JohnA Passaro's Blog, page 3

I Tried

I tried watching Morocco vs. Spain in the World Cup today.

I tuned in at 0-0 in the 75th minute.

I tuned out at 0-0 in the 76th minute when the Morocco player fell down in agony when the Spain player stepped on his toe.

The referee gave the Spain player a yellow card, and I tuned out to watch some wrestling.

John Passaro

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Nice Trade Mets

If you ask me which I’d rather

Jacob DeGrom signed for 5 years/$185 million Or
Max Verlander signed 2 years / $86 million

There is no doubt I’d rather have Verlander.

Nice “Trade” Mets.

Verlander and Scherzer – 2 of the most intense competitors around.

The Mets now have 40% of the best pitching staff ever.

Deion Sanders – I’m Coming

I’m Coming.

Not to compete but to win.

Not to show up but to show out.

Not to be amongst the rest but to be the best.

I’m Coming.

I’m flat-out Coming.

This is real.

This isn’t ESPN or any other network you’ve seen me on –

I’m standing right in front of you.

I’m Coming.

I’m going to restore, replenish and re-energize.

Some of ya’ll are salvageable

But I’m not going to lie – everybody who has their butt in a seat ain’t going to have a seat.

I’m Coming.

I’m coming to work and not to play.

It’s going to be a different place.

A different feel.

A different attitude.

A different energy.

A different work ethic.

A different desire.

A different want.

A different need.

A different capacity.

A different reach.

I’m Coming.

There is not going to be any more mediocrity.

Period.

I’m Coming.

Books by John Passaro

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Impatience is Expensive

Francisco Lindor of the NY Mets, who is signed to a 10-year $341 million dollar contract received 77 points in the 2022 NL MVP voting.

Andres’ Giminez, who is pre-arbitration eligible (MLB Minimum wage) and who was traded for Lindor, from the Cleveland Indians received 144 points in the AL MVP Voting.

Impatience is quite often expensive.

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Always Dig Deeper

Daniel Bard, a 37-year-old relief pitcher for the Colorado Rockies received a 9th place vote in the MVP Voting.

This may seem strange – until you dig deeper.

Daniel Bard lost 7 years of his MLB career because of the Yips from 2013-2020, and this may be his last season in the big leagues.

I wouldn’t call it an MVP season – even though he posted a 1.79 ERA with 34 saves – but it is a major human accomplishment that should somehow be recognized.

Sometimes the strange has a reason.

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Inside Greatness

There reaches a point in a wrestler’s career where a wrestler realizes that his real opponent and his real fight is against himself.

The challenge:

To be able to push himself to limits, he never thought possible in circumstances he never could have imagined.

To never be broken by reality, to always have hope.

To always move forward.

No matter what.

To do whatever it takes.

No matter the outcome.

To have the inner knowledge of knowing that you did everything that you could do in pursuit of your goal no matter what evil twist was thrown at you.

When a wrestler gets to the realization that there wasn’t one more thing that they could have done, they win.

Inside.

No matter what the outcome is outside.

That’s the real battle.

When a wrestler reaches this point of inner knowledge, he achieves something greater than any title or accolade.

He achieves the inner peace of knowing that no matter what happens in life he is unbreakable and can bear any struggle.

That knowledge may be the greatest gift wrestling will ever give to him.

So, if you are in this fight, and if there is one more thing you can do

Do it.

That’s what it takes.

You’re fighting to acquire one of the most important tools you will take forward into your real battle and against your real opponent – life.

————

John Passaro

https://johnpassaro.store

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Unlucky 13

Last night, Dylan Cease became the 13th pitcher in the last 25 years to lose a no-hitter on the final out.

The other 12 pitchers were:

Miles Mikolos – 2022

Sean Newcomb – 2018

Mathew Boyd – 2017

Matt Moore – 2016

Carlos Carrasco – 2015

Shelby Miller – 2015

Michael Wacha – 2013

Yesmeiro Petit – 2013

Yu Darvish – 2013

Armando Gallaraga – 2010

Mike Mussina – 2001

Roy Halladay – 1998

Here is an Ebay Affiliate Link to Dylans Cease 1st Bowman Chrome Auto cards

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It’s Never Too Late

Photo by MLB

32 year old Fernando Cruz made his major league debut yesterday.

He pitched 1 inning – striking out 2 for the Cincinnati Reds.

He is the 22,809th player to ever play in the majors.

Here is an Ebay affiliate link to his 2015 Minor league Cards

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Awesome

Everyone can use a little awe in their lives.

It was on a cold Sunday morning in the dead of winter, some 17 years ago when I first met Justin Dunn and his dad Ed.

They had traveled from Freeport to Matt Guiliano’s Indoor baseball facility to attend a workout I was holding for our newly formed travel baseball team.

I was looking for crazy parents who were willing to make a commitment to play a 100 game season.

The team was for 9 year olds.

I know, I know – that sounds insane.

Especially back then when “travel” baseball really didn’t exist the way it does today.

Anyone who knows me knows I can’t do things in moderation.

For a few years I had the pleasure of coaching Justin and traveling the east coast with 10 crazy baseball families including the Dunn family.

Baseball was our life and life was good.

It was one of the best times in my life.

I often long for those days today.

For a few seasons we played professional youth baseball.

It was a great time.

Last night, 17 years later, Justin Dunn, just 24 miles from where he grew up was the starting pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds vs. the New York Mets at Citifield.

I was in attendance.

And I was in awe.

“John, Justin is making his season debut tomorrow night at Citifield,” Ed said to me when he called me the other day.

A little context – originally the New York Mets drafted Justin in 2016 in the 1st round, 19th overall. It was then that I was sure that I was going to be able to see Justin pitch locally.

That hope would be delayed 4 years when the Mets traded Justin Dunn and Jarred Kelenic to the Seattle Mariners for Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz.

Justin would spend 3 seasons in Seattle being part of the Mariners resurgence on the team that just missed making the playoffs for the first time in 21 years. The Mariners future looked bright.

Shortly thereafter, the Mariners traded him to the Cincinnati Reds.

After injuring his scapular, Justin rehabbed for nearly a year and wouldn’t you know it – his 2022 season debut was going be at Citifield.

Only a 4 year delay to see him pitch in an MLB game.

During our conversation the other day I asked Ed many questions – as I’m an avid baseball fan.

“What’s up with Jarred Kelenic?”

“What was it like to be in the same dugout as the great Ken Griffey Jr?”

“What are the majors really like?”

On and on and on – I just kept firing out questions one after another until I got to my final question.

I love greatness. I research it, analyze it – seek to understand it, so that is why on my final question I asked Ed,

“Ed, where is it that you think it happened for Justin – was it going to a High School Prep school, Boston College Playing in Cape Cod – where do you think Justin made his biggest gain?

He stunned me with his answer – “Showing up on that cold Sunday in the dead of winter as a skinny 9 year old.”

I immediately replied, “That’s a nice thing to say – but really, where do you think it was?”

“No really, If Justin didn’t show up that day we wouldn’t have never been introduced to that type of travel ball, that type of commitment – that type of insanity that is needed to make it. We probably would have played in our local Little League and been satisfied.”

In no way am I taking an ounce of credit for Justin making it to the majors – that was all his and his families hard work commitment and sacrifice.

But it was very rewarding to hear Ed then add,

“I would love for you to share this moment with my family – there will be 2 tickets waiting for you at will call.”

Just Awesome.

While speaking with Ed he mentioned that while playing in the minors for the Mets organization Justin and Pete Alonso became good friends on their mutual journeys to the majors.

Maybe that’s why I picked up on something that may have been easily overlooked – right before Pete Alonso stepped into the batters box last night to square off against his friend – there was a mutual tipping of their caps – Justin to Pete Alonso and Pete Alonso to Justin – as if to say – I’m glad you made it my friend.

To Justin, Ed, Donna and Ryan – I also tip my cap to you.

I’m glad you made it my friends.

I’m in awe.

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TIMELESS

I just came across something I wrote on this day 9 years ago – when my mom was still alive.

I’m glad I wrote it when she was able to read it.

The letter is 40 years old.

TIMELESS

The other day when I went over my mom’s house there was lying on her counter a letter that I had written her during my freshman year of college, some thirty-one years earlier.

As I was reading my own words off of the wrinkled yellowing pages a few things came to mind.

The first thing was how much has changed over those thirty-one years.

A hand written letter sent through the mail.  

Think of that.

Actually putting pen to paper, with your own handwriting, placing that communication in the mail and within four days having it arrive at the intended destination.

Just think of how much life has sped up.

Now that same letter can be sent within a few seconds to its target.

Time has changed. 

The second thing that struck me was the creased, wrinkling, yellowing paper.

Obviously the letter was folded, put in an envelope and sent through the mail.  When the envelope was opened and the letter taken out of the envelope, the creases never went away.  Along the creases, the paper became worn and thin and that is where the yellowing was most dominant. The creases, wrinkles and yellowing were a way of the universe authenticating the age of the letter. 

Not with a time stamp, but with the wear of time.

As I read the letter I started to realize how much has not changed.

You see I wrote the letter, some thirty-one years ago to inform my mom that I no longer had the desire to wrestle in college.

That I had lost the desire to compete, that I thought that wrestling was a dead end for me.

My main reason that I stated in the letter was that I no longer had a BIG goal.  

The sacrifices that I would have to make seemed greater than the prize I would receive.

And just like that I stopped. 

The switch was turned off.

In the rest of the letter I wrote about appreciation and lack of communication.

I let my mom know how much that I appreciated all that she did to support me during my wrestling career under some tough financial times and how sorry I was for never letting her or my father know that; that they were great people and that I really felt bad for never communicating that to them during my now seemingly selfish pursuit of wrestling glory.

This part of the letter confirmed two things to me. 

One, the importance of having BIG goals, and two, the importance of communicating ones appreciation.

When one does not have BIG goals, the journey and the price one has to pay will not seem worth it, and slowly but surely your goals will turn to dreams, your dreams will turn to wishes, and your wishes will turn to dust.

Just like that.

As far as the communication part of the letter, I envisioned myself nearing the tail end of my life, rummaging through a box of valuable items that I had saved throughout my life and coming across a wrinkled, yellowing, handwritten letter from my son who let me know how much that he appreciated everything that I did for him; how that would make me feel.

And I smiled.

Because I am positive that my mom felt the same way.

One of her most valuable possessions in her life was a letter from me letting her know that I appreciated her and the way that she brought me up.

And that was a great feeling.

Today I put a copy of that letter that I sent to my mom, some thirty-one years ago, in my own box of my life’s most valuable items.

That letter may have taken four days to get to my mom when it was originally written, but it has lasted a lifetime.

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