Colorado Rockies give Todd Helton a horse as a retirement gift

Colorado Rockies give Todd Helton a horse as a retirement gift 

Colorado Rockies give Todd Helton a horse as a retirement gift, In the touching ceremony, Helton catches the game's ceremonial first pitch from his daughter, Tierney Faith, and also is greeted in the dugout by his college football teammate, Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning.

Todd Helton can ride off into the sunset on A Tru Bustamove, an American Paint horse given to the retiring first baseman by the Colorado Rockies Wednesday night.

The bobbleheads arrived on time in Colorado Wednesday night, along with other special guests. The Colorado Rockies celebrated retiring first baseman Todd Helton in a touching ceremony that featured his oldest daughter throwing out the first pitch, his college football teammate Peyton Manning watching from the dugout and a horse trotting out from the bullpen.

"I am not going to cry," he told the Denver Post before the game. "There's no crying in baseball. I shed a tear in the drive in today. I really don't think it's going to get to me.

In a Hollywood moment, Todd Helton hits a home run off of Boston’s Jake Peavy in the first innin Wednesday night. The first baseman also doubles agianst the Red Sox.

Helton played 17 seasons with the Rockies and announced earlier this month that this would be his last in purple and black. In his final home game on Wednesday, the 40-year-old went out with a bang, smashing a solo home run off of Red Sox pitcher Jake Peavy in the first inning of what turned out to be a 15-5 Rockies loss.

Todd Helton kisses his wife Christy as they are joined by their daughers Tierney Faith (l.) and Gentry Grace (r.) during pregame ceremonies Wednesday in Denver.

"You never imagine a home run," Helton told the Denver Post. "It was kind of surreal. That's a homer. That couldn't have really happened. I think Peavy did me a favor."

Before the game, Helton was feted by the 48,775 in attendance. His oldest daughter, Tierney Faith, threw out the first pitch — a borderline strike, no less! — from in front of the mound with her dad behind the plate, to kick off the ceremony, which followed with the presentation of the horse.

The ceremony’s MC told a story of how Helton gave his daughter a horse for her birthday, and the team figured the horse might be lonely, so they bought him a six-year-old black and white tobiano gelding American Paint horse.

Yeah I was surprised," Helton said of the gift, which included a custom saddle — made in Colorado — that features Helton’s number and the Rockies logo. "I guess I am going to have to learn to ride a horse a little better."

After the brief ceremony, Helton hugged and kissed his family and went back to the dugout, where Manning — who Helton backed up at quarterback while at Tennessee — gave him a hug and a pat on the butt.

"It goes by really quick," Helton said of his time in the bigs. "You blink and here you are. It was fun, a lot of hard work went into it, but it was work I love to do. I'm honored to have all these people here wishing me on to the next chapter of my life."