Seventeen-year-old Jason Samikkannu began playing basketball when he was in the fifth grade. With the outside jumper being the key to his game, Samikkannu always expected to play varsity basketball at Northridge Prep, a small private high school in Niles, Ill.

However, that dream faded after Samikkannu�s sophomore year. He felt that his playing time would be an issue for the next few years on the basketball team.

�I thought I�d be getting a lot of bench time, so I figured it wasn�t worth it,� said Samikkannu, who will be entering his senior year of high school in a few weeks.

As a result of not playing basketball anymore, Samikkannu found himself with free time on his hands. He turned to his friends to get ideas on what to do for fun.

�I was joking around one day at lunch and my friends just told me to come to baseball,� Samikkannu said. �Baseball�s a new thing to me. I like trying new things.�

Samikkannu went out for the team and made the varsity squad as a third baseman. He started his baseball career off on the right foot by going 7-12 with 6 RBI and 3 runs scored in a limited amount of playing time as a junior. The team went 19-6.

Samikkannu said his early success in the sport is the reason he will continue to play next season. He plans on being the starting third baseman next year.

�I�ve had some success in it so far so that motivates me to do well,� Samikkannu said. �We have summer leagues right now. I get a lot of playing time.�

Samikkannu said that he enjoys the sport more than basketball because of the fun he has while on the field. But he does not only like baseball because of the competition. In a society where major-league baseball players make up to $250 million today, it can be hard to find someone who has a pure love and passion for the game as Samikkannu does.

�In the dugout the jokes are just awesome,� said Samikkannu, who hopes to bat around .500 and win the district championship next season. �If you talk in basketball on the bench, your coach will make you run.�

Bennett Piispanen, a junior at Lakota East High School in West Chester, Ohio, said that he has played sports against Samikkannu before and likes the way he approaches the game.

�His attitude when he�s playing sports is great,� Piispanen said. �He�s always a team player, but at the same time he�s a great athlete himself.�

Samikkannu plans to attend either Notre Dame or Cornell after high school. His desire to play is so great that he said there is a slim chance that he may continue playing if he goes to Cornell, since it is a Division III school.

�If there�s an opening [on the team], I�d try for it,� Samikkannu said.

Even though baseball is not the sport that he thought he would be playing as a varsity athlete, Samikkannu has found a new, interesting activity that he plays because he loves. He is enjoying the success he has had so far. Basketball is no longer favorite sport.

�Baseball�s my favorite now,� Samikkannu said. �It�s such a laidback sport.�