A sports fan who has come under fire after snatching a home run ball from a young girl has apologised for the 'big mistake' he made.
Business owner Max Quinn has expressed regret about what unfolded during the baseball game Monday (27 April) in Cleveland, Ohio.
His beloved team, the Cleveland Guardians, were taking on the Tampa Bay Rays at the Progressive Field stadium when the ball suddenly came flying towards the crowd.
Footage shows how it seemed to be destined to arrive right in front of 11-year-old Evelyn, who was watching the game with her brother and mother from the stands.
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Cleveland's second baseman, Daniel Schneemann, brilliantly hit a home run and sent the ball hurtling through the air - and Quinn decided that he was going to lay claim to it.
In footage which has since gone viral, the ball can be seen landing in front of Evelyn, who quickly grapples to get hold of it.
However, Quinn - who was sat in a neighbouring section - then bounded over and wrestled the ball from the youngster's hands, before he then triumphantly held it up to show off his souvenir to those in the stadium.
According to the bloke, although he saw someone with a glove vying to catch the ball, he 'didn't know it was a little girl'.
Still - Evelyn's younger brother then approached him and asked could he hand it over to his sister, but Quinn boldly refused, according to Fox 8 News.
The businessman has since acknowledged that this was a 'big mistake', as he told the publication: "I went back to my seat, and I heard it from the fans and the people...I was sitting there, and I’m like, ‘I won’t be able to sleep at night if I don’t give this ball back."
After several innings, he did hand the ball back to the little girl - but it was somewhat a case of too little, too late.
Footage of Quinn's act had already started spreading like wildfire on social media and the incident gained even more attention after Evelyn's mother, Nikki DeVore, furiously called him out in a Facebook post.
On Tuesday (28 April), Nikki pointed out that thousands of people had 'watched the man steal the ball from her daughter', before she then explained what else transpired at the baseball game.
"You know my son went to ask him for the ball, which was so brave," she wrote. "I cannot thank Ryan and Tampa enough for making things right. Thank you all for looking out for ALL young baseball fans. It is top notch sportsmanship. My daughter and I cried happy tears. I am so proud of my kids for how they handled tonight, and so proud of Tampa and its fans for standing up for my child.
"The pressure resulted in the man giving her the home run ball back 4-5 innings later towards the end of the game. It wasn’t the same, but we appreciated him doing the right thing."
In wake of this, a host of disgruntled sports fans are said to have left a string of uncomplimentary reviews online for Quinn's vintage store which is situated in Lakewood, Ohio.
Quinn also claimed that he had been receiving sinister threats in wake of the incident, while issuing an apology for his antics.
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Speaking to Fox 8 News about the fallout, Quinn said: "It's been a rough 24 hours, 36 hours. I've learnt that the internet is a really mean and scary place.
"A lot of people have said a lot of really mean things. I've handled it, I've tried to block it out and get away from it but, you know...people find a way to say stuff and try to get in contact with me.
"I'm just trying to get by - I hope that people in the city and people here in Cleveland, Guardians fans and everybody can forgive me and give me a second chance.
"Personally and with my business and stuff like that. That's all I can ask for. And if you don't, that's okay too, I respect any decision that anyone wants to make."
Evelyn herself shared a message with the news outlet where she explained that she forgives Quinn for what happened.
In a short clip which aired during the news segment, the kind-hearted kid said: "Hi Max, thanks for giving us the ball back, we forgive you for it. We know the internet has been going wild over this, we hope they forgive you."
The bloke said that he 'appreciates' the 11-year-old and her loved ones for giving him grace, while also revealing that he learnt some valuable lessons: "Don't try to catch the ball, don't go after the ball if you don't catch it."
Evelyn's mother Nikki also amended her Facebook post to urge people to give Quinn a break.
"Please stop calling for doxing, etc, and join me in calling for it to end when/if you see it," she wrote. "My children would not want that. If they can forgive this dude, then surely other fans/adults can.
"We all appreciate a good joke and meme, but trying to ruin someone’s life over this is a bit extreme and I wish I had seen how bad it had gotten on other platforms sooner."
Olivia Burke