A hobby I've held onto and cherished for a very long time was playing baseball. The sport was introduced to me by my father through the movie The Sandlot. The sport ended up holding a more significant meaning to me after I learned that both my Father and Grandfather played in their high school years. For me, Baseball laid down the foundation for my future and has been a positive force in my development since I was young. Baseball taught me a lot of things, but one of the most important was to take care of myself. Taking care of myself takes many different forms. From eating healthier to exercising, I gained the good habits I have today from baseball. When I played baseball, I had to keep in shape every day. Whether it was 3 hours or 30 minutes, …show more content…
When I first started playing baseball, I didn't have many friends at all. I was fairly introverted, spending most of my time indoors. I read a lot and didn't bother talking to people because I had literature to keep me company. Then, I started playing baseball at age 8. I was in a completely new environment with people I didn't know, and I was terrified. However, everyone who was on the team(as well as my future teams) treated me with the same camaraderie that old friends would have. Needless to say, I integrated instantly. I was thankful for my choice in playing because I ended up making new friends for the first time in my life. I ended my first season of baseball with a whopping 9 new friends. As I stated before, baseball boosted my self-esteem. It allowed me to break out of my shell and have fun for once. I remember an old game from back in my third season of playing. I had the time of my life, better than anything I did. I had fun, I got my first official home run. The feeling was phenomenal, and I got cheered by my entire team as I ran to home base. I was 10 years old at the time. It helped boost my self-esteem, having helped win the game. Very few things bring me that feeling of glee I felt when I hit that first home run. When I quit at age 16, I felt a sort of loss. However, I was still able to continue on with my life as my friends were still there. My attitude towards life didn't change …show more content…
Some question the amount of time you have to put in. Others complain about how much it costs. To me, these would only be relevant if I didn't love the game as much as I do. The amount of time I have put into baseball is immeasurable at this point. I've also poured in more resources than just money. I've poured in my blood, sweat, and tears into the sport. That goes the same with any other topic that I love. If a person truly loves their hobby(whatever it may be) then they are willing to pour in countless hours or any amount of money into it. Another more rational argument is that people don't want to miss important events that happen with their families. A baseball game is an event that my family comes out to. They love to watch me play and I love hearing them cheer me on. In reality, very few games that I have conflict with my private affairs. If they do happen to conflict, I simply try to arrive as soon as possible. In terms of confliction, communication is key. If someone can't accept the fact that you may be late or not be there, that is their fault. I could always tell one of my coaches that I couldn't make a game. They will understand. People have things going on in their lives daily, I'm no exception. The best thing I've learned from these questions is that most things have an answer. You just have to find ways to get solve
The first team I ever played for was Tobers Party Store. For some kids growing up, baseball was just another way to pass time during the summer, away from the grind of public school. For me it was everything. From the moment my eyes snapped open in the morning, until the time I slipped away to sleep, I had baseball on my mind. I loved to play baseball, watch baseball, and talk baseball. Nothing else mattered. Eating and sleeping were just "necessary evils" that took precious time away from my hobby. I anxiously awaited the day when I would be drafted into the professional ranks after a successful college career. Bubbling with excitement, I would explain my inevitable career path to anyone who would listen. Of course, the responses were less than empowering. "Do you know how good you have to be?", and the tried and true " Go to college and get a real job", were two of the more popular sentiments that the "opposition" hurled at me. Naturally, in my 10 year old mind, I knew they were delusional and I would prove them wrong.
It was believed that by watching baseball, youngsters would learn to be better people because they would begin to imitate the professionals who became their heroes. Baseball taught quick decision making skills, competitiveness, how to sacrifice for the team, as well as how to accept authority. Hugh Fullerton, a modern student of baseball at the time, spoke of his thoughts of baseball:
I love baseball. I love to play baseball and read baseball comics. I have read a lot of Japanese baseball comics, and almost all Japanese baseball comics’ heroes were fastball pitchers. This comic’s hero was a typical typed pitcher in Japanese baseball comics. He could throw the fastest fastball in his team, and became the ace pitcher of his team when he was a freshman.
It was the beginning of a new softball season, and I couldn't wait to get out there with my team. At our first practice I remember feeling back at home on the field. Just when I thought this was going to be our teams best season, my parents moved me to a private school. Leaving what I was familiar with was not an easy task, and deciding if I would continue my passion of softball with a different team was even more difficult.
It all began one day when I was six years old. My dad and I were playing catch at my grandparents house in the yard. I decided that I wanted to pitch so I told my dad to crouch down like a catcher. As I began to pitch I would try to imitate my favorite pitcher at the time, Cardinal starter, Chris Carpenter. My grandpa would sit in a chair by the window and watch me throw. After throwing a few pitches my grandpa decided that he wanted to come outside. With his walker, he made his slow walk outside to get a closer look at me. “I think we’ve got something here” he said to my dad as I continued to pitch. From that moment on, I always wanted to pitch in front of him just to listen to what he would have to say about me.
Growing up, I have always had a passion for baseball. To me, it is much more than just a sport. There have been times when it has acted as an escape from many problems in my life, as I feel that when I am on the diamond, nothing can hurt me. I am aware that many people feel this way about the sport they love, but sadly their careers often come to an abrupt end due to injury. I have a personal connection to this experience. The summer before my fourth grade year I was attending a basketball camp at Davidson College, when in the final seconds of a scrimmage game, my ankle was kicked out from under me. I immediately fell to the ground in pain as my ankle rolled over on itself. Coaches aided me in limping off of the court and to the training room
My senior baseball season wouldn’t have been the same if it wasn’t for the kids I had around me. All of my closest friends were on the baseball team which makes it easy to see why it was my favorite season. Win or lose we were the most tight knit group of guys you could come across. Not only were we very close friends but
Baseball - Talk about something I live and die for. This sport means more to me than my first kid will ever mean to me. No not literally but that is how important and meaningful this sport is to me. This sport has given me the opportunity to meet some of the greatest people and most inspirational people in my life. More than anything this sport has taught me to fail at something and be okay with it.
Sports play a very important role in my life ever since I could walk. My interests in playing sports began at the age of three as my parents signed me up for soccer, flag football, basketball, and lacrosse. First grade started my competitive edge as I began to play for travel teams in various sport tournaments. This competitive edge transferred from the sports field to the classroom having teachers and coaches helping me be the best I can be. Sports have continually well-shaped and defined my character by teaching me how to accept a win from working hard, also how a loss is an opportunity to learn and fix mistakes.
One diamond, four plates, nine players, a sweaty uniform, cleats, a bat, and a ball are the only things I’ve dreamt of since my first baseball practice when I was three years old. I remember the way it felt to smack the ball off of the tee and have everyone in the stands cheer and scream for me as I ran for first base as fast as I could and never wanting to leave the field even after it had gotten dark outside and all the field lights had been shut off. Baseball has been all I’ve ever wanted to do with my life from the very beginning. I can’t imagine doing anything other than eating, sleeping, and breathing the game of baseball. So when people ask me, “What are your plans after high school?” all I’ve ever known myself to say back was, “I’m not sure but it 'll have something to do with baseball.” With this being said, I have decided to be a baseball coach so I can pass down the knowledge I have for the game I love so much to people younger than me that love it just the same as I have and still do.
My sophomore year eager to begin baseball season, I've have so much detonation and disappointment from the prior year. The team and i had been preparing our butts off this off season. We were determined to break the curse of the baseball team. Out of the past teams no one never made it passed the fourth round and we were willing to do anything to change that. This was the year that we told our self's that were we going to make it the distance and nothing was going stand before us. We needed to be the team to recall as the ones who broke the condemnation and made it to state.
An experience I had that has changed who I was the chance to prove myself as a capable player for my baseball team. Playing baseball with my high school team was a wonderful experience that I wish I could go through again. It really changed me as a junior and senior.
The announcer began announcing our team to start the introduction for the game. Since I was the lead-off batter, my name was echoed over the park first. It was at this time that the feeling elevated; the feeling that makes every baseball field so special. As my teammates yelled for me, while I ran to the nearest baseline and faced the crowd, the feeling gave me goose bumps and raised the hairs on the back of my neck. The feeling is so amazing that it will keep me playing baseball for as long as possible because it makes my love for the sport that much more. I can't even begin to explain the complex feeling I get when I walk on a baseball field, but that feeling will always be cherished and hopefully when I pass on my love of baseball to others, they will too understand what that special diamond makes me feel like.
When you look at a basketball what do you see? Most would see an orange, sphere, shaped rubber ball. There are black lines and real leather. If you look closer, you would even see the size of the ball in which you are playing with. A basketball could be just a toy for many, or even represent a release for others, but for me, it means a lot more. A basketball represents my blood, sweat, tears, passion, sacrifice, and most of all, a sense of belonging, like a family. At this moment in my life, there are only three things I devote my life to- family, friends, and basketball. Basketball has shaped my life probably more than anything else. Basketball has instilled in me a vicious will to achieve and embrace my ambitions instead of fearing them. Basketball gave me an open opportunity to try something new. New opportunities and experiences are not such a big deal anymore. From academics to personal matters, the lessons that I have learned from basketball has impacted my life.
The benefits of sports range from physical, mental, and social. Exercise keeps people fit, develops healthy muscle tone, and reduces heart and lung problems (Oak, Manali). Sports studies have shown that “youth are motivated and engaged in ways that do not happen regularly in any other parts of their lives. Their experience of sports stands out from nearly all other activities, including socializing and schoolwork, in providing enjoyment where they are exerting concerted effort toward a goal” (Larson, Reed, and Sean Seepersad). People who play sports bond over a common interest. This opens up children to meeting new kids and socializing with many more. In Kindergarten, I played baseball. Even though I did not truly understand all the mechanics of the game, I met new friends and began to develop motor skills. This was very useful starting at an early age and pushed me to stay active throughout my life.