Tigers Minor League Baseball Blog

I have said before that getting away from the game for a little bit is never a bad thing. Don’t get me wrong we ballplayers can be criticized for loving the game too much because of the time it takes away from family and friends. Today myself and a few of the other guys had the opportunity to see another side of life by visiting the local children’s hospital. Getting a chance to go and hang out with those kids for a few hours really helps me keep things in perspective and realize just how lucky I am. I know that it sounds cliche to say that, but you really get desensitized to the whole professional baseball lifestyle when it consumes your life for over half the year. To see kids who would give anything not just to be in my shoes, but to just feel healthy and normal is quite humbling and at the same time extremely uplifting because the majority if these kids have personalities that I wish I had. There is one guy I have to mention however, and his name is Joe. He has a rare skin condition which would make anyone I know want to give up. But not Joe, all he wanted to do was dominate everyone he met at any game and then rub it in. To quote him during a checkers game with a nurse, “A predator stalks his prey before he eats it.” I hope he doesn’t get offended if I use his checkers mentality the next time I get the ball.