The Rites of Spring Begin
A new team, new teammates, new Spring Training, new league!?
In the last week, I’ve moved my family from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to Clearwater, Florida, to attend Spring Training with the Philadelphia Phillies. The Detroit Tigers, the team I played for last year, hold their Spring Training in Lakeland, Florida, and I’d just gotten used to the layout there. So, it’s time to find the stadium (Bright House Networks Field), Babies ‘R Us, Super Target, Super Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Office Depot, and more.
Babies are expensive, as we all know, but finding the specific monument to consumerism, in Babies ‘R Us, is apparently a big deal! I enjoy the process each year of finding the new places, the new faces, the whole deal…it is how I’ve lived since being drafted by the Royals back in 1996. I’ve done it alone most of my career, but there’s a new process now, with my family along for the ride.
I have a sixth month old son, and my wife and I were very apprehensive about how the 11-hour drive would go. He was a great passenger and did little to delay our stops, or cause any of his own. A couple blow outs, but diapers are made to be blown out, right? In fact, I can hear the little guy talking to himself as he wakes up this a.m., and it is adorable. He’s great and puts a new twist into the way I think about my family and my career. My dreams and goals have shifted and one of those dreams is to play baseball long enough so that Cade, my son, can remember Daddy playing.
The Phillies. I couldn’t be more excited for the change of venue, because the Phillies are loaded with talent and people of integrity. There’s nothing more valuable in any business or organization than integrity. The change of team is just another opportunity for me to meet great people and build long lasting relationships. The new Spring Training site moves me from Lakeland to beautiful Clearwater. The beach is 20 minutes away and knowing it is a short ride away is as good as being there, in some ways (minus the sand in your underwear, ears, and shoes!). One of the things I’m most excited about with the move to the Phillies is being in the National League. I grew up a Cubs fan and had Ryne Sandberg on a pedestal growing up. I watched those Cubs games and came to know the National League style of baseball. I’m excited about the double switches, pitcher’s hitting, and managers getting to utilize their expertise on a daily basis.
New team, new teammates, new Spring Training site, new league!? New excitement, new friends, new cities, new outlook! Still playing baseball for a living and loving it!
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