Lia Anthony, the jaw-dropping sister of Red Sox upstart Roman Anthony, has broken her silence on her new-found fame.
Lia has entered the limelight ever since her brother’s Major League Baseball debut on Tuesday, where she sat in the first row of Fenway Park for Boston’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Roman was the No 1 prospect in baseball before his call-up, with much attention being given to him as the next face of one of the most storied franchises in sports.
Lia and her family were interviewed on camera during the game, with her looks sparking the attention of the internet. Her following on Instagram has jumped from around 3,000 to over 16,000 in less than 48 hours.
‘Wow, I mean it’s been surreal,’ Lia said to WEEI. ‘It’s crazy… I’ve gotten quite a few DMs since that night.’
‘I got a couple baseball [DMs]. But it was funny, somebody said something about how they accidentally hit their baseball [in my DMs] and asked me to throw it back.’
The cameraman on NESN zoomed in on Lia Anthony as she watcher her brother Roman play
She has recently graduated after four years of studying at Florida State University
‘I think [Roman] definitely was shocked. We all were. We all were kind of in disbelief. But, I mean, he’s got bigger things to focus on. So, he’s just been focusing on his debut and everything. But I think we were all just shocked by it.’
Lia was at Tuesday night’s game alongside mom Lori, dad Anthony Sr., and brother Tony.
It is unclear when after the second-inning interview Lia found out of her new online fame.
‘Lord have mercy,’ one fan said, while another added: ‘What’s her @? Asking for a friend…’
There was more to Lia’s Tuesday night than baseball fans wanting to know more about her.
‘Oh my gosh. The people were amazing,’ Lia added. ‘It was an incredible experience. It was actually, this is my first time in Boston, and I had never been to Fenway… [The Red Sox] brought us to meet David Ortiz. It was just an unreal experience.
‘My mom especially was so touched by it, because David Ortiz had shared a couple words with her, talking about how incredible Roman is and how he’ll be the face of the franchise. And it’s all just so surreal to hear that, especially about your brother, who you’ve grown up watching and supported his whole life. I mean, the whole thing is just surreal.’
