Faith In The Game
STORIES BY ATHLETES OF FAITH
Faith in the Game is a blog containing submissions by athletes of faith. Each of them was asked one question: Tell us a story about a time when your faith was most present in your life. Rather than tell us about their faith, we asked them to show us.
These stories are oftentimes uplifting, and at all times profound, raw, honest, introspective and heartfelt. These are not the sort of stories you hear in a press conference. Some of them take place on the field; others, off it. They are presented without agenda or judgment. On many levels, we think you'll find them fascinating, as they pull up the veil on a side of sports that is rarely revealed but very often present.
This blog is moderated by author and father Ben Petrick, a former Colorado Rockies catcher thought to be the only professional athlete to have his career shortened by Parkinson's Disease, along with writer and father Scott Brown. In addition to their professional and family lives, both men are also coaches of youth sports. A selection of the stories they've collected will soon appear in a book, and together they're also working on Ben's autobiography.
If you'd like us to email you when new stories appear on the blog, please send us a note at info@imagine-books.net.
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Say It Loud — by Ben Petrick
The following is excerpted from Ben Petrick’s acclaimed new book, Forty Thousand to One, which he co-wrote with Scott Brown. Petrick was a catcher for the Colorado Rockies and one of the top prospects in baseball when he was told he had Parkinson’s disease — a diagnosis he hid for four Major League seasons.
After his retirement, Petrick became a full-time caregiver to his daughter, Makena, while his wife went back to work. His health deteriorated greatly until one year ago, when he underwent a radical surgery in an attempt to lessen his Parkinson’s symptoms.
Forty Thousand to One was recently included in the library of the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY.
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I left the doctor’s office wondering what the appropriate response should be to finding out you’re just 22 and no longer free from time.
A doctor at University Hospital in Denver had told me the odd movement disorders I’d been experiencing for nearly six months were caused by “Parkinsonism.”
“I’d diagnose you with actual Parkinson’s,” he said, “but you’re four decades younger than the typical patient.”
Getting that diagnosis (just seven months after my father received the same news) was more than surreal. It was like watching the moon fall.
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The Bicycle — by Ben Petrick
The following story is excerpted from Ben Petrick’s new book, “40,000 to One.” To find out more about the book, and to place an order, please visit www.BenPetrick.com.
Ben is founder of Faith In The Game. A former Major Leaguer with the Colorado Rockies and Detroit Tigers, Ben has Parkinson’s disease and recently underwent an aggressive surgery called Deep Brain Stimulation to alleviate his symptoms. A recent ESPN feature on Ben and his family can be found here, and a television news story on Ben’s amazing recovery can be found here. Ben chronicles his progress, along with stories of faith, family and baseball, in this blog.
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In the film “The Tree of Life,” the mother says in narration, “There are two ways through life — the way of nature and the way of grace. You have to choose which one you’ll follow.
“Nature,” she goes on to say, “only wants to please itself. Get others to please it, too. Likes to lord it over them. To have its own way. It finds reasons to be unhappy when all the world is shining around it.
“But grace doesn’t try to please itself. Grace accepts being slighted, forgotten. Accepts insults and injuries.”
It’s not adequate to say that my mother possesses grace. Grace is my mother. The two are interchangeable.
I’ll pause right here and say that I realize it’s not uncommon to write about your mother in awe-inspired terms, as if you’re seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time. But if you met my mother, you’d know.
You’d know she’s a revelation, like seeing anything for the first time must be.
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Hello Friends — Apologies that we’ve been away lately — please know it’s been with good reason. We have been working on a book of stories by Faith in the Game co-founder Ben Petrick. That collection will be made available in the coming days.
You’ll also be reading and hearing a lot more about Ben and his brave fight against Parkinson’s disease, starting with an incredible feature story now appearing in ESPN: The Magazine, written by legendary sportswriter Steve Wulf. It’s a great testament to the Petrick family and their journey. The story is only available in print editions right now, and will be online in January.
Ben’s new book, 40,000 to One, is available at BenPetrick.com.
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The Astronaut — by Ben Petrick
Ben Petrick is co-editor of Faith In The Game. A former Major Leaguer with the Colorado Rockies and Detroit Tigers, Ben has Parkinson’s disease and recently underwent an aggressive surgery called Deep Brain Stimulation to alleviate his symptoms. A television news story on Ben’s amazing recovery can be found here. Ben chronicles his progress, along with stories of faith, family and baseball, in this blog.
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I’ve found myself at an interesting crossroads lately. Is it possible to feel guilty for experiencing improved health? I spent so much time praying for a something to alleviate my Parkinson’s symptoms. Now that that’s happened, I’m overwhelmingly grateful, but also conflicted because I’m leaving someone behind.
I’ve always had a partner on this walk: my father.
I recently returned from a two-week vacation, which left me with two main thoughts: First, I am so thankful for the Deep Brain Stimulation surgery I had last winter that has improved my symptoms greatly. Second, I want so desperately for DBS to be an option for my dad, who also has the disease. Because of his being older and having other health complications, DBS might not be viable for him.
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“The hero and the coward both feel the same thing.” — Cus D’Amato
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” — Psalm 23:4 -
“Tough Enough,” by Matt Holliday
Matt Holliday, 31, is an outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals. A member of the 2011 National League All-Star Team, Holliday is batting .324 with 14 homers and 49 RBI despite dealing with injuries. Drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the seventh round in 1998, he elected to sign rather than attend Oklahoma State, where he would have split time playing baseball for his father, Tom, as well as quarterback for the football team.
Holliday is a five-time All-Star and Silver Slugger winner. He was the runner-up in the National League MVP voting for the 2007 Major League Baseball season.[3] He won the 2007 National League Championship Series MVP as he helped guide the Rockies to their first-ever National League pennant and World Series appearance.
Holliday and his wife, Leslee, have two sons, Jackson (born December 4, 2003) and Ethan (born February 23, 2007), and a daughter, Gracyn (born November 7, 2009).
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My dad is a baseball man. When I was younger, he’d tell me about guys he’d been around in the 1980s, and how once they became men of faith, they got soft. They weren’t the players they used to be.
I laugh at this now. Hey, Jesus turned over a few tables in his day. He knocked over the post-game spread. He wasn’t the soft Jesus you see on a stained-glass window. He had his moments. He died on a cross, for goodness sake. This was a tough dude.
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Wait On It, by Seth Smith
Seth Smith, 28, is an outfielder for the Colorado Rockies. At the All-Star break, he is hitting .292 with eight home runs and 36 RBI.
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I grew up in Mississippi, where being a Christian is what you do. I look back now on the time my faith was most present in my life, and I’m almost embarrassed that it relates to baseball. Then again, maybe it’s because of my faith — and the fact that I embraced it from an early age — that I’ve managed to steer clear of some adversity.
Athletically, things had pretty much been smooth sailing for me. I went to University of Mississippi, where I played quarterback (actually backed up Eli Manning) and baseball. I managed to make the U.S. National Team for the Pan-Am Games, and after getting drafted by the Rockies in the second round, managed to move up the minor-league chain quickly.
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The Proving Ground, by Ben Petrick
Ben Petrick is co-editor of Faith In The Game. A former Major Leaguer with the Colorado Rockies and Detroit Tigers, Ben has Parkinson’s disease and recently underwent an aggressive surgery called Deep Brain Stimulation to alleviate his symptoms. A television news story on Ben’s amazing recovery can be found here. Ben chronicles his progress, along with stories of faith, family and baseball, in this blog.
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Challenges occur in life on a daily basis; some big, some small. I have found that over the past couple of years as my relationship with Christ has deepened, these adversities just don’t have the hold on me that they once did.
If you read in James 1:2-4 the Bible says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
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Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle is a great friend to Faith In The Game, texting us often with thoughts for the day. They’ll be shared periodically on this blog. Here is today’s:
Give all your worries to Him, because He cares about you. — 1 Peter 5:7
God has a great race for you to run. Under His care you will go where you’ve never been and serve in ways you’ve never dreamed. But you have to drop some stuff. How can you share grace if you are full of guilt? How can you offer comfort if you are disheartened? How can you lift someone else’s load if your arms are full with your own?
There are certain weights in life you simply cannot carry. Your Lord is asking you to set them down and trust Him.
Travel light, my friends.
Make a difference today.
Love,
Clint
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The Weight, by Ben Petrick
Ben Petrick is co-editor of Faith In The Game. A former Major Leaguer with the Colorado Rockies and Detroit Tigers, Ben has Parkinson’s disease and recently underwent an aggressive surgery called Deep Brain Stimulation to alleviate his symptoms. A television news story on Ben’s amazing recovery can be found here. Ben chronicles his progress, along with stories of faith, family and baseball, in this blog.
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Voltaire wrote, “Perfect is the enemy of the good.” It’s a phrase that was true when I was an athlete, and even truer in my life now.
If you were to ask my childhood teammates what they remember about me from those days, I’m sure my tendency to cry after games would come up. It was pretty much a ritual, as I was born with a painfully strong, unquenchable longing to be perfect — or at least appear to be.
This issue continued to swell inside me as I grew older, even as my successes piled up just as fast. Vanity and insecurity filled me by the time I reached the Major Leagues. Whenever I struggled, I wondered, “How must this look to others? What will others think of me when they find out I’ve failed?” Inside I felt like nothing more than a massive collection of others’ perceptions, rather than someone leavened by his own self-awareness.
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Cuttin’ Grass, by Ben Petrick
Ben Petrick is co-moderator of Faith In The Game. A former Major Leaguer with the Colorado Rockies and Detroit Tigers, Ben has Parkinson’s disease and recently underwent an aggressive surgery called Deep Brain Stimulation to alleviate his symptoms. A news story on Ben’s recovery can be found here. Ben chronicles his progress, along with stories of faith, family and baseball, in this blog.
Before I begin, I wanted to tell you that the first thing that goes through my mind when I write a new blog entry is, “I sure hope the reader doesn’t think I’m arrogant for sharing these personal stories.” In fact, one of the great anxieties of my life has been a concern over appearing self-centered. I write these stories simply because in my heart, I believe I’ve experienced things in my life by way of my illness that have forced me to develop a perspective that a healthier individual might not otherwise have. When you’re ill, you can go one of two ways: You can either blame Him for your troubles, or grow closer to Him as you explore the greater purpose for your struggle. I’ve chosen the latter path. My hope is that by me writing about these experiences, it might stimulate a new way of looking at things in your own life.
On with the blog …
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All I wanted to do was cut hair and mow grass.
People often say to me something to the effect of, “Wow, I’ll bet your disease gives you a whole new outlook on life.” I understand their reasons for saying this. But thanks to two amazing parents, perspective is not something I’ve lacked.
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Get On The Bus, by Ben Petrick
Ben Petrick is co-moderator of Faith On The Field. A former major leaguer with the Colorado Rockies and Detroit Tigers, Ben has Parkinson’s disease and recently underwent an aggressive procedure to alleviate his symptoms. Ben chronicles his progress, along with stories of faith, family and baseball, in this blog.
Last Friday was just one of those days …
Check that. It would have been one of those days.
