Jim Harbaugh, head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers, is a football guy through and through. He eats, sleeps, and breathes the sport, but he also has another passion: catching foul balls at MLB games.
The Chargers coach recently revealed his secret technique for catching foul and home run balls, claiming he has caught more than 20 throughout his life.
Jim Harbaugh Reveals Method for Catching Foul Balls and Home Runs at MLB Games
Jim Harbaugh’s passion for catching foul and home run balls at MLB games is hardly surprising. The Chargers head coach is well known for his quirks and unique personality, making him one of the most interesting figures in the NFL.
At a Chargers press conference, he recently revealed that he’s caught 22 foul balls at MLB games throughout his life.
WILD: Los Angeles #Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh claims that he has caught 22 foul balls at #MLB games in his life.
😳
This is crazy.
pic.twitter.com/pCB76JOEbA— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) July 19, 2025
“I’ve caught 22 foul balls in games,” Harbaugh said. “Yeah, Legit. It was either a foul ball or a home run.”
While he’s caught many during his adult life, he explained that most of them came when he was growing up in Michigan, attending Detroit Tigers games.
“13 of those foul balls came when I was a youngster going to Tigers games,” Harbaugh said.
It’s not just luck. Harbaugh has a specific strategy for positioning himself to catch home run balls. He explained that while most fans stand up and cheer, he starts running down the stadium seats toward where the ball is likely to land.
“I use my technique of going down,” Harbaugh said. “Everyone’s going up, I’m going down. So you get down there and I came up with the ball.”
Throughout Harbaugh’s coaching career at both the college and NFL levels, he has used the saying, “Attack each day with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind,” to help motivate his players in every aspect of their lives.
So it’s not surprising that he attacks catching home run and foul balls at MLB games with the same kind of enthusiasm, and it’s probably the reason he’s been able to grab so many of them.
While Harbaugh clearly has a knack for this unique talent, he admits it’s harder to catch balls now that MLB games are more crowded. Back in the day, he said he and his brother would have a whole section to themselves to catch as many balls as possible.
Harbaugh will need to bring the same kind of tenacity he shows when catching baseballs to the Chargers this season, as they look to build on the success of his first year when they went 11-6.
