All of us have read or heard about Josh Hamilton’s incredible story,
and last night, many of us were lucky enough to witness on TV his
stunning home run exhibition in the first round of the Home Run Derby
(in which he hit an amazing 28 home runs, a record).

Personally, I’m deeply inspired by Josh
Hamilton’s comeback from drug and alcohol addiction (as is Peter
Gammons, who writes so eloquently about the meaning of Hamilton
in his blog) and I’m rooting hard for his continued success. I only
wish he were on the Red Sox, so I could watch him play and cheer for
him every day.

But what I want to write about tonight is
the impact that Hamilton has had on my 9 year-old son. This kid is a
fiercely loyal Red Sox fan, and in his four years as an “aware” fan of
the game, Josh Hamilton is only the third non-Red Sox player he has
rooted for with passion (the others are Pedro Martinez and Nomar
Garciaparra). Why does he like Josh Hamilton so much? Two reasons:

1.
On Patriots Day, April 22, I took my two sons and a friend of theirs to
the Red Sox-Rangers game. Afterwards, they spotted a Rangers player
signing autographs near the Rangers dugout. “Daddy, can we run over
there and get his autograph?” Sure, you can try, I replied. I
hadn’t seen a player sign autographs after a game at Fenway Park since
I was a kid, in the late ’70s or early ’80s, and I could feel their
excitement about scoring a major leaguer’s autograph. They were at the
back of a large line of people, but the unknown Rangers player signed
and signed and posed for photos with anyone who was interested. By the
time my oldest son and his friend reached the front of the line, the
player had been signing for perhaps ten minutes, and he seemed to be in
no hurry to go take a shower.

He signed my son’s hat, then politely and calmly posed for a photo with my son and his friend. What do you say, I whispered. “Thank you,” my son said. You’re welcome, buddy, the player replied.
As we walked away, the player continued to sign autographs and pose for
photos. “Who was that?” I asked my son. “Josh Hamilton, see?” he
replied, showing me the autograph on the white brim of his Red Sox cap.

The kids glowed all the way home, their Fenway experience having ended in a magical way.

2. Last night, Hamilton won our hearts
forever with monumental shot after monumental shot, his 71 year-old
former high school baseball coach pitching to him, and his proclamation
to FOX sportscaster Erin Andrews that he had dreamed the exact scene,
including being interviewed by her. “Mommy, come in here if you want to
see history being made!” my son yelled after HR number 25. He was
mesmerized. So was I. (Weren’t you??)

Today at my son’s day camp, the kids were
given t-shirts and invited to decorate them with
markers. When I picked him up in the late afternoon,
he was wearing a homemade all-star team replica shirt with the word
“American” scrawled across the front and the name “Hamilton” written in
block letters across the top of the back of the shirt. (Oops, Hamilton
isn’t #21, he’s #32…. details…) He wore the t-shirt

the rest of the
day, even while we watched seven Red Sox players compete in the
All-Star Game.

Hamilton’s improbable transformation makes
him a fascinating figure to the media and all of us adult fans, but
that side of the player means almost nothing to young baseball fans out
there. They love the guy for simple reasons — he’s a phenomenal,
graceful, exciting ballplayer, and he takes time to talk with them,
sign an autograph, and pose for a photo. With 750 major leaguers, it’s
remarkable that so few comprehend the profound influence they can have
on young people in this way.

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To download the songs, “I’m A Member of Red Sox Nation” and “Opening Day” for free, please visit my other blog, Crawdaddy Cove.