Meet Jack Suwinski's biggest little fan
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Three-year-old Jake Armstrong may be small in stature, but he's sure to rival even the biggest Pirates fan out there. And Jake's favorite player? It's rookie Jack Suwinski.
Jake recently got the biggest thrill of his young life when he was able to meet the man himself.
Jake's infatuation with the Pittsburgh ball club started like all things do--because of family.
"It mainly came from my grandfather," Jake's mother Cassie said. "He was always watching games, always had the games on the radio. And then, my dad, obviously, loved it as well. And then I got into it."
"I love taking [Jake] to the games. I love playing with him. He loves it so much," Cassie said.
Jake's love of watching the Buccos has translated into him playing the game itself. He started playing coach-pitched baseball at just two years old.
"It actually amazes me. Just seeing the difference within a year, how much he has grown. He goes out there and practices. And it's not something we're forcing him to do, it's something that he really wants to do," Cassie said.
It just so happened that one young Pirates player's season caught the attention of young Jake.
Cassie took a video of Jake, asking him who his favorite player was. Of course, it was Jack Suwinski.
"I posted [the video] on Twitter and the Pirates actually reached out."
Suwinski responded with a video message for the three-year-old, with a once-in-a-lifetime invitation to PNC Park to hang out with the team.
"It made me so happy seeing him so happy," Cassie added.
When the day came to meet Suwinski, Jake immediately ran to Jack and hugged him.
"You can't describe it, just how special it was," Cassie said. "It was such a memorable moment."
Cassie posed one final question to her son before signing off with the Fan N'ATion crew.
"What do you want to be when you grow up?" Cassie asked.
"Jack Suwinski," Jake responded without hesitation.