"The Italian culture runs very deep on my Mom's side of the family. As more years pass, I see more and more of my Grandma in her.  My Grandma was a sensational woman too.  Grandma was the same type of lady, extremely hardworking, who just lived to be a Mother and to take care of people. I feel like my Mom is the definition of what a Mother is. It seems like her whole life since she's had kids has been the most selfless life that I could imagine. Everything she does is always for other people. I can't remember the last time I saw her go shopping and buy herself some new clothes, take herself out to do something fun, or treat herself to a nice dinner. She’s just always thinking about other people and about her kids and her family, and we are not kids anymore. We are all 30 plus.  But she still treats us like we are her babies.  She is extremely loving. What she went through with my Dad’s illness alone is enough to break somebody down. It wasn’t just the mental wear on her over the years, but the physical. The things that she had to pick up that my Dad couldn’t physically do. And when I'm in season with the Padres, and none of us are around, my Mother carries the weight of everything for our family. She is the reason that our family is still going strong and that we are all as tight as we are. She sets an example through her resilience.  She continues to push forward with no excuses and no complaining ever. Just watching the way that she goes about life is a big motivator for me. And has taught me how I need to approach not just my career but every single baseball game.”