When It Comes to the Lord, Orel's Still in the 'Zone'
by Doug Greengard
August 6, 2004
(AgapePress) - During his successful career as a Major League pitcher, Orel Hershiser earned the nickname "Bulldog." It was for good reason: He squared off against his opponents with great tenacity. It was with the same zeal that he embraced his relationship with God.But since retiring in 2000, Hershiser has found that his approach to his walk with Jesus Christ has changed, just as his career has. "The reasons are a bit different than how I was motivated before," says Hershiser, now pitching coach for the Texas Rangers.
"It's important for me not to think that just because I was in the public eye that I was accountable and responsible and held up to a certain level where I really had to work on my walk. Whereas, now that I'm not in the public eye -- in the background in a coaching job -- I need to continue to work on my relationship on a daily basis to continue to be close to the Lord and always understanding God's love."
In 1988, with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Hershiser was baseball's top pitcher. He won the Cy Young Award and led the league in victories, complete games, and innings pitched. The following season, he set a Major League record by pitching 59 consecutive scoreless innings. After experiencing setbacks with arm injuries, Hershiser went on to enjoy several more successful seasons with Cleveland, San Francisco, and the New York Mets before his retirement.
"It's great to still be around baseball and to have those friendships," adds Hershiser. "It's important to have that accountability and to have that fellowship with different people. John Wettland on the coaching staff is one example for me."
Hershiser knows the importance of relationships and how vital they are, especially when a ballplayer has retired or the season has ended.
"We can be very season-oriented as far as our friendships," Hershiser explains. "For me, the close-knit bonds from church and church friends and friends from over the years keep me accountable and responsible to keep the straight and narrow."
Hershiser accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior in 1979 at the age of 21. Like developing his repertoire of pitches, one of baseball's best pitchers says his maturity in Christ also took time and diligence through seeking God's Word, praying, and fellowshipping with other believers.
"To develop, what I would say a mature relationship, it might have been about three, four, even five years," said Hershiser. "It's maybe in the last twenty years that I've begun to understand the depth of God's love and what it's like to walk with Him on a daily basis and know His wisdom."
Even after his days as a ballplayer, Hershiser is trying to find the strike zone -- and show others how to also.
Doug Greengard is chaplain for the NFL's New Orleans Saints and the host/producer of Christian Sports Minute, a radio feature airing on more than 300 stations in North America. To get Heroes of Faith, a book filled with 24 stories of well-known sports figures, send $10 to Greengard Family Ministries, 2250 Gause Blvd., PMB 51089, Slidell, LA 70461.
