Baseball is a sport that I grew very accustomed to at a young age. I grew up in New Haven, Connecticut, and baseball is huge if you happen to live anywhere in the New England area. I remember when I went to my first game at Shea Stadium (New York City) when I was 5 years old. I've always watched the game prior to actually going to the game, but that day changed my life and I would start developing a tremendous love for the sport.
After watching my first baseball game, I instantly wanted to start playing. Therefore, my parents signed me up for tee-ball a few days later. You know how they say that some people are just born with natural talent for certain sports or activities? Well, this was exactly what I experienced when I started throwing, catching, and hitting the baseball for the first time. I mean it was absolutely incredible how effortless it felt when I practiced with my Father. I remember the first game of the season like it was yesterday. Unfortunately, the one thing that sticks out the most in my mind was how horrible some of the other kids were. It just blew my mind that some kids would strike out when all you had to do was hit the ball off the tee! Also, they weren't so great out on the field. It was very frustrating when I would throw the ball to a teammate and then watch them run away from the ball. Those were the good old days!
I continued to play baseball when I moved to Tampa, Florida when I was 8 years old. Furthermore, I continued playing all the way until I threw my arm out in my Junior year of High School. However, I've always followed the game all of my life. My favorite baseball players of all time are Ryne Sandberg and Ken Griffey Jr. Also, I am a huge Rays fan (obviously) and periodically will go to Tropicana Field to watch them play. That's my story of how I fell in love with the great game of baseball!
It is always nice when you find that thing that makes you tick. It seems to fill a void that you didn't even know was there like when you said you picked up that ball for the first time and threw it around so effortlessly. It is truly enlighting and enjoyable when you stumble upon that pool of natural talent for the first time.
ReplyDeleteAs one of those fellow kids who was "horrible," I would just first off like to say that it's as easy for everyone when you have terrible hand-eye coordination. That is why I probably found soccer as my natural sport later (no hands required!). That being said though, I have not always found baseball to be the most appealing sport, especially when you're local team was so inept for so many years. I will freely admit to being a bandwagon fan of sorts, but the recent success of the Rays has given me a renewed interest in the sport I failed so miserably at when I was younger. I thank you for sharing your memories of baseball, even though it brings up painful memories of my own. How could I not hit the dang ball?! It was a tee for christs sake!
ReplyDeleteThere are definitely not many activities in life that can compare with baseball. I love hunting, fishing, and weight lifting but none of them have the same effect on me that baseball does. It seems to me, and maybe its just me, that once you play organized baseball once it never seems to leave you, even if you are just slightly interested in it. I just came back from playing an Alumni game against the Varsity team at my high school and suprisingly enough I have not lost much over the years. I also still love the feeling of being out on the field.
ReplyDeleteYea maybe I was a little harsh as far as my description of how bad the other kids were out on the field. At least they were trying right? I mean it is just a game and games are supposed to be fun. But the feeling that you do get from being out in the field is incredible!
ReplyDelete