Twelve minutes before the first pitch of the Astros’ loss to the A’s on Friday night, Gary Pettis descended the stairs that lead from the dugout to the home clubhouse at Minute Maid Park. The national anthem had just ended. There was time for one last check-in before game time.
The television in the Astros’ coaches’ locker room was still turned to coverage of the NFL Draft when Pettis re-entered. As soon as he did, the broadcast relayed that San Francisco had traded up to the 44th overall pick. “This could be it,” Pettis thought. A moment later, on stage with commissioner Roger Goodell across the state in Arlington, former 49ers safety Merton Hanks made it official.
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Pettis’ 22-year-old son, Dante, was a wide receiver for the 49ers.
“Wow,” Pettis said, his eyes red as he recalled the moment a few hours later. “It was awesome. I got to see it live.”
Two minutes after the announcement, Pettis reappeared in the Astros’ dugout and shared the news. Players and coaches offered high-fives and hugs to the proud father, the team’s third-base coach and outfield/baserunning instructor of four seasons. Then the game started, and before the bottom of the first inning Pettis assumed his usual position in the third-base coaches box.
Dante, the fourth wide receiver selected in this year’s draft, received the life-changing call while back with the rest of the Pettis family at their home in San Clemente, California. It wasn’t until after the Astros’ game when father and son were finally able to speak. The Astros flashed a congratulatory message on the video board between the bottom of the third and top of the fourth innings.
As he left the ballpark after the game, the 60-year-old Pettis already had with him a red 49ers cap. “I came prepared,” he joked. (Someone picked up the cap for him during the game.)
The 49ers made a trade with the Redskins to land the pick they used on Dante, a new weapon for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in coach Kyle Shanahan’s offensive system. They were one of a handful of teams with which the University of Washington star formally visited before the draft. He also met with the Titans, Vikings, Packers, Patriots and Broncos.
“I have to go do some research. But I think he’s going to fit in nice,” Pettis said with a laugh.
Dante, the NCAA’s all-time leader in career punt return touchdowns with nine, has been an occasional presence around the Astros in recent years. He’s been around the team most often during their visits to Seattle’s Safeco Field, just down the road from UW. But he was also in the home clubhouse at Minute Maid Park as the Astros celebrated their Game 7 ALCS win over the Yankees and was at Dodger Stadium for Game 6 of the World Series.
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Coming into the draft, it was expected Dante would be picked in the second or third round. An ankle injury that lingered from late in his senior season kept him from showcasing himself at the NFL scouting combine and Washington’s pro day last month but he attended both to meet with representatives from teams. He then had a make-up pro day for scouts at UW on April 2.
“Sometimes we see things that our kids do when they’re younger, and you don’t really know what they’re doing. But I can remember him, as I’m sitting on the couch watching TV, he would run and dive over me with the Nerf football,” said Pettis, who had an 11-year major league career in which he won five Gold Gloves as a centerfielder. “He was making diving catches then. I guess he was probably training himself before we actually knew he was training himself to be an NFL wide receiver.”
Pettis last saw his son last week at an awards banquet in Omaha, Nebraska, where Dante was honored as the nation’s top returner. Hinch let Pettis skip out on the Astros’ series finale in Seattle to surprise Dante.
The schedule might soon align for them to reunite again. The Astros visit the Bay Area to play the A’s for a three-game series May 7-9.
“He loves coming over to the ballpark,” Pettis said. “So, if he’s there and if he has the time, I’m sure he’ll come over.”
(Top photo: Rick Yeatts/Getty Images)
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