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Community Corner

SF Giants' Outfielder Overcomes Writing Anxiety for the Fans

For one of the stars of the 2012 World Series champion team, the fans are an inspiration to communicate better.

Hunter Pence has many things going for him. He’s a talented outfielder with the San Francisco Giants and helped them win a World Series title last year.

His easy-going personality endears him to fans and teammates, and he’s credited with inspiring his teammates to achieve their collective goal.

Television cameras zoomed in on the Giants dugout just before a game would start. A group of players surrounded Pence, who delivered inspiring words.

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Baseball fans will always remember him for a crucial hit during the postseason in which the ball appeared to hit his splintered bat three times before finding its way into the outfield.

He makes enough money so he doesn’t have to worry about his future, and past girlfriends have included former NFL cheerleaders and a Playmate of the Month.

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Yet the 29-year-old native of Fort Worth (he turns 30 on April 13) still has a major challenge to overcome.

“I’m not the best writer,” he said Sunday before the Giants took on the St. Louis Cardinals. “I never understood punctuation or grammar. Whenever I wrote a paper, there would be a tremendous amount of anxiety about it.”

Pence attended the University of Texas at Arlington before the Houston Astros made him their second round draft pick in 2004. He enjoyed science, mathematics and history. He just didn’t want to write.

“I was asked to write a blog and that was embarrassing for me,” Pence said. “It was something my agency wanted me to do to let fans know about my experience.”

Pence enjoys interacting with fans, though he normally posts pictures instead of words from his twitter account.

“That’s the most cool thing,” he said. “When people send me that stuff, I love looking at it. I really want to do that more often. Sometimes I’m afraid to write something because I don’t want people to get angry.”

Pence allows his actions to speak for him instead of words, but he’s constantly trying to improve himself because he wants to share with his fans.

“I’ve been reading a lot more as I get older,” he said. “Maybe this is a good opportunity to start writing. I’d like to give people a sense of my personality. I love to play baseball and when I’m on the field I focus on that. Off the field, it’s my own time, and I make efforts to sign autographs and interact.”

Pence made his major league debut with the Astros on April 28, 2007. He recorded a hit and scored a run. His first home run was a grand slam, against the Cardinals, on May 5, 2007.

His career batting average of .280 and his 140 career home runs show Pence works hard at his craft, while still having fun.

His fans, he said, are what inspire him to work harder on things like grammar and punctuation. It helps him communicate better and would be a rewarding accomplishment.

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