Grandmother with Terminal Cancer Bursts Into Tears During Surprise Call with MLB Player

Jason Duaine Hahn
·2 min read

New York Mets player Pete Alonso took time during the MLB’s hiatus from spring training to surprise an 82-year-old fan battling cancer — and her reaction made it all worthwhile.

The 25-year-old first baseman surprised Ally Henglein’s grandmother, Kathleen Selig, on Wednesday after the 18-year-old asked the team if they could “show their love for their biggest fan” in any way possible.

“She is a diehard Mets fan and has been since the start,” Henglein wrote in a tweet to the team on Tuesday. “Since the mid-1960s, she has lived and breathed everything Mets. She’s covered in blue and orange head to toe. She wears Mets apparel every day of her life, day and night, winter or summer.”

Henglein explained that her grandmother had recently been diagnosed with small cell lung cancer and told she only has a few weeks left to live. The news has left the family heartbroken.

“The Mets have helped her through the loneliest of times, so much so that she has asked us to spread her ashes at Citi Field when the times comes,” Henglein wrote.

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“My Gammy is my best friend and I would do anything for her, just as she would do anything for the Mets,” she continued.

In a video posted to the team’s Twitter account on Wednesday, Selig is seen bursting into tears as Alonso surprises her with a video message.

“I wish baseball was going on right now, it’s tough without it going on,” Alonso said, referencing spring training’s hiatus due to the spread of coronavirus.

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“I hope this coronavirus passes very, very soon and we can get back to playing,” he continued. “I appreciate your lifelong support and as always, let’s go Mets.”

Mets manager Luis Rojas also gave Selig a call to tell her how much she meant to the team.

“You have no idea what this has done to me,” Selig told him. “You have no idea how I love you guys.”