Piscotty felt ‘mom was with me’
guy. I just wanted him to have some time to be able to come up and have the fans recognize him. I wanted that moment to be his.”
Piscotty then singled to right as the crowd burst into more cheers.
“It was a special moment,” Piscotty said. “I got in the box and heard the crowd start to roar and stepped out. I just wanted to acknowledge and to say thank you for all the support the A's community has given me. It was a cool moment and I know my mom was watching.”
Later, Piscotty's father, Mike, was interviewed on the scoreboard.
“Thatta boy, his dad said.
Gretchen Piscotty died Sunday night at 55. She was diagnosed with amyotrophic Stephen,” lateral sclerosis in May 2017 when her son was with St. Louis. The Cardinals traded him to Oakland in December in part to allow Piscotty to be closer to his home in the East Bay suburb of Pleasanton during his mother's illness.
The A's outfielder was with his mother when she died. He did not play Monday, but came back to a warm reception from both the A's and the Astros, who sent him a card before to the game.
Piscotty caught the first ball of the game, a fly to right by George Springer, then went 1 for 3 in a 4-2 loss. Asked if the hit was the best of his career, Piscotty smiled.
“That's one of the most memorable, for sure,” he said.
Piscotty was in the A's lineup again Wednesday against the Astros, but will not accompany the team to New York for the start of a trip at Yankee Stadium. He will rejoin the team following a celebration of life for his mother on Monday.
Playing ball was a natural step for the 27-year-old Piscotty.
“It felt right,” he said. “It's been an emotional roller coaster. There's obviously a lot of sadness but some relief. It felt good for my family to kind of have something to cheer about. It felt good for me to get right back where I belong.”
Oakland planned to honor Gretchen by matching up to $50,000 in donations made to the ALS Therapy Development Institute via youcaring.com/ piscotty .