It looks like Nicolas Cage is right in the stands! While baseball has its own way of exciting fans, Philadelphia Phillies’ $7.5 million star has his own way of surprising them. But this much unique? No one ever expected, maybe. The Nicolas Cage look-alike has stolen all the spotlight, but not for the game between the Phillies and the Giants! 

The Philadelphia Phillies were defeated by 11-4 to the San Francisco Giants. To be precise, their performance was terrible, to say the least. But something else was enticing there. The Phillies’ star pitcher Matt Strahm with a custom-made glove that had the Declaration of Independence on it. 

Matt Strahm is trying to go the “National Treasure” way, just like Nicolas Cage did. In a discussion with Matt Gelb of The Athletic, Strahm shared his love for customized gloves. “I stole it, then made a glove out of it,” he shared. Now that’s a coincidence! The Hollywood actor was found doing a similar thing when he stole the Declaration of Independence documents in his 2004 movie.

And well, the same thing is written all over the gloves. But is that usable?

Nope! Just as the Declaration of Independence has been marked in white, it cannot be used during the game. The reason is that the batters might face difficulty differentiating between the white portion of the glove and the ball thrown by the pitcher.

But we all know Matt Strahm as the king of customized gear; this time, such uniqueness can easily be called a tribute to the Hollywood legend.

And Strahm’s not the only one who has such similar taste. There’s Bryce Harper, who is also known for collecting customized gear, like special cleats and bats. It’s all up to individual choices. But we surely cannot deny that it’s a funny novelty item that many saw for the first time, right?

Absolutely!

Meanwhile, amid this glove drama, it’s still the performance that matters. Sadly, the Philadelphia Phillies have failed to live up to the expectations, which led to their loss. 

Phillies star makes his first save amid the glove drama

However, Matt Strahm managed to collect a save and even struck out a batter without allowing any runs in the ninth inning. Right after Jose Alvarado pitched the eighth inning, Strahm was brought in to pitch. And he didn’t disappoint. Six of his seven pitches were strikes, and Strahm, in his three pitches, gave a punchout knock to topple Patrick Bailey. Matt Strahm started the season with a 0.82 WHIP, a 1.23 ERA, and a 12:2 K:BB across the 7.1 innings he pitched.

But that wasn’t enough for Wednesday night.

The Phillies conceded an 11-4 defeat against the Giants as Jung Hoo managed to get a single and a double while putting two runs on the board, which led to the win. Even the Giants’ Patrick Bailey, Wilmer Flores, and Mike Yastrzemski posted a pair of runs.

While the Phillies tried their best as Bryce Harper put up a home run, but it wasn’t enough. Phillies’ starter Aaron Nola went 0-for-4, giving away six earned runs and nine hits in just 5 1/3 innings. And that was it!

Now, do you think the Phillies can make a comeback soon after such a debacle and create a buzz like Matt Strahm’s gloves?