I was born 45 minutes south of Chicago, in a post – industrial rust – belt nightmare of a town called Kankakee, Illinois. I was raised in a smaller town called Clifton where baseball was the most celebrated of all sports. My passion for baseball was passed down through at least three generations. My father, Delpho, was a Detroit Tigers fan and frequently umpired for and coached little league and softball tournaments in the area. Since Wrigley Field lacked lights in the 1980’s, I became a Cubs fan, remembering Harry Caray and Steve Stone on WGNTV nearly every day in the summer – 12:15, 1:20, and 2:20 starts respectively. So, because of this, my two favorite teams growing up were the Chicago Cubs in the National League and the Detroit Tigers in the American – making for a bitter sweet autumn in 1984.
I played a well-gloved shortstop and was a better than average pitcher; once throwing a no-hitter in five innings of relief. Today, I enjoy going to both minor and major league games in the U.S. and México, using baseball as a discussion topic for the sociology classes I teach at a local university, and volunteering at the National Ballpark Museum. The best part about volunteering at the museum for me is the Wrigley Room. If I can’t be in Chicago, surrounded by the red marquee, the green ivy, the old scoreboard and mast, the smell of Italian beefs and Old Style beers, then I’ll sit and talk to our visitors as they make a turn through the Wrigley Room section – I never miss an opportunity to swap stories with our guests in that section – like a dedicated and tipsy bleacher bum.
I now live in southwest Denver and enjoy attending Rockies games with my beautiful wife – to – be Lucinda, who received her first baseball glove in 2019 as an anniversary gift. We have two cats, Violet and Maizee, and maintain our passion for the Cubs, Tigers, and Rockies.
