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Anthony Rizzo Catches Michael Busch Home Run Ball at Wrigley Field

Rizzo was in the bleachers for a 2016 Cubs reunion ceremony when Busch's solo shot landed in his hands.

Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo looks on during batting practice before NLCS Game 6.
Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo looks on during …      Anthony Rizzo Wrigley Field    Arturo Pardavila III from Hoboken, NJ, USA / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
By Free News Press Editorial Team
Published July 19, 2026 at 1:31 AM PDT

Anthony Rizzo did not need a glove. The former Cubs first baseman was sitting in the Wrigley Field bleachers Sunday when current Chicago first baseman Michael Busch hit a solo home run directly to him, according to ESPN.

Rizzo was at the ballpark for a ceremony honoring the 2016 World Series championship team, the group he helped lead to the franchise's first title in 108 years. Instead of watching from a distance, Rizzo ended up with a piece of the current team's action when Busch's ball found him in the bleachers.

The moment was the kind of coincidence that tends to go viral. A former player at a reunion event, sitting in the seats, catching a home run off the bat of the man who now plays his old position. Busch took over first base duties in Chicago after Rizzo departed, and the two players now share more than just a position on the field.

Wrigley Field's bleachers sit close enough to the action that home runs to left and center field regularly land among fans. Rizzo, who knows the park well from years of playing there, happened to be in the right place.

The 2016 Cubs reunion brought back several members of that championship roster. Rizzo was one of the anchors of that team, a core piece alongside Kris Bryant, Javier Baez, and a pitching staff that helped the Cubs end one of the longest title droughts in professional sports.

Busch has been a key part of the current Cubs rebuild, taking on the first base role Rizzo held for nearly a decade on the North Side. The two have now shared a moment at Wrigley that neither likely expected when the day started.

Dee Gordon gets an infield single for the 2014 Los Angeles Dodgers against the 2014 Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Anthony Rizzo at first.
Dee Gordon gets an infield single for the 2014 Lo…      Anthony Rizzo Wrigley Field    TonyTheTiger / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)