ST. LOUIS, Missouri — On a quiet afternoon at Busch Stadium, with the spectators focused on the field, no one knew that in the area near the third base, Sonny Gray, the Cardinals’ new ace, was kneeling down and gently placing his baseball cap on the head of a skinny boy in a wheelchair.
“I can throw fast balls. But you… you’re the strongest fighter,” Sonny told Jude, a 9-year-old fan who is being treated for acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
Jude is a loyal Cardinals fan, especially fond of Sonny since he joined the team. During chemotherapy, Jude always wore a baseball glove, hoping: “Maybe today I’ll see Sonny play and I’ll have another reason to try.”
Jude’s story reached the coaching staff. But instead of just sending him a gift, Sonny Gray visited him in the hospital himself. He sat by his bedside for hours, playing games, talking, and—most poignantly—giving Jude three sets of gloves, asking him to choose which one he would wear in the next game.
“I picked the red one, because it’s the Cardinals’ color—and the color of those who never give up,” Jude smiled weakly.
A week later, Sonny Gray took the field wearing the red glove Jude had chosen. He not only won, but pitched a brilliant game that sent the stadium into a frenzy. After the game, Sonny looked up at the stands and placed his hand over his heart:
“This one’s for Jude.”
The image went viral on social media. The next day, the Cardinals gave Jude an honorary appearance, wearing Gray’s No. 54 jersey, and walked hand in hand to the center of the field. The entire stadium stood and applauded—not for a victory, but for something even greater: kindness.
Under the photo that day, Jude’s mother wrote:
“My son still has a long way to go. But today, he believes he can win… because a hero named Sonny Gray believed before him.”