By Kyle Roberts
PHILADELPHIA — In the last 24 hours, the Miami Marlins picked up about 30,000 fans in North Louisiana.
That’s because former Ruston High Bearcat and Louisiana Tech Bulldog pitcher Cade Gibson got the long-awaited call up in the major leagues over the weekend — and threw a gem in relief against the Phillies on Easter Sunday in front of over 45,000 fans in Citizens Bank Park.
“It was a dream come true,” Gibson said of getting the call Saturday. “Honestly, those 24 hours (leading up to the game) were very stressful. There was no sleep after the call. I tried to sleep on the plane and couldn’t do that either. But I couldn’t be happier of how it turned out, and man, God is good. He provided all this. It was a great experience.”
Gibson entered in the bottom of the sixth inning to relieve Marlin starter Connor Gillispie and pitched 2.1 innings. During his outing, he struck out two Philly batters and forced Bryce Harper into a ground out to second for the final out in the bottom of the seventh.
The magical moment, though, felt briefly marred by his self-described poor warm-up in the pen.
“My bullpen leading up to me going in was absolutely horrible,” he said. “I couldn’t have done worse in the pen. (The coaches) probably thought I was going to go out there and just give the game away. But as soon as the gate opened, I went through and started running on the field. I looked up and thought, “You know what? Who cares — just lay it on the line and get after it. Whatever happens, happens.” And when you’re on the attack like that, it makes hitters uncomfortable. That’s what I was trying to do and it ended up happening.”
In the stands were plenty of family and friends, including wife Lindsey, who were able to share the moment with him — and though he couldn’t find them from the mound at first, he saw them as he was taken out of the game and walking off the mound.
“It was just surreal,” Gibson said. “I couldn’t see them at first, but when I walked off, I saw my family and friends. I’m so happy it happened.”
Gibson added how thankful he was for the folks back in Ruston and Lincoln Parish that rooted for him on Sunday and shared in his exciting moment.
“I couldn’t be more grateful for the city of Ruston — so many key people at home have shaped me into who I am today,” Gibson said. “I give all my credit to Ruston — it’s funny, because I get text messages all the time, whether it was Sunday or previous outings, to keep putting it on for the city. It means so much for me to be able to do that and be a good influence for my hometown. And it just goes to show that anybody from Ruston can do amazing things.”
And while Gibson is headed back to AAA baseball today, Sunday’s game appearance is a true testament to the work he has put in since being drafted in 2022.
“(The Marlins) told me just keep doing what I’m doing, and hopefully, I’ll be back up there soon,” Gibson said. “Maybe it will be a deal where I can help with a late playoff push or something like that — when you’re growing up, that’s ultimately where you want to be.
“Hopefully, I’ll get that opportunity.”
Thirty thousand new Marlins fans would certainly love to see just that.
