Exceeding Expectations Everyone in this world has that one thing that they are very passionate about. Being passionate about something is taking the time and effort to better yourself in that particular thing. The thing that I am most passionate about is baseball. Two important things that baseball has taught me in life is to never give up, and to never take anything for granted. I have played baseball since I was 3 years old. Since I have played the sport for so long I have had many ups and downs. Every young baseball players dream is to play varsity baseball when they get to high school. One of the best things that has ever happened to me was starting varsity my freshmen year of high school. Coming from a school that has 200 kids per-grade playing time in sports is very competitive. Working my way to get that starting position was a
Each day we would do different drills such as hitting, fielding, base running and more. There was really no way to know which drill is next they were all randomized to keep each player on their toes. Not every drill would be a drill that shows a player’s skill or how good they are. The coaches would do drills where they would give us game-like situations and see how we would react to see how we would perform in a live game. At the end of each week the head coach would sit down and talk with every player. At the end of week one the coach told me that he could tell I was very nervous and that I needed to relax because he knew I had the talent and skill for varsity baseball I just needed to show it. At the end of the three weeks the team had a inter squad scrimmage so the coaches could actually see how we performed in an actual game. I went into that scrimmage very relaxed and confident and came out feeling very confident and knowing that I did what I needed to do to make the
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.
From the time I first saw the game of baseball I fell in love. Even the first word I ever said was “ball”. I have baby pictures in my baseball uniform and whenever a baseball game would be on TV, I would act like I was playing there with them. So at an early age I knew I wanted to play baseball. Luckily, my dad was also very big into baseball and helped me almost every day. Some of my best memories came when we would practice baseball in the front yard, or even go to the local (missing word) and take batting practice.
Baseball is known as America’s national pastime, and has been played for over 100 years. Baseball can be a lot of fun, but is also extremely challenging to play, especially trying to hit a 90 mile per hour fastball. I am a very devoted baseball player myself, and over the years I have learned numerous key things about the game. Baseball does not only require physical strength to hit and throw the ball, but it also requires a great mindset, such as, mental preparedness, concentration, and a positive attitude.
I tried out and made my highschool team. While playing on my highschool team I joined a travel team for the Brooklyn Cyclones while still playing for my church’s high school team. My passion for softball could not be taken away from me. Even when I failed, I did not give up on my dream. Giving up on my dream of being successful in softball would be equivalent to letting down my past self who was just a little girl who fell in love with softball. Playing softball was my parents way of wearing me out, but it was my way of getting away from the problems of the real world and into a world of my own. Between two white chalk lines nothing else mattered, but playing the game I fell in love with when I was only ten years old. On the field, I was able to feel pure bliss. Playing softball for seven years has not only given me joy, but it has also taught me life skills that I use from day to day. I learned to work as a team to achieve a common goal, to communicate with others better, I have learned to cherish my wins while accepting my losses and I have learned no matter what happens in life, you always have to put your heart and soul into everything you
Some kids that have been playing for a long time got cut. I couldn’t believe it. The next day at practice coach said now that you made the team we are going to have a tryout for who is going to start and make lines according on skill and your ability to work. Every drill I was first, we ran a thing called the stair way to haven, I was first.
During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Major League Baseball, much like the majority of other American institutions, was racially segregated. A color barrier was implemented during baseball’s infancy in order to separate people of different race to cater to the white American players. The color barrier was an unofficial “rule” that hindered those with dark skin from playing baseball for Major League teams. The color barrier was enforced by preventing any teams with a colored player from competing at the professional level. Many team owners, umpires, and players justified their opposition to allowing blacks to play by declaring that only whites could uphold the "gentlemanly character" of professional baseball. Others argued that excluding blacks would prevent future racial resentment between the ethnicities, as players of different races would be competing for the same job opportunities.
As the clock struck 3:15 we began warming and limbering our muscles. I stretched my legs as far as they would go to the side and reached for the grass. I ran my fingers through the grass and counted along with the team. I felt my legs slowly begin to loosen with each stretch and sprint that we did. Following our series of warm-ups we began playing catch Pop! The sound of a ball hitting leather filled the outfield. As our coaches approached the throwing stopped and the field returned to silence, the buzz of anticipation in the air. Coach McGownd and our assistant Lori gave us a run-down of the practice plan, which included infield-outfield (IO), hitting drills, fielding drills and various base running drills. As he spoke, a few of the upperclassmen whispered back and forth amongst themselves. I caught bits and pieces of phrases like “come on it’s just the first day” and “how about no”. I stood drinking in every word and ignoring their muttered curses. I had never played softball and was determined to learn as much as I possibly could about the game. Coach McGownd asked us to go to a position we thought we might want to play. I ventured across the field and stood by first base. My parents and a few of my friends had told me that I would make a good first baseman so that seemed like the best choice to me. I had no clue how to actually play the position. My emotions ran amuck, ultimately stopping at optimistic.
As a kid, I was born and raised to love the great game of baseball. Many young kids have had dreams to become professional athletes, and achieve prestigious awards/ titles. Like many kids I’ve always dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player. As a younger kid with my head in the clouds, I never really knew what it was like to put my actual blood, sweat, and tears into something I loved, until my worst season I had ever played. This whole story starts in the beginning of my ninth grade baseball season. It started out different from every other year because, of course I was a freshman. This was the first year I had ever practiced with the varsity squad, it was much more difficult, but I still figured I was going to do great. After weeks
An amateur was a person who enjoyed playing while a professional was paid to be good at the sport. Amateurism was significant because it maintained the dignity and morality of the recreation or play because people were playing to play and not to make money. College football maintained a serious amateur definition while baseball turned to the world of professionalism. Players were not playing the sport, but they were going to work every time they had a game or practice. It was no longer pure, but for any sport that became professional related back to the importance for teams to seek out the players with the best prowess. This only confirms that as the recreation turned into a sport and the sport turned into a business, people associated with
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.
Baseball has been a part of me for quite a while now. I have done something baseball related each week for the past several years. It has really changed what I like to do in my spare time, and it has also changed my priorities. This was the first sport I would have played, and I haven’t played a different sport since the start of playing baseball. There were and still are so many ways baseball has changed my life.
A travel of over 3000 miles for some, a 210 mile drive for me, just to arrive at the biggest gathering of over 1,500 twelve year olds; all just to play baseball. The only place that would be suitable for such an event is Cooperstown Dream Parks, every baseball players heaven. Cars have come to Cooperstown from everywhere for this week long tournament. I met children my age from all over the United states. I became friends with kids from Ohio, Illinois, California, I even met a player from Puerto Rico who barely spoke any english. The windows of everyone 's car decorated with the names and numbers of teams and players. Excited baseball teams spill from their Barracks and hustle toward the already crowded seating area. Festive music played over
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.
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.
Many people don't understand the point in playing baseball. Why would someone swing a stick, hit a ball, and try to get back to where they started before the ball returns? What pleasure is there in that? Why not participate in a sport like wrestling or track where there is an obvious level of individual improvement and therefore pleasure. Well, I play baseball because of the love I have for the sport, and because of the feeling that overwhelms me every time I walk onto a baseball field. When I walk onto a field I am given the desire to better myself not only as an athlete, but also as a person. The thoughts and feelings I get drive me to work hard towards my goals and to be a better person. The most relevant example of these feelings is when I stepped on the field at Runyon Complex in Pueblo, Colorado during our high school state playoffs in 2003. This baseball field will always be an important place to me.