My last blog entry talked about the baseball playoffs and how I'm nervous, but hopeful that my Yankees will prevail and win the World Series for the 28th time. But, I had to take a break and congratulate Rick Ankiel and the Braves for their thrilling, 11-inning victory Friday night. If you love baseball, and love sports for that matter, you can't be anything but happy for Ankiel after the career he's had. The cliff notes version: 21-year-old phenom pitcher 10 years ago who completely imploded on the mound in a game. One of the most painful things I've ever seen in sports; he was throwing balls over people's heads and in the dirt. Just brutal. The Cardinals (his team at the time) worked with him for years and tried to get him right, but it didn't come together. He suffered some injuries and tried again to make it as a pitcher, but he eventually switched to the outfield. An unheard of kind of move, but he's simply an amazing athlete in order to pull it off. Fast forward to last night, and he hits a game-winning home run in extra innings in a must-win playoff game. Homered into McCovey Cove. Unbelievable.
wsoxfan:
Sports can be the source for some inspiring stories. Josh Hamilton is another story of redemption that is worth noting.