I have never been a part of a team that LOVES to play baseball as much as this one. Maybe it is partially because we have been rained out so much the first couple games of the season (3 out of 5 games) that guys are going out of their minds to step on a field even if it is muddy. Still, I have never woken up in the morning with as much enthusiasm for the game as I do right now. Don't get me wrong, I have always had a passion for baseball. Since I was 4 years old it has been my favorite thing to do. I don't think an hour has gone by in my life that I haven't thought about something to do with baseball. I eat, sleep, and breathe it. I get to live a dream everyday I go to the ballpark and put on that Cardinal red. However, sometimes this game wears on you.
Ask any baseball player how they feel about this game and they will tell you they love it, and at the same time they hate it. It is a game of failure. You fail 70% of the time and you are considered great? That makes no sense, but it is the essence of our game. The players who deal with failure the best are the ones that succeed in this game. Having a short memory and staying positive all the time are keys to that success. It's a lot easier to do that when you are excited to come to the ballpark everyday.
Granted, it's easier to be excited when your team is 5-0 and has come from behind to win 3 times out of those 5 games. Everyone on our team has contributed, including the bench players. In the game on Saturday every pitcher in our bullpen threw in the game that went 11 innings. Both runs to tie the game in the 9th were scored by pinch-runners who hadn't played a game all year. And what is amazing to me is those guys who hadn't played and knew they weren't going to play the next day had the most energy. The next day when I showed up to hit early, they were the first ones there with me. It is a great thing to see guys trying to get better. I know it's making me better. And I know that type of enthusiasm for this game and to play is something that I can take back with me to the States. Wherever I play this year in the Cardinals' organization, I want to play with the energy and desire to win that burns within our players here on a daily basis.
If anyone has any comments or questions, feel free to email me at jrocke217@yahoo.com
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