The Atlanta Braves held an alumni reunion over the weekend. They played softball, they went out for drinks, they honored John Smoltz, and they got scammed by a random guy claiming to be John Sullivan, a former major leaguer who was briefly the team's bullpen coach in the early 1980s.
Some choice moments, from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
"We figured he must've had some health problems," said former Braves reliever Jose Alvarez ('81-'82, ‘88-'89), who estimated Sullivan's bat speed at "no more than 30 mph."
Well, it's been a while since he played, right? Actually, this guy had no idea how long it's been:
"I knew he wasn't John Sullivan the coach because I played when he was here," Alvarez said. "I figured maybe he was John Sullivan's son."
Nope, said the impostor, he was a former player. When asked when he played, Alvarez said the man, who appeared to be in his mid-50s, responded, "1986 or 1987, I'm not sure."
It appears the organization sent the man Sullivan's invitation by mistake. The man, whose actual identity is not known, hightailed it out of there after having enjoyed a weekend of comped drinks and a free hotel room. He also left with some former players' cell phone numbers and confirmation that he sucks enough at softball that he couldn't pretend be a 71-year-old former player without arousing suspicion.