40,000 to ONE: ROCKIES DYNASTY FOR MLB 13
 

BY PAT DORWIN


AS APRIL IS PARKINSON'S DISEASE AWARENESS MONTH, THIS BLOG WILL FOLLOW THE COLORADO ROCKIES ON MLB: THE SHOW.

SINCE MANY GAMERS ARE YOUNG, THEY MAY NOT REMEMBER FORMER COLORADO CATCHER BEN PETRICK. HE CAME UP FOR A CUP OF COFFEE 13 YEARS AGO, A FIVE TOOL PLAYER WHO BANGED OUT FOUR HOMERS IN JUST 62 AT-BATS, WHILE HITTING MORE THAN .320.

I SUPPOSE I COULD JUST ADD BEN TO THE GAME, REPLACING SOME DUDE AND RAMPING UP HIS PERFORMANCE LEVELS. JOE RANDOM, MEET YOUR REPLACEMENT, BEN PETRICK.

SO, HERE THE BEN THAT STARTED HIS MAJOR LEAGUE CAREER 13 YEARS AGO, IS NOW 35 (SOON TO BE 36 ON APRIL 7). MAYBE HE'S FIGHTING FOR HIS JOB AS A CATCHER, OR MAYBE THE ROCKIES' FRONT OFFICE HAD BEEN SMART ENOUGH TO KEEP HIM IN A CORNER OUTFIELD SLOT TO SAVE THE WEAR AND TEAR OF BEING AN MLB BACKSTOP.

AFTER ALL, PETRICK PLAYED A BIT OF THE OUTFIELD AS A ROCKIE AND LATER WITH DETROIT.

OF COURSE THAT'S ALL JUST SPECULATION BECAUSE THE WINTER AFTER HIS INITIAL TASTE OF THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF BASEBALL, BEN'S HOPES OF CONTINUING TO PERFORM AT A MAJOR-LEAGUE LEVEL, INDEED TO WALK AROUND HIS OWN HOME SAFELY OR TO BUTTON A SHIRT WERE DASHED.

NOT PUT ON HOLD, BUT YANKED OUT FROM UNDER HIM. AFTER SEEING A DOCTOR, BEN WAS TOLD HE HAD "PARKINSONSISM" LIKE SYMPTOMS.

THE DOCTOR TOLD BEN HE WOULD DIAGNOSE HIM WITH PARKINSON'S DISEASE, BUT THAT THE SYMPTOMS HE SAW IN BEN WERE MORE TYPICAL OF FOLKS MORE THAN 40 YEARS OLDER THAN BEN HIMSELF.

YES, THAT IN ITSELF SUCKS ENOUGH - BEING TOLD THAT NOT ONLY IS YOUR CAREER - YOUR JOB - IN DIRECT CONFLICT WITH WHAT YOUR BRAIN DOES - OR DOES NOT - TELL YOUR BODY TO DO, BUT THAT THIS ISN'T SOMETHING THAT STARTS AT THE BALL PARK AND GETS TUCKED BACK INTO YOUR LOCKER AT THE END OF THE DAY.

NO, NO. YOUNG-ONSET PARKINSON'S IS GOING TO CHANGE EVERYTHING IN YOUR LIFE, TO SOME DEGREE OR ANOTHER. FROM TYING YOUR SHOES TO TRY AND FISH SOME QUARTERS OUT OF YOUR POCKET TO BUY A NEWSPAPER, MOST EVERYTHING ABOUT YOUR LIFE IS GOING TO CHANGE.

AND NOT FOR THE BETTER.

PAT DORWIN IS IN HIS 10TH YEAR SINCE BEING DIAGNOSED WITH EARLY-ONSET PARKINSON'S DISEASE. HE RAISES MONEY TO FIGHT THIS PROGRESSIVE, DEGENERATIVE DISEASE AT www.pdproject2020.blogspot.com AND THE DISEASE IS WHY HE TYPES IN ALL-CAPS - IT'S MUCH EASIER - HE'S NOT "SHOUTING" AT YOUR MONKEY ASSES.

Re: 40,000 to ONE: ROCKIES DYNASTY FOR MLB 13
 

BEFORE I GET STARTED, MUCH THANKS TO BEN FOR DONATING COPIES OF HIS BOOK "40,000 TO ONE" FOR THE THIRD ANNUAL "SHAKIN' NOT STIRRED" PARKINSON'S FUNDRAISER, OF WHICH www.kimefundcnd.org HAS RAISED MORE THAN $50,000 EACH OF THE PAST TWO YEARS.

THANKS TO BEN FOR ALSO ASKING A CURRENT ROCKIE - AND FORMER UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE QUARTERBACK - TO DONATE AN AUTOGRAPHED BAT AND JERSEY FOR THE EVENT. GUESS WHO HE ASKED? HINT, IT WASN'T ALAN COCKRELL ...

Re: 40,000 to ONE: ROCKIES DYNASTY FOR MLB 13
 

COLORADO ROCKIES

SPRING TRAINING ROSTER

BEN PETRICK'S #6 HAS BEEN RETIRED BY THE TEAM. TODD HELTON, TRYING TO BOUNCE BACK AT AGE 37, HAS TAKEN OVER THE #15 PETRICK WORE AT TIMES. I DRAFTED THRU 58 ROUNDS, BUT THE CPU JINXED HELTON AS A TOTAL OF NINE FIRST BASEMEN ARE ON THE 90-PLAYER ROSTER.


SP
# NAME
11 Y DARVISH
12 J PARKER
54 J GARCIA
45 J CHACIN
36 E JACKSON
35 T CAHILL
67 D STRAILY
55 J KELLY

RP
---
68 R COOK
51 J BROXTON
64 M FIERS
57 S ELBERT
87 H TAKAHASI
52 B DUENSING
65 P FELICIANO
7 P AUMONT

CP
--
76 J NATHAN

C
--
13 S PEREZ
39 D NORRIS
3 H CONGER

INF
----
37 B MOSS
15 T HELTON
59 L OVERBAY

25 J GIAVOTELLA
38 H PEREZ

33 R ZIMMERMAN

10 M GONZALEZ
4 P JANISH

OF
--
34 B HARPER
49 R LUDWICK
2 S SMITH

27 C MAYBIN
21 T COLVIN
8 C COGHLAN

9 D BROWN
41 J PAREDES
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