A selfless, American hero is the fan who returns the big home run ball to the ball player, never mind if the real American thing to do is hawk it to the highest bidder as an eBay Item of the Day.
At Game 6 of the 2011 World Series, Dave Huyette got the chance to become a hero when he caught David Freese's game-winning home run, which sent the hometown Cardinals to a decisive Game 7 against the Rangers.
When the 39-year-old radiologist was approached by stadium security and told Freese or the MLB would have interest in the ball, it wasn't a hard choice for him to make (via Yahoo! Sports). Here's what Huyette said:
"Maybe if I had been wanting for money, it'd be different. But I make a good living. I wasn't going to hold the country hostage for the ball.
"I told them I didn't need any money, but it'd be nice to meet some of the players."
We should all be so lucky as to value handshakes over cold hard cash.
But this is where the story gets a little odd. While a Cards fan himself, Huyette, a native of Maryville, Ill., was with his buddy Jeremy Reiland, a Cubs fan ... who was wearing a Cubs shirt to the game (presumably to let people know he was, in fact, a fan of the game of baseball, which was being played in front of them). It was a great moment in awkward locker room history.