Phillies' Bryce Harper helps New Jersey high school senior with "promposal"
HADDONFIELD, N.J. (CBS) - The ask may be more special than the dance for two New Jersey high school students.
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper recently helped Haddonfield Memorial High School senior Jake Portella with his "promposal."
In a viral video, Harper and Portella knock on Giulia Leonetti's door. Leonetti answers, visibly surprised by Harper. "I'm going to cry," she said. Harper then proceeds to ask her to prom for Portella.
"Jake wants to ask you to prom, so I thought I'd help him out," Harper said in the video. "So will you go to prom with him?"
Leonetti said yes and then hugged Harper.
"You're the GOAT," she told Harper. Then, Leonetti hugged her prom date.
The video ends with Harper shaking the father of the girl's hand.
Portella said he knocked on Harper's door and the two-time NL MVP was immediately willing to help him out. His heart was racing as Harper followed him to Leonetti's home.
"I said I go to high school in town and I got prom coming up and I would love it if he could help do my promposal with me because she's a really big Phillies fan," Portella said. "Me and my friends were out in the street when he says, 'Do you want to do it right now?' And we just looked at each other, jaws drop, and we are like, there is no way he just agreed to this."
Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott said he had a "promposal" in high school, but he just used a poster to ask out his date -- not one of the best baseball players on the planet.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson said "promposal" was "cute."
"I think it's good. I think it's good for the game and good for Bryce," Thomson said. "I hope that the rest of the neighborhood aren't knocking on his door, asking them to ask someone out to prom."
Thomson said he didn't go to his prom in high school. He said jokingly that he had a game and missed it.
Unfortunately, Harper won't be able to attend Haddonfield Memorial High School's senior promenade and prom on June 14 because the Phillies will be out of town playing the Baltimore Orioles.
Meanwhile, Portella and Leonetti said they're thinking Phillies-themed colors for their prom colors. The two are still trying to process the viral moment.
"I heard a lot of stories about how celebrities are mean, and I never really expected someone as popular as him to do something like that for me," Portella said.
"It means a lot that Jake recognized that and it was so thoughtful to even think of that," Leonetti said.
