David Bednar is an All-Star pitcher, but he's apparently skilled at solving brotherly infighting as well.
It all started when a couple of young Pirates fans, Wesley and William, attended Monday's game against the Reds at PNC Park.
Their father caught a foul ball off the bat of Pirates outfielder Bryan Reynolds in the bottom of the first inning, but Wesley grabbed it from his dad's hands, leaving his brother in tears.
During a rain delay, Bednar signed two signed baseballs for the pair to ease tensions. And Bucs left fielder Jack Suwinski also threw a ball to them.
Wesley -- whose family is from Mars, Pa., Bednar's hometown -- said he got exactly what he came to the ballpark hoping for.
"I was hoping for a signed ball," Wesley said, "... from David Bednar."
"Honestly, I had no idea," Bednar said. "I was doing my normal routine. I was heading out, and [sideline reporter] Robby [Incmikoski] had these two balls. He said, ‘I’m going to go give these to a fan.’ I was like, ‘Do you want me to sign them?’ I just ended up signing them. Come to find out, it was some Mars kid, and they actually ended up coming to [my camp that benefited Mars High School's baseball team], so that makes it even more special. It’s really cool. Watching the live feed and seeing their reactions is really funny and really cool, one of those full-circle-type things. That’s really what it’s all about. I was one of those kids once, and to see how much joy they had. They love coming to PNC Park and watching the Buccos. It was really cool to see how pumped up they were."
The brothers watched the rest of the game with four baseballs and smiles on their faces.