The "Living My Dream" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Looking at the SXM People Talk section of "Travel Talk Online" when I came across a post titled "SXM Native debuts in Major League Baseball."  Naturally had to click on the post to see what was being said about the Sint Maarten native.  For years Carol and I have been traveling to St. Martin/Sint Maarten on vacation and on most of those trips we have traveled to the Dutch side of the two nation island to the capital of Philipsburg.  Bordering the north side of the city, along the massive salt pond, is located the island's Little League Baseball stadium.  

Little League Ball Field in Sint Maarten on Salt Pond Island.

Pretty impressive ballpark for a Caribbean island.  Even watched part of a game there one year. It was here that Madame's Estate resident Denzil Richardson honed his baseball skills and became proficient in the game of baseball.  Eventually in 2011, he was signed by the Colorado Rockies to a $30,000 contract.  At that time he was considered on of the fastest players in the organization, being able to run the 60 yard dash in 6.3 seconds.  Pretty impressive for a young man who plays centerfield and is 6'2" tall and weighs 174 pounds. He has toiled in the low minors and Dominican Summer League until being invited to the Major League camp this spring.  It was on Sunday, March 30 that Denzil posted on his Facebook page that "I'm going to be playing in a Major League game today at 3:10 pm.  Well, news spread fast on Sint Maarten, all the way to the Little League field on Pond Island.  

Sint Maarten native Denzil Richardson.

He continued his post with "So go to a sports bar and show your support as this will be my first big game.  As part of spring training, I will be playing with the Colorado Rockies against the Seattle Mariners."  The game was being played in Arizona and only available on certain channels.  Quickly links to websites that would stream the game were posted on his Facebook page.  Posts began to come quickly once the game began.  A copy of the line-up card with Denzil's name in the second slot and playing right field appeared on Facebook.  Denzil, wearing #65 on his back, came in to replace Charlie Blackmon in the 6th inning.  Shortly after he entered to play  right field, a ball was hit that direction and he recorded his first Major League catch.  Denzil finished his post with "I'm doing my best to put St. Maarten on the map, so would appreciate the support!"  Later on, TV screens and computer screens showed the actual footage of Richardson's first at bat and two catches in the outfield.  Rockies won the game 2-1 with Denzil's help. After the game, in a reply to the island's Daily Herald via Facebook, he said "It was a great feeling.  All what I dreamt it would be.  The pitching is the same as the competiion I'm facing  It's just that they locate the pitches better.  But, it was great going on a field where there is so many people around you.  I can just imagine the pride that his father must feel having his son being the first to ever appear in a Major League game, even though it is only in Spring training.  He's living my dream to be a professional baseball player and I wish him the best of luck in his future career.  Now if he can only get traded to the Phillies I can watch him 162 times during the year.  It's not that they can't use someone with his speed or someone who can catch a ball in the outfield.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.