原文连结:
https://www.theplayerstribune.com/luis-severino-yankees-my-journey-to-the-bronx/
以下为小弟第一次翻译，有错烦请指正
You know what the best feeling in the world is?
你知道世上最美好的事是什么吗?
The best feeling in the world is waking up in the morning and remembering
that you’re a New York Yankee.
那就是你一觉醒来想起自己是个洋基队球员
The morning after I pitch a good game and get a win for the Yankees in front
of our fans at the stadium, I almost always wake up thinking about how
incredible it is that I made it to where I am.
每当我在洋基球场的球迷面前投出一场好比赛，并为洋基拿下胜利，隔天早上起床时，我
几乎总是想着我取得今天的地位是一件多么不可置信的事。
Something that not a lot of people know is that me coming to play in New York
almost didn’t happen. I was almost a Colorado Rockie.
很少人知道我原本不是要到纽约打球的。我差点就成了落矶人。
Five years ago, I was 17 and living in the Dominican Republic. My family had
very little money, so the idea of signing with a major league team was
something that was on my mind every day. I had left home to go train at a
baseball academy in Bavaro, and would go to every MLB tryout I possibly
could.
5年前，我17岁时住在多明尼加。我们家很穷，所以当时我每天脑中都想着要和大联盟的
球队签约。我离开家到巴瓦罗的棒球学院训练，并尽可能参加每场大联盟的测试会。
When my first offer came in, it was actually from the Marlins.
The guy from the team was like, “Hey, we like what you can do. We have a
contract and the money for you. It’s yours if you want it. Do you want it?”
第一支对我报价的球队其实是马林鱼。他们大概是说:“嘿，我们喜欢你的球技。我们提
供了一份合约和钱，如果你想要就是你的了，想要吗?”
I can’t tell you how bad I wanted to say yes.
我无法形容当时我多么地想答应他。
In my mind I was like, Yes, I want it. I do. Give it to me, please. Right now.
当时我心里想:是的!我想要，请立刻给我!
But my agent told me to be patient — that I could get more, that a better
offer would soon come in. I just needed to wait a little bit.
但我的经纪人叫我要有耐心，他认为更大份的合约就快要上门了。我只需要再等一下子。
That was really tough. Weeks and weeks passed. Then months. It was so hard to
be patient. I just kept thinking about all the things that signing money
could’ve bought for my family.
那是一段艰苦的日子。时光流逝，几个月过去了，要有耐心真是不容易的事。我一直想着
签约金能为我的家庭买到什么。
When the Rockies came to me seven months later with a much better offer, it
felt like 10 years had passed. I didn’t want to wait anymore. I was ready. I
was going to become a Colorado Rockie. Everyone in my hometown was so happy
and proud. Some people even went out and bought Rockies hats.
7个月后，当洛矶队提出了更大份的合约时，感觉仿佛过了10年。我不想再等待了，我准
备好了，我即将成为洛矶人。村里的每个人既开心又骄傲，有些人甚至买了洛矶队的球帽
。
But then, while we were in the process of finalizing the contract, something
happened that I wasn’t expecting.
然而，当我们在底定合约时，意想不到的事发生了。
The New York Yankees called and said they wanted to talk to me.
洋基队打给我并表示想和我谈个话。
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From the time I was a little kid growing up in Sabana de la Mar, I loved two
things: baseball and the New York Yankees.
当我还是个住在萨瓦纳德拉马尔的小孩时，我爱两样东西──棒球，和洋基。
There was a small field right down the road from our house, so my father and
older brother would always walk there to play baseball with people from our
neighborhood. I’d tag along and watch. And around the time I was six, I
became really focused on playing the game and getting good. When I wasn’t on
the field, I’d be watching baseball on TV, just trying to understand the
sport and learn as much as possible.
从我家外面的马路走下去就有一座小球场，所以我爸爸和哥哥以及邻居们总是在那里打棒
球。我会跟随在后并看着他们打球。我大约6岁时，变得非常专注在比赛且越打越好。当
我不在球场上时，我会用电视看棒球，尽我所能地了解并学习这项运动。
I loved watching the Yankees back then. There was just something about that
uniform, and the pinstripes, and that logo, and … New York. And when I went
to the field, I’d sometimes try to be like the guys I saw on TV, or pretend
I was playing in Yankee Stadium.
那时候我喜欢看洋基队的比赛。那件球衣、黑白条纹、队徽和纽约都有种特殊意义。当我
在球场上时，我模仿我在电视转播上看到的球员，或是假装我在洋基球场打球。
I started out as a third baseman, if you can believe that, and an outfielder.
But my dad also began teaching me some pitching basics on the side. When I
was 10 or 11, he sat me down and went over how to throw a curveball. He
talked to me about spin, and rotation, and about where to put my fingers on
the ball. I was still really young, so it took me a while to get it, but I
remember just sitting there so excited to be learning how to throw a new
pitch.
你相信吗?我一开始是个三垒手，也是个外野手。但我爸也教我一些丢球的基本知识。当
我10、11岁时他教我如何丢曲球、旋转，以及我的手指要放在球的哪个位置。那时我还很
小，因此花了一点时间搞懂，但我记得我对于学习如何丢出每一球感到非常兴奋。
The other big thing that my dad did for me was buy me my first Yankees hat. I
’ll never forget that day.
我爸为我做的另一件大事就是买了顶洋基帽。我永远不会忘记那天。
At the time, none of us had any idea about my future. My dad just knew how
much I loved the Yankees, and that the hat would make me happy.
当时，没有人知道我的未来如何。我爸只知道我有多么喜欢洋基，以及那顶帽子能让我开
心。
I wore that thing everywhere. And I made sure to keep it clean.
我到哪里都戴着它，并保持它的干净。
I loved that hat. I really did.
我真的很喜欢那顶帽子。
As I got older, and worked more on my pitching, I got better and better. By
the time I was 15 I was pretty good at it, but I wasn’t throwing all that
hard. My first major league tryout was with the Atlanta Braves. I was 16, and
I threw 82 or 83. Around that time is when I went away to an academy to get
better training, but the bottom line was that I needed to throw harder if I
was going to get signed, and everyone around me knew it.
当我渐渐长大，更努力地练习投球，一切渐入佳境。我15岁时已经很强了，但还是投得不
够强劲。我参加的第一场大联盟测试会是亚特兰大勇士队办的。当时我16岁，能催到82、
83英里。是时候回到棒球学院努力练球，我必须投得更好才能得到合约，而我周遭的人也
都知道这件事。
I didn’t have that much time, though. Sixteen is already pretty old to be a
prospect, and 17 and 18 were right around the corner. So I just tried to keep
working and go to as many tryouts as I could. For kids in the D.R., we will
do whatever it takes to get signed. We don’t care if we have to do five
tryouts in a week. You never know when you’re going to impress the right
person, and you never pass on an opportunity.
但我没有时间了，对于一个新秀来说16岁已经很老了，而我却将要17、18岁。所以我继续
练球并尽可能参加每场测试会。在多明尼加，小朋友会无所不用其极得与球队签约。我们
不在意一周内参加5场测试会，你永远不知道何时会遇到对的人，所以你不能错过任何机
会。
I remember one time at the academy, they needed me to play first base and I
wound up getting hit with a ball on my left arm. I couldn’t move it, but I
had a tryout coming up in a few days. Some people were telling me not to go.
But I didn’t think twice. I just went and threw with my left arm against my
chest.
记得有一次在棒球学院，我被叫去守一垒，结果左手臂被球击中。我无法移动，但几
天后有一场测试会。有些人劝我别参加了，但我毫不犹豫的参加并在左手臂紧靠胸膛的情
况下投球。
You just do whatever you have to do, you know? But it’s not easy. And there
can be a lot of pressure on your shoulders. There are usually like 20 kids at
those tryouts who are just like you. They all throw hard and look very young.
So you sit there and watch all the other players throw, and it’s like, Oh,
my God, how is that kid throwing 97?
你知道吗?你必须做你该做的事。但这并不轻松，心里可能会承受很大的压力。测试会上
也许有20个小孩和你一样，他们都很年轻力壮。你坐在一旁看其他小孩投球时，心里会想
:“我的天啊!为什么他能丢到97英里?”
You have to somehow separate yourself from the pack. And to stand out in that
crowd, I kind of needed something to change for me quick.
你必须从众多竞争者中脱颖而出。为了鹤立鸡群，我必须试图立即改变自己。
I needed a new plan.
我需要一个新计画。
What I didn’t know at the time was that the new plan would involve putting
down the baseball and trying something pretty … different.
那时候我不知道的是，新计画会让我放下棒球，并尝试一件非常特别的事。
One day, one of my coaches came to me with an idea.
有一天，我的一位教练给我个新主意。
You’re going to run for 30 minutes every morning, and then take a softball
and play catch with it and throw it as far as you can each time. Long toss.
No baseballs. All softballs.
“你接下来每天早上要跑步30分钟，然后拿着垒球练习传球，并尽你所能地把它丢远。长
传。不是棒球。是垒球。”
He didn’t say why, or what he was expecting to happen. He just told me to do
it.
教练没有说为何要这样做，也没有说明他的目标。他只是叫我照他的话去做。
I was surprised. But, you know, what am I gonna do? He was my coach.
我感到惊讶。但是你懂的，我还能做什么呢?他是我的教练呢!
So I did it. I didn’t ask any questions. I just did what he said for two
straight weeks before my next tryout.
我照着他说的做，没有提出问题。我连续两星期按表操课，直到下一个测试会。
Then, when I stepped on the mound at that tryout, I threw 92 right off the
bat.
于是我踏上测试会的投手丘，马上飙出92英里。
Then 93.
接着是93英里。
Then 94.
然后是94英里。
I was shocked. I’d never been anywhere near those numbers in the past.
我被震慑了。我过去从未投得这么快。
But it was no fluke. After that, my velocity just kept going up and up. By
the time the Rockies came to me with that offer, I was all the way up to 97.
And I also had a nasty slider.
但这不是昙花一现。在那之后，我的球速持续向上攀升。当洛矶队向我报价时，我已经一
路飙到97英里，并且有着一颗犀利的滑球。
At that point, I knew I had a real shot. And when the Yankees matched the
Rockies’ offer, and it came time for me to decide where to sign, it wasn’t
a tough call for me at all.
在那时候，我知道机会来了。当洋基和落矶的报价摆在眼前，是时候要决定和谁签约时，
这对我来说并不是个困难的抉择。
But it was still a little bit funny telling everybody about it.
在和大家说到这个故事时我还是觉得很有趣。
I went back to my hometown after I signed with New York, and people were
still thinking that I was going to be a Rockie.
我和洋基队签约后，回到家乡时，人们还以为我会成为一个落矶人。
When I met up with friends and family, I was more excited than I’ve ever
been in my life. I was practically shouting to everyone: “I am a New York
Yankee! I’m going to play in New York. I’m a Yankee!”
当我遇到朋友和家人时，这是我人生中最兴奋的一次，我几乎对着每个人大叫:“我是个
洋基人了!我要去纽约打球啦!我是洋基人!”
And they just sort of looked at me. They didn’t know what to do.
他们都不知所措的看着我。
Then, after I got all the blank looks, I heard the same thing, over and over:
接着我听到他们重复说著同一句话:
Are you sure this time, Luis? It’s for real this time, right?
“路易斯，你确定这次是真的吗?是吗?”
All I could do was smile and laugh at that point.
这时，我只是开心地大笑。
I think maybe some of them were worried about having to buy a different hat.
我想有些人可能在担心要再买一顶不同的球帽。
But I didn’t have that problem. The Yankees cap that Dad had bought me was
still as good as new.
但我并没有这个困扰，爸爸买给我的洋基帽看起来还是跟新的一样。
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Robinson Cano was my guy back in the day.
当年Cano是我的偶像。
Don’t forget, I was a position player at first. So every time I watched a
Yankees game I’d see him play the field so smoothly, and then hit all those
home runs. It was incredible to me how good he was. Plus he was a Dominican
guy, like me, so it was fun to root for him and think about trying to get to
where he was.
别忘了，最初我是个野手。每次我看洋基队比赛时会欣赏Cano流畅的守备，以及他轰出的
全垒打。对我来说他强到不可置信。而且他和我一样是多明尼加人，所以跟随他的脚步并
试图追上他的成就是件有趣的事。
But I also loved a bunch of other Yankees. Posada, Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, and
on and on. I watched all those guys so closely as a kid to see if I could
pick up any tips that I could use.
我也喜欢一大票洋基的球员，Posada、Jeter、A-Rod等等。在我还是小孩时我很仔细的看
着他们，希望能从中找到任何诀窍。
When I got to the baseball academy, my manager was a huge Yankees fan, so we’
d get together and watch every game on TV.
我在棒球学院的主任是个洋基铁粉，所以我们常常一起看电视上的转播比赛。
Then I’d go to bed at night and think about what it would be like to wear
the pinstripes and play in New York City.
我上床睡觉并想着穿着条纹衣在纽约打球是什么种感觉。
As much as I loved the Yankees, though, my pitching idol was always Pedro
Martinez, another Dominican legend. It would be tough for me when Pedro was
pitching for the Red Sox and he’d go up against my Yankees.
虽然我如此的爱着洋基，但我的投手偶像却一直是Pedro Martinez