While Green Valley Ranch (?) blogger Erin Di Paolo describes her brush with Steve Garvey as akin to “bringing back a piece of my childhood”, a skeptical Repoz writes, “I need a shower. And Erin just might need a preggy test.”

On this trip I had the honor of meeting former Major League Baseball Player Steve Garvey, not just once, but twice. Garvey played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and was the National League’s MVP in 1974. He was also the first baseball player I had a crush on, long before I liked baseball. So it was a thrill to meet him, up close and personal, at a sports shop in sin city.

The first time my friends and I saw Garvey was when we were on our way to a show after eating dinner at The Cheesecake Factory at the Forum Shops in Caesars Palace. A big banner outside a sports memorabilia shop proclaimed Steve Garvey was appearing at the store.

I instantly became excited, but also pensive. I am quite shy when I am around famous people, especially sports stars. So, from a distance I peeked into the store, where Garvey was getting ready to leave, and said, “You were the first baseball player I ever liked.” Apparently that struck a chord in him because he said “awwww” and motioned for me to come over. When I did, he kissed me on the cheek (I swore I would never wash it again), and hugged me for what seemed like a lifetime. In fact, he made the comment that we seemed to be glued together!

I kept thinking how lucky I was to meet someone who I dreamed of when I was a young girl of 10. The best part, I think, was that reality ended up being even better than the dream had been. How many things can we say that about?

Alas, not everyone who runs into Garvey is nearly as touched by the experience.