I’m a huge fan of the Little League World Series. There’s so much joy watching baseball at its purest form, kids having fun in a game that has been played for over a century, not worried about how much money they are making.
It’s probably the one time in a young baseball player’s life that money is not a factor. It’s kids playing a game they grew up with on a sandlot or in the side yard of their neighbor’s house.
This is how I learned to play baseball, either on a sandlot or in someone’s backyard. Sure, there were a few broken windows and an occasional broken nose when someone (probably me) lost control of a fastball. But at the end of the day, it was just a part of the game we all loved!
Of course, once a window was broken, we scattered like a covey of quail and ran to our houses as if nothing had ever happened. No one wanted to accept or admit they were responsible for the damage done. But eventually over time, the truth would come out and the person responsible had to pay for the window either by handing over cash or doing yard work for a month, or maybe even both.
While we very seldom had enough players to field a full team, baseball is the only game that I’m aware of where you have ghost runners. That’s right, imaginary runners who could literally fly around the bases. You could play with 3-4 players on a team and make it work, all due to the ghost runner rule.
The thing about growing up in a small Texas town was that there really were neighborhood rivalries. East side vs. West side, North side vs. South side. One elementary school vs. another. The rivalries were real until you got to high school and you became one team.
What is the secret to a winning athletic program? Well, in the town of Mt. Pleasant, Texas, during the 1970s, the athletic talent level was insanely high for such a small town. There were many great athletes coming through MPHS during this time frame. The Mt. Pleasant Tigers had a statewide reputation for winning and doing well in all sports.
Championship teams were a constant and expectations from the community were high. But the one thing I remember the most was the support we had from the school and the community itself.
The leadership came from a lot of people like the mayor, school principals, teachers, booster club members, the student body, auxiliary groups, coaches and our parents, that paved the way for so many championship teams. You cannot put a price on how much community support means.
We took pride in representing Mt. Pleasant High School and looked forward to anyone who wanted to challenge the Mt. Pleasant Tigers in any sport.
I was so blessed to have the opportunity to play for a Texas baseball state championship in 1978 and win. I’ll never forget what our head coach told the team after we won. “Fellows, this win tonight will mean more to you later in life than it does now.” Truer words have never been spoken.
To this day at the young age of 65, it’s the proudest moment I have ever experienced as an athlete including the day I signed to play college football and baseball at Northwestern State. Winning a state title has meant more to me than being drafted by Major League Baseball.
There’s something special about growing up in a small town and winning a state title during your high school years, playing with guys and friends you grew up with.
It’s that closeness and comradery that made us great, along with the talent we possessed as a team. It has made us friends for life as we continue to get together from time to time to celebrate our accomplishment and share the same stories over and over.
The one thing I have noticed over time is just how much better we have gotten with each passing year. That’s right, we’re now legends in our own minds!
How lucky was I to have been a part of such a great community of people who cared about and made sure we had the support we needed to be successful! I would like to say thank you to those who played a part in not only my personal success, but the success of many teams that represented Mt. Pleasant High School. Go Tigers!
Contact Steve at sgraf26@yahoo.com