Jennie Finch Essay Example For Students

Jennie Finch Essay You play like a girl! used to be one of baseballs classic insults. Not anymore. Softball diva Jennie Finch has made it cool to not only throw like a girl, but to run, field and hit like one, too. Not since Babe Ruth has a player dominated so completely from the pitching rubber and the batters box, and she even gives the Bambino a run for his money in the charisma department. Jennie has also accomplished something Ruth never could: She is showing the boys its okay to be one of the girls. This is her story GROWING UPJennie Finch was born on September 3, 1980, in La Mirada, California. Jennies parents, Doug and Bev, already had two boys, Shane and Landon. Both loved baseball and played competitively, but it wasnt until Jennie took up the game that the family really got serious about it. La Mirada offered organized ball on a year-round basis. Jennie joined her first league, Lil Miss T-Ball, after her fifth birthday. She was one of those kids who excelled at a number of sports, but her greatest love was always for baseball. Bev and Doug soon began channeling this passion almost exclusively into girls softball. Their daughter had good hand-eye coordination and excellent speed. But it was her arm that opened the most eyes. During winter vacation in Iowa one year, she celebrated her first snowfall by packing a snowball and literally heaving it out of sight. Jennies hometown was also close to Dodger Stadium, where the Finches had season tickets on the third-base line. Bev, the baseball nut in the family, listened to Vin Scully on a pair of headphones while she took in the action. As soon as Jennie was old enough, she began accompanying her mom to Chavez Ravine, bleeding Dodger blue and rooting for heroes like Kirk Gibson, whose dramatic homer sparked LA to a World Series title a few weeks after Jennies eighth birthday. Doug did whatever he could to accelerate his daughters progress. He constructed a batting cage in the backyard, and hired a fast-pitch instructor for Jennie. Later, he transformed a small trampoline into a pitch-back she could use on evenings when he worked late. As Jennie improved, her dad immersed himself in softball and became her personal coach. By the time she turned nine, she was playing for a 10-and-under traveling all-star team. Every weekend was spent at a different diamond somewhere in suburban Southern California. The more competitive the environment, the more Jennie thrived. At age 12, she led the California Cruisers to the 12-and-under American Softball Association national title in Chattanooga, Tennessee. By now, Jennies life was focused on softball, though she did have a normal life outside the sport. She liked to shop, try on her moms makeup and hang out with her friends. In school, she was an excellent student. But softball consumed most of her free time. Every summer the sport brought her to a new part of the country for a national tournament. In 1995, Jennies ASA team captured the 14-and-under crown. During the summer of 1996, she rooted for the U.S. softball team as it rolled to Olympic gold in Atlanta. When the squad tour ed the country weeks later, Jennie waited on a long line to get Dot Richardsons autograph. She dreamed of becoming an Olympic champ herself, and swinging a Jennie Finch bat. At La Mirada High School, Jennie made the varsity as a freshman, earned the first of her four letters in the sport, and helped the Matadores to the first of four straight Suburban League titles. During her high school career, she also lettered twice in basketball and in volleyball, but the softball diamond is where she truly distinguished herself. Tall and lean, she was blessed with loads of natural talent and an intense desire to win. As a sophomore, Jennie began amassing an impressive list on honors, being chosen All-Suburban League, All-CIF Division II, and Whittier Daily News All-Area. The following year she was selected league MVP. In the summer of 1997, she spearheaded a team that won the ASA 18-and-under championship. Jennie continued her domination as a senior at La Mirada High. Between practice and games, softball was like a full-time job, and she enjoyed every minute of it. Her schools Female Athlete of the Year, she was named to the Long Beach Press-Telegrams Softball Dream Team and garnered the papers Player of the Year award. Jennie was a great hitter, but no one could touch her as a pitcher. In her four years as a Matadore, she went 50-12, with six perfect games, 13 no-hitters, and a 0.15 ERA. In 445 innings, she fanned 784 hitters. The nations top high school recruit according to Jump Magazine, Jennie had her choice of schools. Nearby UCLA seemed to have the inside track, but she was also interested in the University of Arizona. The coach there, Mike Candrea, had first spotted Jennie when she was 16. He followed her career from that point on, and when it came time for Jennie to commit, she opted for the Wildcats. The schools proud softball traditionwhich included five national titles since 1991was a determining factor. Before Jennie left for Tucson, she competed for USA Softball in the inaugural Junior Superball tournament. Against an international field, the Americans claimed the gold. ON THE RISEJennie made an impact at Arizona in her first year. The Wildcats entered the 1999 season as a legitimate contender for the national title. Candreas team was young and talented. A pair of sophomores, Nicole Giordano and Toni Mascarenas, helped pace the offense. In the pitching rotation, Jennie teamed up with Becky Lemke for a formidable one-two punch. Jennies adjustment to the college game took several starts. In the summer tournaments, she had become accustomed to overwhelming opponents with hard stuff. Experienced Division-I hitters, however, could handle Jennies heater if they knew it was coming, so she had to learn to mix her pitches more effectively. She had a full arsenala left break and right break, a drop and a riserit was now a matter of refining them. By May, Jennie was feeling right at home. Her record stood at 19-6, and she was putting up some of her best performances against tough Pac-10 rivals. When Candreas fab frosh wasnt pitching, he penciled her in at firs t base, where she established herself as one of Arizonas most dangerous hitters. Jennie finished the season as the team leader in doubles (14) and extra-base hits (21). Her seven homers were second best on the squad. Jennie was most impressive on the mound. With 24 victories, she came within one of tying Lemkes freshman record. She saved some of her finest work for the Division-I Softball Championships. In the regional draw, she spun a no-hitter against Southwest Texas State, and followed that gem with a one-hitter versus Kansas and then a two-hitter versus Maryland. She also batted .353 with four doubles, a homer and six RBIs. For her efforts, Jennie was voted NCAA Region 2 Most Outstanding Player. Though Arizona stumbled in the Womens College World Series, Jennies frosh campaign was a huge success. The Veldt EssayJennie Finch, Souvenir Photo Jennies personal life was no less hectic. The more notoriety she gained for her play on the field, the more she wowed people with her beauty and grace off it. When Jennie showed up at the 2002 ESPY Awards in a slinky black dress, she attracted a legion of new fans. Among those was Casey Daigle, a minor-league pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks. During the spring, he had accompanied Luis Gonzalez and several other teammates on a trip to watch Jennie pitch. For Daigle, it was love at first sight. He asked her out again and again until she finally relented. The couple became one of the sports worlds hottest items. Jennies rapidly expanding public profile opened new doors for her. In October 2002, This Week in Baseball signed her as the shows first female correspondent. Her segment, Pitch, Hit, and Run with Jennie Finch, debuted in 2003 and matched her each week with a major leaguer to talk about baseball fundamentals. Some in the media criticized the move, citing Jennies lack of broadcasting experience. But as a Communications major at Arizona, she felt confident in her ability to learn on the fly. Something no one bothered to teach Jennie in any of her classes is how substance often takes a backseat to style. For the first time in her life, she was being noticed more for her looks than her softball talent. On the Arizona campus, where softball stars were celebrities, she had been The Man. Now she was The Chick. Indeed, ratings showed that a lot of male fans who had formerly channel surfed during the kids segment on TWIB were now staying tuned, and it wasnt because of the wisdom she was imparting. A devout Christian, Jennie took a while to find peace with this situation. And though she remains uncomfortable with the tradeoff, she never allowed it to impede here transition to television, which was surprisingly smooth. It didnt hurt that her weekly gig included facing big leaguers and embarrassing them with her unhittable stuff. Cincinnatis Sean Casey was the first to get a hit off Jennie, and it was a weak single. In July of 2003, Jennie traveled with the U.S. national team to the Dominican Republic for the Pan American Games. The Americans were heavy favorites, and they showed why by sweeping through their draw for the gold. Along the way, the team got perfect games from Fernandez, Lori Harrigan and Cat Osterman. Over the next year, preparing for the 2004 Olympics consumed almost all of Jennies time. Even when Daigle surprised her with a marriage proposaland she acceptedshe didnt let her concentration waver. That was welcome news to Candrea, Team USAs head coach. When his squad began its Aiming for Athens tour in February, he was concerned that Jennie had been spreading herself too thin. But she quickly dismissed this notion. Over the next five months, she went 15-0, fanning 208 in just over 100 innings. The media and fans cheered her as the darling of the American team. Jennie preferred, however, to simply blend in with her teammates. In the opinion of manyincluding Sports Illustratedthey desrved the Dream Team label in Athens. Jennie, Fernandez, Osterman and Harrigan formed the best rotation in their sports history, and there wasnt a weak bat on the roster. Casey Daigle, 2004 Ultra Insert The Summer Games began for the American women with an easy 7-0 victory over Italy. The contest was especially meaningful because it was the first for Candrea since the death of his wife, Sue, had succumbed to cancer weeks earlier. Jennie and her teammates saluted her by wearing SC on their wristbands. Team USA roared through its next five contestsall shutouts. Against Canada, Jennie pitched a one-hitter, while Fernandez and Crystl Bustos powered the offense with a home run apiece. In the gold medal game, the Americans finally gave up their first run of the tournament, but were never threatened in a 5-1 victory over Australia. SI hailed them as the greatest team of all time.Jennie returned home as a conquering heroine. In Greece, she and her teammates had captured the imagination of athletes and fans alike. The mens basketball team acknowledged them during the Opening Ceremonies, Andy Roddick asked to have his picture taken with them, and their games sold out the Olympic Softball Stadium. U.S. Softball Team,2004 Sports Illustrated Back in the States, Jennies popularity skyrocketed. She appeared on late-night TV with David Letterman and Jimmy Kimmel. Magazines like Glamour and Vanity Fair ran features on her. She couldnt go anywhere without someone asking for her autograph. Jennie became a lot richer, too. She signed endorsement deals with Sprint, Bank of America, Sealy, 24 Hour Fitness Worldwide and Bollenot to mention Mizuno, which created a line of bats, gloves and shoes with her name on them. Jennie also launched a partnership with Octagon, the agency that represents Anna Kournikova. In addition, she committed to play for National Pro Fastpitch, formerly known as the Womens Pro Softball League, which was founded in 1997. She signed with the Chicago Bandits in December of 2004. But most important to Jennie is her standing in her sport. When Dot Richardson retired after the 2000 Olympics, womens softball needed a new queen to assume her thrown. No one ever bargained theyd get someone like Jenniea bona fide superstar whose skills are rivaled only by her beauty and charisma. JENNIE THE PLAYERThere is literally nothing Jennie cant do on a softball field. Shes an excellent hitter, smart baserunner and, of course, an overpowering pitcher. Her instincts are remarkable, too. Her mom and dad can share some of the credit for Jennies talent. Doug helped her develop many of her skills, while Bev passed along her feel for the game. Jennies work ethic and competitive fire are all hers. As a pitcher, Jennie has few peers. She has five pitchesrise-ball, curveball, screwball, drop-ball and changeupand can throw all with great control. Jennie regularly hits 70 mph on the radar gun, which from 46 feet is comparable to a Nolan Ryan fastballwith a lot more movement. One the keys to her success is the ability to deliver her changeup with the same arm speed as her hard stuff. Intimidation is another weapon. Some hitters (including a few big leaguers) are actually scared to stand in the batters box against her. Despite all of her individual press clippings, Jennie has always been a loyal, team-first player. Winning is her only concern on the field and in the dugout, and those she plays with respect her immensely. They also genuinely like her. Jennie can be a talk-it-up leader or a quiet foot soldier who does her job. Her record as a winner speaks for itself.