Fondest baseball memory
Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2005 5:48 pm
I happened to be going through my downstairs hallway closet looking for something for my wife this morning when I ran across a couple of books of baseball, basketball, and football cards. I got lost and started looking through one in particular. A little dark red three ring binder with some un heard of company on the logo.
In the back I found something I had forgotten I even had, the entire set of the 1992 Oklahoma City 89er's AAA baseball team with each player's autograph on it.
In the summer of 1992 my parents had been divorced, for the second time, for just over a year. My mother had moved us from our home into an apartment complex on the northside that she could barely afford. Every afternoon after practice I would meet up with all the other local kids at the basketball court and shoot some pick up games. Me and one other kid were always out later than the others usually shutting down the court late at night while our mother's were still at work and all the other kids eating dinner with their families. Two men started watching us play from their balcony on occasion drinking a beer or two. One night while just me and the other kid were the last left on the court and the gentlemen came down to talk to us. Asked us why we wer always out so late and BSed with us shooting some hoops. We told him about our situation (something I hope my kids know better than to do to a stranger :? ) and he asked us where we lived.
The next Saturday the gentleman came over and asked if he could take to a baseball game if I was interested. I ofcourse jumped at the oppertunity. It turns out that the man was Bobby Brower, former Texas Ranger RF and was with the 89er's after having knee surgery.
He began taking me and my friend to practices and games. Back then the 89er's played in the old delapidated All Sports Stadium at the fair grounds in OKC. We fielded balls at practice, even played some catch with a couple of minor league pitcher while I stood behind the plate. That is what made me turn my little ass into being a catcher when I got older. We joked with them after the games and did our damndest to eat every last thing on the massive buffet that they had after each game.
I stood in awe when he first introduced me to Steve Balboni. The first words out my moth were "You know George Brett don't you?". Stupid question I know looking back on it but I didn't know any better and Brett was always my hero. All I knew is that he was on the Royals '85 team so that made him a hero in my book as well. Atleast once a week, usually more, Bob would order pizza in for us to eat with him or drive us up to the Sonic to pig out. Money was never an issue to him and our concept of it all was still not on par with an adults but looking back on it he dropped a dime on us that summer. That summer was probably the greatest of my life. The entire 89er's baseball team helped both me and my friend with the largest transition of our lives.
The 89er's made it to the Title series that year (don't remember if it was the INternational League of the Pacific league at that time OKC played in)with a 74-70 regular season record. The first three games of the series against Buffalo we trounced them OKC. When I got home from playing in the neihborhood that day My mom informed me that I had better pack fast if I was going to be ready for Bobby to take us to Buffalo that evenning. The look on my face had to be one filled with total jubulation as me and my firnd had both been salty the entire day that OKC was going to take the series whilein Buffalo and we knew it after we had swept the first three in OKC. Two nights later we watched from behind the visitors dugout, in a chilly somewhat windy Buffalo, the Oklahoma City 89er's sweep The Buffalo (Bulls? I think it was) for the series.
Over the years I lost touch with Mr. Brower but I have always been thankful for what he and his team mates did for me and my friend during the most diffacult times in our lives to that point.
In the back I found something I had forgotten I even had, the entire set of the 1992 Oklahoma City 89er's AAA baseball team with each player's autograph on it.
In the summer of 1992 my parents had been divorced, for the second time, for just over a year. My mother had moved us from our home into an apartment complex on the northside that she could barely afford. Every afternoon after practice I would meet up with all the other local kids at the basketball court and shoot some pick up games. Me and one other kid were always out later than the others usually shutting down the court late at night while our mother's were still at work and all the other kids eating dinner with their families. Two men started watching us play from their balcony on occasion drinking a beer or two. One night while just me and the other kid were the last left on the court and the gentlemen came down to talk to us. Asked us why we wer always out so late and BSed with us shooting some hoops. We told him about our situation (something I hope my kids know better than to do to a stranger :? ) and he asked us where we lived.
The next Saturday the gentleman came over and asked if he could take to a baseball game if I was interested. I ofcourse jumped at the oppertunity. It turns out that the man was Bobby Brower, former Texas Ranger RF and was with the 89er's after having knee surgery.
He began taking me and my friend to practices and games. Back then the 89er's played in the old delapidated All Sports Stadium at the fair grounds in OKC. We fielded balls at practice, even played some catch with a couple of minor league pitcher while I stood behind the plate. That is what made me turn my little ass into being a catcher when I got older. We joked with them after the games and did our damndest to eat every last thing on the massive buffet that they had after each game.
I stood in awe when he first introduced me to Steve Balboni. The first words out my moth were "You know George Brett don't you?". Stupid question I know looking back on it but I didn't know any better and Brett was always my hero. All I knew is that he was on the Royals '85 team so that made him a hero in my book as well. Atleast once a week, usually more, Bob would order pizza in for us to eat with him or drive us up to the Sonic to pig out. Money was never an issue to him and our concept of it all was still not on par with an adults but looking back on it he dropped a dime on us that summer. That summer was probably the greatest of my life. The entire 89er's baseball team helped both me and my friend with the largest transition of our lives.
The 89er's made it to the Title series that year (don't remember if it was the INternational League of the Pacific league at that time OKC played in)with a 74-70 regular season record. The first three games of the series against Buffalo we trounced them OKC. When I got home from playing in the neihborhood that day My mom informed me that I had better pack fast if I was going to be ready for Bobby to take us to Buffalo that evenning. The look on my face had to be one filled with total jubulation as me and my firnd had both been salty the entire day that OKC was going to take the series whilein Buffalo and we knew it after we had swept the first three in OKC. Two nights later we watched from behind the visitors dugout, in a chilly somewhat windy Buffalo, the Oklahoma City 89er's sweep The Buffalo (Bulls? I think it was) for the series.
Over the years I lost touch with Mr. Brower but I have always been thankful for what he and his team mates did for me and my friend during the most diffacult times in our lives to that point.