3:33 a.m. My eyes open. I roll over. Check my cell phone. I was sleeping well, but I was awoken by a strong urgency to hit the gym. I checked my Twitter feed. Before I went to bed last night I tweeted, “Tomorrow I begin my training to make my return to baseball. Yes, you read that correctly.” The first response I received was from my good friend and former IU football teammate, Matt Mayberry, who wrote, “Whaaaat Pops?” It made me smile and laugh. Just the fact that he responded shows not only was he surprised, but also I knew he cared. I fall back asleep and awake at 6 a.m.
My workout is part of a 14-week sprinter program given to me by my friend and former high school track teammate, Doug Edgar, who is now head track & field coach at Indiana Tech in Fort Wayne. In high school I played baseball and ran track at the same time. I trained for the 400 meters and I was in the best shape of my life at the time, which helped me perform at a high level on the baseball field. I’m lifting full body three days a week and running mostly 4-6 days a week at this point. Today is a 2-mile run day.
As time goes on I will continue to leak more information on my past experiences with baseball to give you perspective on why I’m doing this, where I’m coming from, and the player I plan to become again. I realize there will be lots of unbelievers, critics, doubters, and even haters along the way. I also know there will be hard times where self-doubt will creep into my mind – it won’t always be fun. But I won’t let any of that deter me. My goal is to give this a ten-year try. Along the way, I’ll know if me making to the big leagues is in the cards or not. And yes, I did say the big leagues. I must aim high with my goals. We all should. For even if I don’t make it to the top I’ll have a great sense of accomplishment and a peace of mind that I gave it all I had.
Every single day I will do something to better myself as a baseball player - whether it be lifting weights, running, throwing, hitting, watching baseball, or even just talking about it. Also, each day I will be keeping an online journal, if you will, about my progress, experiences, trials, accomplishments, failures, and everything else that has to do with this daunting task ahead of me. So, today was only the beginning. Say what you will, I know it will be tough and nothing is going to happen overnight, but I am ready. I have a plan to make it big, I’m going to work that plan everyday, and I’m going to plan for the unexpected – whatever that may be. Wish me luck.
