Javy Baez has never met Chris Scholten.
Yet he helped change Scholten's life forever.
As he was watching the premiere of NBC's "This Is Us" in September 2016, Scholten — a diehard Cubs fan — suddenly went from a healthy 26-year-old man to dripping sweat, vomiting and unable to speak.
"My husband was not my husband anymore," Scholten's wife, Crystal, said.
Scholten was rushed to Palos Hospital, where they wound up consulting with Dr. Michael Schneck of the Loyola Telestroke Program who helped diagnose the severity of the stroke. Scholten had to undergo immediate surgery to relieve pressure on his brain stem.
After a life-threatening scare, Scholten had to spend the next couple weeks in the hospital. His first activity out of the house after rejoining the real world?
Game 1 of the Cubs-Giants National League Division Series that fall.
MLB
Scholten's wife and co-worker surprised him with playoff tickets in the bleachers for the Cubs' first postseason game on their path to the franchise's first World Series in 108 years. Crystal is a physical therapist and immediately had her husband focused on activities that would help prepare him for the up-and-down physicality of a game in the bleachers.
"Being the huge Cubs fan that I was, I wasn't gonna let anything prevent me from going to that game," Scholten said.
When Baez connected on Cueto's offering and hammered it into the left-field bleachers for the only run of the game, Scholten was initially worried people would be jumping on the back of his head in celebration. But once the crisis was averted, he was able to take in the moment himself.
"I've never seen Wrigley like that before," Scholten said, using the star of the game as the perspective on the epic moment. "Javy Baez himself went through a lot of things in his life. Since Javy Baez did it, why can't I do it? Why can't I overcome something severe in my life?"
Scholten is now nearly two years removed from that life-altering incident and studying to join the field of physical therapy after years as a special education teacher in Orland Park.
He ran the Wisconsin Marathon in May and represented Loyola at Guaranteed Rate Field to throw out the first pitch earlier this summer.
Scholten played baseball up through college (he was a member of the Illinois State Club Baseball team), but nobody could've predicted the sport would play such a huge role in rebuilding his life.
What would he say to Baez if he got the chance?
"Thank you. I would just say, 'Thank you,'" Scholten said. "'Cause I needed that excitement in my life and with tha thome run, he definitely gave me some excitement."