guys are– I’m making this up.
LAUREN: They want you to get my number?
BALLARD: Even if you guys weren’t– I might use that in the future. That’s actually a pretty good move.
GAUDIN: This is unbelievable.
NITKOWSKI: So the best part of this right now is that Wiley could totally be faking it. This might be the new move. Just walk around with a FanDuel microphone and an earpiece in and convince fans that they’re actually on TV.
BALLARD: I should’ve thought of this years ago.
At that point Lauren could be seen on camera typing on Ballard’s phone, presumably entering her number.
A few moments later, Gaudin asked, “So, did we lose Wiley for the night? Is that it? Is he indisposed?”
“Just hoping he’s gonna be on the plane on Wednesday,’ Nitkowski replied. “That’s where the goal has gone.”
Later, the camera cut back to Ballard, who gave a wink as he continued chatting up Lauren.
Watch above via FanDuel Sports Network South.
