Before leaving Kansas City, Danny Duffy helped a stranger having a medical emergency
Left-hander Danny Duffy’s final day in the Royals clubhouse was an emotional one.
“It was a tough, tough, you know, it was a tough, really tough day,” Duffy said Sunday during his introductory news conference with the Dodgers.
Los Angeles on Thursday traded for Duffy, who had been with the Royals since he was drafted in 2007. Before leaving for the West Coast, Duffy made a difference in the life of a man he didn’t know in Kansas City.
Eric Fain, who lives in south Kansas City, shared a post on Instagram that told of how he and Duffy on Friday came to the aid of a man who apparently was suffering from heat stroke.
I spoke with Fain on Sunday about what transpired.
“As I’m walking, I looked to my right and I see this guy laying on his back with his arm up in the air, and I look up ahead of me, too, and there’s a gentleman coming towards me, and we both kind of locked eyes and looked at the guy and immediately were like we’ve got to do something now,” Fain said. “He obviously was having a stroke of some kind.”
Fain, who said the man’s eyes were fluttering around, called for medical help while Duffy ran to a gas station. Duffy got the man water and Gatorade, which Fain said “kind of perked him up.”
An EMT soon arrived and thanked Fain and Duffy for coming to the aid of the man, who Fain believed to be in his 30s. The EMT took over care of the man, allowing Duffy and Fain to leave.
“Kind of in shock, I started walking up the street,” Fain said, “I was asking him if he was from around here. And he’s like, ‘Oh yeah, I’m leaving soon.’ ... He was like, ‘Yeah, I play baseball.’”
At that point, Fain realized it was Duffy, who then introduced himself.
“The funny thing about it is the night before, one of my best friends and I were on a FaceTime call together and my buddy had just read the news when we were on the phone that (Duffy) got traded and was just like, ‘Dang it, dude,’” Fain said. “So, it was just really really synchronistic that we were just talking about him leaving the day before ... and to run into him like that, right before he left was pretty wild.
“A very strange circumstance but I was really glad I got to meet the guy before he left town.”
Plus, they helped a stranger who was in need of medical attention.
Fain got the sense that he or Duffy would have helped the man, even if they hadn’t both arrived at the same time.
“We’re gonna miss him here in KC for being that kind of guy,” Fain said. “It’s really hot out there for people who don’t have homes.
“He acted like a good-hearted citizen and took care of a situation when he saw something bad happening. And that, that just speaks real highly of his character.”
Fain, 33, said he normally wouldn’t have shared a story like that on social media because helping others is just what people should do. But because Duffy came to the man’s aid with Fain, it was too surreal not to let people know, in part because Duffy had just been traded.
“It’s good to see other people in Kansas City helping others out,” Fain said. “He will be missed regardless of it’s baseball or it’s just someone living here.”
