Roberto Hernández Talks Determination to Make it the Major Leagues. AlanAlfordSportsTalkShow.com

Yes, this is Allen from the Allen Alpert Sports Talk Show. I'm joined here with Roberto Hernandez. So you shared some awesome stories. You talked about the trials and tribulations of making it to the major leagues. Looking back, was it all worth it? Oh, it's definitely all worth it. You know, I got to the big leagues at the age of 27, but I wound up pitching until 43. So, you know, all the sacrifices and all that, you know, it's all well worth it. You know, the satisfaction, you know, working hard. And it gave me a foundation, you know, to work, to, if it's something that you want to get, you have to put in the work and reach it, you know, and that drove me. And you were sharing some stories about how tough it was. People, I guess, don't see that side of that. It's not as easy as you think when you see a sports center, you see those plays. You see all the highlights, you see all the people, you know, in the big leagues, you know, but once you get drafted, you got to go to the minor league, which is like their college. You know, you got to do a stint in like A-ball, double-A, and then triple-A. They test you all the way up there. Some guys get frustrated, some guys, you know, start, that doubt starts creeping in. You know, when doubt starts creeping in, your performance starts slacking. You know, it's a sport that has built-in failure. The one thing that a lot of these kids don't understand, you know, in today's sport is how to deal with failure. You know, failure was my professor. All right, you know, I failed doing this, you know, so now I got to try this. You know, you do it by trials and tribulations, you know, and learn from it. Don't dwell on it, but learn from it. And when those days were dark where you didn't see the light at the end of the tunnel, what did you say to yourself or did to say, you know what, keep going? You've got to keep saying positive things to yourself. I will survive this. I will make it. You know, you've got to start setting small goals in front of you, you know, baby steps. And once you start seeing those goals come to fruition, then you start seeing the light in the tunnel. I'm like, okay, this is what it felt. You know, and then all of a sudden, you know, at the age of 27, poof, that light lit up. I'm like, okay, now I get it. But you have to put in the work and put in the effort. And I love you said that you had to first impress yourself before you got to the point of impressing somebody else. This game is such a hard game. And if you start now trying to please, you know, the organization or your family, you're going about it the wrong way. Please yourself first. Make sure that you take care of yourself. Believe in yourself. Please yourself. And all the accolades and all the good results will come. You know, you don't need that added distraction of trying to please somebody or prove to somebody else. Prove it to yourself. And finally, what can young people nowadays do to make sure that they can handle the tough times? As you mentioned, they have a tough time dealing with it. Believe in yourself. Always believe in yourself. You know, remember that this is the hardest sport to play because you're going to fail. This is on you. You know, basketball, you have four guys. Football, there's 11 on 11. You know, it's on you. When you're at the plate or on your mound, if you do your job and if you believe in yourself, it will happen. Yes, that's right. And finally, the Tampa, do you think they should have their baseball stadium here in Tampa? They need to stay either St. Pete or Tampa. It doesn't matter. You know, we've been spoiled with the ways and how they've done. For me, you know, it would be a crime shame if they moved to some other state. You know, we need baseball here. May it be in Tampa or may it be in St. Pete. But it's got to stay here. Yes, it's got to stay in Florida. Thank you. Thank you so much. God bless. Thank you.