Knuck If You Buck

I'm sure you've read your fair share of Tim Wakefield articles the last few days from jaded middle-aged columnists, but allow this young one to give a tribute to a man who finds life better at 62 MPH.

Wakefield is from my neck of the woods and is the most famous player of the baseball program that I work at (record holder in many hitting categories), so I've always had a bit of a soft spot for the Red Sox because of him, even if the Sox fans I know are beginning to reach Taylor Swift-like levels of omnipresence and irritation. But having met Tim on several occasions over the years, I can tell you that everything you read about him being a class act is not exaggerated at all.

I wrote for an independent local publication when I was 11 (feel free to potshot that, I understand), and I got a chance to interview him at a Florida Tech event. He was genuinely interested in the interviews and even talked for awhile afterwards. I've run into him a couple times at fundraisers in the years since and somehow he remembered me and was always gracious. But this column is about more than just some fawning fan.

Often times, you'll hear about athletes being active in their charities, often times it's a photo-op and a check, but Wakefield is a cut above that.

Wakefield if nothing else over the years has been a loyal soldier. When they wanted him to start, he took the ball; When they needed him in middle relief, he'd go 3-4 innings if he had to; When they went unorthodox and wanted him to close, as much as of an adventure as it was some nights, he got it done (15 for 15). Some pitchers would bemoan rotating between the pen and the rotation (ahem Aaron Heilman), but Wakefield always took it in stride and did it to the best of his ability.

When Aaron Boone launched one of the most memorable home runs in baseball history, it was depressing to see it happen to a guy like Wakefield. When it happened, the first thing I said was "Oh no, Boston's gonna hate him now," completely forgetting the 2 gems he threw earlier in the series and that Grady Little had committed one of the biggest brainlocks in history. Fortunately, he escaped that fate and Boston fans were very appreciative of him upon his return.

While some blowhards would consider knuckleballers akin to a prop comic, it's a lot more difficult than it looks. Often times, you need the wind and humidity to play in your favor and like any other pitcher, you need your movement to be on. Especially as a knuckleballer, as to whether other pitchers can make up for it by just slinging it 95-96 MPH past the batters if their offspeed isn't working. In the case of Wakefield, some nights, you can go 8 innings and give up 2 hits; and some nights, you'll throw 4 wild pitches in one inning.

This year, everything has moved Wakefield's way, he's 11-3, will be in his first career All-Star game tonight and all at the age of 42. So when you're watching Wakefield's pitch dancing against the likes of Prince Fielder, Chase Utley and company, know that on that mound is a man, whose time is long overdue.