You Open the Door

Standing before you is Manny Ramirez.  He has a smile on his face, and it is so darned infectious that you end up smiling, too.  He asks you to take a walk with him.

30 minutes later you're sitting with Manny on top of Tropicana Field, watching Manny's dreadlocks dance in the wind. 

You think about asking Manny why he's brought you here, or how he even has access, but, reading your mind, he answers before you even ask.

I am not from this planet, Joe.  I am an alien.

Manny says this without moving his lips, he speaks directly into your mind and you know it to be true.

I came to this planet many years ago.  I attempted to assimilate into your culture to be a 'Man', hence the name 'Manny.'  I am a 'Manny Being' named Manny!  I have come to learn your ways so that one day I might send word back to my home planet to see if we may find a home here.  But, your world is primitive.  Where I come from, we have advanced to the point where hitting a baseball is learned at birth.  I've had to tone down my natural abilities in order to blend in here. 

You ask Manny why he is telling you his secrets.

Because it's time for me to go, Joe.  To go back to my people.  Don't worry, we'll leave Vladimir Guerrero on Earth to watch over your primitive baseball race. 

You wonder what you'll do without Manny in the lineup.  With that, Manny touches you on the arm, and you feel a small jolt of power flow through you.

This is my gift to you, Joe.  A small fraction of my essence so that you may better understand our race.

Before you can thank him, a blinding light comes from the sky and Manny is lifted into the vacuous expanse of space.

I'll always be with you, Joe.

One Year Later

You crack a sharp double down the left field line.  As you jog safely into second base, you see Longoria score the go-ahead run.

Everyone thought you were crazy when you said you wanted to be a player/manager, but you proved the haters wrong.  It hasn't been easy, you only have a fraction of Manny's power, but with the help of your teammates, you just might make it to the World Series.

As you stand on second base, you look back on your life and the choices you've made and wonder:

What Could I Have Done Differently?