Fan throws first pitch,1,800 miles away

It’s a dream of a lot of kids – to throw a pitch, any pitch, in a major league stadium.

But 13-year-old Nick LeGrande knew that was a dream that likely wouldn’t come true for him, thanks to a debilitating disease that prevents him from attending game. The young A’s fan suffers from a rare blood anomaly called severe aplastic anemia.

Thanks to technology, and full-time A’s reliever and part-time technophile Ryan Cook, LeGrande had an opportunity that would have been impossible even a year ago.

It was just about six weeks ago that Ryan Cook learned from a friend about a new entry in the field of technology-driven medicine, a telerobotic machine that can follow a user’s movement, according to the San Jose Mercury-Times.

Cook then approached the A’s hierarchy to hatch a plan – why not use this technology to allow a lifelong A’s fan, living in Kansas City, the chance to throw out the first pitch against the Yankees?

“I thought it would be an amazing thing to be a part of, to make somebody’s dream come true,” Cook said before the game. “And once it came to me, I started at the bottom of the ladder here at the clubhouse and took it to the Athletics and hoped they’d be supportive of it. We got nothing but support all the way up, and from there it was pretty seamless and easy for me. I just sat back and let it all transpire.”

Everyone was on board – except for LeGrande himself. He didn’t even know about it until the day of the pitch.

“He has no idea that this is happening, so about 6 o’clock tonight, I think, he’s going to find out that he’s going to get to do it,” Cook said Wednesday. “His family’s kept it a secret from him the whole time. It’s really going to make his day. I’m sure more than a day.”

The technology was developed by Google, which said that LeGrande would use an Android application allowing him to control the movements of a robot in Oakland. That robot was equipped with a camera, livestreaming a view of the ballpark to LeGrande in Kansas City.

LeGrande and his family, including parents Mike and Shari, were taken to a mini baseball stadium. It was constructed by Google at its Kansas City offices — a location close to LeGrande’s home and Children’s Mercy Hospital, where he receives treatment. Nick’s friends, doctors and former teammates were all set to be in attendance.

At the same in the Bay Area, a telerobotic pitching machine was placed on the pitcher’s mound at the Oakland Coliseum to follow the teen’s movements. The technology allowed LeGrande to simultaneously throw the pitch and watch it happen from afar.

This all came together in part through the efforts of Cook, whose girlfriend’s sister works for an advertising agency connected with Google. Oakland officials don’t know of any time this has been done before.

Cook caught the pitch after standing behind the plate to watch a video tribute to Nick, saying, “That’s some pretty powerful stuff.”

He then introduced “Nick, in his major league debut.”