aronlevinson-blog

[aronlevinson-blog]

For 8 years I’d asked Isaac, “Can you put last season’s baseball pants, cleats and hat in the Cuba pile?” And in 2016 he said, “Yes, but when can I go to Cuba?” I’d read about the Cuban Missile Crisis and their education/healthcare. I tried to understand the revolution, ongoing embargo and why Cuba was seen as the enemy. My image of Cuba was Fidel in an adidas track suit, cigars, mojitos, the menu at Versailles -- a national baseball team where bat flips were the norm, the catcher touched the ball when the infield threw the ball around the diamond and catchers screamed at the pitchers for throwing a ball. In 2007 I had to remove the mystery and see it for myself. I was invited to play 6 baseball games in 8 days in Cienfuegos and La Habana, Cuba. When I landed, I had the chills: I was anxious, on sensory overload, confused by the horse traffic, the language sounded like Spanish but was much faster and less enunciated than the Spanish I learned while studying abroad in Mexico and there was THE billboard outside the Havana airport. It featured Hitler, Stalin and President George W. Bush and read, “It takes a terrorist to know a terrorist.” I wasn’t at home anymore and from the comforts of the tour bus, I wondered how the Cubans would treat me now that I was on their turf. All those fears quickly dissipated when players, family members and government officials greeted us at the baseball fields. Turns out they love baseball and when you’re in Cuba, regardless of age, you’re a pelotero (baseball player). Period. Between the lines it was just baseball and I quickly realized the Cubans needed to borrow our gear and as a catcher, that meant leaving my gear at home plate. After the second breakfast at the hotel, I started taking oranges, papayas, bananas and bread from the hotel and feeding the players and fans. The feeling of helping was real. It felt good. It was addicting. In 2007, after my last game in La Habana, the umpire asked me for my cup for his son, who played third base. I didn’t hesitate and pulled the cup from my jock and handed it to him. He put it in his pocket, said thank you and walked off the field. After this first trip, I hobbled in physical pain, with a smile on my face, and came home with just my backpack and passport. Fast forward 10 years of playing ball in Cuba, where I was able to develop win-win humanitarian relationships with adidas, Louisville Slugger, Rawlings, Pitch In For Baseball, etc., and I got to know Cuban locals. Every year, I donated Isaac’s outgrown baseball gear, Bella’s clothes and soccer cleats and Christine’s jewelry, dresses, shoes and workout gear. In 2016, Isaac asked to go to Cuba. He wanted to see it for himself, and with this being his last Little League season, why not? I’d been so many times, delivered photos of Isaac’s gear given to a Cuban child, and learned so much about the process of getting to Cuba from Baseball Adventures’ Paul Raymond. I then called Paul to ask about how to make this youth baseball/humanitarian dream a reality. He pointed me in the right direction, alerted me of some common pitfalls, and I reached out to local Dads asking if they’d have an interest in playing 12u baseball over Spring Break in Cuba. Some said, “yes”, a few said, “Interesting. When and how much?” A few said, “maybe” and one even said, “no way would I allow my son to visit a third world, communist country.” From there I started the process of talking with travel agents. I told everyone I knew in Cuba about our dream to play youth baseball and to teach our boys the power of giving: to open their eyes to another part of the world, to see how others live, to understand how fortunate we are, to embrace the unknown and to personalize the adventure I’d shared with so many of them over the years, via videos and photos. We fundraised with the help of friends, family, a lemonade stand at a local AYSO soccer field and local business support. We secured a new direct flight from LAX to HAV, booked our land package that included the hotel, bus, driver, guide and baseball games secured through both INDER and our local Cuban contacts. After a few thousand emails, team meetings and solidifying the finer details, like investing in personal baseball cards for the boys, an American flag, Team USA uniforms and Louisville Slugger mini bats to, of course, give to the Cubans as a pre-game gift, we were set. With our historical election and a new administration in office, I often wondered if we’d get on that plane. With our bags stuffed with donated Louisville Slugger gear, on April 8, 2017, we took off from LAX. The boys and Dads expressed varying emotions, ranging from, “are we really doing this?” to “I can’t wait!” We landed in Havana at 5pm with our bags arriving soon after, and the guide, driver and bus with a bathroom plus A/C waited for us outside the Jose Marti International terminal. Our adventure began, and I was able to finally breathe a sigh of relief because, once you clear Cuban immigration, the medical health station, and customs, you’re off and running. We headed to El Aljibe in Havana for the best chicken, beans and rice on the planet and even had friends and current Cuban National Baseball Team Catcher and national hero, Frank Camilo Morejon, and professional baseball veteran, Wilber de Armas, join us for dinner. Of course, an impromptu autograph session in the restaurant followed. The boys were fed, excited, fed a few cats, and it was time to leave La Habana. We drove 3 hours to Cienfuegos (with a quick stop at a roadside gas station, where the boys bought nearly every ice cream in the freezer case) to check in to Hotel Rancho Luna and settle in before game #1 the next morning. After a simple breakfast, the boys were in a daze; we fired up El Taxi (Pitbull, Sensato and Osmani Garcia) on the bus and arrived at La Plaza youth baseball field near the malecon in Cienfuegos. The Cuban boys were waiting for us and greeted us off the bus with high fives. The boys started their pre-game warm ups, a few of us gave a national television interview, there was an elaborate pre-game ceremony with the Little League pledge, recited in English and Spanish, both teams did their pledge of allegiance, and it was time to play ball without a dugout to escape the blazing sun and humidity. Jared led off the game with a base hit, and I knew we were going to compete. When Troy arrived at third base and high fived the Cuban third baseman, I knew we were going to experience the power of sports and unforgettable international relations. On the field, the boys played hard, represented USA baseball, came from behind twice, walked off once and succumbed to one defeat. I often found myself looking around, taking it all in, listening to the sound of the horseshoes on the asphalt, hearing the roar of the fans in the stands, translating the Cuban coaching (they must have said, “Down and ready” and “Move on the pitch” 100 times a game), and seeing the smiling faces on both sides of the field. I was proud of the boys, I loved seeing the Dads enjoy the experience, and I was proud of myself for making this seed of an idea a reality. Off the field, we ate at private homes, got haircuts, visited an artist, chased wild dogs/cats, had dinner with a gold medal winning Cuban Pitcher, and stopped by Yoan Moncada’s boyhood home to meet his father swinging a Marucci bat in his gated front yard. Everyone tried to speak Spanish and adapt to the surroundings. No one fought it, no one got deathly ill, and by the last afternoon in La Habana, some kids wanted our flight cancelled, while others were wiped out after 6 days in Cuba. Hearing “thank you” felt good, but my reward was seeing the Dads bond with their sons, our boys becoming baseball ambassadors while representing our country, the community and their family name -- all in a place hard to describe and better seen with your own eyes. I look forward to seeing how this Cuban baseball and humanitarian adventure continues to impact their lives for years to come. To my new Cuban brothers: you trusted me. I planned the trip, and you made it a trip of a lifetime. Gracias. Coach Aron (Amazing photo by Jon C.)

[aronlevinson-blog]

Tommy John & WTLL’s Timothy Horsey talk arm injuries

WTLL Parents, We’re at the half way mark of the season and during the break I was thinking about our kids with tired/injured arms, throwing with less velocity/control and I wanted to share a local and major league story to help educate league parents about overuse injuries with the goal of keeping our kids healthy, happy and on the field. I reached out to WTLL’s Bob Horsey (father of Timothy Horsey of the Major Astros) to learn about his son's overuse injury that has kept him off the mound this season. Timothy's stress fracture in his elbow on his growth plate was serious enough that his doctor completely shut him down from any sports for 5 months. Overuse is the culprit and his doctor suggested giving up one sport completely (he chose to pass on basketball this season) and minimize his throws on the baseball field to allow his body to heal and get stronger. His doctor also encouraged him to play different sports throughout the year to work different muscle groups along with ample rest in between seasons. I then reached out to 288 major league career game winner Tommy John to get his thoughts about the ongoing trend of young arm injuries, shortened careers, the odds of your son playing pro baseball and kids playing year round sports. For those of you that don’t know Tommy John’s story, here is the edited version. In the middle of the 1974 season, Tommy was cruising along with a 13-3 record as the Los Angeles Dodgers were en route to their first National League pennant in eight years, before he permanently damaged the ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching arm, leading to a revolutionary surgical operation by Dr. Frank Jobe. This operation, now known as Tommy John surgery, replaced the ligament in the elbow of his pitching arm with a tendon from his right forearm. Dr. Frank Jobe has performed thousands of Tommy John surgeries over the years. Here are Tommy’s thoughts about overuse injuries occuring in Little League. “Overuse is really THE BIGGEST reason for players getting Tommy John Surgery at younger ages. Parents think they know more than the doctors. The reason that players need Tommy John surgery at younger ages is because they pitch year around. Dr. Jobe, Dr. Andrews, Dr. ElAttrache, and perhaps most of the Orthos believe that youngsters need time off to rest their arms and heal what damage pitching does. Dr. Jim Andrews believes 6 on & 6 off. Play for 6 months and rest for 6 months. Do you REALLY think that 12 month baseball will make your little Johnny that much better? Really? Travel baseball has caused most of this. My Johnny can play for the Sharks and "get scouted!!" Not at 6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13 years old. Now when this youngster gets to be 14-18 years of age then he might get scouted. Do the math!! Over 4,000,000 play baseball at 8-9 years of age. 750 play MLB baseball. Do you have any idea the odds? Little Johnny would be 10,000% better off playing another sport to get STRONGER than play baseball. Another analogy is this: Name the best pitcher in the MLB? Kershaw? Probably. Does he pitch for 12 months? No. He takes time off to heal. If the best in the world rests, shouldn’t the kids do the same? Parents let your child have fun, enjoy his childhood. Then if he shows talent he can go to work to get even better. You people are making these Orthos millionaires doing all these Tommy John surgeries.” I hope this note will encourage you to learn more about preventing arm injuries, create more dialogue with your coaches and doctors, and rest those arms so your child can play ball for many years to come. A big thank you to Bob & Timothy Horsey and Tommy John for taking the time to share their stories with our baseball community. See you at the fields, Aron Levinson Manager, Major Nationals & Board Member