Curtis Pride
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It has been said that hitting a baseball, with consistency, is one of the most difficult things to do. Playing major league baseball, over a long period, whether you can hear or are deaf, is phenomenal. Throughout the history of baseball there have been only a few players that had a hearing defect. During the 1996 Major League Baseball season, Curtis Pride, as a member of the Detroit Tigers, became the first deaf player in the up-to-date era of Major League Baseball to play a full-season. “In his 20 plus year career, he has played for six major league teams (Expos, Tigers, Red Sox, Braves, Royals and Angels), 10 major league organizations and 25 professional teams.” (Dodd). The 38-year-old outfielder is back for his 22nd season this spring. He is trying to make roster of the Los Angeles Angels as a non-invitee free agent. He is a lifetime .251 hitter in the majors, with about 19 home runs and around 80 RBI. Curtis Pride stands 6 feet tall and weighs 220 pounds. He bats from the left side of the plate, but throws right-handed. His primary position is outfield, although he has tried playing first base. He is an aggressive player with great speed, and loves it when pitchers throw him the fastball. After over two decades playing in the major and minor leagues, Pride still loves the game. He proceeds to play, he says, “because of the impact he believes he has on deaf children.” (Dodd)
On the 17th of December 1968, Curtis was born to John and Sally Pride in our nation’s capital. During her pregnancy, Rubella, or German measles struck Sally. Rubella is a virus infection that causes a brief red rash, and a low fever. If it happens early in a pregnancy, the baby can be born deaf. Babies can also be born blind, with heart problems, mental retardation, or cerebral palsy, among other things. At the age of 9-months, Curtis was diagnosed as congenitally deaf with a profound (85%-95%) sensorineural loss. He had lost most of his ability to hear. (Griffin) (Berke)
The Pride family moved to Silver Springs, Maryland in 1971. From the start of his schooling, Curtis was enrolled in special classes. These classes focused on oral education of deaf children. At the age of nine, and starting with the fourth grade, he was mainstreamed into the public school system in Silver Spring. Curtis hated being different. He preferred to lip read as opposed to learning sign language. He wore a hearing aid, but that frustrated him. The hearing aid only produced a high pitch noise, making it more difficult for Curtis to learn. As he grew older, his resolve not to be treated different only increased. Curtis, against his parents’ wishes, insisted on a public education. During his high school years, Curtis flourished. He was a great student-athlete and the only hearing-impaired student in his classes. (Griffin) (“Curtis Pride”, Microsoft)
In 1986, Curtis graduated from John F. Kennedy High School with a 3.6 Grade Point Average. He excelled in the sports, playing baseball, basketball and soccer. Because of his quickness and size, and natural athletic ability, Curtis was a world class soccer player. He played on the U.S National Team that played in the Junior World Cup in China, Beijing to be exact. His performance in that tournament was incredible, and as a result, he was named as one of the crowning youth soccer players in the world. Everyone expected him to play professional soccer, but baseball was still his first love. (Griffin)
Upon graduating high school, Curtis was granted a basketball scholarship to the College of William and Mary, in Virginia. That same year, the New York Mets drafted him. Curtis wanted to obtain his college education, but he also wanted to pursue the opportunity of becoming a professional baseball player. The NCAA allowed Curtis to sign with the Mets as a pro baseball player, and also attended college as a full-time student athlete. Curtis started on the varsity basketball team while attending William and Mary, graduating with a degree in finance. (Griffin) (Strasser)
While in college, Curtis’ ability to participate in baseball was limited. The Mets ultimately released