He Touched 'EM All: Wally Pontiff, JR-an Abbreviated Life

9781424148707

1424148707

He was called Everybody’s All-American” by his Hall of Fame college coach. He was called a gift from God by neighbors, teammates, friends, and family. Wally Pontiff Jr. was born and raised in New Orleans, and his life was, in many ways, a metaphor for the life of an American boy. He loved his family, his circle of friends, and, perhaps above all, his faith and his baseball. He was a two-time All-State player at Jesuit High School before he went on to play for the 2000 National Championship team at LSU. He played in the prestigious Cape Cod League, and then he was drafted by the Oakland A’s. Wally Pontiff had the world in the pocket of his mitt. Then, suddenly, he died in his sleep at the age of twenty-one. His funeral was described as the biggest that many had ever seen. As people began to talk and reminisce about Wally and the impact he had on their lives, the stories began to emerge. Here was a young man who touched more people during his brief time on this earth than most people can hope for in a full lifetime. His is not only a story about growing up in a culture of baseball, but more importantly, it is a story about faith, grief, inspiration, and in the end, triumph.