Tuesday, January 6th
The team hopped on a charter bus at 2:00 AM for the airport from Billera Hall. Everyone was tired and excited. We got on the plane and before we knew it we were in the Dominican Republic. It was a culture shock! Everything was so different. We put all our stuff in the rooms, took a quick tour of the area, and watched a baseball game at a field in the city behind the resort.
We had some lunch. I had rice and beans which were fantastic. We then went to practice at a baseball complex of a few professional teams including the Twins, Royals and Orioles. Once we got back from the practice we all had some dinner...rice and beans, then we all hung out for the night to get ready for our double header against the Army and Police the next day.
Wednesday, January 7th
This was my first day waking up overseas in my life. The Dominican Republic is such an eye opener and made me realize how lucky we really are back home. My team and I woke up nice and early and hopped on the bus at 7:30 AM for our two games against the Dominican Republic Army and Police. The bus played some crazy Spanish music that makes you want to dance. As we drove to the fields I saw so much poverty and saw with my own eyes a third world country. There are run down houses everywhere you look. I couldn’t even imagine trying to live like that for a week. The people are very nice and generous though even with all the poverty in this country. The Dominicans liked when I attempted to speak to them in Spanish. I even got complimented a few times for speaking good Spanish.
The field we played the games on looked like the field from the movie Sandlot. When we arrived the people treated us as if we were professional baseball players. We lost both games on day one but it was a great experience. I ate some wafers that tasted like fruit loops, some fried chicken, and drank some orange soda.
We had a long day at the baseball field and went back on the bus and the driver blasted some more Spanish music. Watching the sun set was beautiful. There was a lot of traffic on our way back home. Cars, motorcycles, and busses driving like crazy people. There are not many street lights, people just do their own thing. Eventually we arrived back at the resort I had some rice and beans and went back to my room to get ready for a game tomorrow. I am starting the game tomorrow and am very excited to pitch against the Navy.
What a culture shock it is here. I had no idea how poor this country was and how run down it is. Everything is so different, it makes me grateful for what I have in my life.
Thursday, January 8th
Today I woke up and was excited for the game against the Navy. I stretched out my body, had a granola bar, and walked out of my room and headed to the bus for our game. While I was warming up a kid came up to me and said “Are you the pitcher?” I said yes and he replied “you are going to lose, can I have your autograph?” That was the second time in my life I’ve given out an autograph and I felt honored. Once I was out in the outfield throwing with my catcher Mike Kacergis a man came up to us and started talking to us in broken English. He ended up being a former baseball player named Sosa and his son played for the Atlanta Braves getting 11 wins in 2006. He gave me pointers on grips for pitches and tweaking my mechanics. It was an awesome experience to get critiqued by a scout from the Dominican Republic.
We brought a 19 year old Dominican with us to the game named Miguel. He got signed by the OaklandAthletics for $150,000 and was a humble person with a massive build. He was easily 6-7 inches tall and strong as a gorilla. The game was going smooth until my third inning when the Navy laid down two perfect bunts to start the inning and it ended up being a very long inning where I was unable to record an out before they scored 11 runs.
There was a ceremony before the game and the Navy team was very respectful and honored to play us. The opportunity to play these guys was amazing, I am so blessed to be in this country with my teammates playing these teams and experiencing this culture.
After the game we had free time at the beach so we all loaded up with sun screen and headed to the beach. We got offered necklaces, cigars, and sunglasses. The Dominican vendors do not take no as an answer it’s pretty funny. I had a guy put a necklace on me and hand me a box of cigars at the same time and said I look like Sammy Sosa now. We swam in the ocean filled with crystal clear blue water that was a perfect temperature. The water was very salty though compared to back home at the Jersey shore.
We threw the football around in the water while people ripped by on jet skis and people even flew over us with parachutes being guided around with a fan on the back. I’ve never seen that type of parachute and it seemed amazingly dangerous but it was awesome.
We hung out at the beach for a while then went to a Dominican Winter League playoff game that night. The home team was the Estrellas (stars) and had an elephant as the mascot and the visiting team was the Toros (bulls). What a cool experience. The fans were going crazy. There was a band that would play there instruments constantly and there were beautiful cheerleaders that would dance on the dugouts in between innings. The baseball atmosphere there was like no other game I’ve had ever attended. We left in the seventh inning so I don’t know who won but it was an experience I will never forget. We all got back, hung out around the pool, and then everyone went to bed to get ready for our game the next morning against the Air Force.
Friday, January 9th
Myself and Jesse Smoot woke up and were very tired. We kept hitting the snooze button on our alarms and didn’t go to breakfast before the bus left. We just ate granola bars in the room and caught the bus right on time. My body was nice and sore from pitching the day before and I was looking to get a nice run in once we got to the field. Everyone hopped in the bus and we departed for the Air Force base where the field was for today’s game. I’ve never seen three people on a motorcycle but sure enough on our way to the game I saw four people riding on a motorcycle! What a crazy sight that is considered normal in the Dominican Republic.
We arrived at the base, went through security passing soldiers holding assault rifles, and parked next to the field. The field looked nicer than the ones that we have been playing on but still not as nice as the field back home. It was a very hot day with very little breeze if any at all.
It ended up being a close game that we lost 5-4, but it was a great game. When I went to the bathroom I walked into a barrack like room with a bunch of bunk beds and then there was a bathroom with showers and toilets. It was like people slept at the field, woke up, and practiced baseball all day. Baseball is their lives, it’s what they do all day every day.
At the end of the game we gave them a few t-shirts and they were very grateful. We were supposed to go on a tour of a historical area in the Dominican but majority voted after the game to just have another beach day instead. Everyone got some lunch, then went and did their own thing. People could snorkel, ride kayaks, play volleyball, or relax on the beach. Some people hung out at the pool on the resort all day. It was a relaxing afternoon before we all walked back down to the beach for a team dinner. There was white and blue Christmas lights above the tables giving the dining area a nice glow. The food was delicious, it consisted of chicken, fish, pizza, french fries (or Dominican Fries), salads, pork, and bread to eat.
Once everyone was full and tired we went back to the resort and hung out all night to get ready for a game tomorrow against the best team we will play while here featuring an all-star team of players ranking from rookie ball to AA minor league baseball teams that are home for the winter.
Saturday, January 10th
The team woke up early and got some breakfast before we walked to the field which was right behind the resort. The field was cool, it was basically in the city and houses were right on the other side of the walls with fences on the windows.
I assisted the public address announcer with the pronunciations of our players by using some of my knowledge in Spanish and the announcer seemed very grateful for that. He announced my name multiple times for helping him. It was just a casual baseball game yet there was so many fans at the game, music playing, and food being sold. The atmosphere was amazing.
We played very well losing 3-1 but we really competed. The mayor of the Boca Chica threw out the first pitch of the game. A few ex-professional and current professional players were just sitting around the dugout and watching the game. I talked to a few and congratulated them on their achievements.
After the game we held a clinic for the local children of Boca Chica. The kids were so excited to play baseball with us. Some of them were amazing at baseball with almost flawless mechanics at such a young age and some didn’t even know how to catch the ball. We gave them tips and it was cool trying to teach people that spoke a different language the game of baseball. We gave them a bunch of gear after the clinic and gave them all hugs and high fives. They were very grateful for the camp and the gear. It was such a humbling experience because these kids have very little but are so happy and kind.
After the game and the clinic we had a few hours before the flight so we got some rest, hung out at the pool, and packed up. The flight home was hectic but went fast and before we knew it were back home at Billera Hall and it was crazy to think that just few hours ago we were in a pool in 80-degree weather and now we warming up our cars in 20 degree temperatures.
This trip was such a humbling experience. It made me realize how fortunate my teammates and I are. Other people have nothing compared to us and are so positive and happy. I hope I am able to travel the world and study other baseball cultures and experience other third world countries again. I had no idea how poor the Dominican Republic till I experience it myself. Everything was so different, from the traffic to the food. The one thing that wasn’t different were the people. They were so kind with amazing hearts.
