WATCH: San Antonio Spurs mascot dressed as Batman swats bat mid-game
San Antonio Spurs hosted Minnesota Timberwolves for face-off but were interrupted by unexpected guest
January 28, 2024
The crowd during a San Antonio Spurs game against the Minnesota Timberwolves witnessed an unexpected guest on Saturday — a real bat that had flown down to the court.
However, the audience was in for a surprise when the Spurs mascot, The Coyote, made an appearance dressed as Batman, The Athletic reported.
With a butterfly net in his hands, the Coyote caught the bat in just a few seconds, much to the delight of the crowd and commentators Michael Grady and Jim Petersen.
Spurs shooting guard Devin Vassell even came back on the court to celebrate Batman Coyote's heroic act before the game resumed.
Leaving the audience with an unforgettable memory, the unexpected guest showed up at the San Antonio Spurs game just minutes into the game, just after rookie Victor Wembanyama hit a three-pointer, marking his first bat encounter.
This was not the first time a bat entered a Spurs game.
In 2009, a Halloween game against the Sacramento Kings got spooky in reality when a bat appeared on the court, and Manu Ginobili, a four-time NBA champion and Spurs legend, swatted it out of the air leading him to get rabies shots.
Two years later, in March 2011, another bat stoppage occurred in San Antonio, and at least three games during the Spurs' 2019 season saw delays due to bat visitors.
According to FiveThirtyEight, the proximity of the Spurs’ home area is "25 miles southwest of Bracken Cave, which is home to more than 15 million Mexican free-tailed bats, making it the largest summer bat colony in the world."
The Spurs went on to win 113-112 to improve to 10-36, perhaps indicating bat-basketball isn’t a bad thing in San Antonio.
