To a great deal of people, baseball is merely just whacking a ball with a stick. But to me, baseball is a complicated sport of strategy and statistics. From the batting order to pitcher matchups, every decision has to be carefully analyzed and solved. Knowing where in the strike zone each hitter can hit a ball, what pitch they can and can’t hit, and …show more content…
From astigmatism to albinism, I have all the “isms” in my eyes. This made baseball difficult for me, but it could not bar me from playing. My passion to play outweighed the challenges my eyesight brought upon me. The challenges left me with inferior skills compared to my teammates, but could not hold me back. My ability to play was put on trial my first year of high school when, despite my idms, I tried out for the freshmen baseball team.
I nervously wandered into the old gym, which smelled of stale socks and body odor. Everyone was dressed the same as me: Detroit Tigers ball cap, some kind of Carolina blue husky t-shirt, grey baseball pants and athletic shoes. Students of all ages were mingling. I remained silent, my stomach churning, body pulsing with adrenaline. It seemed like an eternity before the head coach came out and tryouts started.
I felt out of place, an outsider, like I didn’t belong. If the kids I was with were Major League Baseball legends such as Babe Ruth or Cy Young, I was a washed out, Minor League bat boy. However, that did not deter me from trying. I laboured that week, struggling to keep up with the other kids. Their performance was far superior than mine, the only thing working in my favor was my work ethic, my unwillingness to back down from the challenge I faced. I wanted to make the