"Dad was with me": A story of baseball and love

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. -- When Andrew Williams says, "Baseball is in my blood," he is not just speaking in hyperbole.

"My grandfather played it, my uncles -- all of them have played it," he says.

This past Father's Day, this 11-year-old played it in an unforgettable way. He hit two home runs in honor of his dad.

It's a story that begins, like any great baseball story, at home.

Andrew and his brothers -- Coleman, 16, and Michael, 14 -- share a bond both chaotic and constructive.

Says Coleman, "We make anything sort of a competition."

They are all products of their father, Greg, who coached each child in baseball.

"When I said, 'Can we play?' he always said yes," Andrew said. "He never said he was busy. He just wanted to play."

Last summer, Greg Williams was diagnosed with a disease made famous by a baseball legend: Lou Gehrig's disease, or ALS.

"We thought he had 3 to 5 years," said mother Vicki Williams. "We found out in January he had a very aggressive form.

And luckily it was the beginning of baseball season, and that's what our boys do."

Suddenly, the family pastime never seemed so precious.

"It was one of the hardest times and lowest points of our lives," said Coleman, "but it was also one of the closest times we've ever been together."

Greg passed away June 3^rd.

Andrew went back to practice the next day.

"They just treated me like a normal kid," he said, "and that's … that was like a big thing. They just treated me normal."

A week later came Father's Day. In a game on this day, playing for his team, the Sandy Springs Storm, Andrew did something far beyond normal.

He hit two home runs ... for his dad.

"I just did what my dad told me to do," he said. "I hit it hard."

His mother's reaction? "I saw so many tears in so many of the parents' eyes," said Vicki Williams, "because they knew that there was something special about that."

Nearly a month later, Andrew recalls the moment with pride. The road ahead for his family will be difficult and complex, far more so than one game of baseball. But they view this Father's Day moment as a reminder: just as the game is in their blood, their father is always in their hearts.

"When I hit that second home run," Andrew said, "I thought, 'Yup ... Dad was with me.'"