I have always been a fan of hard work and dedication. It's never easy and for such a long time I searched for heroes in my life, be it my dad or athletes like Robin Yount, Rickey Henderson, Rod Carew, Ron Guidry or Jorge Posada. Watching these guys play the game... watching their approach, their passion... it made me realize that if you wanted something bad enough, there was nothing you couldn't do. Baseball translates to life in so many ways and we've talked about that here at BYB plenty. Well... we're about to talk about it again...
I have immediately gravitated toward new heroes... heroes for my own son who is now playing in a more competitive league and finding obstacles all around him. Guys like Ty Hensley. Guys like Tommy La Stella. Guys like Mason Williams or a guy like Dean Anna, a 6 year minor leaguer, and a guy who wants to to make it big with the Yanks. He wants to go pro and be on the biggest stage... playing in the Big Apple.
Look, breaking in with the Yankees is tricky. The Yankees sometimes remind me of David and Goliath and what I mean by that is, you have a team that for as long as I can remember, has always had the big names in baseball. They were Free Agent giants that made their names in New York. From Reggie Jackson to Tino Martinez, the list goes on and on. Be it big trades or big signing, the Yanks collected established talent. Then, when youngsters in Yankeeland work their way through the farm system and finally are ready to make it to the Bigs, sure, the Yanks will "give them a look", but because these giants are already in pinstripes, mucking up their finances, well, it ain't easy for those kids to break through. That's why we see our youth being traded away. It's hard for the Yankees to keep them around, especially when Yankee brass salivates over what other options are out there.
Look at 2009 when we signed CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, Mark Teixeira and Nick Swisher? We didn't make the playoffs with what we had in 2008 and we didn't give the farm a chance to blossom. So we went big.
We did it again this winter, and sure, while the Yanks will sprinkle some youth around Masahiro Tanaka and Brian McCann, there are plenty of talented youngsters in the minor leagues ready to burst with energy!
Look, I'm not faulting the Yankee way. All I'm doing is stating the mere fact that sometimes it doesn't matter how much true talent you have in a place like New York. Sometimes teams are just set in their ways. The Yankees... they're set in their ways.
But I root for the believer anyway. I root for the ones that work their tails off and still see themselves at the top of the mountain wearing pinstripes, even though the odds might be against them. That type of dedication gets me all fuzzy inside. Jorge Posada was never a guy many believed in, at least that's what I thought. But you know who believed in him? He did. His teammates did. And the Core Four did as well because they're all now famous because of their work ethic...together. Thank God for that. Thank God for guys like Bernie Williams, who refused to take criticism of his talent personally. All he did was work harder and became an outstanding center fielder.
Posada told us in his interview with BYB: "I would always say 'Grind it!'", and that hat brim picture that you see at the top of this post? That's my son's hat. We wrote "Grind it" in there to keep him inspired and keep him motivated.
Look. It's hard being a parent. We sometimes forget just how much pressure there is as a kid, even though, there shouldn't be pressure at all. It's hard to explain to an 11 year old that you have to work hard, because, for as long as that son or daughter has been alive, we, the parents, were always helping them. Now, suddenly it's them alone on the baseball diamond. We're on the sidelines. The words "work hard" seem too easy. The work... well, that's harder, and they have to do it for themselves. Again... baseball and life are parallel. Overtime, my son becomes frustrated and it becomes a struggle of me explaining that life's not easy and either is baseball. Sometimes... you just need to "Grind it." It's getting there that is exhausting.
Rickey Henderson was my guy growing up. I remember as a kid, I found an Ad in Beckett Monthy for a baseball card shop in San Diego. I remember it because it was the biggest Ad on the page. I remember writing them a letter at about 12 years old and I asked them for a catalog. I remember the first thing I ordered was a Rickey Henderson 8 x 10. It went on my wall. Rickey was with the Oakland A's at the time and I didn't care. He was my idol. He was the guy I wanted to be. I practiced sprints in my yard. I wet the grass next to a base I made, a brick, and practiced sliding for hours by myself. Why? Because I wanted to be the fastest kid in Little League. I wanted to be Rickey Henderson. And you know what? I was... for a while and that gave me confidence.
After a while, I was hitting, pitching and even played shortstop as a left hander. Why? Because I had confidence and because I wanted to also be like another hero of mine... Robin Yount. Sure, he may have been a righty, but it didn't matter to me... I had to learn it. Well, I remember the day the I got my first double play and for a while there, I figured out how to play shortstop backwards. I achieved something big... but it wasn't easy. Again... Confidence.
What's my point to this? "Grind it", that's my point. It's baseball season. There are alot kids that don't think they're up to snuff and want to quit right about now, your kid could be one of them. All I'm saying is, take the time to look them in the eye and explain how the world works. Explain goals... explain falling down and getting back up... and explain confidence. If you do, they will run through a brick wall. It's starts with confidence. Once they have that, a strikeout once in a while won't matter anymore. Giving up a home run on an 0-2 pitch will slid off their back. If they have confidence... if they "Grind it", they will be successful... in baseball... in life.
I leave you with this, from 2 people I adore. My wife and I became friends with this couple through baseball and our families are tighter than ever since we met last summer. Our boys played together. I take this quote below to heart, because I love coaching kids, teaching kids and allowing them to understand confidence. I believe that if you allow a child to work hard for you and you show them respect, there is nothing they won't do on the diamond for you. In short, it's about getting them understand how important "trying" and working hard is. It's a quote from our pal Joe Girardi:
Grind it! Sure, maybe you lose the game, but trust me... you won.
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