Ever since the age of five, I have been playing baseball in some form or
another. I have never been a great athlete, but I have always tried
my best. What drove me to continue, was the fact that Baseball is
America's pastime. For well over a century, people of all ages and
sizes have played the game, in stadiums and sand lots, parks and city streets,
and have kept the tradition alive. Lots of us have fond memories
of breaking in our first glove, our first attempts at sliding into homeplate,
the smell of fresh cut grass, and our first visit to a Major League Ballpark.
Even though I run a little slower, and my belly is a little bigger, I still
play with the same awe and respect for the game as I did when I first caught
the "fever".
As you can see, my favorite Baseball team is the San Diego Padres.
Even though I live in the backyard of the San Francisco Giants and Oakland
A's, I have admired the Padres since I was six years old when I saw them
play the Giants in San Francisco in 1980. I have stuck with my team
through good and bad times, as any true fan would.
Tony Gwynn, in my opinion, is one of the greatest players of all time.
He is a specialist at hitting the ball, it is a science. Home run
hitters come a dime a dozen, and get their names plastered all over, but
he just does his job, day in and day out. I don't collect baseball
cards, but I have every single one of his which I can get my hands on.
I can not wait until the day that he is elected into the Hall of Fame,
because I will be there.
