Personal Narrative: What Made Baseball Made Me Who I Am Today

I grew up in a family of baseball players. My grandpa was the first to really get into then it passed on from my dad to me. Growing up I was always practicing or playing baseball. My father and grandfather taught me the basics and it was almost a new way of socialization. Having to learn baseball was like learning a new language. Playing baseball when I was young started as just fun. Starting at the age of 5 I never did much playing. I more so stood in the field and kicked dirt around.

As soon as I made my very first varsity baseball appearance, I knew that I had to be the very best I could be or there was never going to be a chance of ever putting on that white and maroon crisp cleaned dri-fit Russel number 18 jersey. My heart was beating beyond faster than it should be at my first at bat because I had always heard “Just wait you haven't seen nothing yet, wait till you face them varsity pitchers.” Players older than me had constantly been saying that throughout my freshman season and it kept repeating over and over in my head like a broken record. Although I had studied the pitcher and had seen with my very own eyes, he wasn’t as good as everyone talked him up to be. I was still overawed and very nervous about messing up.

I step up to the plate. The hot lights of the Mets stadium hit my face. Clayton Kershaw was pitching. He is the best pitcher in the MLB. The pitch comes. It was a slow hanging curveball right over the middle. I swing will all my might. I hear the crack of the bat and I see the ball fly over the fence. I trot around the bases and I am approaching home plate. I step on home then I wake up.

The first World Series was extremely important in history. The series changed the game forever. The series hosted the best team in the American league and the best team in the National league. It hosted the Boston Americans and the Pittsburgh Pirates. The world series was a best of nine and it took place at Huntington Avenue baseball grounds in Boston.

Baseball became a famous game in the late 1800’s, and continued to grow. The first World Series was played in 1903, and the annual contest between the two top teams quickly became one of the most anticipated events in America. More and more people kept attending each year. In 1919 the World Series was expected to be profitable, and it did reach a large attendance. It was such a big event, and many other major devious events were involved.

One summer day, me and my sister penelope received a call from my aunt. The call was to ask if we would go to a baseball game. Well of course we agreed, why would we not go to what would be our first game. The date was set, it was a day before Independence day. I was very excited I counted down on my cute marble print planner with a big blue sticker phrased “ seize today”. Finally I’m going to do something for the summer!

I was on the little pee wee team called the Panthers. I was only 10 years old when I first started playing for the team. At first when joining the team I was doubtful on whether or not I would be good enough to play. That moment when Coach Smith called my name I knew it was time. During that first game we were playing against the Cubs. I was wearing number 95. Then all of a sudden I found myself at the line of defense; shaking full of nerves. This was my first time on the field with a team; a team that had my back and knew that I had theirs. My family came out to my game to support me. At first that was all I could focus on was them shouting my name. I had to focus, I hit my helmet to get myself in the zone; I had seen the professional football players do that on TV so I took a chance and tried it out. I was bent over, mouth guard in, and saliva dripping out, I even growled to

advent of the Home run era, games that averaged 1-2 runs an inning were common.

it's a hot Texas Sun beat down upon my neck a fast ball whizzed past my bat and into the catcher's glove after you had another strikeout. I trudged back to the dugout thoughts of failure filled my mind of my confidence slowly vanishing. I wasn't accustomed to anything less than success before high school. I prospered in youth athletics while living in South Dakota. I had a phenomenal baseball coach to transform my robbed potential into success on the baseball diamond. Unfortunately, my father's Air Force career demanded that we move before my baseball season. Without me my team went on to win the city state championships advancing all the way to the Little League World. When I was younger my family moved to not affect my athletic performance the difficulties began I was torn from my tight-knit community in Northern Virginia and forced to adjust to life in West Texas prior to the start of my freshman year. I struggled to regain the close friends and relationships I left behind for the first time in my life.

I threw the first pitch and 5 minutes later “Strike 3,” the ump said! I was 0-2 with an RBI and I pitched 4 inning shutout. The next day we played at 10:00 and 2:00. I woke up and got ready. We were late to leave.

Baseball has been so much more than just a passion and sport for me. It has taught me life lessons and given me the determination to succeed in whatever I do in

A place can be any position or point with space around. A corner, a site on the internet, McDonalds, or even if you’re lost in the woods you're still in a place because of the space that’s around. A place such as The Mexican Restaurant, where my parents go on special occasions or when I talked to a friend at The Baseball field about certain point of every aspect of the game we play, or even when My family was so traumatized when our dad went out onto the ocean when the waves we crashing in. He tells us he’ll be fine so he heads out on the sand and starts walking the opposite direction of us, the waves came in and crashed into the feet of the cliff. We thought he was gone but he came back and said the waves almost got him but he found a crack

This is the story about the time I went to my first baseball game in 2004. It was a St Louis Cardinals game against the Cincinnati Reds.

I still remember the day it all happened. It was my freshman year of high school and baseball was right around the corner. Playing varsity baseball as a freshman was almost impossible to do. As coach called me into his office, the anxiety set in. I knew the varsity team lacked a starting pitcher but i never would have thought i would have the opportunity to get pulled up to play that year.

The First few I bet I was betting about $5 a game. Wining more than half of them. Then I started getting lots of money. When that happened I bet bigger and better with friends and family. Then when I was watching baseball I saw a commercial for an online gambling thing for baseball it was called Baseball Pros.