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Jacob Unruh: Baseball became lifeling for a young boy in northeastern Oklahoma

In the picture, it’s clear that the clothes were too big.

The gray-and-blue cap with No. 34 between “Nolan” and “Ryan” loosely sat on my head. The Texas Rangers white button-up T-shirt and shorts — yes, they even matched — swallowed my small, 7-year-old body.

That’s the first thing my wife, Ashley, noticed a few weeks back. She rightfully got quite a kick out of it.

I looked at the photo. Standing between Section 101 and Section 102 signs near Arlington Stadium’s field in 1993, my smile stood out.

I was truly happy.

For a boy growing up in middle-of-nowhere northeastern Oklahoma, life wasn’t always pristine.