When closer Brad Lidge struck out Erik Hinske for the final out of the protracted Game 5, securing Philadelphia's 4-3 victory over Tampa Bay, it marked the first time a player from Maui won a World Series.
As is the came with so many of you, I have many memories of Shane. He was a restless kid who could never stay still. Every mental picture I have of Shane as a kid is of him running somewhere … fast.
Victorino learned to channel that restless energy into sports. We all knew he was an amazing athlete – as good as any to come out of the Valley Isle – following a career in youth and prep sports during which he excelled at anything and everything he tried.
Football. Soccer. Track. And, of course, baseball. He didn't shoot hoops in high school, but he was unstoppable in the menehune ranks..
But did anyone really expect this? Shave Victorino: starting center fielder and a clutch performer for a team that ended 28 years of frustration by capturing the World Series in five games? And particularly after a rocky start to a career he began directly out of St. Anthony.
Victorino had to negotiate some detours and potholes on the road to last night's victory in his sport's biggest and brightest stage. But Shane always believed in himself, even when there were times of serious doubts and discouraging career setbacks.
Thanks for the memories, Shane Victorino. And for providing all of us with an example of the values of perseverance and good, old-fashioned hard work .
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