108 reasons why I would love to win this baseball. One for every stitch!*
1. It has been a daily dream for over 4 years that MLB would play a Dodgers series in Australia.
2. My goal is to own a ball from every professional league in the world.
3. It would look great on display next to my Dodgers memorabilia.
4. In fact not just put in any display, but as part of a 3D version of the MLB Sydney 2014 logo to give it extra pop!
5. Vin Scully, my honorary grandfather would want me to have it! :D
6. It looks like Bud Selig's autograph but really it says 'Give it to Billy'
7. Baseball is right up there on my list of important things, after God of course!
8. God would want me to win the ball too!
9. In fact, I am sure God is sick of me going on about this MLB opening series. Maybe the ball will shut me up for a while!
10. I want to do all I can to grow the fan base and future of baseball in Australia. This ball will help me do this.
11. My passion for baseball is bigger than Phar Lap's heart!
12. To know that I own a piece of baseball history that I was actually part of would mean so much to me.
13. I will be the first fan to arrive at every game in Sydney, ready and waiting for batting practice.
14. Every ball tells a story of battle! To have the honour of winning one gives me a part to play in that war.
15. There is so much to love about all the teams playing in Sydney. I need a great keepsake.
16. I opened up a fortune cookie last week that mentioned I had a good chance of winning this ball.
17. It's the ultimate souvenir to remember my beloved Dodgers boys playing division rivals DIamondbacks
18. It would be impossible to win the Diamondbacks pool so winning this ball would be easier!
19. I am one of the ABL's #1 fans. What a privilege it would be to win it as an Aussie fan.
20. Being so grateful to Moore Baseball for making this event happen, I think they would want me to win it too.
21. I doubt there will be wiffleballs with the same design up for grabs so it would be great to win this one.
22. My friend who is a Diamondbacks fan wouldn't believe I ever won it! It would be a great surprise.
23. I am a good promoter for the series talking constantly about it on a daily basis. Just ask my friends!
24. If the ball didn't end up with me, it might cry every night with sadness. I would hate to see that happen.
25. I can't believe I got to this many reasons without mentioning Justin Huber! He would want me to win it for sure!
26. I am Justin Huber's #1 fan. To win it and have him sign it would top off a lifetime achievement.
27. Because I love the Dodgers with all my heart.
28. My extended Dodger family across the world are tracking my journey. They would be stoked!
29. Live. Breathe. Blue. Win a Ball!
30. Rumour has it, this ball is the son of the home run ball hit by Kirk Gibson in 1988.
31. I will be the crazy fan behind 1st base dugout with lots of fan signs cheering loud.
32. It would help me fight off any snakes that Arizona let loose in the stands.
33. Who wouldn't want to win one?
34. I dream of setting up my house as a fun attraction to visit 'Melbourne's only Opening MLB Series ball'.
35. It would also help me justify hiring a security guard to watch over my memorabilia when I am out.
36. Being 'Huberfan', which is similar yet nothing like Superman, baseballs help me tackle my kryptonite issues.
37. Brian Wilson will not have a need for that ball as closer and I am sure he would want me to have it.
38. When Tommy Lasorda was in Australia in 2000, I am sure he signed a document stating I was next in line to win something.
39. So I could make great memes with it.
40. So I could nickname him Wilson 2.0 and encourage Tom Hanks to use him in Castaway 2.
41. So I could love it like a child.
42. So I could create it's own jersey for Jackie Robinson Day!
43. My 3d printer is out of ink so I can't make my own.
44. It will help me explain my obsession in therapy.
45. I want to make a baseball version of Newton's Cradle with this ball in the centre.
46. I am looking for a new road trip buddy and this ball would be encouraged to apply.
47. There is a better chance that baseball will end up back in the 2020 Olympics if I win this ball.
48. I would be sad if it was won by a Giants fan.
49. I would take it for show and tell everywhere for the rest of its natural life.
50. It would give Hamish and Andy a new TV series, visiting the most wanted baseball won by a fan.
51. At the least, it would make a good reality tv show. When was the last time a baseball had it's own show? I would make it happen!
52. I would start a blog dedicated to the ball. I know you can't wait to read it.
53. On Wednesdays I would lead a Melbourne Tour group called 'Have a ball!' with this ball as the mascot.
54. It would fight crime and serve the community by doing jury duty.
55. What better gift is there to get on Valentine's Day?
56. Because I love baseball more than Todd Van Steensel loves Taylor Swift!
57. All the other people entering are allergic to cowhide and I would hate for them to have a reaction to the ball.
58. Winning this ball would be better than going to Disneyland.
59. If I was stuck on a desert island and could only have one thing, I would wish for this ball. (It would be able to knock a coconut down out of a tree that could smash a glass bottle open that held a key to a speed boat) See how much I need the ball?
60. Because it's too hard catching other sport's equipment in my glove. Footballs don't work, don't get me started on table tennis balls.
61. When I needed stitches in hospital, I asked for it to be done in the shape of a baseball.
62. Because MLB Sydney 2014 is the best sports event ever to be hosted in Australia. (Melbourne next!!)
63. It may have been mine to begin with. It's time we were reunited.
64. It would take me 26 years to invent a machine to clone the ball myself.
65. Years from now, I will be able to look back at the ball and say 'I was there'.
66.
(Written in invisible ink as it's a highly sensitive reason)
67. It's the hottest prize on the market right now.
68. It would help people deal with their jealousy issues.
69. In the credits of the movie, The Natural, it mentions that I was to be the Godparent of this ball. Just doing my job!
70. I have a petition with over 30,000 names of people who would love me to win this ball.
71. When Neil Armstrong first walked on the moon he actually said, "That's one ball won for Billy, one giant leap for mankind"
72. I would use the ball to kill huntsmans in the summer despite how many holes it left in walls.
73. So I could use it to create the prototype for the latest Apple sports integrated device called iPitch.
74. So I could create the next version of #theoandbeau nap time photos #theoandball
75. Mr Slugworth from the Willy Wonka movie offered me a never ending supply of gobstoppers if I would give the ball to him if I won...but I said no!
76. I inspired Sochi opening ceremony dancers to perform to Rostova's 'First Ball' in hope that I would be the first winner of this one.
77. Although Siri was not helpful at all in giving me advice on how to win this ball, she did sound slightly optimistic in her voice that I might have a good chance.
78. I have an oversized picture of the ball on my ceiling so at night I can dream about winning it.
79. This ball represents the beautiful sounds of summer, echoing long after the event the sound it makes hitting the sweet spot on a bat or being caught in a glove or the sound a fastball makes on its way to the plate! :D
80. I have a Spotify playlist with 108 'ball' songs on continuous play to keep me focused on winning this competition.
81. Inspector Gadget can't make it to the games so I can't use his go-go-gadget arms to catch a foul ball for me. Even if he did catch one, I would end up giving it to a kid!
82. So I can make this ball the next Youtube hit sensation!
83. Baseball is poetry. This ball is the pencil to captivate an audience through every written word.
84. So grumpy cats all over the globe would have a reason to smile again.
85. When God had finished creating the world He rested on the 7th day! I am pretty sure he went and found a baseball game to watch. Further evidence that he would want me to win this ball.
86. I found a pirate map leading me to the SCG with the treasure marked in the shape of that baseball.
87. I love baseball so much that I will name my first child MLB.
88. I have just seen a preview to the next Ice Age movie, where Scrat will not be chasing after an acorn but a Opening Series baseball. It has inspired me to do the same!
89. It's one of the only ways that order and peace can be restored in the world of Angry Birds!
90. Received a letter from Her Majesty the Queen with a royal decree to grant me a finalist spot in this competition.
91. There have been many times where I have wanted to give up on creating this list. But the passion and drive to win a MLB Sydney 2014 opening series ball spurred me on.
92. If I win this ball, I will not feel the need to enter other fan based competitions...for at least 2 weeks!
93. I have submitted Google doodles for MLB Sydney 2014 featuring this ball.
94. The achievement of winning this ball will look great on my resume.
95. Scientists recently discovered that if I win this ball there is a decreased risk of global warming.
96. There wasn't really a mishap with the Olympic rings in Sochi, the MLB Sydney 2014 Opening Series baseball stole the snowflake and jumped in its place, making it's debut on the world stage! Well played little ball. Makes me want to win you even more!
97. Rule 2014 in the Official Baseball Rulebook states that the winner of this ball should be me. Rules are rules!
98. I have reached a Candy Crush level that requires you to own an Opening Series baseball in order to progress through the level.
99. While most kids ran away and joined the circus as a child, I ran away to the local ballpark in hopes I would find a ball!
100. I'm obsessed with this sport! What more do I need to say?
101. On August 17, 1957, Richie Ashburn of the Philadelphia Phillies hit spectator Alice Roth with a foul ball, breaking her nose. As Alice was being carried off the field on a stretcher, Ashburn hit her with another foul ball, breaking a bone in her knee.
I am willing to be part of this re-enactment if it means I could win a ball!
102. Because I am failing miserably at sewing my own baseball alternative together.
103. While cleaning a bottle the other day a genie appeared and so I placed 3 wishes - photo with Andre Ethier and Justin Huber together, my Dodger book signed by as many of the players and to win this ball!
104. I wrote on my Christmas list to Santa last year that I dreamt of winning this ball but didn't see it under the Christmas tree.
105. According to mathematicians, I have a 300,000 to 1 chance that I will catch an opening series baseball at the SCG. I think I have a better chance of winning this ball. Let's hope so!
106. The average life span of a baseball is 7 pitches. If I win this baseball, it will last me a lifetime, increasing it's survival rate by a lot!
107. Who else is crazy enough to spend a day writing this many reasons just for a ball?
108. Why would l love to win this baseball? It's a kids game, and there's still a lot of kid inside of me!
*a few reasons may have been just slightly exaggerated.
Get excited peeps! MLB is on its way to Australia!!!! Check out @MLBSydney2014 on Instagram and Twitter or search for it on Facebook for more info on this historical event!