We all see the big Jeurys Familia moments: Music that thumps when he jogs from the bullpen. Batters who flail at his unfair new weapon, the split-fingered fastball. The measured ferocity of his save celebrations, which occasionally erupt into a fist pump or gyration, and ignite a starving fan base.
But few see what helps to make those moments possible. In the quiet of a ballpark corridor, minutes after the cheers fade, three-month-old Jeurys Familia Jr. waits. The little man will snooze outside the clubhouse, after taking in the game with his mother and grandparents.
“Whenever a game wraps up, he’s usually here,” Familia says, speaking through a translator.