Soldier dad surprises son he hasn't seen in a year

Boy doesn’t know the catcher is in fact his dad who he hasn’t seen in a year.

Eleven-year-old Austin Sides was excited to be chosen to throw the first pitch for the Kansas City Royals in their game against the LA Dodgers last Tuesday night.

But unknown to him, the man behind the catcher’s mask was not a professional baseball player - it was his father, who he had last seen a year ago.

Air Force Major Robert Sides had been stationed in Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait since last June, so Austin hadn’t seen his dad for 12 months.

In the video below, Austin throws the baseball to the the catcher who is covered by body armour and a face guard. It’s only after he catches the ball that Major Sides stands and takes off the headgear. Young Austin runs over as soon as he sees his dad’s face and bursts into tears.