The All-Star Game is a time where life-long memories are made every year. Clayton Kershaw certainly delivered one to a young fan.
During his All-Star Game press conference, Clayton Kershaw was approached by a fan, who had a story to tell the Dodgers' ace. Blake Grice, who is 10-years-old, told Kershaw about how his grandfather's goal was to meet Kershaw and legendary Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully one day, but said his grandfather, Graham, died a few years ago from brain cancer.
"So this moment is important to me because I'm meeting you for him," Grice told Kershaw.
Clayton Kershaw thought his press conference was over when he was surprised by a 10-year-old.
— Steve Saldivar (@stevesaldivar) July 20, 2022
The child’s grandfather made a bucket list. On that list: meet Clayton Kershaw. That never happened. He died of cancer. But today Blake Grice met Kershaw. He feels his pappy with him. pic.twitter.com/K5KGcd5ozO
Kershaw thanked the young fan for the courage to come up and share the story, and walked around the table to give him a hug.
"That took a lot of courage to tell me that, so I appreciate that," Kershaw said. "It's great to meet you. Your grand-dad sounded like an awesome guy."
Kershaw then jokingly checked the room to make sure he had a parent nearby, and the two got a photo together.
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Grice told Arash Markazi after the press conference that his grandfather had made the bucket list a week before he died, and the family is still trying to accomplish everything.
"I just met Kershaw, so that's one thing checked off, and I'm just going to continue with it," Grice said.
I caught up with the kid of the night, Blake Grice, who is heading home to Denver in the morning. He’s hoping to return to Los Angeles soon to meet @TheVinScully. pic.twitter.com/1AbAQa6kHv
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) July 20, 2022
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Grice also explained what it meant for Kershaw to give him the hug after he shared his story.
"I really feel like he was just helping me calm down my senses because I was very emotional, and he's a nice guy and he just wanted to help me get through that moment," Grice said.
Grice aspires to be a media member, according to MLB.com, and currently lives in Denver. His dream to cross meeting Kershaw off the bucket list was made possible after Grice emailed Major League Baseball’s chief communications officer Pat Courtney, asking if there was a way to get credentialed. Courtney set him up with VP of communications John Blundell, who put the ball in motion.
“He’s here just doing his thing and trying to grow and cover baseball,” said Blake’s father, Barrie, via MLB.com. “He just loves people. It’s funny because you see a lot of people asking for autographs and he doesn’t care about any of that. He’s an incredible young man.”
