CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Guardians marked the start of Navy Week at Progressive Field on Monday by surprising outfielder Will Brennan with a special message from his sister, Lt. Samantha Brennan, stationed aboard the USS Carl M. Levin in Hawaii.
As Brennan and his Guardians teammates were walking off the field following pregame batting practice, ballpark emcee Bob Tayek directed everybody’s attention to the scoreboard, where a video message from Brennan’s older sister played.
“Go Navy, and go Guards!” Lt. Brennan said in her shoutout from across the Pacific Ocean. “Tenacious in the fight!”
Like the Guardians outfielder, Samantha Brennan attended Blue Valley High School in Stilwell, Kansas before earning an appointment to the Naval Academy where she competed for the Midshipmen as a swimmer from 2012-15. She currently serves as a weapons officer stationed in Pearl Harbor.
Brennan appeared surprised by the gesture, staring mouth agape at the message and telling teammate Kole Calhoun “That’s pretty darn cool.”
The Guardians celebrated the start to Cleveland’s Navy Week ( Sept. 4-10) with a strong Naval presence at the park for the opener of their series against the Twins. Musician 3rd Class Morgan Ramirez sang the National Anthem and Rear Admiral Gregory D. Newkirk threw out a ceremonial first pitch before the game.
Since 2005, Navy Week has taken place in various cities across the country in an effort to provide visibility in areas of the nation without a significant Navy presence. The program is designed to share how the Navy is deployed around the world.
The Blue Angels, the Navy Parachute Team, Navy bands, Navy divers, namesake ship and submarine crews, hometown sailors, medical personnel, Navy environmental, USS Constitution Sailors and equipment, and Navy recruiting all participate in the Navy Week program.
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