MLB superstar Bryce Harper helps teen pull off memorable promposal
A prom is a night to remember, but it may be hard for this teen to top.
Jake Portella, a student at Haddonfield Memorial High School in Haddonfield, New Jersey, enlisted Philadelphia Phillies superstar Bryce Harper to help him with a promposal in a video that has gone viral, with Major League Baseball sharing the clip.
In the video, Harper and Portella stand at Giulia Leonetti’s front door. After opening the door, Leonetti is clearly stunned to see Harper, who didn’t beat around the bush.
“Jake wants to ask you to prom, so I thought I’d help him out,” he says, while Leonetti stands with her hands covering her mouth in disbelief.
“So will you go to prom with him?” the two-time National League MVP continues.
“Yes!” she says.
“Awesome!” Harper responds.
Leonetti then gives Harper a hug before turning and embracing Portella.
The question, of course, is how exactly did Portella get Harper to lend him a hand?
“I’ve been brainstorming ideas for prom for a couple weeks and I knew I wanted to do something Phillies-themed because she loves the Phillies so much,” he told MLB.com. “I was talking to one of my friends and I was like, ‘There’s some Phillies players who live in town, it’d be cool if I could get one of them to help me with it.’”
Portella, who was thinking about a “Will you go to prom with me?” poster, knocked on Harper’s door and asked if the slugger would help in any capacity, with the idea that Portella’s promposal would come in a few days. Harper jotted down Portella’s email address and said he’d look into what he could do for him.
“Then, as I was leaving, he calls me back and he’s like, ‘What if we just did it right now?’” Portella said. “And I was like, ‘Forget the poster. I don’t think the poster matters if I get Bryce Harper to do it with me.’”
Leonetti is still in awe of what happened.
“I just — oh my god. Bryce Harper. That was the only thing going through my head,” she told MLB.com. “I was just absolutely freaking out. I mean, this guy is the chosen one. I was just hysterical, immediately started crying. I just couldn’t believe he was really there in front of me.”
As for what made Harper get involved, well, it’s not too complicated.
“Just helping a brother out, man,” he said following his team’s victory against the Texas Rangers on May 21.
The prom is scheduled for June 14, but don't expect Harper to make an appearance: The Phillies will begin a three-game series at the Baltimore Orioles that night.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
