Opening Day for the 2023 Major League Baseball season was a stunner from start to finish, but it wasn't enjoyed by one fan in particular.
For the first time since 1968, all 30 teams competed on Opening Day, with World Series finalists Houston Astros and Philadelphia Phillies both losing while Los Angeles Dodgers made a stunning start. The Dodgers won 8-2 against Arizona Diamondbacks, but there was an unexpected moment of drama during the seventh inning.
A Dodgers fan ran onto the pitch carrying an engagement ring, and got down on one knee to propose to his partner sat in the crowd. It looked to be a heart-warming moment as even the players looked on in excitement, but security pounced on the man with a brutal tackle.
The encroaching fan did breach rules by entering the field, something that's enough to get you banned for life and sometimes thrown into a cell for the night. But this fan had no malicious intent, and instead wanted to make a dramatic - not to mention romantic -proposal to his partner.
With the Dodgers leading 7-2 at the time, deep into the seventh inning, the fan decided to shake off the nerves and go through with his plan. After running on the field the game stopped, but the players soon went from looking annoyed to intrigued as the fan got down on one knee.
But one security guard was not on board with the moment as he jumped in to slam the fan down to the ground, sending the ring and the box flying. He was then restrained by as many as five guards before being escorted off, luckily for him one of the security members retrieved the expensive ring.
It's likely that the fan will wake up feeling sore on Friday as the crowd winced at the impact of the hit. As long as his other half said yes to his proposal then it may have been a hit worth taking.
One thing's for sure, it's certainly a proposal that the couple won't forget and it's a story that will be told for the rest of their lives. It may not have gone exactly to plan, but it was definitely memorable.
After the fan was escorted off the Dodgers scored another run the following inning to wrap up the game 8-2, recording the largest margin of victory on Opening Day. The Dodgers ae one of the favourites to win the World Series this season, with the Astros also expected to defend their crown deep into the postseason.
