Cody's Blog

When 58 year old Larry Hasenfus flunked out of St. Anselm College, he thought he would never return to school. With the help of his wife and the fact that he was laid off of his textile job, Hasenfus decided to go back to school, choosing Springfield (Massachusetts) College. Hasenfus was never extremely bright as a youngster, but when his first report card came back with staight A’s, he decided to try the unthinkable; compete against 70 college kids for a spot on the school’s junior varsity baseball team. His wife supported his decision, as he loved playing ball as a kid and even played a little in high school. Having never lifted a weight in his life, Hasenfus would drive the 45 minutes to the college for morning workouts, go to class, go to practice after school, and return home for dinner and school work before making the trek all over again. Larry Hasenfus made the team, and to practice his three pitch arsenal at home in preparation for the season, he rigged a hockey net as a pitching target, throwing pitch after pitch into the net. After shaking off the rust, Hasenfus’ fastball and curveball began to work more, and his signature pitch, the knuckleball, began its dancing. Hasenfus did everything he was told to, and while never playing, much, when he made it in the kids went crazy and the 200 people crowds jeered and cheered for “Larry Kid” (the nickname given to him by his teammates). In Hasenfus’ second outing, he recorded his first three outs of his college career in their loss to New England College. Springfield’s season wraps up soon, and Hasenfus will hang ‘em up and go in search of a job after the season, but at Springfield, Hasenfus achieved one of the most amazing feats in and will always be remembered in his community as a sort of “Rocky Balboa,” never say die type of man.