Brian Johnson tells the story of baseball player Brandon Guyer, who got called up to the majors and hit a home run in his first at-bat at Camden Yards. After years bouncing between the minors and majors, Guyer won a World Series, earned the nickname La Piñata for getting hit by pitches constantly, and now coaches mental toughness at the University of Virginia.
Questions this episode answers
When Dreams Come True: La Piñata's Heroic Story (Heroic +1 #1,439)
February 28, 2023
Camden Yards
La Piñata — because he was hit by pitches frequently (high hit-by-pitch rate).
brandonguyer.com
Hey hero, if you're enjoying these daily plus ones, make sure you head to heroic us to check out all of the other goodness we have to help you activate your best every day. And now, today's plus one.
Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another heroic plus one. Today we're gonna wrap up our little tour through the first three books of Darren Donnelly's wonderful Sports for the Soul series. As we've discussed, Darren has a special ability to tell a great inspiring sports story packed with scientifically grounded practical wisdom. It's a rare and winning combination, which is why I'll recommend you check out the notes and books in the series yet again. Think like a warrior. Old school grit, relentless optimism, victory favors the fearless, life to the fullest and the turnaround. All of those are linked in this plus one. Of course, like any great hero's journey, a great sports fable needs to include a hero who meets a guide and has some buddies who help him achieve the impossible. I'll save the spoiler alert for his minor league baseball player who makes it to the big leagues and does something incredible. And I will tell you that. And I had goosebumps as I typed this. When I read this make believe story about a baseball player doing the impossible, I thought of my dear friend Brandon Geier. Brandon played major league baseball and of course he was once in the minor leagues going through many of the same things the hero and Darren's fable experienced. One day, after one of his worst performances, Brandon's AAA manager brought him into his office. He was nervous about what he might be telling him. To Brandon's great surprise, he was being called up to the big leagues. The very next day. He he was going to play his very first game in the same stadium he grew up going to as a kid. Imagine that for a moment or three. Now it's his first at bat, he steps up to the plate and you know what he does? He hits a home run in front of his family and his friends. The first player to ever hit a home run in his first career at bat in Camden Yards. I got goosebumps right now. Imagine that for a moment or three. Actually, watch this video I linked to in the plus one to feel the power of that moment. I've watched that video at least a dozen times and I've gotten tears in my eyes every single time. So our hero hits a home run in his first at bat. Standing ovation. Then you know what Brandon does? He strikes out in the next two at bats. Then you know what happens next? He gets sent back down to the minor leagues where he goes up and down for years before making it stick in the big leagues. And you know how he navigated that whole process with exactly the ideas that we come back to all day, every day. Then you know what happened? He made his dreams come true and did things like catch this ball in the playoffs link and hit this double in Game 7 of the World Series. LinkedIn against one of the best closers in baseball. Not too long after the announcer gave him the nickname La Pinata because he got hit by more pitches than anyone else in baseball in baseball history. By the way, on an at bat to hit by pitch ratio. And by the way, Brandon's the guy who inspired me to get my Arete tattoo. We trade text with our aura scores every morning. He's made me a better human being. Bless you brother. You're one of the good guys. And I'm honored that he says some kind words which I link to about how our Mastery Series and coach program made him a better human being. And he joined Michael, our head coach, to share his wisdom with our coaches. Check that out as well. I'm also honored that he and his wife Lindsey are two of our biggest investors in Heroic Bless you both. They have some kind words to say about that as well. And and you can learn more about Brandon on his website brandonguyer.com he's now the mental toughness coach for the University of Virginia's baseball team, where he's a Hall of Famer and he teaches young athletes how to win on and off the field by living with virtue. He's the living embodiment of what it means to be heroic. Day one all in let's make our dreams come true, hero.
We hope you enjoyed today's Heroic one. For more ancient wisdom, modern science and practical tools to help you flourish in energy, work and love, head to Heroic Us where you can get started on your heroic journey for free.
