MOUNT PLEASANT, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – There’s something special about the sound of baseball.
The sound of the bat hitting the ball, the player introductions, the national anthem, and two magic words.
“Play ball!” Hunter Austin exclaimed as the Mount Pleasant High School baseball team took the field last week.
“Tigers on three… 1-2-3 Tigers!” said Austin, who’s the team manager.
“Baseball is just a sport that I really, really enjoy,” he says.
The Tigers hear something extra during innings. It’s Austin pumping up his guys in the dugout.
“Go, go, go! Stay!” he said. “Go, go, go!”
“I just count myself as a team player,” said Austin, who’s not just the manager. He’s Coach Derek Barringer’s designated hype man.
“He’s had a big role with team morale,” Barringer told Queen City News.
“We’ve got it, let’s go!” said Austin.
His enthusiasm comes in handy when they need a fist bump.
“If there’s anything I want them to take away from it, it’s just how positive he is in any situation of the game,” Barringer said. “Whether we’re up, we’re down, he’s always into it.”
Hunter has rallied against odds his whole life.
“Because of his disabilities, he’s not able to play baseball,” his mother,r Krystal Austin, told Queen City News.
Krystal and husband Chad call him their “hero.”
Hunter was born early after an emergency C-section. Because of a lack of oxygen, he suffered a traumatic brain injury. He also suffers from epilepsy and deafness in one ear.
“He is definitely a miracle; he has been through a whole lot,” Krystal said.
“If all adults and kids alike with challenges could take the perspective that Hunter does, the world would be a lot better place,” says Chad.
Last week, he got the honor of throwing out the first pitch at Mount Pleasant’s home game against Union Academy.
Before that, he was already on Cloud 9.
Dream on 3 and Mount Pleasant’s Junior Dream Team sent Hunter on a surprise trip, including a special Atlanta Braves experience. The nonprofit makes sports-themed dreams come true for folks with life-altering conditions.
“You could see every play just right,” Austin told a player about the Braves game. “Couldn’t get better seats.”
“He’s a big baseball fan and he just loves the game, man,” Coach Barringer says.
Baseball has taught Austin to focus on what’s in front of him.
“Don’t worry about tomorrow; enjoy what’s going on. And don’t let one little thing get in your way,” he said wisely.
“He’s touched a lot of people in different ways,” his mom said.
