Aniya Tryout

Nishihara Marine City Aniya is holding a tryout on Saturday May 28th. This was the flyer that the manager gave to us guys to give to local shops for advertisement. Also, there was an ad last week in the Ryuku Shimpo newspaper about the new coaching staff and tryout. I won't be trying out for this one. The team had invited me to join the team, which is a blessing! Prayerfully, the Lord will bring some new guys He wants to minister to. I will be going to the tryout after work to check out what's going on. Looking forward to a great season with a new team!

God bless you!

rob

Nishihara Marine City Aniya

Recently, I received an e-mail from one of my baseball contacts about potentially training together. Justin Krause, a military dependent and semi-pro baseball player here in Okinawa, started working out with me every Thursday and Saturday at 630 in the morning over at Okinawa International University. It's great to see someone with a lot of zeal to play the game of baseball! Justin is only 20 years old. He introduced me back to my old team, Aniya. Aniya baseball now has a new sponsor from a golf company located in the heart of Nishihara. Nishihara is very close to Ginowan, which makes traveling easy for me. So, I started working out with the guys every Tuesday and Thursday night. Here we are at the indoor training facility in Nishihara City.

Please continue to pray for what the Lord wants to do. There are a few American guys on this team, and I believe the Lord wants to speak to their hearts. It's great being with the Japanese ball players again! These guys are always cheerful! I'm praying the Lord will give them true everlasting cheer.

Please pray for Nishihara Marine City Aniya players and coaches!

God bless,

In His timing,

rob

Uncle Rico?

So I have become an Uncle Rico! Well, I've always been an Uncle Rico. If you are familiar with the Napoleon Dynamite movie, you would remember the story of his Uncle Rico throwing footballs by himself, and filming it at the same time. There's a University baseball field near my house. Early in the mornings, a few years back, I would go there a throw off a mound into a back screen. I had nobody to play catch with, and I still don't, so I throw a bucket off balls off a mound. Afterwards, I do plenty of sprints and agility workouts. It's actually a great workout and a wonderful time spending with the Lord! I don't know what the future holds for baseball, but I definitely have the desire to play again. I'm just keeping fresh and staying ready for that call, if the Lord wills!

Here is a little video of my mechanics. Please drop me a message. If you know a lot about pitching, give me some advice and what I might be doing wrong in my delivery. I would be blessed to hear from you!

Thanks for checking out this field of dreams! Hope you had a good laugh at my Uncle Rico impersonation!

God bless,

rob

Beginning of the End?

The tryout for Enagic went well. I threw a 30 pitch bullpen as the manager watched. I felt pretty good, but the Lord just has different plans. The manager informed me that they were going to do an overall assessment of my pitching performance, and then give me a heads up that following Friday. For two days I sought the Lord for His will in this situation. Did the Lord want me to play for Enagic this year? Does He want me to play for another team? Has the door of playing baseball in Okinawa shut? Those were the many things I was praying and seeking after the Lord about. That following Friday, I received the answer I knew was coming. Enagic had just informed me that there were too many pitchers, and too many of them were years younger than myself. I won't be playing for Enagic anymore. The last two years have been such a great ride! God has really blessed me with the opportunity to play baseball for a company team, and not work for the company. I just played baseball, and was paid to play! Exciting! We'll see what will happen next. There are no other company teams here in Okinawa that I could play for, but, some club teams have shown interest. Please pray as the Lord leads. I still have such a desire to share Christ with the baseball players in Japan while I still can! Soon, my body won't let me physically play anymore! I've been seeing the signs of those physical ailments, but, they're not completely here yet!

Prayerfully, the Lord will direct me into another uniform, and give me another group of guys to share His love with! Praise the Lord!

Thanks for tuning in again! Be blessed! In His Name!

rob #30(#44)

Next year on January the 12th, I have a one day tryout with Enagic to see if I'll be returning for the 2011 season. Please keep the tryout in your prayers as the Lord leads and guides next season! Enagic released 15 players upon arrival of 10 new upcoming players. I was the last player to be released and so they wanted to give me another look. The season starts the 11th. So hopefully I'll be able to start again right where I left off and not miss a beat. Please stay updated as I will reveal the results soon after the tryout! God bless you!

rob

Another year in the books

Once again the season has come to an end. It was a season of high's and low's for me. I played the game like a roller-coaster. At times I pitched above my own game, and also as if I looked like I didn't belong! This is all part of the game! This year, unlike others past, I have learned so much about my team. I learned about the type of life they live here in Okinawa. The Japanese are so much different than Americans. The way they think and go about things are so much different then the way I do it! Especially in the game of baseball. I also do the best I can to come to their level, not expecting them to come to where I'm at. For if I desire to share Christ with them effectively, I must become like them culturally. Adapt to the Okinawan/Japanese culture. It's been so difficult! My Americanism is a fixture I can't seem to turn off. Well, by the grace of God I hope to continue on next season. Please pray for me as I take on another season at the age of 28!

Jesus is the reason I still play! Praise the Lord! God willing, see you next season! I'll be there!

In Christ,

rob

Big Kai Hatsu Game

Today we played one of the other company teams here on island. A housing company called Bigkaihatsu located down in Naha city. We eventually one the game 10-5. I came into to pitch with bases loaded and two outs in the top of the 6th. I was blessed to have struck out the next batter on four pitches. I threw the top of the 7th giving up 1 run on 2 hits. The first pitch was knocked into right center for a triple! The first triple I have ever given up in live play! 大丈夫! I went on to retire the next guy, but not before a bloop single scored the run. I finished with 1.1 innings pitched, 2 hits, and 2 k's. God really gave me some great strength and good control! The pitch of the triple I gave up was recorded at 143km(89) on the gun! I haven't thrown that hard since I was 21 in college. The Lord continues to do His work on the field. Please pray for the guys that they would come to know JESUS!