Louisville Slugger Warriors amputee baseball team filming documentary at FGCU
Louisville Slugger Warriors pitcher Rocky Lorenzo doesn’t take anything for granted. That includes stepping onto the baseball field to play the game he loves.
“I try to enjoy it because I never know what’s going to happen tomorrow,” Lorenzo explained. “I always want to make sure I gave my heart out. I played my heart out whenever I’m out here.”
Lorenzo knows that all too well. Hours after he was born, he had to fight for his life as blood clots took over his body. At just 17 days old, Lorenzo’s left leg was amputated.
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“At first I was going to lose my life and then gradually I started to stabilize more and more,” Lorenzo said. “And at that point it was both legs above the hips or at the hip. The progressively I started to stabilize more and more where it eventually became below the left knee.”
But that wasn’t going to stop him.
“Growing up i always felt I had to prove something,” Lorenzo said. “I always had that chip on my shoulder to be like I’m going to prove you wrong right now and that was something that fueled me throughout my whole life.”
Lorenzo plays for the Louisville Slugger Warriors, a team with a roster filled with amputee player. Each player has their own story like outfielder Colton DeRocher.
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The word “believe” guided DeRocher’s life. So much so, it’s etched in his glove and tattooed on his chest. That guiding word dates back to a basketball practice when he was seven years old.
“We had to dribble down the court with our left hand,” DeRocher recalled. “And I told my coach I couldn’t do it. So I immediately felt sorry for myself like didn’t attack it head on. Went to the car told my dad crying hoping he would give sympathy. And instead he chewed my gut and said if you don’t believe in yourself no one else will.”
The team is at Swanson Stadium at Florida Gulf Coast University to film a documentary called “Curveballs.”
“This film is really about the spirit of overcoming adversity,” the film’s director John Biffar said. “And so it’s not so much about baseball as much as it is about the heart of the guys on the field.”
