Jose Canseco vs. The Marines

From msnbc.com

Bittersweet Summer: Marine Lives Baseball Dream Without His Biggest Fan
By Sean Horejs
KRIS-TV
updated 9/16/2010 12:47:47 PM ET

CORPUS CHRISTI - Travis Adams lives for baseball. He played it during his days at Flour Bluff High School and in college. Even as a United States Marine, he's routinely stayed up till the wee hours of the morning watching live games while stationed in Iraq.
All the while, he dreamed of playing again.
"All baseball players, we play it for a reason," he said. "You play it for the love of it and it never goes away."
At least in Adams' case, not forever. Eight years after his college career, which included stops at Wharton County Junior College and West Texas A&M, came to an end, and following two tours in the Middle East, he came back stateside this year and picked up the game again. Adams joined a Corpus Christi men's league, where he caught for Coastal Bend Thunder pitcher and Ray High School grad J.J. Trujillo.
"I knew he hadn't played for awhile, but in the men's league, he plays really hard," Trujillo said. "He's got a lot of fire, that kid."
Trujillo was so impressed by Adams work behind the plate, that he convinced Thunder manager Al Gallagher to sign the marine for the final road series of the season against the Laredo Broncos.

"At first I was like, 'what do they want me to do?'" Adams said. "He asked me to come play and I figured I would come down and be an extra body, maybe run a base or two. I get there and day one, 'hey, you're catching!' That's basically every baseball player's dream is to get to come back and have a second chance at playing again."
Trujillo was thrilled his plan came to fruition.
"I haven't cheered that hard for somebody in awhile," he said. "Every time he got up to the plate I was just hoping he'd connect with one."
And Adams did, hitting .231 over the three-game set. He even got to man the plate when former American League MVP Jose Canseco stepped up.
"It didn't really hit home until he stepped in the batter's box right in front of me and that guy towered over me," Adams recalled. "I think I hit him at about his belly button. Just the timing of all of it and the opportunity to see a guy like that compete... he can still swing the bat like no other."
As thrilling as the experience was for Travis, someone very important was missing. Less than a week before Adams made his professional debut, his father Kenny Adams had a heart attack in his sleep and passed away at the age of 55.
"He was my number one supporter in anything I ever did and he definitely would have loved to have been there," Adams said. "I know he was watching and getting brought to that atmosphere, he definitely would have been proud. It's definitely something I wish I could have experienced with him. I know he's looking down and he would have been proud. He would have enjoyed it."

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• Jose Canseco
• United States Marine Corps
• Canseco
• Marines
• Baseball
• Afghanistan
• Iraq
• Corpus Christi
• Laredo
• Minor Leagues
• Travis Adams
• Home run

[gmatsalves]

Good for you, Travis! You deserve it! Much gratitude for laying your life on the line so people like me can continue to go to baseball games (watch the A's and Giants on a regular basis). Wishing you the best and many more magical seasons.

[GermanPucheros]

Veteran's Field! I played my four years of High school baseball there!

[dbrandt30]

Here's to a true American Hero. Thanks for everything Travis.