Tom Hanks, playing a broken-down manager of a women’s baseball team in A League of Their Own, uttered this famous line:
Are you crying? Are you crying? ARE YOU CRYING? There’s no crying! THERE’S NO CRYING IN BASEBALL!
Well, sometimes there is. In the Colorado Rockies opening day game last Friday, Cuban-born Rockies shortstop Jose Iglesias got a base hit in the second inning to drive in the Rockies’ second run. He broke down in tears. Why? Because his father, still in Cuba, had died just a few weeks before. Here’s how the Colorado Springs Gazette described the moment:
What I want to draw your attention to is Dodger first-baseman Freddie Freeman, one of the heroes in the Atlanta Braves’ world series victory last season, and one of the most well-liked players in baseball. Google him, and you’ll read things like this:
“There is no person that doesn’t like Freddie Freeman in the league,” said Miguel Rojas, the Miami Marlins shortstop.
When it comes to earning the respect of your teammates, coaches and fellow players in a sports league, it certainly helps to be good at the sport. And it just so happens that Freddie Freeman is good — really good — at baseball, earning the MVP Award for the 2020 season and leading the league in runs scored while picking up All-Star selection No. 5 in 2021.
But even if Freeman was a .195 career hitter instead of a .295 career hitter, and even if his career-high in home runs was 11 instead of 38, and even if he had a grand total of zero Gold Gloves and Silver Sluggers to his name, it seems like he’d still be a beloved member of Major League Baseball. Why? He’s the nicest dude on the diamond. – Audacity.com
Many say that he treats first base like his front porch, and if you’ve gotten a base hit, you’ve dropped in for a visit. He congratulates players for getting a hit, and they often exchange batting tips.
When Jose Iglesias came for his “visit,” and then broke down in tears, here’s how the Gazette described the moment:
On Friday, noticing the emotion, Dodger first baseman Freddie Freeman immediately tried to comfort him. Freeman lost his mother when he was young and tried to help Iglesias get through the moment. “It was a beautiful moment,” Iglesias said. “Beyond baseball, we are human beings.”
I write frequently about the 6Ms – ways God uses us – and Freddie Freeman at first base demonstrates that we can both Make Good Work and Minister Grace and Love, even in the competitive environment of professional sports.
Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. (Romans 12.15, ESV)