[StormsWarning]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bullit

This is going to be a long one and some of you have heard it before so bear with me. Baseball literally has saved my sanity and my life, it continues to do so to this day. When I was a kid, I grew up on a farm. I mean a real working farm. As soon as you were old enough you started working. Even a 5 and 6 years old I was up at 4am doing chores and trying to help. But there was a problem. I was a wild child and was always getting into some trouble or forgetting to do things, wandering off etc. One Saturday my Mother was just at her wits end with me and plopped me in front of the TV with my Grandfather who was watching a rarely televised baseball game. Now this was in the days before ADD or OCD was thing. All anybody knew is I was a pain in the ***. But that day I sat for 3 hours straight and never said a word. That was where it all began. From then on, all i did was read, watch, listen, talk anything Baseball. Pops, my Grandfather, started teaching me stats, and players, history of the game all I wanted to know I would just sit there and absorb it all. It became my first love and obsession. It calmed my mind and quieted the crazy. When the world got to much or I would start being overwhelmed, I would just turn on a game in mind and everything would just slow back down and I could get thru a day. Then Pops introduced me to Strato Matic Baseball. Every January on the last Friday he and I would drive up to New York to get the new cards for the year. Man, those were some peaceful times. He passed in 1978 and that next January I got a friends Dad to take me up and all of our friends up there saw me without Pops and just new. I hadn't cried until that day and I didn't think I would ever stop. I went up there one more year after and then I have not been since. Then we move on this journey to High School. We has sold the farm, parents divorced and we moved to southern Virginia. I have always had trouble making friends, so I tried out for the team and made it as the short stop. Played all thru school until I graduated and left for the Army. Throughout the 10+ years I was in the Army, the one thing that was always in my ruck was my glove and a ball. From North Africa to Afghanistan I have had some crazy pick up games of ball. I have a catch with Generals, Admirals, Senators and Congressman. With Israelis', Saudi's, Afhgan rebels and children all over the world. When my daughter was born in 1996 I was blessed with the best little girl in the world. At about the same age as I was when I discovered the game, she did as well. Crawling up into my lap and just absorbing it all. Soon she was a big a fan as I was. We went to games anytime we could. College, Minors whatever it just didn't matter as long we were at a game. I mean like 20-30 games a summer was on the low end. It became our thing. The only rule was we had to go to 2 new parks every summer. Then in 2007 we discovered MLB The Show and that was all she wrote. Every spring we would pre order and pray for something else big to release so we could get it at midnight. We would stand in the parking lot having a catch talking about what our plans were for this years game. It was just an amazing time. Day in and day out we would play. We each always had our own copy. But always comparing notes and trade ideas. It was "our" thing. Then in November of 2012 my daughter passed unexpectedly of illness in November. My family here on OS was a true blessing. If not for the folks on here I am not sure I would have survived those first few months. My Cricket was my everything. Her mother had left us when she was 6 months old and she is all I had or needed. There is no other family. That winter I reached out to the folks at The Show and told them our story, just to share how much their hard work was appreciated and that it did touch lives. Well that spring I received a copy of The Show in mail just a day or so before release. To this day I have no idea who sent it or why. But MLB The Show had my daughters name added into the voice file and my daughter has played on her beloved Mets every year since. So some folks on here accuse me of being a fan boy. Well how can you not be. This game means everything to me. This last year I have finished 4 years of a Padres franchise, 1 Year of a Nats franchise and I am in 2026 of my RTTS career. I have logged almost 1300 hours in this game, just this year. I have fallen a little quiet this past year. But I was having a tough year. I was briefly a Moderator which was an amazing honor but I had some issues on my end that where hurting me and OS so I stepped back just to get back on track. Im happy to say I am off every med I have been put on and slowly getting back to life. Some days the pain is still unbearable and the darkness wins. But I am still here and moving a little forward everyday. Thru it all there has always been Baseball. Peace. ps: I am not entering to win anything, just wanted to share

I am truly sorry for your loss, you can rest easy and know she is with God and very well taken care of. I will keep you in my Prayers may God give you strength and peace in your heart and soul.

Your story is truly amazing I hope you continue to be blessed.