I read an article in Men's Health about Parkinson's disease. Many of us know of Michael J Fox suffering from this debilitating degenerative disease. The article in itself was very interesting to me. I believe my father-in-law suffers from a form of Parkinson's. The sad truth is he refuses to believe and will not get tested. I'm no doctor, but I'm afraid reality might set in at some point.

What caught my sports fan’s eye was a small blurb side article about a young man named Ben Petrick. Ben was a young baseball protégé from Oregon. Ben was on the rise as a MLB catching prospect in 1999 and played in Colorado until 2003 (see page #5 in Men's Health link for his story). His career ended in Detroit in 2003, 3 years after he was diagnosed with Parkinson's.

Photo: dksbaseballcards.com

The high school prospect from Glencoe High School was drafted 38th overall in the 2nd round of 1995 amateur draft. He had successful years in AAA Colorado affiliate, Colorado Springs Sky Sox. He was called to the bigs in 1999 and hit .323 with 4 home runs in 62 plate appearances. In 2001 his production dropped off after hitting .322 the prior season.

In 1999 Ben was typing and noticed his left hand didn't respond the same as his right. After it was ruled out Ben suffered no brain anomalies, he decided to visit a specialist. His father was diagnosed with Parkinson's a few short months earlier. Ben was advised to keep a lid on his diagnosis.

Ben used the drug levodopa after his diagnosis. What struck me in the Men's Health article were the side effects of the drug. Ironically, kinetic side effects can happen in long term use. The very same affliction from the disease! Ben used the drug every 2 hours to keep the dreaded disease at bay. He knew he had to stay on top of his game.

Sadly, Ben Petrick's days were numbered playing baseball. Obviously, reaction time is the key to success for any player. Wikipedia reports that Ben may have contracted Parkinson's from the bacteria Borrelia. Borellia is the main cause of Lyme disease. Ben had a role in the film Under Our Skin on the effects of Lyme Disease and how the Medical Community has dealt with patients.

According to Portlandtribune.com, Ben is married to wife Kellie. He is currently coaching football at his High School Alma matter. Ben also holds private baseball clinics to local kids. He is putting together a golf tournament in Oregon City to raise money for Parkinson's.

Photo: GlencoeCrimsonTide.com

Thanks for reading.

Sources: Wikipedia, Portland Tribune, Google, Men's Health, Under Our Skin.