Raising My Son in Sports

This post is for you to read, but I am writing it mostly for my wife's benefit.

I'm extremely competitive and recognize that at times I can be a bit intense when it comes to sports. I think it worries my wife that I'll be extreme in my approach to raising our kids in sports. We're expecting our first child, a son, any day now, so before he arrives I want to express my thoughts on how kids should and shouldn't be raised in sports.

But this post isn't just for you and my wife; it's also for me. Obviously, as I learn to be a parent my ideas on the parenting process will change (quite drastically I'm told), but I hope this will serve as a reminder if I'm ever tempted to be a little more intense or competitive. And please, leave your thoughts, opinions, and experiences in the comments below so that I can learn from you!

So here we go: my thoughts on how kids - specifically my son - should and shouldn't be raised in sports.

FUN

First and foremost, sports were created to be fun. While some - including myself at times - fall victim the Red Sanders philosophy that, "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing," that absolutely should never apply to children. Winning is close to nothing when it comes to youth sports. Of course it will be great to see my son experience the thrill of victory, but there are so many more important things that he needs to get out of sports, and right at the top of the list is having fun.

We nearly missed some of the best years of Andre Agassi's career because he was burned out. He has admitted that he hated tennis, and that came in large part because his father pushed him into it so aggressively. He never had the chance to enjoy it. Fortunately for fans of the game, he committed himself to fitness, and that refocus allowed him to complete a tremendous career in spite of his feelings for the sport.

I don't want to be Andre Agassi's father. I don't want to brainwash my son into loving sports by dangling a tennis ball above his crib so that his eyes learn early to follow a yellow, fuzzy orb. It worked, and Agassi became one of the greatest tennis players of all time, but at what cost? He despises the game that made him famous.

My wife and I were at the park recently and we saw a dad with his two young boys, probably about ages 3 and 5. They were dressed up in their little jerseys, shin guards, and cleats. That in and of itself I don't have had a problem with. A lot of kids love getting dressed up in their gear and jerseys to go out and play. I know I did! But then this father pulled out several cones and began running his kids through a series of drills, and that's just too much. I think drills should be saved until you're a little older, and, generally speaking, until a child is on an organized team with organized practices. Until then, I think he or she will just enjoy being active. Teaching skills is great, but I plan on skipping the drills and sticking to the fundamentals, like this dad:

DON'T SPECIALIZE

There's been kind of a disturbing trend toward early one-sport specialization in recent years, and I think it needs to stop. I'm not alone either, and JJ Watt's opinion probably carries more weight than mine:

Single-sport specialization amongst youth today is troubling. Let kids be kids. They'll become better all-around athletes & have more fun.
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) March 2, 2015

There are a million reasons for this, but Watt hits on two of the biggest. As already discussed, having fun is what it's all about. If our youth are specializing they are more likely to burn out, drop sports, and abandon an active lifestyle, furthering the problems of inactivity and obesity that currently plague our country. But if my son participates in a variety of sports and activities he is more likely to find the form - or forms - of physical activity he enjoys most. More important than kids becoming college and professional athletes is that they learn to be active and healthy.

But speaking of next level athletics...

If my son wants to pursue athletics at the college level, then specializing early will actually hurt him. As JJ Watt points out in the tweet above, playing multiple sports will lead to being better athletes. Urban Meyer clearly agrees. Just look at this little chart that illustrates his recruiting patterns at Ohio State:

I suppose a lot of people think that specializing early will increase a kid's chances at taking it to the next level, but in reality, it doesn't. I want to emphasize again that I want my son to love sports and being active, and I don't want him to hate what he does like Andre Agassi hated tennis. And that is regardless of whether or not he even wants to pursue intercollegiate athletics.

Supposing my children turn out like me and don't play competitive sports after high school, wouldn't it be more enjoyable to have the fundamental skills from a variety of sports? I love to watch and play just about everything, and the ones I never played competitively, like football, I can still play recreationally because I am an athlete (albeit a very average athlete), not just a one sport specialist. 

TAKE IT DOWN A NOTCH

Do you know what drives me absolutely insane? I HATE seeing youth sports coaches who make their kids run as punishment. What message are we sending when we do that? "Kid, you were bad, so go exercise!" WHAT?! No wonder America struggles with obesity! From our youth, many of us have associated exercise with punishment. From PE classes to youth soccer practices it has become pretty commonplace, but it really, really shouldn't be the case. Again, it goes back to the principle that sports and physical activity should be fun. If physical activity is punishment, do you think it's going to be fun? And do you think kids are going to want to exercise? 

Along these same lines is another problem in youth sports, and that's all the yelling. They're kids! Why are we so intense about it?

Let me tell you a story. When I was around 13 years old I started officiating youth soccer. Being so young they started me out with the youngest age group, the 5 and 6 year olds. In one particular game, a shot on goal struck the keeper in the face. He didn't fall, he didn't scream or start crying, and he was immediately back in the ready position. The ball quickly cleared and I ran by the keeper and made sure he was okay, but that was not good enough for the "assistant coach" (and that's in quotes because he had kind of made himself an assistant coach, certainly to the head coach's dismay). This man came across the field, in the middle of play, and began screaming in my face. He was upset that I hadn't blown the play dead the second the ball hit his goalie's face. And how did he choose to express this? By running across the field and berating a 13-year-old boy. Good choice, sir. (And to conclude the story, I never backed down and calmly asked him several times to leave my field until he finally did, resulting in a standing ovation from the opposing sideline.)

This is me, the youth soccer official.

Again, why are we so intense about youth sports? In my case, that parent was yelling at an official, and I know many people don't consider referees to be human beings, but come on, man! It's youth soccer! Per the rules of that league I went above and beyond in even checking on the keeper to make sure he was okay. And yet, this middle-aged man felt the need to charge the field and relentlessly scream at a 13-year-old boy.

We all know that it doesn't stop with yelling at officials. In my years of playing, officiating, and coaching youth sports, I've seen parents and coaches alike yell at their kids and players when they make a mistake. That seems effective. I can totally see how it would help my son develop a love of sports and a healthy and active lifestyle if I yell at him because he set an illegal screen or something equally as trivial.

I have a lot of other stories on this subject from my time in youth sports, but I'll save those for another day and just leave it at this: exercise isn't punishment, yelling isn't appropriate, and all of us adults need to take a chill pill before we ruin sports for our kids.

LEARN SOMETHING

Aside from learning to be physically active and healthy, there are hundreds of life lessons I want my son to learn from sports. These aren't things that I could yell and scream until the lesson is learned (and if you're ever tempted to try, see above), but rather, these lessons are natural byproducts that are learned from a good youth sports experience. Like I said, there are hundreds, maybe even thousands of things that every child should learn from athletics, but below are some of the ones I think are most important.

You win some, you lose some

Growing up, I played on A LOT of losing teams. Virtually every team I played for ended up with a losing record. As I've mentioned I'm very competitive, and that wasn't at all different when I was a kid, so losing was hard. But one of the most important lessons I ever learned from playing sports was how to lose. I could probably make an entire post about how to lose, but instead let me just quickly hit some of the highlights. 

I learned that sometimes people are better than me, and that's okay. I learned that sometimes I might feel I'm more talented than my opponent but things still might not go my way. From both of those principles, I learned how to respect those who defeated me (for example, getting passed over for a job or a lazy coworker earning Employee of the Month). I learned how to pick myself up after falling short. I learned to channel the frustration of losing into working hard to improve. 

Most of all, I learned how to be happy even when I lose or fall short in one aspect of my life. This may not be the greatest lesson that everyone will learn from losing, but for me it was the most difficult and took me the longest. I don't think I really learned it until I met my wife. It used to be that you couldn't approach me after a loss for a few hours for fear of me snapping at you because I was still frustrated. I was horrible. But I've finally learned to put a smile on and brush it off almost immediately after. Why would I let a loss negatively affect the way I feel and the way I treat others? Good question. And apologies to my family for years of putting up with me after losses!

You didn't believe me did you? And this was the
quarterfinals of the European Championships!

After spending years on primarily losing teams, something crazy happened my senior year of high school: I played on a really good basketball team. We won our conference and placed second in our division in Europe. It was an absolutely incredible year, but I now had to learn how to win. Perhaps it wasn't as difficult for me to learn to be a gracious winner after years of losing, but it was still an important skill I needed to develop. I want my son to quickly learn how to be grateful for teammates and coaches. I want my son to sincerely congratulate the other team on a great game or great season, something that was somewhat difficult for me at times after beating teams by scores like 52-11 and 52-5. I want my son to celebrate victories but never at the expense of his opponent. I even want my son to thank the officials after the game, regardless of their performance. And I want him to do these things in sports, school, business, and his social life, wherever it is possibly applicable.

Overcoming challenges

Sports aren't easy, and even aside from losing there are a lot of challenges that come up. From my time growing up in sports, I learned how to overcome just about anything from small hurdles to oversized obstacles. For those of you who played basketball growing up, do you remember how difficult it was to learn to do a layup with your off-hand? Maybe it was just me, but trying to convince my dominantly right-handed self to jump off my right foot and extend the ball with my left hand was nearly impossible. But I learned the kind of discipline and work it takes to master a new skill. Did you know I didn't pass the writing section of Washington's standardized testing in seventh grade? And now here I am writing for fun! (Though I'll let you be the judge of quality.) It didn't come naturally, but with a little work and dedication I have become a somewhat competent writer.

Sometimes the challenges are bigger. As we all know, injuries are a part of sports. I was fortunate enough to avoid serious injuries from youth sports through my high school career. I did have some minor injuries to deal with, but I learned to fight through the pain. Why is this a valuable lesson? Here's why:

Life is pain! From the physical to the emotional, we all experience varying degrees of pain all throughout our life; it's inevitable. The trick that we all need to master is to fight through the pain, and this is something I once again learned through sports. When I'm sick or exhausted or in pain of some kind and don't want to go to work or fulfill some responsibility, I've occasionally said to myself, "This wouldn't have stopped me from playing basketball, I can't let it stop me today." Perhaps it's a bit of a cheesy lesson, but it's been helpful to me and it's the kind of thing I'd like my son to learn. The pains of life can't keep me down!

Teamwork and unselfishness

Few lessons are more important to learn than teamwork. We all know that throughout our lives we work with a variety of teams. From youth sports teammates to collaborators on a work or school project, we all work with a variety of people in a variety of ways and it's important to learn how to succeed with them. In sports, you play with a variety of teammates, some you like and some you don't. But if my son can learn to work alongside even the worst of teammates, he'll be prepared for any classmate or coworker that awaits him in the future.

But do you know what is sometimes harder than working alongside that difficult teammate? Cheering for him from the bench! Of course, nobody in youth sports should be riding the pine, but if my son decides to play for a school team or at any competitive level, there may come a time when he sits on the end of the bench to cheer on his teammates and wait his turn. And there is literally nothing wrong with that! We're not all going to be Mike Trout or LeBron James and always be the best player on our team. Sometimes in sports, and in life, we're relegated to the role of "bench warmer," and we do everything we can to support the team and work hard so we are ready for our turn.

And when our turn does come, it's still all about the team. Did you watch Steph Curry's speech after accepting the NBA MVP award this season? He was unbelievably humble, taking almost no credit and thanking everyone you could possibly think of. He was the league's best player, but he unselfishly thanked the world, including his teammates.

The word of the year in 2013 was "selfie," which I think is very indicative of the world we live in. If you watch the NBA, and even college basketball at times, you will sadly see stretches that are nothing more than a series of isolation plays strung together as one player catches the ball and tries to beat his man to put up his shot. Perhaps it's not all that bad, but the iso play is far more common today than it used to be. Gone are the days of passing up a good shot for a better shot, and soon I fear acknowledging the man who dished you the ball will disappear as well. I want my son to always be grateful for the help of teammates, coaches, parents... Okay, now I'm getting a little selfish.

Success is earned

Just watch this:

Here's my point (finally!): When it comes to raising my son in sports, it's not about winning, scoring the most points, or making it professionally. Not at all. I want to guide him in learning these principles that will, in turn, guide him throughout his life. 

MY DREAMS DON'T MATTER

We're all familiar with this one, and perhaps it's a bit cliche now, but my wife still needs to hear it: I will not try to live my dreams through our child. Sure, I wish I could have been a college athlete. I think that would have been awesome! But if my son doesn't, that's fine too. My life is incredible, and I am perfectly happy in spite of never playing any sport after high school. If my son has the drive and desire to do it, good for him! But if he doesn't, and he has the drive and desire to start a business, be a lawyer, write a book, be a musician, or teach history, good for him! 

Whatever his passion is, I hope he learns something in youth sports that will help. No matter his involvement with sports when he is 25 or 30 or 35 years old and about to have his first child, I hope he is still physically active because of his time playing sports. I hope sports are fun to him. But really I just hope he is happy and healthy.

Some Positive Thoughts as the Rockies Keep Losing

Last night my ever-optimistic nature took a major hit. After the Rockies dropped their tenth straight my frustration boiled over and I momentarily became very pessimistic about the state of the ball club. My wife was immediately concerned about me, assuming I must have had a terrible day or something bigger was wrong with me because I never say anything like that. My day had been fine, and I'm totally okay, but she’s right: I never say that about any team that has won my fanhood. And I’ve cheered for A LOT of losing teams.

So to make up for my moment of negativity, let’s take a look at some of the positive things that we’ve seen during this ten game losing streak. In the words of Troy Tulowitzki, “there are not many,” but we’re going to see what we can find.

Nick Hundley

Nick Hundley is the biggest bright spot in the Colorado lineup right now. Since the start of this losing streak, Hundley is batting .400, improving his season average to .342. Hundley has consistently reached base this year and is stepping up when his team needs him most. Billy Beane would love this guy. He gets on base. 

More importantly to me (because if he’s the only one getting on base that won’t produce a lot of runs) is that there is someone on this team that’s hitting the ball. Hundley is a veteran presence on this ball club - that’s why the Rockies signed him - and his consistency will help in righting the ship.

Drew Stubbs, Sort Of

Drew Stubbs was off to one of the worst starts imaginable, going 0-21 with 13 K. If he had any minor league options remaining on his contract he almost certainly would be in an Isotopes uniform right now. But with Stubbs, Bridich had to take a different approach and things have started to turn around. In his past 14 plate appearances he’s gone 3-11 with 2 homeruns. It had to be nice for him to break out of a monster slump with a monster shot into the bleachers. The strikeout problem still continues as he’s gone down on strikes in 7 of his past 14 trips to the plate (meaning he has struck out in 20 of his 32 at-bats this year. 

Stubbs isn’t back to where the Rockies need him to be, or certainly where he wants to be himself, but if we’re looking for silver linings where there aren’t many to be found, Drew Stubbs has three hits and two homers during this skid.

Kyle Kendrick’s Latest Start

I’m not an expert when it comes to analyzing pitchers, and I’m not particularly great with pitch recognition, but I can tell you that Kyle Kendrick looked significantly better in his start against the Angels last night. It was beyond holding the Angels to just two earned runs, and it was beyond the fact that he was able to go 7.0 strong innings. He looked sharp. Was it the extra rest that came from multiple rainouts? Did he make some adjustments? Here’s what Ryan Spilborghs had to say:

Rest had nothing to do with it. From what I saw he eliminated his cutter. He was sinker change up all night. https://t.co/5517T32Vfg

— Ryan Spilborghs (@spillygoat19) May 13, 2015

There you have it. It looks like Kendrick simplified his approach, removed a pitch that wasn’t working for him, and had a quality outing. Unfortunately he still only ended up with a no decision, but it was a promising day from Kendrick.

New Britain Rock Cats

So while there are only a handful of positive things happening with the big league club, let’s take a second and recognize the Rockies’ AA affiliate. The New Britain Rock Cats are currently 25-7, leading their division by 6.5 games, and riding a 12 game WINNING streak. Keep it rollin’ boys, and go Rock Cats!

And of course, GO ROCKIES!

The Clutch-ness of Tyler Haws

I recently read an article that compared Tyler Haws to a Hall of Fame middle reliever in baseball. That comparison, perhaps an apt description of his senior campaign, didn't sit well with me. The author gives statistics from Haws' senior season and points out that his shooting percentages are well below his season averages. While accurate for this year, it seemed to me that he has been excellent in previous seasons late in games when things are tight. I decided to take a look at everything he did in previous years in the final two minutes of games.

So here we go, year by year: The Clutch-ness of Tyler Haws.

Freshman

Tyler Haws' freshman campaign was also the junior year of one Jimmer Fredette, so as you might expect Tyler didn't get as many touches in the closing minutes of games as Jimmer did, especially the tight ones. In the 25 games that ESPN had available with play-by-play data Tyler put up just 7 shots, but he made them count:

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I began working on this last week, spending several hours compiling spreadsheets filled with statistics from the final two minutes of games throughout Tyler's career at BYU. I was preparing an argument that he was indeed clutch during his first three years in Provo, and that there may be some lurking variables surrounding his senior struggles late in tight games. Then Saturday at Santa Clara he made research and argument irrelevant, and I am perfectly content to end this here:




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But if you're still interested, here's the statistics from the final two minutes/overtime of (almost) every game from Tyler Haws' career. I was able to get the stats from all games decided by single digits, and most other games.

The Colorado Rockies All-Time Starting Nine

As I’m sure is the case with most of you, the offseason is hard for me. Especially in the weeks leading up to Spring Training when the dust has settled from Winter Meetings and little tends to happen in the free agent market -- particularly in Colorado. Well pitchers and catchers have finally reported, but I’ve spent the past two weeks reflecting on the past. It all started with a box of cards.

Perhaps to clean out his basement or perhaps to pass the time before the season starts (I do know he bought a few just to give to me, so thanks Dad!), my dad recently sent me a box full of baseball cards. He does this from time-to-time and I always enjoy going through a new batch of cards and finding some hidden gems. My wife's reaction is always the same: "Why?" 

Because it's awesome. But I’m probably preaching to the choir here.

As with many children I'm sure, I was frequently told it was time to go clean my room. My poor mother, though. She faced the impossible task of convincing me that reorganizing my baseball cards did not actually qualify as cleaning. In my defense, I did occasionally reorganize my bookshelf too! But that also involved my precious baseball cards as I tried to find the perfect place to shelve the binders that housed them.

I loved following the players' statistics. As a kid I would lay out the cards on the floor and piece together the team I would field if I was manager of the Rockies. In fact, some of my Rockies cards have a number written on them, one through nine, to signify the spot in the batting order I would place them if they were my team. Don't worry though (because I’m sure you care about my card collection), it wasn't the nice cards I did that to!

With this recent batch of cards -- which included a few packs from the Rockies -- I got to thinking: “If I were to assemble an All-Rockies lineup from the franchise’s history, what would that lineup look like?”

So here it is. In my opinion, the greatest all-time Colorado Rockies that could create a starting nine. (I didn’t look at relievers because finding a worthy starting pitcher is hard enough, so I didn’t want to touch the bullpen.) We’re going to keep this light, with highlight videos, some of my favorite memories of these players, and very few statistics. Enjoy, and then leave your thoughts on who belongs among the all-time greatest Colorado Rockies.

Pitcher: Ubaldo Jimenez

So Jimenez was probably the best starter in Colorado history, or at least had the best season, but I’m still mad at him for beaning Tulo in Spring Training a couple years back, so let’s not talk about him today.

Honorable Mention: Mike Hampton

Why? Because he hit TEN home runs in two season with the Rockies. TEN. With seven coming in 2001. HE’S A PITCHER! And it was fun to watch.

Catcher: Yorvit Torrealba

If there’s one position for the Rockies that has been as problematic as the pitching, it’s the catching. Yorvit Torrealba gets the nod for primarily one reason: 2007. He provided some leadership and timely hitting on that remarkable run to the World Series, most memorably this 3-run jack that would prove the game winner in Game 3 of the NLCS against the Diamondbacks:

Honorable Mention: Joe Girardi

He was a leader in those early years, but wasn’t anything beyond an “okay” hitter.

First Base: Todd Helton

Was there any question? Five time All Star, four time Silver Slugger, three time Gold Glover and face of the Colorado Rockies for well over a decade Todd Helton may well be the best player in franchise history.

But where do I even begin with Todd Helton highlights? Helton was sitting at 2,499 career hits when I took my wife to her first ever Rockies game. The eight hour drive is always worth it when we can make it happen, but it was going to be extra special to be there for hit number 2,500, right? Nope. He went 0-4 with 3 Ks and flew out to the warning track. I’m glad my wife got to see Helton play before he retired, but hit 2,500 will not be one of my personal favorite Todd Helton memories, though it was certainly a special moment. I had a difficult time narrowing the list, so I chose two: one that’s fun and one that’s highlight reel worthy. 

The first one is just classic, clever Toddfather. I laugh every time:

This next highlight will give you chills.

September 18, 2007. Sitting 6.5 games out of first and 4.5 games out of the Wild Card race (fourth place in both), Colorado’s playoff chances were bleak as just 12 games remained. Two nights prior they blasted the Marlins 13-0 and they had begun the day with a 3-1 win against the Dodgers. The second game of the double header with Los Angeles was a higher scoring affair with Colorado trailing 8-7 heading into the bottom of the ninth. One on, two out, Todd Helton down 1-2 in the count. Then suddenly, this:

Over seven years later and I can still feel the emotion. We didn’t know where it would lead just yet, but we could feel something magic in the air. It was the third game in a streak that would see Colorado win 21 of 22 en route to a National League Championship and the franchise’s first World Series appearance. It was still a long shot, but after that walk off blast there was hope, and the Rockies went on a tear to complete the most memorable season in team history.

Honorable Mention: Andres Galarraga

The Big Cat deserves an honorable mention and video here as well. You just can’t ignore the guy who won the NL batting title in Colorado’s inaugural year. So here’s a monster grand slam. It even comes with a bat flip:

Second Base: Eric Young Sr.

While second has been a struggle at times for the Rockies, EY started the Rockies off right (and not just because he hit a solo dinger in the Rockies’ first ever plate appearance). In 1995 he hit .317, only to follow it up with a .324 average the following year, leading him to his first and only All Star appearance and Silver Slugger award.

But speaking of that leadoff at bat in 1993, let’s watch it:

Honorable Mention: DJ LeMahieu

He’s still young, and with time he may eclipse EY, but in the mean time I’ll give Colorado’s first Gold Glove second baseman a nice honorable mention.

Third Base: Vinny Castilla

Aside from the struggles of finding a pitcher and catcher good enough for this list, third base was the toughest decision to make. I give the two-time All Star, three-time Silver Slugger the ever-so-slight edge over Nolan Arenado, but give it one more solid season and this spot will go to Nolan. Castilla was a tremendous hitter, and while he wasn’t nearly the defender that Arenado is, he was adequate.

Now there aren’t a whole lot of Vinny Castilla videos readily available, but MLB.com documents his pinch hit single in the final game and final at bat of his career, so feel free to go and watch that special moment.

Honorable Mention: Nolan Arenado

Like I said, give him one more season anywhere close to the quality of his first two and I’ll place him ahead of Castilla. Arenado is a Web Gem waiting to happen and there are some brilliant highlights, but what I love most about Nolan is that he makes plays like this look totally routine:

Shortstop: Troy Tulowitzki

In similar no-brainer fashion to Todd Helton, Tulo is the clear choice at shortstop. While he’s no Cal Ripken in the durability department, the injury concerns are overblown and he is the best shortstop in baseball and one of the best players in the game at any position. Already a five-time All Star, two-time Gold Glover, and two-time Silver Slugger, Tulowitzki is as well-rounded and complete a player as you will ever find. Here’s to a healthy 2015!

As for highlights, there are way too many. So I just picked two: one defense, one offense.

Watch Tulo field back-to-back grounders up the middle and make other-worldly plays for a pair of outs:

And here’s a Tulo home run, but in this one the real highlight is the guy who catches it while holding a baby:

Honorable Mention: Walt Weiss

You know what I remember about Walt Weiss? I remember that he had a knack for turning over the order from the eighth spot in the lineup. I also remember that my mom stood behind him in line at the grocery store once.

Outfield: Matt Holliday, Dante Bichette, Larry Walker

Matt Holliday

Did you know that in five years in Colorado Holliday hit under .300 just once: his 2004 rookie campaign where he hit .290. That’s not bad. 

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m going back to 2007 again. But the most memorable play in Matt Holliday’s time in Colorado had to be against San Diego in the bottom of the 13th inning of the one game playoff for the NL Wild Card spot.

(Technology has bested me on this one, so you'll have to watch it here.)

The announcer may not agree with me, but I have to back the umpire here: Matt Holliday was safe!

Dante Bichette

Every time Bichette stepped up to the plate there was a chance for something special. Like Holliday he spent every season in Colorado above .300 except one and never hit fewer than 21 homers in a season, including 1995 when he led the National League with 40. He epitomized the Blake Street Bombers, especially in the Rockies first game at Coors Field.

Bottom of the 14th and Bichette was thinking walkoff or bust:

You don’t get to see it in that video, but he took a couple hacks in the preceding pitches and he wasn’t swinging for a single. When he connected it was simply beautiful!

Larry Walker

Well, DUH. One of the better arms I’ve ever seen in the game, and a tremendous bat on top of it, Larry Walker is second to only Todd Helton on this entire list, at least in my opinion. I’m such a big Walker fan I’m going to write less words and share more videos!

I’m resisting the urge to share the video of Walker tossing the ball into the stands thinking he’s made out number three as he was with Montreal at the time, but here he is robbing Mark McGwire of an RBI sac-fly:

And here he is swinging the lumber and going deep three times against his former team:

Aside from the All Star Game I attended at Coors Field in 1998, this is my favorite memory of the Midsummer Classic:

Oh, Larry. Always entertaining!

Honorable Mention: Carlos Gonzalez, Ellis Burks

Burks had some incredible seasons during his time in Colorado, and Gonzalez is one of the most talented guys in the game and a tough omission, but with Walker, Holliday, and Bichette to compete with that will be a tough list to crack for anyone going forward.

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So there you have it: my starting nine comprised of the all-time greatest to don a Rockies uniform. Agree? Disagree? Ideas on the best relievers? What do you think?

Anson Winder, Role Model

In the summer of 2013 I had a student job working as a Sports Camps Planner for the BYU Athletic Department. Along with the preparation of each camp I was assigned, the job also entailed the small details during the week of camp like delivering Popsicles so campers could take a quick break and cool down for a minute. It was on my way to one of these Popsicle breaks that I first interacted with Anson Winder.

I was trying to carry a not-so-small cooler from my company van, up the stairs, through two sets of doors, down the long hall, and into the gym to give to bunch of Popsicle-crazed 6-12 year old boys and girls. It was at the end of a long day, at the end of a long summer, and I was physically and emotionally drained from all the work I'd put into camps. So as I struggled to carry my cooler up the stairs, I was disappointed it appeared I had just mistimed my approach to the first set of doors by a matter of seconds. The BYU men's basketball team was streaming out in front of me and they were going to be gone, with nobody left to hold a door open for me when I arrived.

But I was shocked when Anson Winder, last out the door, saw me, and turned back  to hold the door open for me. I was grateful - not to mention impressed - that a star athlete would take the time and go back to hold the door for someone he had never met. But it didn't stop there! As I walked through and prepared to set down my cooler so I could grab the second set of doors myself he said, "Oh, hold on!" and proceeded to head back inside the few extra steps and take the few extra seconds to get yet another door for me, a total stranger. His teammates were long gone, but he even asked if I needed a hand with anything the rest of the way. Already stunned at how far out of his way he'd gone to help, I declined any further assistance, but thanked him for his kindness in getting those doors for me.

Those of you who know me are fully aware that prior to my time working game day promotions and social media for BYU Athletics know that I was simply world's biggest BYU basketball fan. This moment where I experienced the kindness of a BYU hoopster naturally left me in starstruck awe, but more than anything I was sincerely impressed with the unselfishness of Anson Winder.

As it turned out Anson is good friends with one of my old coworkers at BYU Sports Camps, so during the school year he came up to the office to hang out a few times, and I got to know him a little bit. Let me tell you, that first impression I had when I was carrying hundreds of Popsicles is a perfect illustration of who he is: Anson is one of the nicest people you will ever meet.

I met Anson shortly before his junior season. He was coming off a sophomore campaign that saw him limited to about eight minutes per game due to an ankle injury. As a result, his shooting was well below average and his defensive quickness wasn't on display like it had been his freshman season. But he didn't let it drag him down. I once asked him what his career plans were, you know, after his NBA playing days ended. I don't remember his answer (I'll bet he'd remember what I said, because he's a good person), but I do remember he laughed, almost acknowledging that the NBA was a long-shot at that point.

He improved tremendously his junior year, shooting 53.9 percent from the floor and 40.3 percent from deep, but his minutes were still limited, as were his shots. I don't claim to be in Anson's inner circle, or close enough to know what he was thinking during that time, but I know how hard it is to sit on the bench when you've developed like that. And yet, I never saw or heard a single report of Anson being unhappy. With many players you get a sense they're upset or even that they may transfer because they feel like they've earned more playing time than they're getting. But if Anson ever complained, it certainly wasn't public, and he's being rewarded here in his senior year.

Anson now plays over 26 minutes a game and currently averages 14.6 points per contest. He's cracked the starting lineup, and he deserves it. Aside from being a great person off the court, he's proving to be a great defensive player and arguably the team's best finisher at the rim. Tyler Haws is obviously the team's best scorer, Kyle Collinsworth is a triple-double machine, and there are deep threats in abundance on this team, but you could make the argument that Anson Winder is the teams most valuable player. Not in the traditional sense perhaps, but if you take the words at face value, he'd have my vote. He does everything he's asked to do, from sixth man to starter, from point guard to the 4 spot in a four guard lineup, and he consistently provides a spark on both ends of the floor just when the team needs it. Will he get a shot at the NBA? I don't know, but it's awesome to see him experiencing success.

When I was still at BYU I would occasionally run into him on campus. Without fail he would call me by name. Every time. I don't call anyone by name, ever! But I need to. We all need to.

In a world where athletes are often put on a pedestal - and I've been guilty of putting them there - so many are arrogant and act entitled, as if the world owes them something simply because they're good at sports. But Anson Winder isn't one of them.

Anson Winder is a role model.

God and Sports: Jeremy Guthrie

This post introduces a series of posts (we'll see how many I actually write) that relate two of the most important aspects of my life: God and sports. I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Mormon, but these posts should be applicable to those from other faiths. Some will contain my own ideas, but this one comes from my notes and thoughts surrounding a message delivered by Jeremy Guthrie, a pitcher for the Kansas City Royals, and his wife, Jenny.

Any inaccuracies in the stories below are the fault of my poor note taking ability and weak memory. But the messages and lessons remain the same regardless.

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If you were offered a million dollars to play professional baseball for the team of your childhood, but you would have to give up a spiritual goal and opportunity to serve people in a foreign country that you had never met for two years, what would you do? Perhaps that would be an easier decision if you clearly understood who you are and what your purpose is.

Jenny Guthrie, wife of Kansas City Royals pitcher, Jeremy Guthrie, related a story about her husband when he was a minor league ball player in the Cleveland Indians farm system. Jeremy was at winter meetings with other prospects and one of the motivational speakers went around the room asking each prospect the question, "Who are you?"

"Brandon Phillips," came one response. The speaker challenge him, "I didn't ask what your name is." "I'm on a quest to the Major Leagues," another athlete declared. "I didn't ask where you are going." Jeremy Guthrie gave the simple and sincere answer, "I am a child of God." No sarcastic remark came in response. 

For one thing, it is very difficult for someone to challenge a testimony. When Guthrie stated the simple truth of his divine heritage, I have no doubt that the Spirit of God was in that room. It must have touched the heart of all those present to hear the conviction of one who knows exactly who he is. And knowing that Jeremy Guthrie is the kind of man who can share his spiritual knowledge in front of all his peers, and without fear of consequence, helped me to understand the experiences that he related next.

A few years prior to those Cleveland Indians winter meetings Guthrie could have been drafted as high as the third round, but he made it clear that he intended to serve a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As a result he slipped to be the 15th round choice of the New York Mets, who happened to be the team he grew up rooting for. Talk about a dream come true! Most boys grow up closing their eyes, envisioning themselves in uniform for their favorite team one day. But very, very few ever come close to making that a reality.

Yet somehow Jeremy Guthrie was still suggesting to Mets executives that he would turn down the chance to play for his favorite team in order to stop playing baseball for two full years. He said that he still has no idea if it was a rhetorical question or a legitimate offer when he was asked "If we gave you one million dollars, would you still turn down the opportunity to play for the Mets and go on a church mission?"

He didn't hesitate. He chose to risk his entire future in baseball to serve a mission in Spain. He didn't pick up a baseball for two consecutive years, something most would view as a career-killing move, and he did it willingly.

Why? Guthrie's top priority isn't the game he loves, but rather the God he loves. When our primary focus is Heavenly Father, everything else falls into place. While his message was delivered specifically to LDS youth, the lesson is applicable to all of us. Speaking to those youth he said, "The Lord will not take away what he has planned for you if you choose to serve a mission. That is my promise to you."

To apply that to all of us I would like to make a minor change to that quote: "The Lord will not take away what he has planned for you if you choose to serve Him. That is my promise to you."

You are a child of God. Place God first and life will work out exactly how He intends it. That is a message and a promise from a man who seems uniquely qualified to give it. A man who walked away from baseball to serve his Father. A man who is about to take the mound in Game 3 of the World Series for his Kansas City Royals.

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UPDATE: Guthrie went 5.0 innings, giving up 4 hits and 2 runs while earning the win in his first ever World Series appearance, giving Kansas City a 2-1 series lead. In the deciding Game 7, Guthrie outlasted Giants starter Tim Hudson by going 3.1 innings, but was handed the loss after giving up 4 hits and 3 runs. Still a remarkable postseason for Jeremy Guthrie and the Royals!

My Brief and Unsuccessful Journey in Baseball

This is the story of my time in the game of baseball. Short and unsuccessful? Maybe. Okay, definitely. But the memories still fuel the passion I have for America's Pastime.

I've told you this before, but my first word was "ball," so I was clearly destined to be a sports fanatic. It's my parents' fault, really. Not only did they constantly ask me "Do you want your ball?" before I could speak, but they both love sports themselves. If you ever think my mom doesn't get fired up from the competition, try watching Olympic volleyball with her sometime. That's an experience! And my dad and I, as is becoming eerily apparent, are incredibly similar and love all sports, but it might be baseball that shares our passion most.

I know, based on a couple previous posts you probably believe that basketball is my favorite sport, and that is probably the case. But you'll also recall that I have said that when I was younger my favorite sport fluctuated with the season. To be honest, it still does, and it's currently baseball season so let's talk about my journey with America's pastime. 

To be completely honest I'm not sure where it all started for me. I can remember playing catch with both of my parents growing up. Obviously my dad taught me a lot about the game, but my mom was a softball star in her day so she taught me a fair amount too. They also encouraged my passion for the game by giving me books about the history of baseball and an autobiography by Cal Ripken Jr. as well as some fictional novels, many that were historically based, that I always found interesting.

There were also some habits I had when I was younger, such as biting my nails and watching an imaginary ball fly around the room during church, that my parents wanted me to break. Apparently I looked a little strange looking all around the room at nothing while chomping on my nails. To help conquer this I was told that if I could go x number of days without doing those things they would take me to the store and buy me a pennant or a pack of baseball cards. That was a highly successful form of bribery! My room was decorated all over with pennants, and most of them were baseball teams. Even today, much to my wife's chagrin, the "I Was There" Rockies pennant hangs in our bedroom.

My poor wife. Our bedroom has a pennant, a Rockies flag, several signed baseballs and a few autographed cards. It doesn't get much better in the living room where a small canvas with logos of all 30 MLB teams hangs next to a display of a Rockies hat, a foul ball, and a bat signed by a minor leaguer. My dad recently sent me the complete 2013 and 2014 baseball card sets, and my wife's reaction was "Why?" 

Because it's awesome.

I guess if she knew me in my childhood it might make a bit more sense. As with many children I'm sure, I was frequently told it was time to go clean my room. My poor mother, though. She faced the impossible task of convincing me that reorganizing my baseball cards did not actually qualify as cleaning. In my defense, I did occasionally reorganize my bookshelf too! But that also involved my precious baseball cards as I tried to find the perfect place to shelve the binders that housed them.

I loved following the players' statistics. As a kid I would lay out the cards on the floor and piece together the team I would field if I was manager of the Rockies. In fact, some of my Rockies cards have a number written on them, one through nine, to signify the spot in the batting order I would place them if they were my team. Don't worry though, it wasn't the nice cards I did that to!

Much of my childhood was defined by my ridiculous ability to absorb sports stats and information, but I also did a good amount of playing. As with many kids, my baseball "career" began with t-ball. I have very little recollection of t-ball, with the exception of a few images in my mind of practices and maybe a game or two. But I can't really remember running the bases, throwing anyone out, or even taking any swings. But I do remember that it happened!

Somewhere in this time period my uncle Roger said I should try and be a switch hitter. So I did. My parents had already bought a tee for me to practice on, so I started taking cuts from both sides and discovered I had the ability to pull it off. I actually didn't realize how early I became a switch hitter until I came across a picture of me batting left handed in softball as a six or seven year old. 

Yep, you read that right. I was playing softball. We were living in Colorado at the time and the baseball leagues had their games on Sundays, so in an effort to keep the Sabbath day holy my parents signed me up for softball (slow pitch) instead. Again, I don't remember a whole lot from my softball days, but I do remember it started with coach pitch and eventually the players were pitching. My dad pitches a lot in his slow pitch softball leagues, so he taught me how to do it so I could pitch in my games. He even taught me how to put backspin on the ball like he did. I have no idea how successful I really was, but I remember feeling pretty proud of my pitching ability. And that's really all I remember about softball. 

Apparently I was such a good pitcher my teammates felt no
need to stand in ready position behind me.

I remember a lot of other baseball related activities while living in Colorado, though. First of all, we moved there in 1993, the same year the Rockies were born. Perfect timing! While I was born in Maryland and began my life as an Orioles fan, it didn't take long for the Rockies to become my team. My dad had season tickets with a group at work which meant we got to go to plenty of games each season. I can still name the starting position players from some of those early Blake Street Bomber teams--Girardi, Galarraga, Young, Weiss, Castilla, Bichette, Burks, Walker. Sure there were other guys in there depending on the season, but those eight were my team.

Another of my favorite memories was the 1999 All-Star Game at Coors Field. Because the season tickets my dad had a share in were in his name, he claimed the tickets to the Midsummer Classic. We went to the All-Star Fan Fest and participated in a lot of the festivities.  That game and the surrounding festivities are some of my of my favorite memories at the ballpark from my childhood. 

I remember during the game I saw, and took a picture of, an outfielder from the Arizona Diamondbacks. I was pretty excited to see him because I had started cheering for the Diamondbacks when they came into the league. They didn't supersede my Rockies, but I cheered for a lot of different teams just because I liked baseball and I guess I just enjoyed having a dog in every fight. I actually remember being on the playground one day and complimenting a kid on his Diamondbacks hat and getting a funny look in return. I guess he was surprised to hear that in Colorado, but I just loved the game and loved sharing in the joy of baseball with anyone I could. 

At one of my early birthdays I was given a set of bases from a friend and we put them to great use in the neighborhood. I remember one night where I organized a big whiffle ball game with pretty much the  entire cul-de-sac. We shut down the whole street and played a great game. Of course it was a hot summer evening and I was forced to call it quits early due to heat exhaustion, but it was a blast! I loved that baseball could bring so many people together and I hope there are others who remember that night like I do. 

Just after my tenth birthday my family moved from Colorado to Washington. Especially from a baseball perspective this was an exciting move! I would now get an opportunity to play Little League baseball. I was excited for the Little League Combine (or whatever it was called, but that's basically what it was). I'm sure I did horribly as I had never played actual baseball, but I was drafted by the Cardinals, probably as Mr. Irrelevant, but who cares! It was time to play ball!

I was actually pretty excited about playing for the Cardinals. My mom had given me an old Cardinals shirt from her playing days, and I already owned a Cardinals hat. Also, I was an Ozzie Smith fan: who isn't? I liked to believe that he was my uncle. Still do, actually. 

Unfortunately my ability did not match my enthusiasm. Nor did it match my uncle Ozzie's dazzling play -- though I did get to wear his number 1. Don't ask me how I remember this, but I went 1-for-16 at the plate in my first year of baseball. I was pretty patient though, I've always had a decent eye, so I drew some walks and reached on some errors occasionally, and even laid down some good bunts, but boy that's a pretty bad batting average. One thing I've always regretted about my Little League experience is that I didn't switch hit at all. I don't know if it was because my coaches wanted me to focus on one side of the plate or if I lacked the confidence to try, but I hit (or at least swung the bat) exclusively right-handed. 

I was also tucked away into right field for most of my rookie season, eventually getting good enough to move to left and even center once or twice, but certainly never in the infield. I was most definitely not ready for that. But regardless of my struggles in the field and at the plate my team saw a fair amount of success. We didn't make the big tournament, but we played in one of the lower ones and actually won the championship. In spite of my inexperience and poor play we experienced something special as a team. 

I practiced a lot in the offseason, determined to be a decent ball player by the time my second year of baseball rolled around. I spent hours in my back yard hitting off a tee and throwing against a three-way trainer my parents got me to practice throwing, fielding grounders, and catching fly balls. And the next season I was ready to move into the infield. 

That year I spent most of my time at third, with some time at second as well, including all of that year's tournament. I also played one inning at first but I did not enjoy that. At one point in the season I wanted to pitch so coach let me try in practice. It did not go well. So I stayed as a second and third baseman and was quite happy with the defensive improvement I had made. 

But the biggest leap of development was with my bat. I had made such strides that I began the season batting second in the lineup. I struggled early on - maybe it was the pressure of batting so early in a game or maybe I was just slumping - so I was dropped to the seven spot where I began to thrive. I finished the season batting .500 (8-16) and even developed a little power. The best game of my life, and the only time I ever earned a game ball, I ripped an RBI double into deep right-center and then scored on two throwing errors. It was the best hit of my Little League career, but it wasn't even the highlight of the game. That came in the bottom of the 6th (the final inning in Little League) in a tie game and with a runner on third. I scorched a ball toward short where it bounced harmlessly off his outstretched glove giving me a walkoff RBI single. I was pumped, and felt a huge sense of pride and a feeling that I had arrived when Coach Tom (the other coach was named Jerry. Tom and Jerry. No joke.) came up to me and handed me the game ball with a smile and a "Nice game." 

That season we fell one game short of the league title but still advanced to the top regional tournament where we were eliminated quickly. It was a fantastic season for the team, but especially for me! I had such a good year that a few months later I remember a kid being shocked when he found out I hadn't made the Selah All-Star team. I probably didn't quite deserve that honor, but I felt good that people noticed I had been successful. 

That season was just before my seventh grade year, and as you have read in this blog before that is when my life went a little bit crazy. I was running with the wrong friends, and being a stupid kid. I lacked a lot of self-confidence; I was picked on for being a bit of a geek and teased relentlessly for being Mormon. I went where I was accepted. It just so happened that was a small group of friends that were gamers a bit geeky. I don't want to be critical of them. I'm sure they turned out to be great guys, but at the time they certainly did not encourage me to be even remotely who I was at the core. From the end of my seventh grade basketball season to the spring of my freshman year of high school I didn't play a single organized sport, including baseball. 

It still hurts that I would betray myself like that. Sure I was bullied, and sure I was desperate for friends, but sports were my life to that point and the year before I had a stellar baseball season. But I don't even recall considering playing baseball for my school in seventh grade. 

By the time I finally pulled myself together I was a freshman in high school. Spring rolled around and I decided it was time to get out there and start playing sports and being myself again, and I went straight to baseball. 

It didn't go well. Not only did I show up in sweat pants since I no longer had baseball pants that fit and cleats a size too small for the same reason, in the past two years everyone had surpassed me physically. I was still scrawny and I hadn't hit the same growth spurt everyone else had and stood at just 5'4" -- maybe. Throughout my life I had been able to compensate my lack of strength with good mechanics and had always had a terrific arm for my age. Now everyone had good mechanics and strength and I just didn't compare. Combine that with the fact that I had lost a lot in the previous two years of not playing and I stood no chance of making what was widely considered the top baseball program in the state of Washington at the time. Not even being a switch hitter could save me from being cut. 

The good news is that I still played tennis that spring and the sports-loving me was back. But the bad news is that I look at that two year period of rebellion and wonder what could have been. I doubt I would have ever been anything special, but my over-active imagination has to think about it. Granted, my baseball playing career likely would have come to a close just a little over a year later anyway when my family moved across the pond to England for the second time.

The school I went to was an American school but it was small and didn't have as many sports as most schools in the states. My junior year I ran track and my senior year I played basketball, soccer, and a little tennis, though that wasn't officially sanctioned by the school. I did play softball on my dad's base intramural team, and softball is about as close to baseball as I have been since Little League. 

That year playing softball I had a perfect on base percentage until the very last game when I was thrown out for the very first time. As I hadn't played in a few years I could no longer hit real well, especially since all my muscle memory was now with my tennis ground strokes. Hard to hit a softball a long way with your shoulders over the ball and putting topspin on it. So I took the Ichiro approach and bat lefty all season and slapped at the ball while I started my running motion. I usually placed the ball towards third and beat the throw, except for the one at bat in the last game of the year. One game during the season, after I had hit about three singles already from the left side, the opposing catcher told me to bat righty so they had a chance. So I did -- and I ripped a single up the middle. Switch hitter remember?

Now I'm relegated to intramural and city league softball. I've become a decent defensive player but I'm still not a great hitter, although I watch a video breaking down Ken Griffey, Jr's swing pretty frequently and that seems to help. I still take a lot of walks to get on base since I know my hitting isn't anything special. My wife's favorite thing is for me to hit lefty once or twice and have the opposing team catch on and shift as I come to the plate, only for me to switch on them and hit right. She enjoys the confusion on their faces. She's also pretty good at picking the best side of the plate for me to hit from and where to place the ball. I've got a great hitting coach! 

So with my "serious" playing days behind me -- and they've been behind me for years -- I look forward to coaching my kids' Little League teams, playing in the backyard, and watching them grow up in America's pastime. It's disappointing to me to watch this game that has meant so much to me fall out of favor with so many Americans. Steroids, commercials extending games well beyond three hours, a slower pace compared to basketball and football, etc. So many reasons have led to baseball's decline, but the game has meant so much to me, and it has meant so much to many others as well. So regardless of what happens to the game going forward, I look forward to making it a part of my family -- because my wife is bound to start loving baseball eventually -- forever.