What I learned from your dad. (The Closer).

A letter to Darryl Kile's children: twins Kannon and Sierra, 5, and Ryker, 10 months.

In baseball, as in life, you have a chance to meet all kinds of people. In baseball, there are good people and bad people, selfish people and helpful people, talented people and not-so-talented people, determined people and unfocused people.

In baseball, you come across these people, and some make an impression and some don't. I've always tried to learn something from every person I come in contact with. I'd love to share with you what I learned from your dad.

He and I met in 1989, my first year in the instructional league. I was a pup coming out of rookie ball, and your dad was the Astros' future. He was in Class AA Columbus in the Southern League. He was a dominating starter.

He had an amazing fastball; his heater was something I had never seen, and don't get me started on his curve. The Astros were so worried your dad would hurt his elbow that they took away his slider, which was as nasty as his curveball. I wasn't even on the radar screen as far as the Astros were concerned, but they put me in your dad's group during fundamentals.

Your dad was humble. He was good, but he didn't quite understand how good. He was patient. He would try to tell us what he was thinking when he pitched. I nodded as if I understood, but I had no clue.

Your dad wanted to be good, and in that instructional league something clicked. After that year, he was off and running. In 1991, he made the Astros out of spring training with one of his best friends, Jeff Bagwell. Jeff, Craig Biggio, Pete Harnisch and Scotty Servais were your dad's pals on the Astros. Luis Gonzalez would later join them, to be followed by Doug Drabek.