Today’s Student-Athletes: The Numerous Benefits of High School and Collegiate Athletics What is a better predictor of success, varsity letters or straight A’s? Maybe being captain of your high school football team will really help you become a more successful person in life. High school and collegiate athletes are more successful off the field, in places such as the classroom, workplace, as well as down the road in the “game of life”. Today’s professional athletes are put under tremendous pressure, and their actions are magnified to a large scale, both on or off the field. People should realize that the professional athletes they idolize and look up to are not much different from them. They put their pants on the same way everyone else does. …show more content…
Looking back to the early idols of America’s pastime, make a comparison to today’s superstars of baseball. Two examples of early baseball players that exemplify great role models are Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth. These two names are among the most well known in baseball. Babe Ruth was born into poverty in the 1890’s but grew up to be one of the most famous, talented, and well known athletes of all time. Back in his time baseball was not televised and he was considered to be a great role model because his actions were not under the scrutiny that today’s athletes are subject to. Lou Gehrig is different from athletes of today because he possessed integrity, humility, and class. He was considered a great teammate and when speaking about his teammates he spoke of how much they meant to him rather than his personal accolades. Gehrig was selfless, unlike some of today’s athletes who are more concerned with the paycheck coming in every month. He took a pay cut when his batting average dropped. He did not complain about it, but rather worked harder to bring it back up. Along with the cuts, he also played through broken fingers, sprained ankles, and contusions. He did not want to be away from what he loved by missing any games. Lou Gehrig lived his life to the fullest, not showing any signs of weakness, trying to …show more content…
“Leadership lessons and social skills you learn from playing team sports can help you become a better worker.” according to Richard Chole, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the American Board of Otolaryngology. Professional athletes know what it’s like to work under pressure. There are enormous stakes, lots of people are watching. The investment in time, talent, money, and reputation is ever-present. They have to check anxieties and injuries at the door to stay calm, cool, and collected. If one player loses his or her composure, the efforts of the rest are squandered. Nothing’s more valued in today’s stressful business climate than a level head. “Athletes learn time-management skills by necessity,” says Gillespie. “Athletes can spend their time in four ways: sport, study, socialize and sleep. And it's only physically possible to do three of those things, unless you were born on Krypton. They've been forced to learn teamwork under great pressure, which is more beneficial to the students than even some other organizations such as drama or debate team. Athletes can take orders and do not argue when told what to do.” Gillespie says many of his favorite students are athletes for this reason alone. “They're not shy, and they're not shy about telling other people what to do, I don't know if I would call that leadership," Gillespie says. "But it's very difficult to get students to constructively criticize others. But it's
Jackie Robinson is one of the greatest inspirations in baseball history for all of his achievements and all of the fought racism battles he went through to give equal rights in baseball. He had fought through many disappointments in baseball and the army. Jackie was known for many things but one was with baseball if it wasn’t for Mr. Robinson, baseball wouldn’t have changed and the war and the people fighting for our country wouldn’t be the same either. He inspired others to think that everyone is equal and we are all brothers and sisters no matter what skin color you are.
“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives” -Jackie Robinson. As an African American Jackie wasn’t treated fairly like many other blacks. He overcame many obstacles in life and inspired many. He began his baseball career in 1947 and finished up in 1957. He was an absolute outstanding baseball player for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Jackie Robinson is a great role model because he was the first African American to play in the MLB, he represented many African Americans, and inspired all
Babe Ruth got into so much trouble at a young age, he would get into fights and damaging property by throwing tomatoes and other things at building and carriages. As time passed when Babe Ruth turned 7 his parents realized he needed a stricter environment and therefore sent him to the St. Mary’s Industrial School for Boys, a school run by Catholic monks from an order of the Xaverian Brothers. There he encountered a monk named brother Mathias who which in fact taught Babe to play baseball. While at St. Mary’s Babe Ruth played about every position, although he played catcher and pitcher most of the time. Babe Ruth was good at the game so good that he got the opportunity to meet John Joseph “Jack” Dunn. Jack Dunn was the manager for the Baltimore Orioles who became very interested in Babe Ruth. As time went on and the conversation continued with Babe, Jack agreed to becoming Babe’s legal guardian in order for Babe to play ball. Babe ruth became famous in baseball as time went
Babe Ruth has been absolutely outstanding so far in his young career. He has broken multiple records and has won multiple championships and he isn’t looking to stop now. He loves the game of baseball. He has said, “The only real game, I think, in the world is baseball.” This shows how much passion he plays with when doing the thing he loves.
Jackie Robinson Jackie Robinson did more in his short baseball career than anyone else ever did for the sport. He was always able to push on despite the criticisms and punishment he took from others. No other man can say that they broke the color barrier or that they changed the sport of baseball forever. To do what he did required strength and the ability to endure physical and mental pain. Jackie Robinson was the first African-American Major League Baseball player.
In baseball, Babe Ruth was the ultimate star. He had hit more home runs than any player had ever hit before. He held the record with 714 home runs until Hank Aarons hit his 715th home run in 1974. Barry Bonds beat Hank Aaron’s record and is currently holding the record with 762 home runs. Babe Ruth continues to be an inspiration today because he was just a boy from Baltimore and become a baseball legend
Jackie Robinson changed the game of baseball. His impact on the game will forever be remembered. Robinson’s path to the Major League Baseball (MLB) was astounding, becoming the first African American to play in the MLB. Robinson’s legendary career is one of the best amongst all African American baseball players. “He has a special day dedicated towards him, on April 15th each season; every team in the MLB celebrates ‘Jackie Robinson Day” (Baseball HOF).
If you have heard about baseball, you have probably heard the name Jackie Robinson. One of the most important names ever in the sport. He broke so many barriers with his skill and bravery. He left a great legacy that changed the lives of many.
Although there were other black players who played baseball Jackie Robinson was the player who made the greatest impact in playing the sport of baseball for the black community. He was the only player in the sport of baseball to have his jersey retired by every franchise in major league baseball (Matsunaga, 2014). He not only was the first player in the spots of baseball to breakdown the barrier that existed so long between people of color and their white counterparts, but he was also one of the highest players to play the game of baseball.
George Herman "Babe" Ruth was an American icon or symbol just as Uncle Sam was; the Babe started it all. He was the best pitcher in his day and still remains the strongest slugger in the game. Ruth had power, strength, an appetite and a desire for the game that no other player would ever have. It was "Babe Ruth, a hero of prowess who had achieved greatness by the sheer extent
Babe Ruth is one of America’s greatest Baseball player but we grow old and die so other people can try to be the best and try harder to be the world’s greatest baseball
Throughout the course of American history, there have been copious amounts of famous speeches, spoken by many different people. From political figures to sports players; these people have provided deep thoughts and great insights about who they are and the world we live in today. Being a sports enthusiast, a memorable speech comes to my mind. Lou Gehrig’s “farewell speech”, given on July 4th, 1939, to more than 62,000 fans at New York City’s Yankee Stadium, has become a cornerstone in the history of baseball in America. Lou Gehrig is considered one of the most under-rated sports players of all time. Gehrig played in the same era with greats like Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio. In Fact, Gehrig played on the
Jackie Robinson was one of the most historically well known people in the civil rights movement. So as the first man to integrate major league baseball, Jackie Robinson had a game changing impact on the way the game was played. Having the courage to fight for what is right, Jackie broke the imaginary color barrier that has covered major league baseball for years. Through his resiliency and tenaciousness in the face of seemingly unconquerable odds, Jackie Robinson set the course for African Americans to continue the expansion for equality and true freedom while he was becoming one of the greatest Major League baseball players in history.
Off the field Ruth reveled in his celebrity status, enjoying a wild and extravagant life. However, his high living and headstrong behavior eventually began to take a toll on his performance. He was still baseball’s premier player but fellow teammate and newcomer Lou Gehrig started to show signs of greatness
He would continue playing baseball throughout his childhood and teenage years, and eventually make it to play Major League Baseball. Once he got into the Major League, he took off running and began breaking records and leaving sports analysis dumbfounded with his game play. According to Rider, “As a Red Sox, Between 1915 and 1919 he won 87 games, yielding a stunning earned run average of a low 2.16, won three world series champions, and holds a record for scoreless world series innings which is 29 ⅔ consecutive innings (Rader 1). These accomplishments add on to Babe Ruth’s greatness because he was known for hitting home runs, yet he was still accomplishing great things as a pitcher. Even though he is not known