mr. perseverance

If you admire perseverance as a human trait — and who doesn’t? — then you have to admire John Lindsey. The Hattiesburg native can currently be found playing for Mazatlan in the Mexican Pacific League. He was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in 1995 and has been playing, at some level, ever since. He has logged 1,463 professional games (not including winter league or instructional league or other off-the-charts organized activities) but has not spent one day in the majors. Though his window of opportunity is closing fast, very fast, Lindsey hangs on at age 32. He is hitting .317 with 11 home runs in 54 games in Mexico. Last season with Triple-A New Orleans in the Florida organization, the 6-foot-1, 245-pound first baseman hit .251 with 19 homers. In his last three pro seasons, he has blasted 75 of his 194 career homers. Lindsey’s still got something in the tank, something more than just the capacity to persevere, which he has in abundance.