Photos: 2008 Phillies
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Right now, Reilly said, "it's in my home, in a drawer, in a bag."
A lifelong Phillies fan who lives in Wayne, Reilly, 53, was in Row 8 of Section 141 on Thursday for Game 2 of the National League division series. He was in an aisle seat, sitting with his wife and daughter. From there, Reilly followed the flight of Victorino's second-inning shot.
He had no clue that the Phillies' only grand slam in their postseason history was going to end up in his possession.
"It was coming in pretty hot," said Reilly, who saw it hit just across the aisle a few rows in front of him. "It skipped along on top of a few people, maybe as far as Row 11.
"Then, as people were trying to snag it, it kind of worked its way down the mass of people, almost like you see a football after it's fumbled."
Reilly dived into the scrum in the aisle.
"I saw him dive into the aisle with all those young guys. . . . I just thought, 'You're going to kill yourself,' " said his wife, Cornelia Reilly. "I had him by the back of his belt. I was grabbing onto the seat, trying to hold him."
"I kind of clenched it and tucked it into my gut," John Reilly said. "I thought: 'I need to get up and get out of the way. If I let people know I have it, it's still a free-for-all.' "
Away from the pack, he revealed his good luck to his wife, who went to a concession stand a couple of innings later and bought him a Victorino shirt to commemorate the occasion.
An usher came down and got Reilly's name and phone number, but he hasn't officially heard from the Phillies yet. He knows they're a little busy.
What does he do with the ball?
"I think I'm going to get a Hawaiian vacation," Reilly joked to a friend that night, figuring that Victorino himself would want the ball. But he also figures the Phillies would love to have it for their Hall of Fame club at Citizens Bank Park. A friend of the Reillys who works for the team told them yesterday that "Victorino definitely wants the ball" and that the Phillies would be in touch.
People have told Reilly to put the ball on eBay, but he has no idea if the ball is worth as much on the open market as it means to him. He doesn't rule out keeping it.
"What would you do with it?" Reilly asked.
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