A local baseball player who is officially playing for the New York Yankees received a warm hometown welcome at an exhibition game against the Miami Marlins.
Yankees catcher J.C. Escarra said his entrance into the Big Leagues did not happen overnight. He went through the minor leagues since 2017 before playing with the Baltimore Orioles until 2022.
When off the baseball field, he worked as an Uber driver and a substitute teacher to make ends meet.
But on Tuesday, Escarra, a graduate of Florida International University and Mater Academy, appeared at loanDepot Park to play an exhibition game against his hometown team.
“If somebody from Hialeah makes it, you know, we all make it, so I appreciate the love from everybody there,” he said.
Several spectators watching the game took photos with Escarra ,who also saw his family and friends and signed every autograph he could.
“I’m here in Miami, my hometown, I got my family here, my friends,” he said. “God opened the door for me to make the dream come true.”
Escarra took part in batting practice where he crushed the pitches.
The game occurred days after Yankees manager Aaron Boone brought Escarra into his office to give him the opportunity of a lifetime.
While it initially didn’t sound like he would be chosen, the surprise and tears were felt around the country.
“If it was gonna be good news, I expected there to be more people in the room, but when I saw just him, I got a little nervous,” he said.
Boone said the way he initially presented the news was planned.
“You gotta throw a little pump fake at him, you know,” he said. “What a remarkable journey it’s been for him, because he’s a really good player and because he’s earned that.”
But in the end, it was the greatest news Escarra has gotten.
“But he hit me with the great news, and my life changed after that,” said Escarra.
Moments after he got the news, he called his family back home in Miami.
“Amazing, so much emotion. [My mother has] been with me from the start — the good, the bad, the pretty, the ugly,” said Escarra. “I thought I could hold it in, but once I saw her crying, I started tearing up.”
It was a full-circle moment for the baseball player from Hialeah.
“This is my home. This is gonna be my forever home. Thank you, everybody, for the support, and here we go,” said Escarra.
In 2012, when he was 17 years old, Escarra posted a photo on social media of the Marlins ballpark with the caption “One day.” Flash forward more than a decade, and his day has finally come.
Tha Marlins won Tuesday’s exhibition game 4-2.