“You Suck! Why do you even try out!” That’s what I was used to hearing every time I would go out for a sport. Even when I think I am going to make the team I never do. So I decided to change that.

It all started last spring at a tryout last year. I walked into John Park thinking, “Man I am going to make the team, I am older than half the people here.” Boy was I wrong. It started out good, then it went South fast. I couldn’t make a clean throw to first base from shortstop even though I have done it a thousand times before, and I couldn’t throw the ball form right field to third base on even a bounce (it rolled). Also I couldn’t hit it out of the infield, and I was pissed. On the ride home I was telling my mom about how I didn’t make the team. She just looked at me and said, “Jacob you’re just going to have to work hard this summer, and maybe you’ll make the team next year.” So I did work harder.

During that summer I started off being pretty lazy. All I was doing was playing video games all day. Then one day my mom said,” Jacob aren’t you suppose to be working this summer instead of sitting there all day. She was right and I knew it.

So every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I would go to weight lifting in the morning. After that I wouldn’t get a ride home I would jog home. After a couple weeks I was starting to see improvements in everything, I could run faster, and I could throw the ball harder. Everything was doing great except I still couldn’t hit the ball. I was thinking if I can’t hit the ball, I’m not going to make the team. I made my parents get me a new bat and something to help me with my swing. A couple days later they came and I started my workouts. I could tell I was getting better, and I was, but I later found out that all that work also paid off for something else.

This past winter I learned that all my weightlifting helped me in basketball too. The previous year I didn’t play at all, this past winter I started. I could make a lot more of my shots, I was faster, and I was a better ball handler. All of this is because I worked hard in that summer. After basketball, baseball came around and I was thrilled.

Finally Baseball season. “This is going to be great,” That’s what I thought at least. At the beginning of the year I was sucking it up. Sure my contact went up, but I was driving the ball into the ground for easy groundouts. I got furious with myself, and for some reason I got mad at my teammates. Then out of the blue, I just started to get hit after hit. I was on fire. All was well, I was doing great.

I went to the tryout a couple weeks later. I was doing pretty good at the tryout, and after the Coach said, “I will call you by tomorrow at 9 o’clock if you made the team.” It was 8:30 the next day and I started to get nervous. Then the clock hit 9, no call. I thought, “why hadn’t he called, did I do badly, what happened.”

You suck, why do you even tryout. That’s what I used to hear. Until I changed. I started lifting weights, and became better. Even though I still didn’t make the team, I was good player. You can be good too, if you work hard to become a better player.