Fan favorite ‘Little Crook’ helps Dragons to 13th comeback victory

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“I just feel like if I was that age, seeing a professional athlete come up to me, saying, ‘What’s up’ and having a normal conversation, it just goes a long way,” Crook said. “So I try to do that for them whenever I can.”

Crook was back in the lineup Tuesday after getting a day off. He had an RBI double in the fourth inning and the big double that turned out to be the game-winner in an 8-6 victory over Cedar Rapids.

“It felt good to be back and it felt good to produce for the team and come from behind and win,” Crook said.

The big hits weren’t the only reason the kids came looking for Crook, who is usually one of the last players to leave the dugout.

This is the third season he has played in Dayton because of injuries that shortened his previous two seasons. And he has developed a relationship with the young fans who sit near the Dragons’ dugout.

“They yell at me after the game, before the game,” Crook said. “During the game I usually give them a little high five from far away. They love it. I just like having fun with them.”

The kids call him Little Crook. He figures it’s because they think he’s a little kid like them. He does play the game with a kid’s enthusiasm.

“It’s cool when I recognize them, and they know that I recognize them,” he said. “They love that.”

All Dragons fans have grown to love their team’s ability to come from behind. The third-place Dragons are 17-12 and have come from behind to win 13 times. Tuesday’s win was their second win in eight days after trailing by six runs. The Dragons had done that only once in the previous four seasons.

“I love the fact that none of us give up,” Crook said. “It’s never a safe lead for the other team.”

Crook’s first double started the comeback from a 6-0 deficit. Then John Sansone stoked the Dragons’ fire with a three-run homer.

“It’s good to see those guys have confidence in themselves that no matter what they’re going to come back,” Dragons manager Luis Bolivar said.

When Crook was finished being interviewed in the dugout, he noticed a little girl standing where the boys had been a few minutes before. He walked over to her. She was shy, so her mother asked if her daughter could have a baseball.

“Yeah, I’ll find you one,” Crook said. He looked all over the dugout but didn’t find one.

“Wait there and I’ll go get you one,” he said. The little girl nodded as if to say, “OK, I’ll wait.”

Crook jogged down to the tunnel toward the clubhouse. He returned a minute later with two baseballs for his young fan.

“He’s good at interacting with the fans and all the kids,” Bolivar said. “He’s a people person.”

Dragons tales: Coming into Tuesday's game the Dragons had completed 20 percent of the season with a 16-12 record. That was tied for second best in the Dragons' last 10 seasons. They also started 16-12 in 2014. Last year's start through 28 games was 18-10.

WEDNESDAY’S GAME

Cedar Rapids at Dayton, 7 p.m.

WONE-AM (980)