Astros fan wins high stakes rock-paper-scissor battle and the reward was pure cinema

Unlike the regular season, where the separation between fans and players is clearly defined and enforced, spring training is a much more intimate experience. While you won't (or at least shouldn't) see fans running around on the field or taking BP or anything, those who make the pilgrimage will get to interact with players and get autographs a lot more readily. For one lucky Houston Astros fan, one such interaction resulted in a memory that will last a lifetime.

12-year-old Scout Garner was one of those who made the trip to Florida and was among the many fans waiting anxiously at the fences outside the facility, hoping to have some players come by and sign autographs. Well, Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña came by, and Scout asked him if he would play rock-paper-scissors for a bat. Shoot your shot, kid.

Amused, Peña countered by saying that if he lost, he would give the young man a bat. If Peña won, however, he wouldn't give Scout anything or sign anything for him. The challenge was accepted and, after some tense moments, the young fan won the rock-paper-scissors game and Peña, a man of his word, got him a bat.

Young Astros fan bested Jeremy Peña in rock-paper-scissors and won his bat because of it

First, this is just awesome. Obviously, players can't do this for every fan, but that Peña took the time to connect with a young fan and accept the challenge at all was pretty cool. Of note, this is not the first time that Scout had thrown this gambit down, as he made a similar wager with Alex Bregman a few years ago, which he lost. Thankfully, he was able to get his revenge at Peña's expense and got the memory of a lifetime from it.

That said, can you imagine the optics if the young man lost and Peña just walked off on the spot? That would be brutal and probably would have made some news for less than great reasons. Honestly, players know how important it is to cultivate young fans, so Peña probably wasn't going to actually leave him completely high and dry...probably.

Thankfully, this story had a happy ending. Peña got to show a bit of his human side and probably made this kid an Astros fan for life. Scout got a pretty sweet souvenir to take home and a story that he is going to be telling for years to come. We often get caught up in payroll concerns, projections, and roster moves, so it was nice to see, at least for a brief moment, a glimpse of the spirit of the game and the type of moment that is unapologetically wholesome.