[翻譯] Left Out

看板Pirates作者EEERRIICC (九世魯蛇)時間10年前 (2015/02/15 02:16)推噓10(10推 0噓 12→)

留言22則, 12人參與討論串1/1

Left Out by Andrew McCutchen 2015/02/13 A bunch of 12-year-old kids had their hearts broken this week. Jackie Robinson West, a team from Chicago’s South Side, won the U.S. title at the 2014 Little League World Series. They achieved their dream in dramatic fashion. I remember watching their pitcher give up the go-ahead homer against Nevada in the title game and he was so crushed that he physically doubled-over on the mound. His team fought back and won in an amazing game, and the joy on that kid’s face after the final out was something that made even me jealous. 這個禮拜，有一群12歲的小朋友心碎了。Jackie Robinson West，一隻來自芝加哥南區的隊伍贏了2014年美國Little League的冠軍。他們戲劇性的達成了夢想。我還記得在冠軍賽中他們的投手被Nevada打了一隻超前全壘打，他大受打擊的在投手丘上彎下身子。後來他們的隊伍開始反擊並贏得了比賽，那些孩子臉上顯露出的喜悅甚至讓我有些忌妒。 During the celebration, the cameras cut to a gym on Chicago’s South Side where people were gathered to watch, and they were going crazy supporting these kids and their community. It felt so good to see that the game I love still matters in the inner-city. 在慶祝的過程中，攝影機轉向芝加哥南區人們聚集看比賽的體育館中，拍到他們幾近瘋狂的支持著這些孩子們。很開心我喜愛的這比賽仍在這城市有一定的份量。 Then on Wednesday, Jackie Robinson West was stripped of its title for using players who lived “outside the geographical area.” There’s been a lot of the debate about what happened here, but one thing is clear to me. The incident shined a light on a very complicated issue. Baseball used to be the sport where all you needed was a stick and a ball. It used to be a way out for poor kids. Now it’s a sport that increasingly freezes out kids whose parents don’t have the income to finance the travel baseball circuit. 然後在星期三，Jackie Robinson West因為讓"住在球隊所屬區域外"的球員上場而被取消了冠軍頭銜，這引起了非常大的爭議，但我只注意到一件事。就是這個事件凸顯出了一個非常複雜的議題。棒球在過去是一種只要給你球棒跟球，你就可以玩的運動。棒球過去也是貧窮小孩的出路。而現在它漸漸的對那些雙親收入不足支付比賽旅費的孩子關上大門。 I grew up in Fort Meade, Florida. Our town had literally one stoplight. It didn’t even have a McDonald’s until a few years ago. But we did have a baseball field and a football field. I spent most of my days in the dirt, having fun. From the time I first stepped up in front of a tee-ball stand, I was trying to waggle my bat just like Ken Griffey Jr. Honestly, I was kind of a natural. My grandad used to come out to the field with a big camcorder and tape my tee-ball games. I used to think him and my dad were lying about how good I was back then, but I stumbled upon the tapes a few years ago and I was crushing balls off the walls and running around the bases like crazy. I was good. 我在佛州的Fort Meade長大。我們小鎮只有一個紅綠燈，甚至到了近幾來才開了第一家麥當勞。但我們的確是有一個棒球場及足球場。我把大部分時間都花在球場上玩樂。從我第一次站到打擊Tee座前，我就開始模仿Ken Griffey Jr.一樣的搖擺著球棒。老實說，我有點算是天生神力。我爺爺以前常常帶個攝錄機到球場來拍我的tee-ball games(#1) 。我過去都認為爺爺跟老爸說我很棒是在騙我，直到幾年前我偶然看到那些影帶，我把球打出牆，狂喜的繞著壘包，才發現我以前真的蠻不錯的。 #1 Tee-ball game:給4-8歲小孩打的比賽，把球直接放在Tee座上打擊的簡易式棒球。 But the thing is, nobody outside of Fort Meade knew who I was, even when I was 12 years old, the same age as those kids playing in the Little League World Series. When you’re a kid from a low-income family who has talent, how do you get recognized? Now, you have to pay thousands of dollars for the chance to be noticed in showcase tournaments in big cities. My parents loved me, but they had to work hard to put food on the table, and there wasn’t much left over. They didn’t have the option of skipping a shift to take me to a tournament over the weekend. The hard choices started when I was very young. “Do you want that video game system for Christmas, or do you want a new baseball bat?” 但事實是，即便當時我已經12歲，就像那些Little League冠軍賽的小朋友一樣，在 Fort Meade以外根本沒有人知道我是誰。一個天分洋溢卻來自低收家庭的小孩，要如何找到自己的伯樂？現在你可能要為了一個被發掘的機會，先花上幾千塊錢去大城市參加展示賽。父母很愛我，但他們必須非常努力工作才能餬口，收入所剩無幾。他們根本不可能在周末請假帶我去參加展示賽。這個難題從我很小的時候就開始了，「聖誕禮物，你想要一台電視遊樂器，還是一隻新的球棒？」 A lot of talented kids my age probably picked the Playstation, and that was it. It was over for them. I always chose the new bat or glove. But all the scraping and saving in the world wasn’t going to be enough for my family to send me an hour north to Lakeland every weekend to play against the best competition. That’s the challenge for families today. It’s not about the $100 bat. It’s about the $100-a-night motel room and the $30 gas money and the $300 tournament fee. There’s a huge financing gap to get a child to that next level where they might be seen. 很多跟我同年紀的小孩或許會選擇PlayStation，抉擇就這麼樣的結束了。而我總是選擇新的球棒或手套。但即使這樣的省吃儉用，也不足以讓家人每周把我送到一小時車程外的 Lakeland去打強度最高的比賽。這對現今許多家庭也是一項挑戰，這不是一隻百元球棒的問題，這是每晚一百元的住宿加上三十元的車錢再加上三百元參賽費的問題。經濟因素讓很多小朋友無法到更高層級的比賽去被發掘。 Thankfully, an AAU coach by the name of Jimmy Rutland noticed me during an All-Star game when I was 13-years-old and asked my father if I’d ever been on a travel team. At that point, I had barely left the county. My dad told him that it was just too expensive, and coach Rutland basically took me in as if I was another one of his sons. He helped pay for my jerseys and living expenses. My parents took care of what they could, which was basically just money for food. 謝天謝地，有一位名叫Jimmy Rutland的教練在明星賽注意到13歲的我，他也向我的父親詢問我是否願意讓我加入他們的球隊。當時我幾乎沒離開過我的家鄉，我父親告訴他，開銷太大了，我們無法支付，但Rutland教練卻把我帶進去球隊裡，待我彷彿像是他的另個兒子一般。他幫我付了球衣跟住宿的費用。我的父母則繼續盡其所能，養家餬口。 But this wasn’t a Disney movie ending. It wasn’t like Jimmy noticed me and I went straight to the top. That was just the first step. There were so many things that had to happen for me to get to where I got. If you’re a poor kid with raw ability, it’s not enough. You need to be blessed with many mentors to step in and help you. Kim Cherry, Michael Scott — I could list so many names of people who took me in and treated me as if I was their own son. When people talk about the Jackie Robinson West team and blame the adults who took in kids from outside the boundaries that the Little League organization set, remember that those adults may be saviors to those kids. They’re the ones buying them shoes when they need it or an extra protein drink after the game. 但這不是迪士尼電影般的美好結局，不是Jimmy注意到我，我就一步登天。這只是第一步，還要靠許多機緣把我帶到了現在的位置。對貧窮小孩來說，天分洋溢是不夠的，你必須要有許多貴人庇佑你，幫助你往前走。Kim Cherry, Michael Scott─我可以列出許多帶領著我，並將我視如己出的人。當人們談到Jackie Robinson West時，總是責備那些讓不符大會資格小朋友參賽的大人，但要記得那些大人可能是這些小朋友們的貴人，他們是幫那些小朋友買鞋子、買賽後營養飲品的貴人。 Sometimes I wasn’t even sure how the scouts or AAU coaches found me. It seemed like a miracle. I kept clawing my way up the ladder to better and better teams, kind of like a mercenary. I remember I was playing for the Lakeland Road Runners and we got whooped by the Orlando Red Raiders. They were like professionals to us. After the game, their coach came up to me and asked if I’d want to play on his team. The Red Raiders were big, man. It felt like I had just made the New York Yankees. I remember looking at my buddies on the Road Runners and shrugging, like, “Well, see ya!” 有時候我甚至不確定球探或AAU的教練們怎麼發現我的，就像一場奇蹟。我像個傭兵一樣，不停的往更高層級的隊伍挺進。我記得我在Lakeland Road Runners的時候，Orlando Red Raiders朝我們叫囂，對我們來說他們簡直是職業等級。比賽後他們的教練走向我，問我是否願意加入他的球隊。Red Raider非常強盛啊，讓我感覺好像遇到了恩歪歪一樣，我記得我看向我的隊友們然後聳聳肩，就像是在說「Well, see ya!」 And you know what’s crazy? Even despite all the breaks I got with baseball, I probably wouldn’t be a Major League player right now if I didn’t tear my ACL when I was 15. I thought I was going to play college football. Why? Economics. If I could’ve been a wide receiver for a D-I school, I would have chosen that path because of the promise of a full scholarship. The University of Florida offered me a baseball scholarship, but it only covered 70 percent of the tuition. My family simply couldn’t afford the other 30 percent. The fact is, no matter how good you are, you’re not getting a full ride in baseball. 你知道最瘋狂的是什麼嗎？即是棒球之路上困難重重，如果我沒有撕裂了我的韌帶，我或許就不會成為MLB球員了。我以為我會去打大學足球，為什麼？因為經濟因素啊。如果我能夠成為D-I school的WR(#2)，我可能就會因為全額獎學金走上美足這條路。佛羅里達大學給了我棒球獎學金，但只包含了70%的學費支付，我的家庭就是無法負擔剩下的30%。事實就是，無論你有多好，都無法在棒球路上一帆風順。 #2 WR:wide reciver，美足中的外接員(接球員) Many low-income kids don’t have the option of going to college to develop their game and get an education. They have to roll the dice by entering the MLB draft. I had the good fortune to be drafted by the Pirates in the first round, but I spent four years in the glamorous towns of Williamsport, Hickory, Altoona and Indianapolis. A lot of talented kids look at that lifestyle and compare it to the bright lights of Florida State or Ohio State, and they think, “Okay, I could get a free college education and be on ESPN, or I could spend five years eating cereal for dinner and trying to hit a 90-mile-per-hour fastball in Altoona.” 很多低收入戶的小孩都無法選擇上大學打比賽、受教育。他們必須憑著運氣參加選秀會。我很幸運的在第一輪被海盜隊選走，但我花了四年在小聯盟的各個層級打滾。很多孩子看到了小聯盟艱苦的生活，跟佛州或俄亥俄州的生活比起來，他們心中會想著「好吧，我可以選擇四年的大學教育然後去ESPN上電視，或是我可以去Altoona吃五年的燕麥片，然後嘗試跟90MPH的快速球周旋。」 People talk about the big, guaranteed money in baseball, and I certainly feel blessed that I am where I am now. But people don’t look at it through the eyes of a 17-year-old kid. You’re looking at maybe five years of minor league ball, and then you could be tendered, non-tendered, they can re-sign you for a year. You might be making anywhere from 10 to 50 grand in the minors. If you’re lucky enough to get a bonus, you can live well off that money if you spread it out. But just remember, there’s up to 40 rounds in the draft. Most guys are struggling. 人們總喜歡談論棒球裡那筆巨大且穩定的收入，而我走到今天這一步，的確讓我感到受庇護。但大人無法從17歲小朋友的觀點來看事情。你可能打了五年的小聯盟，然後球隊可能跟你換約、或不換約，他們可以跟你重簽一年的約。你在小聯盟可能只賺1萬到 5萬元不等。如果你夠幸運拿到Bonus，你就可以過一些好日子。但記得，一場選秀有高達 40輪，而大部分的人都很努力。 After three years in the majors, you finally get to arbitration. Basically, by the sixth year in the big leagues, you get your first big contract — if you make it that far. Imagine explaining this confusing process to a 17-year-old kid whose family is just trying to put food on the table. “So you wanna play baseball now?” 在大聯盟待了三年，你終於等到了仲裁的日子。基本上，在大聯盟的第六年之前，你就可以拿到第一份大約，前提是你要撐得夠久。想像跟一個家徒四壁的17歲少年，解釋這些複雜的流程，再問他「所以，你還想打棒球嗎？」 There is only one other African American player, Josh Harrison, on the Pittsburgh Pirates with me. People have asked me why I think the numbers are declining overall. There’s a lot of talk about kids thinking that baseball is slow and boring, or that they’d rather sit at home and play video games. Maybe there’s some truth to that, but to me, there is a deeper problem going on that is affecting low-income kids of all races. 我跟J-Hay是海盜隊裡唯二的非裔美籍球員，人們總問我，為什麼你們的人數在遞減中。有很多的說法，一來是小朋友認為棒球步調太慢、非常無聊，二來是他們寧願在家裡坐著打電動，這樣的說法也沒錯，但對我來說，有一個更深層的問題在影響著所有低收入戶的小孩。 Fixing that problem is complicated, but when I was a kid, I looked at baseball players growing up in Latin America with a lot of envy. If you’re a talented kid in the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico, a team can come along and say, “We’re going to sign you for $50,000 and take you into our organization and develop you, feed you, take care of your travel.” To me, as a 14-year-old kid whose family was struggling, that would have meant everything to me. I would have taken that deal in a second. 解決這個問題是複雜不易的。當我還小的時候，我很羨慕那些拉丁美洲的棒球員。如果你是個多明尼加或是波多黎各出生的小孩，會有球隊告訴你「我們要用五萬元簽下你，讓你加入我們的球隊，並訓練你，照顧你的食衣住行。」對我這樣一個艱困家庭的小孩來說，這是任何事物都無法比擬的。我會不假思索的簽下合約。 That kind of system would make the game a lot more attractive to kids from low-income families. For all the backlash around the Jackie Robinson West team “cheating,” most people are ignoring the truth of how these 12-year-old kids make it out of their towns and onto a national stage. Individuals step in and fill that financial gap. Hopefully those people are trustworthy and have their hearts in the right place. I was fortunate in that respect. Other kids might not be. When you talk to players around Major League Baseball, almost every single one of them has a story about a person who stepped in and took care of their expenses. You hear it all the time: “ If it wasn’t for this guy, I wouldn’t be in the league.” 這樣的機制會讓棒球吸引更多貧困家庭的小孩。對於Jackie Robinson West"作弊風波" 所引起的反彈聲浪，大多數人忽略了這些小孩們如何披荊斬棘，登上國家級的賽場。有人走進了他們的人生，並幫他們解決經濟問題。幸好這些人都是值得信賴、立意良好。我很幸運如此，但其他小孩或許沒辦法跟我一樣，當你跟MLB的球員聊天，幾乎每個球員生命中都有一個人，走進他們的人生並替他們處理開銷問題。你總是能聽到這說法「如果不是那個人，我可能就不會在這裡了。」 The kids from Jackie Robinson West had a really bad day yesterday. But you know what? Somebody probably watched their Little League World Series run and saw one of them make a smart play in the field or hit a perfect line drive up the gap. That kid might not have been the best player on the team. But somebody saw something in him, and they’re going to reach out and say, “ Hey, I want you on my team.” They’re going to become like a second father or mother to that kid. Hopefully that kid has the courage to travel away from his family and the patience to become a great baseball player. 昨天這些Jackie Robinson West的小球員可能心情糟透了。但你知道嗎？某人可能看著他們的比賽，注意到他們有人機智的處理了一個play，或是打出了一記完美的平飛球。這些孩子或許不是隊上最棒的球員，但總是有人會在他們身上看出些什麼，然後向他們說「嘿，我想要你加入我們隊伍。」有人會在他們生命中扮演著第二個父親或母親的腳色。希望這些小孩有勇氣離鄉背井，付出耐心成為一個偉大的球員。 But all over the country, there are thousands of kids who are playing in a cornfield in Nebraska or a swampy field in Central Florida and they feel like nobody is watching. We need to find a better (and most definitely cheaper) way to give those kids a chance at a way out. 但在這個國家，還有成千上萬的小朋友，在Nebraska的玉米田裡打球，或在Central Florida的沼澤區域打球，並且覺得沒人看見他們。我們需要找到一個更好(當然要更便宜)的方法，讓這些小孩有機會出頭天。 http://www.theplayerstribune.com/left-out/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cutch老大的文，算是小自傳，也幫貧困的孩子發聲。簡單的解釋了，在棒球路上，貧窮家庭小孩遇到的許多殘酷問題。有翻得不好、翻錯請幫我指正 <(_ _)> -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc), 來自: 123.205.40.18 ※ 文章網址: https://www.ptt.cc/bbs/Pirates/M.1423937763.A.124.html

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