Sometimes we can’t explain why we hold some players in our sport’s heart. The stars are easy to root for, but it’s those role players who we latch onto, who we want to see do well. Maybe it’s their imperfect skills that cause them to have to work harder, to struggle more. We can more closely identify with them rather than we can the superhuman athlete who makes everything look so effortless.
Sometimes, the reason for our attachment can be random, like my fascination with Bob Shirley, a Yankees relief pitcher for a short time in the 1980s.