"The mistakes of others do not have to derail you"

A perfect game...it has only happened 20 times in 135 YEARS of Major League Baseball. 27 batters up, 27 batters down. It is a most improbable feat. Surprisingly there have been "three" this season.

I said "three" because two of them are official. Dallas Braden and Roy Halliday both have pitched perfect games this year. One of them was not "official".

Armando Gallaraga pitched a perfect game too... sort of . There are two outs in the 9th inning. 26 up, 26 down. The Detroit Tiger pitcher is one out away from being the 21st pitcher in MLB history to pitch a perfect game. The batter hits a ball to the first baseman who throws the ball to the pitcher, covering first base. Everyone knows he is out. Everyone in the park except for one... the 1st base umpire who calls him "SAFE."

The Detroit bench erupts. The manager screams and gets in the umps face... players stand in disbelief. The fans boo... Everyone has something to say... except for the pitcher.

Gallaraga went back to the mound and pitched to the next batter... and got him out. 28 up, 27 down. He said nothing.

There is a lesson here. Sometimes, you can not control the outcome. You can not control the decisions others make. But you can always control your reaction to those decisions. You can always decide to not lose control. You can go back to work. You can move on. You can even forgive.

Tonight, as I read about Gallaraga's actions on the mound, I was challenged to remember that sometimes life is not fair. Sometimes, life even stinks... but you get back on the mound and pitch. You go back to doing your job, to treating your family right . You go back to do what you do best. You do what got you where you are in life... and not let the decisions or attitudes of other people DERAIL you from the purpose and mission of your life. You don't let disappointment DISCOURAGE you.

God will honor you and bless you if you do this... I know He well.

By the way, the umpire watched a replay and knew immediately that he missed the call. He said, " I just cost that kid a perfect game." I like that umpire... he owned his mistake and admitted it.
There are lessons we learn from him too... One, everyone makes mistakes, even umpires. Two, people who make mistakes should be big enough to admit it. He did. That makes him a better umpire and a better person.

So all the way around, there are lessons in this story for us. I hope they both get another chance to live out history on the diamond... It's good stuff to think about.