God's Next Co-Pilot?

Trot's Higher Power: 'When my time's up, I want to be with God …
it's important for people to know that he's No. 1 in my life.' -- Trot Nixon

Wilmington Star: Nixon Happy for a Shot

"A lot of guys say, 'I want to play five years and retire.' I was one of those guys,' Nixon said. 'I'm going to play until God doesn't allow me to play again."

Nixon isn't shy about his faith. He says religion has been ingrained since he was knee-high, but he wasn't always so open. One question about the importance of faith yielded a nearly six-minute answer.

Nixon rededicated himself to Christianity when he reached the big leagues, and he says religion and fatherhood have grounded him.

"When my time's up, I want to be with God," he said. "I don't want to stand around and be someone who's lost. That's what I believe, and I know there's a lot of belief systems out there, but … it's important for people to know that he's No. 1 in my life."

"There are a lot of people out there that may believe in God, but they're like, 'Oh, well.' I used to be like that. You put money on a pedestal, your job on a pedestal, your car. You're worshiping that, and then once those things are gone, you're empty. Winning the World Series, I put that on a pedestal. We won one, and then it's over. All the games, all the rah-rah-rah stuff was over, and you put that on a pedestal. You achieve it, and that's it." -- 3.8.07, excerpted from Neil Amato's story in the Wilmington Star

Surviving Grady: He Walks Among Us

"Also, get NASA or NORAD or whoever's in charge of monitoring our national airwaves on notice: I'm guessing the ovation Trot gets in his Fenway return will be one of the loudest Fenway ovations ever." -- 3.8.07, Surviving Grady