Corner Brook -
A lanky kid from townsite was told nine times he wasn't good enough to make the Corner Brook Barons.
So instead of pouting, he tried out for the 10th time because he wanted to play so bad and he was finally rewarded with a roster spot.
No longer a kid, but still lanky, Rob Myrden's sheer determination has helped him earn a spot in the Newfoundland Amateur Baseball Association Hall of Fame.
Myrden, who is now 50 and still playing and coaching baseball, was surprised to hear the good news and proud to have his name mentioned in the same breath with fellow 2009 builder inductees Paul Whelan of Pasadena, Bruce Goulding of Grand Falls-Windsor and Os Tilley of St. John's.
"Some people have asked me how I did it and my word is longevity because I didn't do it for playing and I haven't done really that much stuff famous in coaching so it's just longevity," the amiable Myrden told The Western Star earlier this week.
Myrden has been involved with baseball in Corner Brook and in the province for over 40 years as both a player and coach. He started playing minor ball in the mid-1960s. He would go on to win four provincial senior titles, one Atlantic championship, and be part of a bronze-medal showing at the National Senior Baseball Championship as a player. He won another three provincial senior titles as a coach of the Corner Brook Barons.
Myrden has also played an active role in the executive over the years and continues to be a part of the executive today. He has played for 31 years in the local senior league, and 28 of those years were with the Town Aces.
His positive attitude has filtered through the Corner Brook Minor Baseball Program. He has been actively coaching minor ball in Corner Brook since 1979. Over this 30-year period he won countless titles as a coach, but it is the respect he earned from his players that is most impressive.
As much fun he has after winning a title, he has an uncanny ability to make kids feel better after losing a big championship. Rob's personality, along with his animated coaching style, can be seen everyday at Jubilee Field making kids better sports and athletes while teaching them valuable lessons about the game and life itself.
While pondering the past, Myrden is quick to point out he was blessed to be surrounded by so many great people as he grew up on the diamond. When it came to his time as a player, he credited fellow Aces and Barons teammate Keith White for being a positive influence on him both as as player and a person.
"He was the most positive man I have ever been around at the baseball field in my life," he said of Keith White. "Whitey was fantastic. Whitey was the best team guy I ever played with in my life."
Myrden's positive attitude is something well known in baseball circles, but back in 1991 while playing with the Barons White had to come to the rescue.
Myrden was told by the coaching staff he was starting a particular game and, for whatever reason, the coaches changed their mind and he sat on the bench. Myrden was miffed and White knew it.
"For three innings the last thing Keith White did on his way out to the field to play centrefielder he came over to me and said 'Now come on, come on, let's go' and the first thing he did when he came back in off the field he came over and said 'Come on now let's go, you will be all right'.
"And finally when he was coming in for the third inning I looked at him and said 'OK Whitey I will, but it's only because of you and that was it."
Showing up to the baseball field in a jovial mood on a consistent basis is something Myrden is proud of, but he knows Aces coach Ted Thorne helped steer him in the right direction at an early age as well.
"How many times we'd be in the playoffs and lose a game and Sam would look at us and say 'well boys that's all you can do, let's go play the next one," he said.
Myrden will be coaching the Corner Brook Barons this summer alongside Hubert Power and Glen Seaborn so he's not showing any signs of slowing down. When it comes to being a teacher of the game, the die-hard Chicago Blackhawks fan believes Frank Humber made him the coach he is today. Any time the topic of coaching comes up around the ball field, Myrden can't help but talk about Humber's knowledge of the game.
"He's as good at it as he is," he said. "All the time I spent with Frank was invaluable, no doubt."
Championship wins with both the Aces and Barons, a bronze medal at the nationals, pitching showdowns between Aces star Craig Bugden against Hawks legend Tom Humber in their day and singing the song Barons Private Tears in the shower with a bunch of Barons in the University of Windsor - just some of the fond memories Myrden will cherish from the sport.
More importantly though, he learned a very valuable life lesson along the journey.
"I learned how to play on a team," he said. "Just how to be the best teammate a fella could be, and that's through support, that's through positive attitude."
