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Lifelong Mets fan caught Colon's historic blast

Anthony DiComo / Twitter

It's the gift that keeps on giving.

Bartolo Colon's first career home run turned the baseball world upside down Saturday, and gave one family the greatest sports moment of their lives.

Jimmy Zurn, a resident of nearby La Mirada, Calif., brought his family of four to Petco Park in San Diego for an opportunity to watch his beloved Mets, whom he grew up rooting for. As it happened, Zurn, seated with his 4-year-old son Ryan, 2-year-old son Ben, and wife Sarah, was parked in the left field corner when Colon's 365-foot blast landed in the longtime fan's hands.

"The ball is hit and we are under this awning and there is just a gap. It's coming and it just squeezes through the gap and falls right into my hands," Zurn told Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News. "It was great."

Petco Park security retrieved the ball in the fifth inning from Zurn, who was happy to return it to Colon on just one condition.

"I don’t need anything in return, well, maybe a World Series championship would be great," Zurn joked. "No, we’re huge Bartolo Colon fans. We’re gonna give it to Bartolo, his first career home run. We’re Mets fans. ... It’s his ball."

After the game, Colon greeted Zurn's family in the clubhouse and gave them signed balls and other memorabilia.

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