In a life filled with bad moments, this was possibly the worst moment in the life of Howard Joel Wolowitz.
Only for now.
Called upon to toss out the first pitch at a baseball game at Anaheim Stadium, Howard discovered he had trouble throwing the ball a great distance.
So he did the next best thing: he built a replica of the Mars Rover to make the pitch for him.
When Howard unveiled his creation at the stadium ball game, it was at first met with wild cheers and loud applause. But when the device moved toward home plate with excruciating slowness, the cheers turned to boo's.
Even Howard's best friend Raj Koothrappali mockingly shouted a taunting remark, one that was reiterated by their mutual friend Sheldon Cooper.
Sheldon then suggested to his girlfriend Amy Farrah Fowler that they go across the street to Disneyland, insisting they would be back before the pitch was complete.
But then something happened.
The ball suddenly shot out of the "Mars Rover" and moved with such incredible speed Sheldon could have likened it to a pitch by his favorite superhero, the Flash. The ball moved so quickly and with such force it not only surprised the catcher but caused him to fall on his butt.
First was the sound of a stunned audience ending their many conversations. Then the cheers and applause returned, even louder than before, and many jumped to their feet until there was a stadium-wide standing ovation.
As Howard held up his arms like a shorter skinnier version of Sylvester Stallone's Rocky Balboa, he grinned.
His plan worked. He had let everyone, even his friends, think he was some big nerd who had failed once again.
"Surprise," he said quietly.
This was his moment.
Mighty Howard at the pitch.