The snakes are indeed alive, and their fans are truly excited about it.
Down by two runs to the Phillies in the eighth inning of Game 4 of the NLCS on Friday night, pinch-hitter Alek Thomas smoked a two-run homer to tie the game up, before Arizona won, 6 -5, making a splash into the Chase Field pool.
And Arizona’s fans followed suit.
As the ball careened back toward the Earth at 104.2 mph, fans jumped into the pool to try to retrieve it.
Two fans in Diamondbacks jerseys jumped into the water, with the first fan appearing to get the ball and raising his arms in a moment of true exuberance.
The fan almost seemed to mimic Thomas, who raised his arms out after rounding first base after crushing the 3-2 pitch from reliever Craig Kimbrel.
“That play is definitely something you see in your dreams,” Thomas, who finished the game in center, said, according to the Associated Press. “So for it to come in real life, for it to happen to me, it’s awesome. Just so grateful to have that moment.”
The 23-year-old Arizona outfielder added that hitting the ball in the pool made the moment even more special.
It’s a place where the Diamondbacks themselves jumped into after upsetting the National League-West champion Dodgers in the NLDS.
“I was looking for a fastball and hoping to get a good part of the bat on it,” Thomas said, according to MLB.com. “And it went over by the pool — it was awesome.”
The Diamondbacks, who trailed 2-0 in the series after two games in Philadelphia, completed their rally Friday on catcher Gabriel Moreno’s RBI single before Paul Sewald shut the door in the ninth.
Arizona is now even in the series and have a chance to take the series lead on Saturday night.