Great story of Little Leaguer with no legs pitching and hitting HRs in Orlando...

Little Leaguer doesn't let his prosthetic legs keep him on the bench
Anthony Burruto is among league leaders in home runs

Josh Robbins | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted May 11, 2007

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Photos: Anthony Burruto in action

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</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>When Anthony Burruto was a baby, doctors amputated his lower legs.

He was born without a shinbone in his left leg and without a fibula in his right leg. The physicians said surgery eventually would allow Anthony to walk.

He does a lot more than that now.

Using two titanium and carbon-fiber prostheses, Anthony pitches and plays first base for a Dr. Phillips Little League baseball team. This spring, he has hit three home runs, rating among league leaders.

Anthony, 12, insists he's nothing special. Those who know him disagree. He reminds them that there's nothing wrong with having limitations; what matters is how you deal with them.

"He's got a drive that I've never seen before and confidence that I've never seen in anybody," said his mom, Diane Burruto. "Every time I think he can't do something, he proves me wrong. I'm just so proud of him."

Some Little League parents want their kids to become major-leaguers, but Vinny and Diane Burruto consider it a thrill just to watch their son run the bases.

Anthony started playing baseball at 8 years old. Until his first home run last November, he had never run around first, second and third in a game.

After the ball sailed over the left-field fence, players from both teams cheered. Vinny and Diane wept. So did other parents.

"How could you not cry?" said Anthony's coach, Michael Marchell.

Other kids' parents still cheer for Anthony.

"Nice pitch, Ant!" they yelled Monday night. "Good one, Ant!"

The group included Rich Rieker, a former Major League Baseball umpire and current MLB umpire supervisor whose son Michael plays on Anthony's team.

"I've been around million-dollar athletes and the truly skilled people in baseball, and nobody inspires me more than this kid right here," Rieker said.

Even other teams' players like Anthony. When he hit his second grand slam this spring, a third baseman high-fived him as he rounded the bases.

Anthony, a sixth-grader at Southwest Middle School, makes friends easily. With dark-brown eyes and short, wavy black hair, he looks self-assured. He smiles often. He seems as if he's having fun.

"I talk a lot," he said. "I like sports."

He wants to play baseball for as long as possible.

"He's really cool," said teammate Zachary Holbrook. "He's funny. He's always the one who gets everybody up in the dugout, and he's a really good hitter.

"He's never mean to anybody. He always sticks up for everybody when they have a problem."

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