WASHINGTON — Washington Nationals’ Bryce Harper has made a Maryland girl’s wish come true.
The meeting between Kaylan, 16, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, and the Nats’ right fielder was part of ESPN’s “My Wish” series, which pairs kids from the Make-A-Wish Foundation with professional athletes in segments hosted by the network’s Chris Connelly.
Kaylan, Make-A-Wish Mid-Atlantic says in a statement, was born with a renal defect that required a kidney transplant. That took her away temporarily from her softball career, but she continued to watch Nationals games on TV and in person.
MLB.com says Kaylan takes 24 pills a day, will face other medical problems and could need more transplants.
(Watch ESPN’s My Wish segment with Kaylan and Harper.)
At a recent Make-A-Wish gala, Kalyan was surprised with a video greeting from Harper, granting her wish. Kaylan told MLB.com that when she was surprised by Harper’s invitation at the gala, she “was crying the whole video. I didn’t even hear it.”
And on July 2, the two spent the day together, which included a VIP shopping trip to Under Armour; an insider’s tour of Nationals Park; batting practice with the team; throwing out the first pitch (to Harper, who encouraged her to throw from the mound, according to MLB.com); and just hanging out together.
“[Having] her wish granted to meet her favorite athlete gave Kaylan the courage to continue battling her life-threatening medical condition while pursuing the activities she loves,” the foundation said.
She pronounced the day with Harper the “best day ever.”
For his part, Harper told MLB.com that Kaylan was “a sweet spirit.”
“I’m very happy that I was able to do that and the whole team, the whole organization, they really took part in that. I can’t thank them enough as well for letting her come in and do what she wanted to do,” Harper said.
This is the 10th season for the “My Wish” program, which runs all this week. On Monday night, Houston Texans defensive lineman J.J.Watt was featured. Other shows will include NBA superstar Steph Curry and the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team.
