Texas Rangers' Young will do anything for his brave high school pal
11:43 PM CST on Saturday, March 7, 2009
The first thing you should probably know about Carson Leslie is that even though his cancer came back, maybe for good, he remains the same happy, smiling kid.
"It's all in God's hands," is how the 16-year-old Covenant sophomore explains it. "It's not that I do it well.
"God does it well."
The second thing you should know is that he's a kid who could get Michael Young to wear a kilt.
Maybe you remember Carson's story. Fifteen months ago, I wrote of how he'd been diagnosed with a brain tumor that had metastasized on his spine. Surgery, radiation and chemo came next, then remission.
Along the way, Carson met the Rangers' star through a Dallas-based organization, Wipe Out Kids' Cancer.
Michael and his wife, Cristina, donate tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships and gifts to the organization, and Michael serves as honorary chair of its golf tournament.
Rangers 2, White Sox 1
And that's where the kilt came in.
Michael and Carson partnered up for the tournament, which carried a Scottish theme. For $20, you could purchase a kilt. Best of all, you didn't even have to wear it.
But your partner had to, which is how Michael Young came to look like a golfer in search of his bagpipes.
Carson's conscience got to him after a few holes, and he told Michael he could ditch the look.
"I just parred three holes in a row," Michael said. "I'm not taking this off."
Some men go to any lengths for the good of their game. As for Michael, he'll do anything for Carson.
"He's such a good kid," Michael said. "We'll be talking and he'll just all of a sudden say, 'Hey, I'm going to a homecoming dance. Gotta go.' "
The friends hadn't talked in a while when Carson and his mother, Annette, ran into Cristina at a mall two months ago. Annette told Cristina about the cancer. If chemo doesn't produce results at his next checkup, April 7, she told her, they'll be forced to consider a radical remedy.
As soon as Annette finished, Cristina found Michael, who hardly knew what to say.
"Then all of a sudden, Carson comes out with that smile," Michael said. "It ... it alleviates any strain on the situation.
"Just one smile."
Michael bear-hugged both Leslies and made them a proposition:
What if Carson and his mom and dad and older brother served as his guests for three days at spring training?
"You know, it's really humbling to accept a gift like that," Annette told me. "But at this point, I want my boy to live large."
As my all-time favorite golf picture illustrates, it helps to have a major leaguer behind you.
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