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Roberto Campos Had a lot on his shoulders like a teenager baseball phenom – including learning English.
Campos revealed – who spoke without the help of an interpreter – to the Detroit Free Press On Wednesday, March 5 he used some American pop music to really sharpen his English language skills.
“Thank you, Taylor Swift”Campos said with a smile while in the tigers’ spring training in Lakeland, Florida.
Campos, now 21, was only 13 when he moved to the United States from his native Cuba to follow his dream of becoming a professional baseball player.
Courtesy of Colt Keith/Instagram Detroit Tigers Colt Keith followed an impressive rookie season by marrying his girlfriend Longtime, Kait Vickers. The couple tied the knot on Saturday, November 23, less than two months after Keith wrapped his first season in the large leagues. “Congratulations to the Keiths! 💙🧡, “y (…)
At the age of 16, he signed a small league contract with the Detroit Tigers which included a $ 2.85 million bonus. At the time, it was the largest bonus ever awarded to an international free agent by the franchise.
After signing with the tigers, Campos was eventually set aside to play the league baseball for the organisation’s High-and West Michigan Whitecaps. The Whitecaps play in suburban Grand Rapids, Michigan, about 160 miles north -west of Detroit.
Enough to say, it was quite a culture shock to Campos.
“My Latino friends said, ‘Hey, bro, you need to learn English because it’s hard when someone talks to you and you understand nothing,’” Campos told the Detroit Free Press On Wednesday, March 5 of the Tiger Spring Training in Lakeland, Florida.
So Campos decided to take issues to his own hands.
The external player told the Free Press He watched action and comedies on Netflix with the subtitles turned on, set his phone to English and watched videos in an attempt to learn new words.
He added, “It’s amazing. Sometimes I’m in my room, and I say, ‘Man, I did it. Because when I get here, I said, ‘I’m never going to learn English because it’s so difficult for me. But now, every time I can answer a question, I feel great. Man, inside me, I feel like, yes! “
Campos expressed that his better ability to communicate with his coaches and fellow players had made things much easier and enjoyable for the young athlete.
Courtesy of Allie Thomas/Instagram Detroit Tigers Player Player Player No. 1 Matt Vierling is his girlfriend, Allie Thomas. “Next stop playoffs !!!! 🐅🤍, ”Thomas wrote through Instagram in September 2024, sharing photos with Vierling after MLB game. The couple began dating in 2020, two years after he was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies. “I mean, (…)
“They treat me like I’m one of them,” said Campos. “I feel good every day I come here.”
Not all the hard work of campos away from the field has gone unnoticed by the Tigers Foundation – just ask the manager Aj hinch.
“It’s a good lesson for all of us on patience,” Hinch, 50, told the Free Press. “The praise process is not just about learning about baseball. He has had to learn about living in a different country, in a different language, and interacting with many different people. “
Hinch added, “It only feels like it has taken a long time because of our lack of patience as an industry, not anything it has or has not done.”
