Able to Play by Glenn Stout

Author:Glenn Stout [Stout, Glenn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

CURTIS PRIDE: PROUD TO BE A BIG LEAGUER

Outfielder Curtis Pride was born deaf. Nevertheless he reached the major leagues and between 1993 and 2006 played for several teams and never let his deafness stop him. He is now baseball coach at Gallaudet University.

ONE DAY WHEN CURTIS PRIDE was at bat during a minor league game, he was grazed by a pitch as he turned to get out of the way. Curtis dropped his bat and started to jog to first base. After only a few steps, however, the base umpire waved him back toward home plate. There he saw the home plate umpire gesturing and talking.

Curtis walked up to the umpire, then reached out and lifted the umpire's mask from his face. The plate umpire, who had not umpired one of Curtis's games before, jumped back, angry. Players are not allowed to touch umpires.

The umpire pointed at Curtis, then pointed toward the dugout. He threw Curtis out of the game for touching him.

Curtis stood there for a second, puzzled, then slowly started to walk away. He couldn't understand what he had done to make the umpire so mad. Then he saw his teammates laughing, and his manager, a big smile on his face, running out onto the field. His manager went up to the umpire and started talking to him. Soon the umpire began to smile and waved Curtis back to the plate, as Curtis's manager turned to face him and explain what had taken place. Then Curtis smiled too.

The plate umpire had not known that Curtis Pride was deaf. When the umpire had tried to explain why he wanted Curtis to come back to home plate, Curtis could not hear what the umpire was saying. So he reached out and lifted the umpire's mask so he could see his lips. Curtis wasn't being disrespectful. He simply needed to see the speaker's lips to understand what was being said. Once Curtis's manager explained to the umpire that Curtis was simply trying to read his lips, the umpire understood. Although the umpire did not think Curtis had been hit by the pitch, he was allowed to stay in the game.

A little understanding and a little opportunity is all Curtis Pride ever needed to reach his goal of playing professional baseball. As a deaf person, he had a more difficult path to the major league than hearing players did, but it was not impossible. His talent and desire have spoken loud and clear to everyone.

***

When their young son Curtis was about six months old, John and Sallie Pride noticed something was different. Although he cried and smiled like most babies, and loved being held and tickled, Curtis didn't make any of the babbling sounds most babies do as they begin to learn how to speak. The Pride's other child, Curtis's sister Jackie, had been making all sorts of different sounds by the age of six months.

At first the Prides didn't know what to think. Then they noticed that loud noises didn't bother Curtis.

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