Adam Greenberg was at the beginning of a promising baseball career when he was struck down with a head injury. Now, Greenberg gets another triumphant swing at home plate. INSIDE EDITION has the heartwarming story.
One man is a hero to millions for striking out in a baseball game, and hitting a homerun in the game of life.
INSIDE EDITION caught up with Adam Greenberg today after his one-in-a-million comeback story with the Miami Marlins baseball team.
"I feel like I'm living a dream," said Greenberg. "It's beyond baseball. It's beyond sports. It's a story of perseverance. It's a story of having a dream and a passion and never giving up."
Seven years ago, Greenberg was a promising young player for the Chicago Cubs. But in his very first time at bat, disaster struck when he was hit in the head with a ball. Down Greenberg went. It was an injury he couldn't shake off, and just like that, his major league career was over.
Filmmaker Matt Liston was obsessed with Greenberg's bad luck story, and grassroots campaign to get him one more chance to hit in the big leagues.
Twenty-two thousand people signed the petition, and the Marlins—the team Greenberg was facing when he got beamed—came through.
They signed Greenberg to a one-day contract, and last night, against on all odds, he was back in the big time at age 31.
The first pitch was a strike. Greenberg swung and missed the second pitch, so he was down to his final strike.
It was the same setting as the climactic scene of the classic movie The Natural, in which Robert Redford hits the most dramatic home run imaginable.
But this is real life, not Hollywood. And real life doesn't always end in fireworks.
"Swing and a miss. And he strikes out," said a baseball commentator.
So Greenberg struck out, but he was a grand-slam sensation with millions of fans because he never let his dream die.
To follow Adam on Twitter, go to: adamgreenberg10