Complaining to management, engaging in idle boasting or revealing his innermost feelings has never been Joe Orsulak's way. In the end, a grown man swinging a bat, running down fly balls and knowing when to try for the extra base becomes all so elementary. Fun and games.
Something far more important now draws the total attention of Joe Orsulak but, again, he's not asking others to empathize or sympathize. He always knew his wife, from the first time he saw her, when she was senorita Adrianna Venditti, of Valencia, Venezuela, was something special in looks and quality of character.
It was last summer, before the baseball season came to a sudden halt, when doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital advised that at the young age of 29 she was suffering from a brain tumor and required immediate surgery.
It's all a private matter for the Orsulaks, something they prefer not to discuss in public, yet they never transmit the impression they're feeling sorry over how the cards have been dealt.
There's no reason, they tell themselves, why they can't win. Thanks to a belief in God and the wonders of the medical profession, they are armed with a positive outlook.
His wife, while undergoing surgery, radiation and now chemotherapy, has handled herself with resolve and a smile. Never a frown. "Her attitude is great," he says. "The main concern she has is not about herself but for the children."
Now isn't that just like a mother, attentive to the needs of others at a time when her own health is in jeopardy while minimizing any attention to herself. When the problem arose, it was a pain that wouldn't go away, feeling as if it was a piercing migraine, and she encountered difficulty driving the family car.
Doctors found the source of the trouble, a brain tumor, and performed an operation.
"We have the greatest of family support," explains Joe. "My mom and dad, her mother, sister and brother. And so many friends. You have no idea how much that means."
Orsulak spent five seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, where he was a productive hitter and defensive standout. But that pales in importance when it's related to the game of life.
On the field, he plays to the maximum, earning professional respect from teammates and rivals. Again, that has invariably been his approach.
The New York Mets, the club that signed him as a free agent in 1993, have had no regrets. They, too, admire the quiet determination, the strong self-motivation and the results he produces.
The game, per se, is put in a different category, or perspective, by Orsulak. "I learned that with what seems a long time ago with Michael," he adds in a soft and caring voice. Michael, his second son, only 2 1/2 years old, has twice had open-heart surgery. "The doctors were able to do real well with him and for that we're deeply thankful."
Orsulak's present club, the Mets, as with any good employer, have been totally supportive . . . from the owners to the bat boy. "Fred Wilpon, one of our chief executives, helped us get things done when speed was important," Orsulak said.
"We know Adrianna has gotten the best care possible and we are thankful. You don't realize how many others have similar problems and some that are much worse. Our belief in God is strong, even though we aren't overly religious.
"Right now, Adrianna is getting all prepared for Christmas. Staying optimistic is important. Doctors haven't been studying her particular type of illness for that long so the more time they put into research it means that every day they're that much closer to a cure."
When it came to playing the game last year, it was difficult for Orsulak to leave for the park but after the first pitch was thrown he was able to concentrate on the task at hand.
"Some people who never played baseball may have trouble understanding that, but being involved in the competition became a mind-clearing experience for me," he said. "Those three hours on the field kind of opened a window of fresh air. I welcomed it."
But Joe Orsulak, husband and father, realizes where his responsibility must be directed . . . undivided attention and loyalty to the loves of his life -- Adrianna and two little boys, Joseph and Michael.
After that everything is frivolous.