Monday, March 12, 2007

Minor-League MVP Still a Big-League Believer

Bryan LaHair won the Mariners' Best of the Rest award last season or else known as minor-league MVP. For a 39th-round draft pick, that meant development and validation, proof that belief counts when it's unwavering. So guess what happen next? LaHair found himself in Cuba in September, on the U.S. Olympic to qualify team, on a bus snaking slowly toward the championship game against the hosts. Nobody supposed then, either except LaHair and teammates.

The fans outside the stadium held two fingers up for the U.S. players, turning the peace sign into a forecast. LaHair glance at the 45,000 or so rowdy people in the stands. The ground almost shook.