Your baseball playing days growing up?

[filihok]

Everybody's tried Julio Franco. It's a classic.

[RickD]

In my mind I was a legend.....however I sucked royally at baseball as a kid. I was able to throw fairly well but not good enough to be a pitcher...I was relegated to the outfield but didn't have the arm strength.

Around 27 I played on a town softball league....discovered I could play 3rd and Catcher quite well. I even batted .410 or so and rocked as a lead-off hitter. Alas it was softball and my season ended with a line drive to the thumb.

One day they'll retire my jersey in my mind......

My wife said I need to stick to BM as I have broken and cracked more bone playing baseball and football than I needed too.

[SoulMan]

Has anyone on these boards ever been drafted?

I obviously haven't, but I spent a few seasons on a team with this guy

[filihok]

This guy dunked over me in hoop-it-up

[boomboom]

I played baseball from the age of 9-16, I was also in Martial Arts from 7-18, earned my Black Belt in March of 1999.

When I was eight years old, I told my dad I wanted to play ball, I was very uncoordinated so he found an instructor to help me learn how to throw a baseball and hit. I was so uncoordinated that I couldn't throw a baseball farther than 10 feet. I was also maybe about 40-50 pounds then...eventually thou, I would have the best the best arms in the league(s).. (age 12-16).

At the age of 10, I tried out for baseball and played for the Royals in the Little league minors, I hit about .150, and had 3 singles. My very first hit was against Geoff Yamasaki, a classmate of mine.

My second year, during tryouts, I was throwing the ball sidehanded while playing catch. (warming up), the coach of the Royals (different royals, level up in Majors), He told me I was going to throw out my arm by doing that... so I immediately changed the way I threw... I was drafted into the Majors in only my 2nd year... I hit about .175 that year, and played outfield.... That year thou, I grew a lot. In the 3 years since I started playing baseball, age of eight to 10, I gained around 50 pounds of lean mussle just from playing baseball and growing...I started to develop arms and legs, thou I was still the slowest runner on the team.

Going into my last year at the age of 12, For the Majors, I didn't have to tryout since i was already on the team.. I batted leadoff and hit .480 that year. I had something that year...I had a slump at the end of the year that put from batting .600, to .480, I had 3 hitless games...

At the age of 13, I tried out for KBC- Pony league, I was drafted by Lee Johnson Mazda...(all the teams have sponsers). I hit about .200 that year, and my Mom asked me what the heck was wrong with me, I wasn't even hitting the ball hard....I just said I have no idea...my swing was good, everything was basically good....I was the centerfielder that season...

14, I was still on the team and hit about .260, I hit a little better but mostly becasue I was a year older...That season I played catcher and third base...

at the age of 15, I was doing soo bad that my Mom finally had me go check my eyes after I told her the ball disappears on me half way to the plate... in school where they have you check your eyes, I always memorized the eye chart so that I wouldn't get glasses (stupid me!). We had 2 games left and the playoffs started. The worst part about this was we were two games out of first, and I still didn't even have my first hit yet. I got my glasses and went on a tear....I went 8-8, 8 singles, in the last two games...in the playoffs I went 7-8, all singles again....and we won the championship..I wish I had my eyes checked before...I could actually see the ball, I had walked 4 times in the playoffs as well and scored 8 times.. the playoffs were 4 games..I averaged 3 abats per game...

As for my last year, I wasn't really motivated because of girls, getting my blackbelt and working. I hit about .280 and had probably the worst coach I ever had...

At my peak, I could throw a ball about 220 feet...seriously. Right now I could throw one probably 150 feet, but it hurts sometimes to throw 5-6 hard throws...my arms is out of shape...

Position by age:
10- left field
11- left field
12- 2nd base/left field
13- centerfield, 2nd base, 3rd base and leftfield.
14- catcher/thirdbase (hurt my knees this year, but through out 4 out of 4 runners)
15- left field, right field, and 2nd base
16- center field/left field/shortstop/

The only position I never played was first base and pitcher.

[gosensgo101]

I play my last house league game of my season tonight.

I fully expect to catch the whole game, and I'm glad of it, since it drives me crazy when I'm not behind the plate. (most catchers aren't as aggressive as I am when it comes to throwing the ball.)

I've played since I was 10 (I'm 16 now). I pitched a little bit early on, and again last year since a couple of our pitchers decided to go on vacation during the season. My lanky build and the amazing ability to catch the ball led me to play first base almost all of my first 3 years. In the 3rd year, I asked if I could go behind the plate. Since then I've just been catching more and more. Last year I was the best defensice catcher and first baseman in the league. (Good defense is quite rare in Canada)

When I grow old, I'll marvel at how I caught 14 innings in a day three times this season.

As for hitting, I make contact, I almost never strike out, and I foul anything not right down the middle off. That makes for long at bats, lots of walks and when I hit it fair, its usually a good linedrive off a pitch right down the pipe. I used to bunt quite a bit, but now I'm too good a hitter to do that.

I wish I played in the states though, since almost nobody in Canada has any baseball sense. People throw behind runners from the outfield, don't get the ball in quick enough, swing 3-0 (everyone gets red lighted, except a few guys who have a good enough eye), don't cover, and flat out don't catch the ball.

That's about it.

[gosensgo101]

I hope to be in 2010.

So do I, but I don't think its gonna happen. But here's to hopeing!

[dannymac910]

I hope to be in like 2013. (College)

[metsguy234]

My only experience is 3 1/2 years of Little League (until I was like 8). Then I quit because I got hurt like 3 times in a month, I had to have my mom call my coach, because I was embarrassed.

Oddly, my coach's son enrolled in my school two years ago, very awkward to see my former coach and former teammate.

[Walter]

Before I had tommy john surgery last year, a local white sox scout said they had me on their late round draft boards

[RedsoxRockies]

I started playing at age 13 in little league(Should have been in Babe Ruth, but they messed up and put me in Little League.). i had two hits all season, but led the league in walks and steals, and was one of the best fielders. My team, the Mets, went 5-8 through regular season. We made the playoffs and made the semifinals, where we got pounded. My shining moment that year was against the Dodgers. I walked 4 times, scored 4 runs, drove in a run, and stole 6 bases, including home. Both of my hits were infield singles. Starting that summer I began attending Frozen Ropes to build up my strength and attempt o flfill my dream of pitching. On the Mets I was the hardest throwing pitcher, but my coach prefered to let his son pitch, saying I was tooo wild. I entered this season hoping to play on the school team and town team. But I was forced to have my tonsils out just as the season began. My throat then bled a few days later, and it turned out one of my arterys was damaged, and I could have bled to death. Surgery #2. After a few weeks, just as I was cleared to play on the town team, I had a CT scan to find the source of my stomach pains. It was not found, but a tumor near my heart was. On June 5th it was removed, and I never got to play a single game this year. During the surgery, I spent seven hours in the same position, leading to nerve damage in my left leg. I am forced to wear a TENs unit, and may have to until around January. I alo still have pain in the incisions. I am just getting back into frozen ropes, where I have taught my self a slider and a cutter to go with my 4 and 2 seam fastballs, Circle Change, Knuckle ball, and splitter. I have also gotten better at hitting breaking balls, and fielding.


Position by Age:

13: 2nd Base/OF with a little 3rd
14: If healtylikely would have played 2nd and/or 3rd
15: I hope to pitch and play 2nd

[asianinvasion]

My career only covers about 7 years so it will be quick. I started Little League when I was 8 and I was a year younger than everyone else. I ended up getting two hits that year. A bunt single and a line drive up the middle. That team sucked as we were last in the league. I played mostly left field and second base that year.

I stayed on that team for the next year too as a 9 year old. I started pitching and I was one of the best as I changed speeds and had good control. I started to hit better and was the clean up hitter. We were better but still not as good.

Next season, I moved up to majors and it was like starting over again. I didnt get my first hit until the third to last game of the season. I walked alot and had a high OBP so I played alot. I mostly played outfield and second base.

As a 11 year old, I started to grow and moved to first. I was in the middle of a great lineup and we placed third. In a tournament we played in, I hit a walk-off to save us from elimination.

The next season, my team placed second and we did well. I played first and caught some. We had a new coach and we fought alot so I didnt play as much. Some of the players were mad but there was nothing we could do about it.

As a 13 year old, I moved to Junior League Baseball and I had my best year. I hit close to .450 with about 20 doubles. I didnt have any homeruns as I was a line drive hitter and I would always hit the fence. I also pitched alot for this team and led the team in wins, ERA, strikeouts, walks and pickoffs. I started getting bored of Little League and started to look elsewhere for baseball.

In between the 13 and 14 years, I tried out for a Mickey Mantle team and made it. I played the fall league with them and played third and catcher. I also played high school ball and made the JV team. I hit .318 in 9 games as I got hurt twice. After 4 games, I cut my hand up and missed two weeks. And two weeks after I came back, I broke my elbow in pre-game warm-ups. Our team only won 2 games that year and both came the game after my injury. So I missed all but three of the Mickey Mantle season and it was a waste. I'm just turned 15 and I'm still in rehab.


Positions:

8: LF/2B
9: P/LF/2B
10: LF/1B
11: 1B
12: C/1B
13: P/1B/C/3B
14: C/3B
15: C/3B

[JeepGuy63]

Around 27 I played on a town softball league....discovered I could play 3rd and Catcher quite well. I even batted .410 or so and rocked as a lead-off hitter. Alas it was softball and my season ended with a line drive to the thumb.

Did you break the thumb?

I ruptured a thigh muscle chugging around second on my way to an easy inside-the-park homer.

[mnstonecold]

i was never good at baseball of softball. but my only memory was a line drive to the nose, by my brother breaking it. I still don't have a good sense of smell. and BTW it wasn't on purpose.

[gosensgo101]

I should add a couple of my best memories.

1) I haven't pitched since I was 10, but last year a couple pitchers went on vacation so I ended up pitching some (including one complete game). I didn't have great stuff, but I put a fastball (if you could call it that) over the plate. My first inning took 4 pitches. I think a grounder to me, a grounder to third, a swinging strike and a pop up to short.

2) There's one guy in my league who's really aggressive on the basepaths. As the catcher I picked him off 3 times in one game.

3) This year, I broke out of an early season slump by going 0-for-0 with 3 walks and a sac bunt.