Behold, San Francisco's newest attraction: A mini-Lou Seal that greatly impressed its namesake
San Francisco's Pier 39 area is known for its sea lions. Pay a visit and you can observe a number of them gathered on the docks, usually jostling each other for position and generally being loud (and adorable).
Just a few blocks away sits AT&T Park -- home to Lou Seal, a distant relative of the pier's sea lions and also the mascot of the Giants. Lou Seal parades around the stadium during games, posing for photo-ops with fans and imitators.
That transpired during the Padres' 5-2 win over the Giants on Sunday and was the handiwork of a young man named Daxton Zurek, from nearby San Jose, Calif. He and his mom put this impressive likeness together for Halloween last October.
The real Lou Seal was so impressed with Zurek's imitation, in fact, that he gifted the young man some autographed oversized glasses ... as you do when you come face to face with one of your biggest fans.
Hanging with my homie! Great costume kid! Hope you like your shades ;) #WeAreSF @MELZ41 #TogetherWeAreSeals pic.twitter.com/OtQcWDNEN2
— Lou Seal (@LouSeal01) April 30, 2017
As Zurek told MLB.com Real-Time Correspondent Austin Ginn on Sunday, his costume's head was originally a bicycle helmet, now padded with decorative foam. The belly -- a key part of any mascot outfit, after all -- is, "a hula hoop and lots of fur."
Add it up and it makes for a particularly inspired effort.
