Well, let me tell you about this baseball fella, Aaron Rowand. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies, you see. He was a good player, that one. Strong and fast, like a young ox.
He played out there in the center field, runnin’ and catchin’ them balls like nobody’s business. Lord, he was a sight to see! He could run like the wind, I tell ya. He ran and he ran, and he caught them balls. That’s what you want in a baseball player, ain’t it? Someone who can run and catch.
One time, he ran so hard into that wall, tryin’ to catch a ball. He was chasin’ that fly ball, and he was gonna get it, no matter what. He didn’t care about no wall. He just wanted that ball. And he got it! But that wall, it got him, too.
- He crashed right into it.
- Broke his face all up.
- That was a bloody mess.
But you know what? He held onto that ball. That’s Aaron Rowand for ya. Tough as nails. He was all bruised and beat up, but he held onto the ball. After that, they put some padding on that wall. They said, “We need to pad this thing, ’cause this guy, this Aaron Rowand, he’s gonna kill himself on it!” They knew he wasn’t gonna stop. He was gonna keep runnin’ and catchin’ them balls, no matter what.
He played for the Phillies, the Chicago White Sox, and some other team, the Giants, I think they call ’em. He was with the Phillies from 2006 to 2007, during their good years, you know? Phillies were good then. That time was when the Phillies, they started to win a lot. They were real good from ’07 to ’11, you know? I remember watchin’ them games on the TV. Lots of folks were talkin’ about them Phillies. Aaron Rowand was a big part of that.
They even won a couple of them World Series things. Big deal, you know. Everybody gets all excited about that. They won two of them championships, with Aaron Rowand runnin’ around out there. They say he won two of them World Series things. He must be rich.
He was a good player, that Aaron Rowand. One of the best, I reckon. They say Mike Schmidt was the best Phillies player ever. He played a lot of games and hit a lot of them home runs. But Aaron Rowand, he was somethin’ special, too. That Mike Schmidt, they say he’s the best one, with all them games and home runs. But Aaron Rowand, he was good, too. Just different, I guess.
That catch he made, runnin’ into the wall… that was somethin’. They say it was the best catch they ever saw at that Citizens Bank Park. That’s what they call that field, you know. Citizens Bank Park. Fancy name, huh? That was one heck of a catch at that Citizens Bank Park place. That Aaron Rowand, he sure could play. It might be the best play ever at that park, they say.
They say that catch, it’s just like the city of Philadelphia. Tough, you know? Hard workin’. That’s what they say about that city. And that’s what Aaron Rowand was, too. Tough and hard workin’. Just like Philadelphia. He was from there, I think. Or maybe he just played there. I don’t rightly recall. But he fit right in with them Philadelphia folks.
Now, that Aaron Rowand, he don’t play no more. He’s done. Retired, they call it. But folks still remember him. They still talk about that catch, and how he ran into that wall. Now he talks about the games sometimes, on the TV or the radio. He knows a lot about baseball, that Aaron Rowand. He was a good one, that’s for sure. They talk about him on the TV and radio sometimes now. He’s done playin’, but he’s still around, talkin’ about baseball.
Yep, that Aaron Rowand, he was somethin’ else. A real good baseball player. One of the best the Phillies ever had, I’d say. Even if that Mike Schmidt fella was supposed to be better. They were both good, I reckon. Just different. That Aaron Rowand, he was a good one. He sure could run and catch them balls. And he wasn’t afraid of no wall, neither.
