Sports Scene: Chamberlain, Lester use strength to overcome life's obstacles
Rob Morgan
Issue date: 1/29/09 Section: Sports
For Joba Chamberlain and Jon Lester, the rise to stardom in Major League Baseball did not come easy.
On the mound, Chamberlain's 6-2, 230 pound frame, 100-mph fastball, and equally devastating slider make him a force to be reckoned with against opposing hitters.
But what's even more valuable than Chamberlain's intimidating stature and impressive repertoire of pitches are his intense passion for the game and fierce competitive nature - qualities that he inherited from his father, Harlan.
When Harlan Chamberlain was nine months old, he was stricken with polio and was forced to enter a children's hospital in Lincoln, Neb. He spent over six years at the hospital where he became paralyzed on his left side and lost all hearing in his left ear.
Confined to a wheelchair and later a motorized scooter, the elder Chamberlain refused to let these handicaps prevent him from pursuing a career and living the rest of his life.
"Seeing what he went through and being the person that he is; never asking 'why' or complaining... he's taught me to never give up," said Chamberlain. "You've got to give everything you've got everyday - in between the lines and outside the lines."
Growing up, Joba served as his father's extra set of arms and legs; often doing the laundry, cooking meals, and tending to his various medical ailments.
It wasn't a big deal, according to Joba, because his father had always been there for him whenever he was sick, so he was simply returning the favor.
Despite his handicaps, Harlan made a promise to himself that he would do something that every father should do with their son; introduce Joba to the game of baseball.
As it turns out, it was one of the smartest decisions that Harlan Chamberlain ever made.
When the two played catch in the backyard, Harlan caught the ball with his right hand, tucked it under his chin as he shook off his glove, and threw it back to Joba with the same arm. If Joba threw the ball past his dad, he was the one who had to chase after it, which quickly taught him to be an accurate thrower
On the mound, Chamberlain's 6-2, 230 pound frame, 100-mph fastball, and equally devastating slider make him a force to be reckoned with against opposing hitters.
But what's even more valuable than Chamberlain's intimidating stature and impressive repertoire of pitches are his intense passion for the game and fierce competitive nature - qualities that he inherited from his father, Harlan.
When Harlan Chamberlain was nine months old, he was stricken with polio and was forced to enter a children's hospital in Lincoln, Neb. He spent over six years at the hospital where he became paralyzed on his left side and lost all hearing in his left ear.
Confined to a wheelchair and later a motorized scooter, the elder Chamberlain refused to let these handicaps prevent him from pursuing a career and living the rest of his life.
"Seeing what he went through and being the person that he is; never asking 'why' or complaining... he's taught me to never give up," said Chamberlain. "You've got to give everything you've got everyday - in between the lines and outside the lines."
Growing up, Joba served as his father's extra set of arms and legs; often doing the laundry, cooking meals, and tending to his various medical ailments.
It wasn't a big deal, according to Joba, because his father had always been there for him whenever he was sick, so he was simply returning the favor.
Despite his handicaps, Harlan made a promise to himself that he would do something that every father should do with their son; introduce Joba to the game of baseball.
As it turns out, it was one of the smartest decisions that Harlan Chamberlain ever made.
When the two played catch in the backyard, Harlan caught the ball with his right hand, tucked it under his chin as he shook off his glove, and threw it back to Joba with the same arm. If Joba threw the ball past his dad, he was the one who had to chase after it, which quickly taught him to be an accurate thrower
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