The morning after Mark Melancon went viral, he was inundated with calls. On Monday night, in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, the Braves’ closer had caught an Ozzie Albies home run in the bullpen. On Tuesday night, in Game 2, Melancon had, incredibly, done it again. Atlanta had taken a 2–0 lead over the Dodgers.
The caller was not interested in any of this. She was Debbie Hertenstein, his administrative assistant at Diamond Quality Turf, and she needed to discuss logistics with Melancon: His artificial-turf company was installing a putting green at the home of a former NFL executive.