A crowd of 30,165 waited through a 90-minute rain delay to pay tribute to Dale Murphy, a local hero coming home in a visiting role.
"It was a memorable evening," Murphy said Tuesday night after his old team, the Atlanta Braves, defeated his current team, the Philadelphia Phillies, 9-5."I'll never forget it," he said.
"That's what made it so special, to have people here who have meant so much in my life," he said of the gathering of friends and family members brought in by the Braves to honor Murphy. It was his first appearance in Atlanta since last Aug. 3, when he was traded to the Phillies.
"When you're young, you take things for granted," he said. "Not that I'm all that old now, but I'm 17 years older than when I started out with this (Atlanta) organization. I think a lot about how lucky I've been, and how blessed."
There were some gifts, not the normal showering of extravagant items that usually go to athletes on their night. There was a portrait, a glass etching showing Murphy swinging a bat and his No. 3 Braves jersey, framed by his former teammates.
The 25-minute ceremony began with filmed highlights of Murphy's Atlanta career, shown on the huge television screen hanging from the upper deck in center field.
Murphy watched it from the Philadelphia dugout, smiling during one play that showed him stumbling to the ground and crawling in safely at third base.
He drew a lengthy standing ovation after former Atlanta pitcher and broadcaster Ernie Johnson introduced Murphy as "one of the nicest guys, both on and off the field."
"I know I will be a visitor tonight, but this will always be my home," Murphy said.
On the field with him were his wife Nancy and their six sons. Another baby is due in September. Murphy said they already know it will be a boy, adding, "We're running out of names."
Murphy's parents, his sister and his in-laws were also by his side, along with former high school coaches and teammates from Portland, Ore., representatives of the Mormon Church and former Braves teammates Barry Bonnell, Luis Gomez and Bruce Benedict.
Johnny Bench, the former Cincinnati Reds' star, gave a video salute, congratulating Murphy on recently attaining 2,000 hits and in advance for "when you pass me in home runs."
Murphy has 385 career homers, two behind Dave Winfield and four behind Bench, who ranks 25th on the all-time list.
Murphy's voice cracked only once during his brief remarks - when he thanked the Braves for "a special night by bringing in some special friends and some family members."
"I would like to thank you, the fans," Murphy said.