JOHNNY DAMON TALKS HELPING THE NEXT GENERATION OF SPORTS STARS, HIS CBD BUSINESS, AND MORE
Former Major League Baseball superstar Johnny Damon says he’s lucky he’s not a child looking to break into the sport of baseball here in the year 2020. If he was, he probably wouldn’t be able to grow up to play for some of the best teams of all time.
That’s because the average cost of a travel baseball league is about $1,500 a year. “There’s no way I would’ve had the opportunity to play baseball if I was living in this era,” Damon told Muscle & Fitness.
America’s favorite pastime didn’t cost that much when he was growing up, but it was still a struggle for his family to afford it. “My mom worked three jobs so she could raise the extra money and sign us up for baseball,” Damon recalls.
It’s safe to say his mother’s investment was worth it. Damon is a two-time World Series champion, two-time All Star, and in 2000 he led the America League in stolen bases. His first World Series title was with the 2004 Boston Red Sox, who made history by breaking the team’s infamous “Curse of the Bambino,” and in the American League Championship Series leading to that title he hit an unforgettable Grand Slam to defeat the rival New York Yankees.
Now, eight years removed from his days in the big leagues, Damon wants to ensure future champions will have a chance to prove their skills on the diamond. As a member of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition and through his own group, The Johnny Damon Foundation, he’s trying to work with donors and sponsors to give children a chance to get out and be active.
“We’re going into a future where you can only play sports if you only have money and that’s not right,” he says. “We’re just trying to give these kids an opportunity.”