Video: Local baseball team channels Nationals celebration
A team of youth baseball players from the Fort Hunt area got their own taste of viral fame earlier this month after Adam Eaton shared an Instagram video of the kids imitating a home run celebration that Eaton and Nationals teammate Howie Kendrick made famous.
Eaton and Kendrick — both car enthusiasts — have performed the “clutch and drive” celebration after either player homers. The “clutch and drive” and the Nationals’ other dugout dances became a signature part of team’s incredible turnaround in 2019, which saw them rally from a 19-31 record to the organization’s first World Series title.
The celebrations gained more and more notoriety throughout the Nationals’ run to the World Series, and Kendrick and Eaton can be seen below performing their routine after Eaton homered in Game 2 of the World Series against the Astros.
The Mount Vernon Mavericks are a travel baseball team that pulls players from the Fort Hunt area. This Mavericks squad is a 10 and under group, and they were playing a game in Aberdeen, Maryland when they found the right moment to perform the “clutch and drive,” said manager Mike Sheedy.
Sheedy called the celebration “organic” and said that the players never expected to get so much attention for it. A retired Navy officer, Sheedy said that the celebration was emblematic of the fun that both grown men and children can have while playing the game.
“It’s everything we teach on the Mount Vernon Mavericks,” said Sheedy.