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November 11, 2007
Girardi Tales
General Joe was a toughie - even as a kid.
From the Peoria Journal Star -
I was a teammate of Joe Girardi's in Pony League and high school at Spalding.
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Our sophomore year we went to Galesburg to play - we rode in an old yellow school bus. I remember the day as being a pretty cool, overcast one and that something was wrong with Joe, but I remember he played the whole game. On the way back he was pretty much curled up on a bench and in severe pain. Later we found out that he went to the hospital and had an emergency appendectomy. The guy is tough.
Our junior year, we reached the sectionals of the state tournament. I pitched the game and we lost. After the game we held a team meeting and then Coach Lang decided we should stay around and watch the next game as a team. I was less than happy about that and went onto the bus and pretty much pouted like a baby. Joe, in a display of maturity and leadership that I still often think about, came onto the bus and told me to get my butt off there and quit being a baby and come out with the team - maybe we could learn something for the next year. I got off the bus.
I had the opportunity to play Pony League and high school baseball and football as Joe's teammate and compete against him in college.
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He emerged as a leader at the end of our Pony League season. He was not necessarily the leader in statistics all the time, but his passion for the game and competitiveness made everyone around him better. It seemed like every time a game or situation was important, Joe performed. He was unique in his desire to improve. In practices and training, when most athletes participate because they are told to, you could tell that Joe wanted to be there.
Posted by Steve Lombardi at November 11, 2007 10:04 AM