Covington, La – In the middle of the baseball game. In the middle of the baseball field.
Everybody’s watching Timmy Ruffino, the pitcher for the Archbishop Hannan High School Hawks.
WGNO News with a Twist features guy Wild Bill Wood has his story as part of “Wild Bill’s Amazing Kids”.
“Wild Bill’s Amazing Kids” has been nominated for several Emmy Awards.
“Wild Bill” and photojournalist Justin Abshire both received nominations for this story on high school baseball pitcher Timmy Ruffino.
Timmy is a star on the baseball mound.
His story starts when he could barely walk, much less actually play the game of baseball.
Timmy Ruffino first picked up a baseball when he was 2 years old.
Now, he’s 16 and a sophomore. According to his coach, Timmy’s as good as it gets. And he does it all with one hand.
Timmy was born without a right hand.
“Sometimes it doesn’t hit me,” Timmy says. “I have to think about it.”
In fact, Timmy sees it as a gift, not a curse.
“It makes me work harder every day,” he says. “I have one less thing than everybody else has, so I have to try twice as hard.”
There’s a tradition that goes on every time Timmy Ruffino heads out onto the diamond to play baseball. It’s a tradition that everybody on the field and in the stands always sees.
Timmy’s mom sets up her folding chair for every game. Every game, same chair, some location not far from first base. She says her son is a inspiration to many.