11/05/24
February 25, 2006
Langill Just Happy to Have a Jersey: For those of you who think all ballplayers are greedy or play for the money, check this guy out.
inspirational guy no doubt, too bad he's on the dodgers cuz itd be nice to see a guy like that somehow get a ring cuz he's got the attitude of a champion
posted by aaa76 at 07:49 AM on February 26, 2006
Great story, some players at the Major League level could take some pointers from this guy. :o)
posted by Steeler_Fan at 09:29 AM on February 26, 2006
Seems like there is a player like him on every roster in ever sport every year. The media just chooses to focus on the garbage. Hope he has his moment in the sun.
posted by IHATELIBERALS at 12:45 PM on February 26, 2006
I love stories like that. People who play just because they love the game. My sister's father-in-law (her husbands father) was named Joe Roxbury and when he was a young man in the late 1940's he pitched several seasons with the Toledo Mud Hens and went through spring training with the Tigers. He stuck with it for several years, finally left and opened a one man barber shop in our town. Every once in a while someone would ask him if he ever regreted that he hadn't really made the big leagues and made that good money. He always pointed to his spring training Tiger jersey on the wall next to his Mud Hens one and said something along the lines of "Are you kidding? I used to be a Detriot Tiger!" I've never heard of anyone who grew old regreting the things they did nearly as much as regreting the things they didn't do.
posted by commander cody at 04:33 PM on February 26, 2006
Seems like there is a player like him on every roster in ever sport every year. In my experience, there are more than just a few. Erkno probably knows better than I do, but from what I've seen of professional sports teams, they have a pretty good number of really good guys. Some of them DO make it big and make big bucks, so they don't get the same reaction as Langill does. I've been playing on adult baseball teams for years -- these guys really DO play for the love of the game, for nothing. And those teams, too, have a handful of jerks surrounded by a group of pretty solid individuals. I'm sure if you broke down the membership of Spo-Fi you'd find a similar thing -- there are a handful of noisy jerks who get a lot of attention because they demand it, but for the most part the contributors are decent people with reasonable values. The media just chooses to focus on the garbage. The media wrote this story... or at least the MLB PR arm of "media"... but it's true that drama sells papers and the jerks bring the drama. Fans drive that as much as the media does. We're quick to point fingers at the players and the media, but if there was a post beside this one that promised another stunning display of idiocy from T.O./Artest/Bonds/Insert Name Here, which article would you jump to first? Honestly? This is a great article, Erkno, and I don't want to diffuse it with an oversimplistic "it happens all the time" -- that does an injustice to Langill. But before we start hacking on athletes for not being enough like Langill, or the media for not focusing enough on guys like Langill, lets try to keep some perspective and remember who pays to hear about the loud and annoying.
posted by BullpenPro at 02:33 PM on February 28, 2006
I'm sure if you broke down the membership of Spo-Fi you'd find a similar thing -- there are a handful of noisy jerks who get a lot of attention because they demand it I really do not appreciate you talking about me like that, BP.
posted by wfrazerjr at 02:51 PM on February 28, 2006
I'm sure if you broke down the membership of Spo-Fi you'd find a similar thing -- there are a handful of noisy jerks who get a lot of attention because they demand it I really do not appreciate you talking about me like that, BP. posted by wfrazerjr at 2:51 PM CST on February 28 Opps...I tought he was talking about me...sorry....continue on.
posted by commander cody at 03:21 PM on February 28, 2006
... and I rest my case. (/zing sound)
posted by BullpenPro at 03:25 PM on February 28, 2006
LOL!
posted by commander cody at 03:27 PM on February 28, 2006
Nice story, thanks, but... During the winter, when he returns to Quebec, Langill shovels snow for a living, working for a friend's snow removal company. They say this like it's a bad thing. Shoveling snow is fun! Unless it's your job, I guess.
posted by qbert72 at 05:08 PM on February 28, 2006
Sounds like he's the kind of guy who'll wind up being a beloved coach somewhere for a long time. By the way, are you still playing professionally?