Ben Petrick

Issue: Uhh, who?

Short Answer: Just keep reading...

Reasoning: This is what Wikipedia tells us about Ben Petrick:

Benjamin Wayne Petrick (born April 7, 1977) is a former Major League Baseball player.  Petrick, who was born in Salem, Oregon, was a highly accomplished athlete while attending Glencoe High School in Hillsboro, Oregon. He was recruited heavily to play both football and baseball, and ended up going straight into the Colorado Rockies' farm system when they drafted him in the second round (38th overall) of the 1995 amateur entry draft. Petrick became a solid prospect, finding a great deal of success with the Rockies' AAA affiliate, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. He was called up to the Rockies for the first time in 1999 and hit .323 with 4 home runs in only 62 at-bats. In 2000, he hit .322 in 52 games for the major league club. However, he soon experienced a dramatic dropoff in production, hitting only .238 in 85 games in 2001. On July 13, 2003, Petrick was acquired by the Detroit Tigers from Colorado in exchange for pitcher Adam Bernero. After an unsuccessful stint with the Tigers, Petrick was released. He attempted a brief comeback with the AAA Portland Beavers, and then retired.

This isn't a story about baseball.  This is a story about life.  See, I am a fairly unemotional person (just ask any girl I have ever dated).  I like to think I am always smiling, as I absolutely love life, but very rarely am I moved to tears.  Jim Volvano, in his famous speech at the ESPY's in 1993, told everyone   they should have their emotions moved to tears on a daily basis, but that is easier said than done.  Especially for me.  Perhaps it was because I was raised in a family with 3 brothers and...hold on, who cares why I am that way?  This isn't a blog about me and my emotional deficiencies.  Geez.  Let's move on...

I saw the following piece on E:60, a news show on ESPN.  I have been a baseball guy my whole life, so when I heard the name Ben Petrick, I remembered him, although vaguely.  I recalled him as a heck of catcher, who was turned into an outfielder, who could crush a baseball.  In short, he reminded me of myself (only he was a heck of a lot better than me).  But, then I heard his story and the comparisons to me stopped.  I want you to know that the piece did move me to tears, it is sad, but I promise you it has a happy ending.  I wouldn't post it here if it didn't.  It's a moving story about how sometimes life isn't fair, coping with that fact, and moving on.  You may have never heard of Ben Petrick before today, but something tells me you won't ever forget him.

Leave it to ESPN (yes, I still hate them) to not allow embedding of videos.  Click here to watch the video.