Sports Update Monday: Marlins Give Greenberg Second Chance
In 2005, in a game between the Marlins and the Cubs, Cubs’ Rookie Adam Greenberg was set to take his first major league at bat. However, he never got a chance to take the bat off of his shoulder. On the first pitch of his career, he was struck in the head with a ball by Marlin’s pitcher Valerio de los Santos and removed from the game with a concussion. After that, Greenberg never could make it back to the majors due to his struggles with post-concussion syndrome, vertigo and vision problems. 7 years later, South Florida’s own Miami Marlins plan to give Greenberg a shot at his first major league at bat this Tuesday.
It all started when Chicago filmmaker and life-long Cubs fan Matt Liston started an online campaign and petition to get Greenberg his first at bat that he had earned and labored for his whole entire life. The video he posted went viral and supporters flooded to Liston’s site to sign the petition and donate to Greenberg’s cause. The campaign paid off and Major League Baseball approved the decision for the Miami Marlins (the team that ironically ended his MLB career) to sign Greenberg to a one day contract, so he could get that first at bat.
Greenberg will get his chance tomorrow at 7:10pm when the Marlins face-off against R.A. Dickey and the New York Mets. Greenberg, who has been training and playing in the minors since the 2005 incident, assures that he will be ready on Tuesday for his first major league at bat. We here at BB Insurance Marketing would like to wish Adam Greenberg the best of luck in his first at bat. We hope Greenberg’s courage and determination can lead to a successful attempt against the division rival Mets. This would be a bright spot at the end of an otherwise disappointing 2012 season for the Marlins.
In Other South Florida Sports News
– The Miami Dolphins fell to 1-3 this Sunday after another heartbreaking loss in overtime to the Arizona Cardinals, who are now 4-0. Dolphins wide receiver Brian Hartline had a career day with 12 catches, a franchise record 253 yards receiving and a touchdown. This is the Dolphins’ second overtime loss in a row. The Fins look to bounce back next week against the Cincinnati Bengals.
– The Miami Hurricanes won a thrilling shootout against the NC State Wolfpack on Saturday. The Canes won with 19 seconds left in the fourth quarter on a 62 yard passing touchdown from Stephen Morris to Phillip Dorsett. Morris set a team and ACC record with 566 passing yards. The Canes move to 3-0 in the ACC Coastal division, and 4-1 on the season. Next week the Hurricanes play old rival Notre Dame (ranked 9th overall in the AP top 25) at storied Soldier Field in Chicago.
– The Miami Heat opened up camp on Saturday and had their Media Day on Friday. They will have just over a month to prepare for their October 30th season-opener against the Boston Celtics. If you are looking to see the Heat in action this week, Wednesday is their open scrimmage at the American Airlines Arena, deemed the “Red & White Game”. The game starts at 7pm and is free and open to the public.
Local Sports Hero
This week’s “Local Sports Hero” is West Virginia quarterback and former Miramar High School star Geno Smith. Smith had an unbelievable stat line in this Saturday’s 70-63 shootout win against Baylor. He completed 45 of his 51 passing attempts, threw for 656 yards and had 8 passing touchdowns! BB Insurance Marketing would like to congratulate Geno on being this week’s “Local Sports Hero”.