With the current MLB qualifiers, CBS News contributor David Begnaud highlights two inspiring stories featuring the favorite pastime of America.
In Connecticut, a softball launcher at high school surmounts the chances of a debilitating disease and the passion of a family for Baseball in Arkansas leads to the search for Alzheimer’s after a devastating diagnosis.
The Lycée Launcher realizes dreams despite the diagnosis
Jenica Matos, the ACE launcher for the Rams of the Cheshire high school in Cheshire, Connecticut, amazed the teammates and the opponents.
The 17 -year -old woman, described by her coach as a resilient, a worker and kind, is legally blind.
“It started when I was about 10 or 11 years old,” she said. “I told my parents that by playing softball, the ball looked like Fuzzy, as if it were not as clear as before.”
Matos received a diagnosis of Stargardt’s disease, a rare genetic disorder that has removed its central vision.
“When I was younger, I could see the faces of people, as if I was in the canoe and I looked on the field and now I can’t at all,” said Matos.
Gear can see the contrast. His recipient will wear a black glove and a white chest protector to give him something to aim. Then she said it was muscle memory.
“My pitch coach, we work a lot on … Muscle memory and knowing when I release the ball, where it will go,” she said.
Matos said that some days are more difficult than others, but it is determined because it likes sport.
His passion has led his success. His team is the Champions of Connecticut State Softball and Matos launched when the title was won.
“I think back and watch the video of The Last Out and it’s like, really incredible,” said Matos.
MATOS will frequent St. John’s University on a full Softball scholarship next year.
The love of man for baseball helps to finance the search for Alzheimer’s
Ten years ago, Sam and Pat Perroni built a baseball field in Fayetteville, Arkansas, For their two grandchildren, never imagining what it would grow.
The Perronis watched their grandchildren spend hours under the northwest of Arkansas Sun hunting baseball balls and childhood dreams.
The broadcasting of words on the ground has built that the couple built, which was a baseball field of the small league, with personal keys.
“If you build it, they will come … and they started to come,” said Sam Perroni.
While the domain flourished, the world of Perroni changed. At just 62, Sam’s wife Pat received a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s.
“It is such a horrible disease because it kills not only the patient, but it also removes its dignity and that deprives them of their most precious thing, and these are memories,” said Sam Perroni.
Pat needed care 24 hours a day and finally moved into a full -time care establishment.
Her husband’s grief has turned into a goal. Sam has decided to organize an annual tournament to collect funds for the search for Alzheimer’s. The Perroni Field of Dreams tournament is entirely organized by volunteers, who direct the concession stand and maintain the field.
Each summer, children meet for tournaments, raising funds for the search for Alzheimer’s.
“The very first official tournament, I think we collected $ 5,000, then each year we set a higher goal, and each year we have exceeded the goal,” said Sam Perroni, adding that his goal is to raise $ 1 million for the search for Alzheimer each year.
In May 2025, Pat died – giving an even deeper meaning to the tournament.
“There is no tournament that passes that I have no people who tell me about their grandmother or their mother or their father or their sister or brother, someone like that who has Alzheimer,” said Sam Perroni. “This leaves a lasting impression.”
At 77, Sam finds pleasure in the simple moments of the baseball field, committing to young players.
“I really believe that one person can really make a difference,” he said.
