Tribute to Buck O'Neil

[SAUTO]

Originally Posted by Mosbonian

George...I have a very special story of Buck....

We were living outside the KC area but my wife took the kids to visit her Mom. While she was there she decided to take my son, who was 6 at the time, to a Royals game. During the game a Royals player who later left KC for more money fouled off a pitch and a man near us retrieved it for my son and gave it to him. He was so excited...my wife decided to stay after the game and see if she could get this player to sign it for my Special Needs son.

They waited and said player emerged from stadium. My wife asked him to sign the ball and he brushed right by her saying he was in a hurry. Oddly enough he had enough time to stop and talk to a pretty young girl who caught his attention. My wife was furious and my son was disappointed.

Buck was nearby and saw what happened.....he walked over and started talking to my wife and son and apologized for the players behavior. He stood there and talked to my son for about 30 minutes about my son's first time at a baseball game and told him a little about his own career. My wife said my son just stood there fascinated. Then Buck took out a pen and asked my son for the baseball and signed it for him. He said you tell your Daddy that you met Buck O'Neal and see what he says.

The moment he got back to Grandma's house he couldn't wait to call me and tell me all about meeting Buck. Before that night he had no real interest in baseball....but after that we had the one thing every dad hopes he gets to share with his kid, a love of baseball. He can't really play because of his disability but he loves to talk baseball.

To me, if it wasn't for Buck's kindness that night my son and I might never had shared a love of baseball.

Buck will always have a place in my heart....the former Royal can catch the worst case of jock itch and athlete's foot that never gets cured for all I care.

The baseball Buck signed.....sits in my son's room to this day.

It's awful dusty in here all of a sudden...