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I played baseball in HS and D3, branch campus of Penn State.  

i was recruited as a baseball player... i thought i was good, until i arrived a permanent duty station with three legit minor league and one college player... was first base as long as i can recall- being a lefty helped... anyway, i could hold my own with them as a batter, but fielding? ... uh... i dabbled as a catcher here and there growing up, never in a game- mostly as an assist with pitchers needing a work out- and caught for some that excelled in leagues i played in... i'll say it straight- those Marines w/ no shit harball backgrounds threw those plays to first (me) harder than any pitcher ever has... they could turn the infield quicker than anything i'd ever seen outside of paid players... i realized then and there joining the Corps instead of pursuing either baseball or football was a good decision.  

one of those guys, from Colorado, made it all the way to CWO5 and was a true Marine Corps Gunner- he very recently retired.  Another, from Pennsylvania, got out and figured the Army Reserve would help him pay for school- he was recruited for what was then still known as Delta, and globe-trotted from one hot spot to another before going straight black- we've heard rumors but don't know where he's at for sure.  The other one finished his tour and went back to NH and played the remainder of his eligibility as a catcher... he was a tough dude who let a gal decide his career which ended up being a mistake- but he has a much better one now and a beautiful family and home to go along with her.  the other fella had a hummer roll over him while he was in the turret and on the M2, and without the barrel of that thing jamming through the mud and hitting something substantial down there keeping it from crushing him completely, he'd not be here anymore- as it is he's been wheelchair bound since.  he was a helluvan athlete prior, and after many tough years coming to terms with that chair (he's tougher than me, i'd have eaten lead i'm almost certain) he's done damn well for himself- recently retiring from an awesome job i'm not going to name, and snowbirding in a beautiful home on the water in florida.  those guys were athletes one and all. 

i played inside LB in a 52, which is still my favorite D scheme, though it's useless in today's game. folks ran a lot more then.  when i wasn't ILB, i'd play DE and RG.  I got to punt some too... an abrupt and dramatic change in my world led me from FB my Soph year, and i tried to play my Jr year but it conflicted with what i had to do... the USMC was my way out, and i was sitting in PI less than a week from walking the stage with my classmates. 

it's gonna sound like bragging and i really don't want it to- but up until the last ten years physical abilities came easy- i managed to make the cut into an elite group, and then another above that one.  most of that is attitude and physical ability- the thought process being you can mold a person's attitude if they have the foundation, and if they naturally have the ability to pass the physical cuts, you can further beat/smash/willfully create what you need out of them.  I had excelled in every place i'd ever been until i ran into the men of the second unit (same unit with the baseball players)- and there?  I struggled... mightily... but i made it for a long time, until my body straight up said EFF YOU- now i have two blown knees- one more serious than the other with a missing MCL.. two blown shoulders.. broke my back in '96 and never came back to 100%... had a compound dislocation (i didn't even know such a thing existed prior) where i snapped my fibula and the tibia came right out the inside of my ankle -while still in shock i reset it- watched a blob of sand go back in with it, and thought i could tape it w/90mph tape and continue... not a good plan..  the surgeon spent nine hours on that leg, said the tendons and ligaments were like a ball of wire... being more stupid and afraid to miss something, i was back on the rotation in five weeks- but likely only because the doc said i was most likely done.. i had to prove him wrong, and though it was a minor victory then only i truly enjoyed, it's one of those things that's cumbersome now.  

after the corps and PDC'ing, (well, during private defense contracting too) i picked up mountain biking, which gave me cheap thrills and rare impacts (only when i bit off more than i could chew, anyway), but i only tried to play football once more- a guy in the grocery store stopped me and asked if i played- said they were recruiting for a local semi-pro league... i showed up for a practice sans pads, at my old position of ILB, and the RB gave me instant recollection as to why i didn't play football, basketball, baseball tennis racketball handball or any kind of ball anymore--- my knees gave... i could run for miles without a whimper in a straight line, but the first time i have to plant/pivot/burst? these damn knees plop right out and i look like a fawn deer for a few days.  so... that is that.  damn it.  

one of my regrets is not playing through HS.  i had all of it going for me i needed except for circumstances i really couldn't control, but learned later after gaining some mental toughness that i damn sure could have- it just would have been a little more difficult than my teammates is all... but i didn't... can't go back, right? 

I played baseball into my 40s here in Cincy in the MSBL group.  You had to be over 30 and out of pro ball for at least a year.  Most of the players were about like me, HS players, and it was fun.  We had one guy on our team who had played for the Expos as a pitcher and we used him as a closer because his arm was hurt a lot.  So, usually I got to warm him up.

In the first place, he threw a legit 90 fastball, which is scary enough, but his slider for me was almost uncatchable even knowing it was coming.  There is a reason catchers give signals.  When you can throw that hard, even a bit of spin on the ball makes it move like crazy, and his slider would come in and just flat drop like crazy.  And, he was a lefty.

There was no way I could have hit him, never tried, I could barely catch him.  It really took all my attention to catch.  We had another pitcher who had made it to AA ball and realized he wasn't going to make it and dropped out.

We had 8 teams in the league, and a group went to the "MSBL World Series" in Phoenix one spring.  They had 365 teams there competing at 3 levels.  We played in a few other tourneys, one on Columbus on "astroturf" which was neat.  We played a team sponsored by a radio station.  Nice guys, they had all been AAA players.  That park in C-bus had 340 down the lines and 430 to center and I figured nobody would launch one there, but that team hit about 4 HRs off us.  They were using their worst pitcher who I think was tanking it so we could hit a bit.  They knew they would drill us easily and were nice about it.  

I was playing first base and can recall one HR they hit that almost gave me whiplash it left the park so fast.  I was glad he didn't hit it down the line at me.  The bat speed they develop is unbelievable.

The kids at Hopi HS up on the AZ reservation seem to win all the long-distance running here.  It's the elevation - the rest of the state is around 1,000' or so, but the Rez is 6500-7500'.  

this guy got pardon (leave) to run the Badwater so long as he wore issued shorts and a USMC tshirt they'd provide him with.  his endurance was insane.  though he could run a mile under four minutes and six under thirty, his real talent was evident in 10+ miles.  it was insane.  
he was my squad leader for a short period.  he took the team on monday morning and gave us good news/bad news- bad being we were going to run 10 miles that morning, good being we wouldn't run it tuesday if everyone made it without falling out.  friday morning, half the squad missing due to twisted knees, shin splints, ect, and after four ten mile mornings we decided 'eff him, let it be him that splits the group' and near the end of the run let him go- just to fall out monday and turn ten more.... by that wednesday the team commander returned from his training and discovered 3/4 the squad was on light duty, and this twit promptly lost his job as squad leader and was set to work in the rope locker never to come out again the rest of the time he was there...

edited: i was just re-reading through this while waiting for some reports to come in, and caught my mistake:  this guy DIDN'T run sub-4 minutes... he ran mid fours.  my fingers get ahead of my editing skills sometimes. 

I played baseball and football up until HS. I was never really good at baseball, but was a pretty fearless DE on my championship pee wee football team started every year I played. However when I went into the ninth grade my mom refused to sign the permission slip for me to play football. She said I was too small. I ended up wrestling at 98, 105, 112 & 119 in HS. Hard to believe I weight over 200lb today, I didn't grow until I got out of high School. I wasn't very good at wrestling was basically a punching bag for our two state champs at my weight classes.  I ran distance on the track team my freshman year, but not found the love for running. 

Today (at 57), I stay active in sports by officiating High School football and wrestling. 

I played baseball into my 40s here in Cincy in the MSBL group.  You had to be over 30 and out of pro ball for at least a year.  Most of the players were about like me, HS players, and it was fun.  We had one guy on our team who had played for the Expos as a pitcher and we used him as a closer because his arm was hurt a lot.  So, usually I got to warm him up.

In the first place, he threw a legit 90 fastball, which is scary enough, but his slider for me was almost uncatchable even knowing it was coming.  There is a reason catchers give signals.  When you can throw that hard, even a bit of spin on the ball makes it move like crazy, and his slider would come in and just flat drop like crazy.  And, he was a lefty.

There was no way I could have hit him, never tried, I could barely catch him.  It really took all my attention to catch.  We had another pitcher who had made it to AA ball and realized he wasn't going to make it and dropped out.

We had 8 teams in the league, and a group went to the "MSBL World Series" in Phoenix one spring.  They had 365 teams there competing at 3 levels.  We played in a few other tourneys, one on Columbus on "astroturf" which was neat.  We played a team sponsored by a radio station.  Nice guys, they had all been AAA players.  That park in C-bus had 340 down the lines and 430 to center and I figured nobody would launch one there, but that team hit about 4 HRs off us.  They were using their worst pitcher who I think was tanking it so we could hit a bit.  They knew they would drill us easily and were nice about it.  

I was playing first base and can recall one HR they hit that almost gave me whiplash it left the park so fast.  I was glad he didn't hit it down the line at me.  The bat speed they develop is unbelievable.

I was never a good ballplayer, honestly.  I was dumb enough to catch for 15 years and put my heart and soul into it and made a career of it.  I felt I had good command of the game, like a QB would, and called a good game behind the plate, decent arm (<2.1 to second).  That and the ability to block and read pitchers is how I got into low level college ball.  I couldn't hit water if I fell out of a boat, but I think I was tough behind.
I ended up playing in some summer and fall showcase leagues with some guys who got drafted and played decently high level college (think SoCon and Big South level).  Catching was and will remain the funnest thing I've ever done in my life, I mean that.  I always say if I could go back in my old age (38) and do one thing, it'd be to catch 9 again and I'd appreciate it more than I did.  

I was always a sports kid/sports nerd combo.  When I was 12-17 years old, I could name every starting player on every team in the 3 major sports, easily.  But of my group of friends who played some sport outside every day, I was the only one who's parents would let them play.

As much fun as playing 8 years of organized tackle football was, playing pickup football with my friends was just as fun.  Partly because I got the ball in my hands and because, thanks to being in shape thanks to that, I was really good, lol.  In the fall, I missed playing with my friends due to practice, but it was worth it.  Being a backup sucks, because practice sucks - the payoff of the actual game Friday night makes it worthwhile.  

We had a shared stadium in Gainesville, among the 3 major HS in the area - we'd get a police escort the whole way, which was cool.  Now I just see it as a complete waste of resources, lol.  The road games stunk if you traveled far, especially so if you lost.  A school bus full of stinky HS guys getting home at 1am - don't miss those.

Being a football nerd definitely helped me play better, though.  I picked up the plays quickly and I didn't just know my job, but everyone's job on each play, because it made sense.  I grew up watching football, but not just the ball, but how teams blocked and WR route combos that worked and why, etc.

The game is great, concussion issues notwithstanding.  It really is microcosm of life, of war, etc.