Awesome Athlete-Fan Interactions

No matter how young or old someone is, one of the beautiful things about sports is the chance to interact with a star athlete, allowing a fan to remember a personal moment for the rest of his or her life.

Personally speaking, there was a time when Jose Canseco waved to me when I was in fifth grade while he was standing on first base, eventually coming over to the railing where my friend and I were to sign an autograph for us.

While my encounter with Canseco was memorable, there have been plenty of others between players and fans that have been even better, with touching moments that the sports world seems to remember forever.

Whether it's getting high-five from a player, receiving some gear or actually hanging out with a sports star, here are some of the most awesome athlete-fan interactions in recent memory—which, hopefully, bring a smile to your face.

Elliot Johnson Plays Catch

Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images

By no means a star, current MLB free agent Elliot Johnson was still a major-leaguer for five seasons, meaning he would be pretty cool to spend some time with and hear stories from.

So when Johnson received a random Tweet a couple years ago about a fan wanting to play catch with him, he didn't just scoff at it and dismiss it as humorous. No, the utility infielder actually replied and made sure that it happened, making his way to the parking lot to toss the baseball around.

According to a Deadspin report, Johnson went to a Fenway Park lot prior to a matchup against the Boston Red Sox, warmed up with the fans and, after spotting them in the stands during the game, gave them a few baseballs, too.

See, not all social media interactions are bad.

Clint Dempsey Gives the Shirt off His Back

Oh, man, what a dude that Clint Dempsey is, huh?

In addition to being incredibly gifted at the sport of soccer, coming to the rescue in key moments for the United States men's national team—like the other day against Honduras, when he scored both goals in the victory—he also showed serious class with a young fan during a Seattle Sounders game in 2014.

After picking up a win against the Houston Dynamo, Dempsey walked over and was seen talking with a young fan, which had to have made that kid's entire year.

Not stopping there, though, the soccer player made an interesting trade, dipping his hand into a bucket of popcorn and immediately removing his jersey to hand to the youngster.

Who knew that some buttery goodness could get you such a cool reward?

Todd Frazier Homers on Request

The Cincinnati Reds' All-Star third baseman Todd Frazier is enjoying a great season this year, currently sitting in the top-six of both home runs and RBI in the National League.

And while Frazier has emerged as a star in recent years, it was what he did during the 2013 campaign that first familiarized fans with his name.

That's when Frazier fulfilled quite a large request from Red bat boy Ted Kremer. Kremer, who was born with Down syndrome, told Frazier before he stepped to the plate, "C’mon, hit me a home run, I love you."

Not wanting to let Ted down, Frazier got his pitch and blasted it to dead center, clearing the wall, and then celebrated with the bat boy in the dugout for an incredible moment.

It may not have been an interaction with a fan in the stands, but this is still pretty cool from a fan who was working as a bat boy—and reminds me of another home run promise made by some guy named Kramer.

Arian Foster Runs a Social Media Contest

Stephen B. Morton/Associated Press

One of the top running backs in the NFL, Houston Texans star Arian Foster is well-known for some of his crazy quotes and extreme involvement on social media.

With over 8,100 tweets in his lifetime, the one-time rushing champ thought it would be fun to see which one of his followers could actually uncover the first ever time Foster hit the send button.

No doubt a daunting task of scrolling down and researching when Foster, in fact, first tweeted, one fan was able to decipher the Twitter hunt, as reported by Steve DelVecchio of Larry Brown Sports, leading Foster to interact with the supporter by offering tickets to a game of his choice.

Now that's pretty darn cool.

Ricky Rubio

When healthy, Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio has shown that he has the talent to be an absolute magician with the basketball.

Dribbling like Pistol Pete Maravich and having the vision of a Steve Nash, Rubio has shown flashes of becoming the star many thought he would be before he was drafted in the first round of the 2009 NBA draft.

While most of the people on the receiving end of his passes are his teammates, one little girl got to experience what it was like to throw a few bounce passes back-and-forth with the Spaniard when she was on the court doing just that during a game in 2014.

Of course, with Rubio's T-Wolves up by 23 points at the time, I'm sure he was in a much better mood than if they had been down, but, either way, this is a cool moment.

Melvin (B.J.) Upton Gets His Wallet Back

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

If you've ever misplaced something like your keys or wallet, you know just how irritating it can be—especially when you actually have no idea where they might be.

That's what happened to current San Diego Padres outfielder Melvin (B.J.) Upton a few years back while still playing for the Tampa Bay Rays. He lost his wallet after it fell out of his truck and into a parking lot.

For some people, finding a pro athlete's wallet would be like winning the lottery, as it, no doubt, has some serious cash and credit cards in it.

Instead of taking advantage of the opportunity and doing something unlawful, though, as reported by Larry Brown Sports, a guy named Brent Sutton hit up Upton on Twitter to see how he could return it, arranging a meeting to do so.

For Sutton's kindness, he received a bat from Upton—which was a small price to pay for not having his identity stolen.

Miguel Cabrera and Cleveland Indians Fan

We've all been there before.

Sitting close to the action and still naive enough to think that we can scream at an opposing player without being "that guy." When you're a teenager who talks trash, it can sometime end up pretty cool.

Take this young Cleveland Indians fan, who, a couple weeks ago, began yelling towards two-time AL MVP Miguel Cabrera during a game against the Detroit Tigers, getting his attention and receiving some praise from Miggy during the inning.

That's not the cool part, though. Cabrera rewarded the kid with batting gloves and a bat in between innings, making his day and, although the kid might not want to admit it, winning him over—even if he is across enemy lines.

Matt Kemp Rewards a Fan

He may not be the player that he  was a couple of years ago, but current San Diego Padres outfielder Matt Kemp certainly gained a fan for life regardless of his stats back in 2013.

Following a road game against the San Francisco Giants, the former All-Star didn't just sign a baseball for Joshua Jones—a fan with cancer who was able to get the player's attention—but he also gave him the game-worn jersey off of his back, hat and cleats!

If that wasn't cool enough, Kemp flew Jones and his family to Los Angeles to catch a Dodgers game. Sadly, Jones died later that baseball season.

Hopefully Kemp was able to give Joshua a lasting memory to take his mind off of his illness.

LeBron James and Lauren Hill

He may the biggest and most popular athlete on the planet, but four-time NBA MVP LeBron James also knows what's important in life, as he is routinely making time to interact with fans.

One who seemed to get close to him more than others was Lauren Hill, the collegiate basketball player who played for Mount St. Joseph's women's basketball team and had inoperable brain cancer.

Following the NCAA moving her team's game up in order to get Lauren some playing time, the country rallied around the 19-year-old as she played 47 seconds and recorded a bucket in her only action in a college hoops game.

James took notice—not only posting a photo on Instagram of Lauren's hoop, but also honoring her with some tweets the day after she died.

Even for the most polarizing figure in sports, there's still time to connect with fans—and this was a great way for James to do that.

Daniel Bryan Honors Connor “The Crusher” Michalek

Being inducted into a sports Hall of Fame is quite the honor for any athlete, proving that all of the hard work and dedication to his or her craft has paid off in a big way, leaving his or her legacy for future generations to admire.

And while most athletes might get up there and talk about some of their favorite moments during their playing days, thanking those who inspired and impacted them to be the best they could be, one guy went a little off the cuff during this year's WWE Hall of Fame Induction.

That guy would be wrestler Daniel Bryan, who developed a friendship with a fan named Connor “The Crusher” Michalek, who proved to be Bryan's inspiration during WrestleMania in 2014.

While the athlete's speech was a bit critical of wrestling as a whole, admiring a kid who had died from cancer left everyone crying and applauding, leaving this as one of the best athlete-fan interactions ever seen.

Adreian Payne and Princess Lacey

It's never easy mourning the loss of an eight-year-old kid, who should be outside running around and having fun with their friends.

For Lacey Holsworth, though, her life required cancer treatment, as she was diagnosed early and fought as hard as she could.

Sadly, "Princess Lacey" died in 2014, touching millions thanks to the friendship that she formed with former Michigan State Spartans basketball player Adreian Payne, who first met Lacey during a team trip to a local hospital.

As the bond got stronger, Lacey and her family were routine guests at Spartans games, providing inspiration for the entire team—and giving Payne a friend for life.