Recently, my son and I watched “Chasing 3000,” the story of two young brothers and their journey across the country to witness the 3000th career hit of Roberto Clemente. These two brothers idolized Clemente, their home town hero, emanating his walk to the plate, and his at bat routine, and followed all news written about him, when not able to watch or listen to the game. Finally arriving in Pittsburgh, the brothers witness Clemente’s 3000th and final hit, a memory they will forever have. There were thousands of young kids that looked up to Clemente, as before him were; Wagner, Waner, and Kiner.
Every generation, of Pirates fans, has a select few players that get idolized. Their jerseys are worn by fans of all ages, signs are waved in the air as they come to the plate, and names are chanted. As a child, I looked up to nearly every single Pirate; Barry Bonds, Bobby Bonilla, Andy Van Slyke, Jose Lind, Jay Bell, Jeff King. The glory days, of 1990-1992, I would be forced to go to bed in the late innings, and would wake up, first thing in the morning, and turn on ESPN for the highlights, arguably the highlights of my childhood.
It’s been 18 years, since my glory days, and still do admire those players, for what they were, no matter where they went and what they did after they left the Pirates. My son, David, is 9 years old now and fully understands the game of baseball, but not the business. As he attends nearly 20 games a year, follows games on the internet and television, he is constantly talking about; Garrett Jones, Neil Walker, Andrew McCutchen, Pedro Alvarez and Jose Tabata. As he sits in the stands watching his favorite players, I always smile and wonder if he would ever experience my joy, enjoy the his memories as I do.
Who will be that one player that will stick out in the future of all young Pirates fans? Could Neil Walker be the hometown favorite? Will Pedro Alvarez’s bat win the heart, and lead a new Lumber Company? There is so much to look forward to in the next few years. I am eager to find the answer.
sad thing is the Pirates aren't gonna be able to keep all these guys around if they turn into decent players, just don't have the money. Being a fan of a small-market club is tough, especially for the kids that become really attached to the players.
ReplyDelete-Jon (from mceffect.com)
Out of this squad, I only see Neil sticking around the longest. All others are going to be way too much for the Pirates.
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