The Dominican Republic produces more major league baseball players per capita than any other country in the world. Young boys all over the island share the common goal of one day coming to the states to play ball on the big stage. The United States is where these ballplayers become legends. The Dominican, is where these legends are born.
I've grown up fascinated by the power of Robinson Cano and his swing. How does he do it? Where does it come from? And why do I feel so inspired when I hear the crack of that bat. I'm not the only one though.
Millions of kids around the U.S. march around repping Sosa, Soriono, Oritz, and Pujols on their backs. These kids have grown up watching their favorite Domincans absolutely dominate the MLB in the past twenty years. Inspired by their tenacity, hustle, and power, these American boys have played countless hours of backyard baseball, running around the bases thinking of their Domincan heroes, and imagining there are them. Superstars like Boston's Hanley Ramirez, Vladimir Guerrero, Jose Reyes's little league days, looked a little different. While baseball at the age of twelve is played for fun here in America, it is played for as a ticket out in the Dominican Republic.
As a Dominican, you don't have the luxury and privilege to "pursue happiness" or what we call the American Dream. A majority of the country's population is born into poverty and stays there. You also don't have the choice of leaving your home in efforts of trying to find a better one, unless your an MLB draftee of course. For young Dominican boys, baseball is their only way out. They practice and practice and practice everyday of their lives, living in MLB baseball academies, hoping their talent gets recognized and signed; literally playing ball as if their lives are on the line. So when they finally do make it and into the big leagues, it is no wonder the stun the world with their power swings and speed -their athleticism and passion.
All of which does not go unnoticed. Dominicans have sparked a revolution here in the MLB and will continue to do so. As long as there are young boys in the Caribbean dreaming big, swinging big, and scoring big, we will continue to be amazed and inspired here in the U.S.
