Ross exalted, ‘exhausted’
Six months ago, David Ross was a backup catcher.
Today, he’s a 40-year-old heartthrob.
Since he last wore a Chicago Cubs uniform, Ross has become one of America’s favorite dancers. An author. An ESPN analyst. A Cubs front office executive. And the proud bearer of a second World Series championship ring.
Oh, and there’s also a movie about his life in the works.
“I’ve got enough job titles,” Ross tells USA TODAY Sports. “Really, I just want to go home. I want to be dad again.”
Ross, who retired from baseball in November, was boarding a flight Thursday from Bristol, Conn., where he was doing a publicity stop for his book, Teammate: My Journey in Baseball and a World Series for the Ages. This was after stopping at the ESPN studios, after appearing on Good Morning America, after guesting on Live with Kelly & Ryan, after enduring an entire season on Dancing with the Stars, after working his first game as an ESPN analyst, after his White House visit and after helping the Cubs win their first World Series title in 108 years. Whew, got all that? “I feel like my World Series parade has come to an end. I’m completely exhausted,” says Ross, who says he had slept six hours in the last three days. “It was such an unbelievable ride being on Dancing with the Stars. I still can’t get over it.
“Being the first major league player to be on the show was such a huge honor. I wanted to represent baseball well. And I wanted to make sure I didn’t let anybody down.”
Who could have imagined, least of all Ross, that he and his 23-year-old partner, Lindsay Arnold, would finish runner-up in the competition, nearly pulling off perhaps the most stunning upset in the 24-season history of the show?
“Really, I was just hoping to make it to Week 3,” Ross says. “I was actually prepared to go home four weeks ago. It was amazing.
“Then it just ends so fast, like a baseball season in the playoffs. It’s over. Boom.”
Ross, who can’t wait to jump into the pool Friday with his three kids, will finally have a moment to relax at home in Tallahassee. It will last a little less than 72 hours.
Ross has to be in Baltimore on Sunday to prepare for the New York YankeesOrioles 1:05 p.m. ET broadcast Monday on ESPN. He’ll travel to Chicago for book signings. And then he’ll be doing his first ESPN Sunday night telecast at the St. Louis Cardinals-Cubs game at Wrigley Field.
“I’m sure the boys will be giving it to me then,” Ross says. “But I’ll be thanking them, too. I can’t believe the outpouring of support. I know I wasn’t the best dancer, but people enjoyed my journey. I felt so much love from so many walks of life.
“Baseball was such a long journey in my life, but this thing made me grow up so fast, and the feedback was so rewarding. Really, it changed me.”
It also dramatically altered the image of a backup catcher who was a career .229 hitter, played for seven teams and only once played more than 100 games in a season.
“It’s been so strange,” Ross says. “It’s almost like people forgot or don’t even care I played baseball. I go to the grocery store, and I hear people say, ‘Hey, there’s that Dancing with
the Stars guy.’ I’m like, ‘Wait a minute, I won two World Series with the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs.’
“Instead of men coming up asking for autographs, women will come up and take pictures. So many people gravitate toward you now. I’m not any different. I’m the same idiot as before. But everybody else is treating me different. It’s pretty funny.”
Ross says he felt a strange sensation when the results were announced during Tuesday night’s finale. He was almost, well, grateful.
Sure, he knew he had drastically improved but also was keenly aware he wasn’t the best dancer in the show. Not even close. When singer Normani Kordei and dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy were eliminated, drawing boos from the audience, he stood on stage nervously waiting to see who would be crowned champion. He felt an immediate sense of relief when he heard the names of NFL running back Rashad Jennings and partner Emma Slater.
“I’m standing there thinking, ‘ Do I really want to win this thing? Do I deserve this?’ ” Ross says. “In sports, the best team wins. And I knew I wasn’t the best dancer. I was getting a lot of votes, and it was such a huge compliment that the fans were voting for me and my personality, but I’m glad Rashad won. He had way better rhythm than I did.”
Ross laughs, recalling his 8-year-old son Cole’s message to him immediately after the show: “Hey Dad, you didn’t win, but you did really good. You made it to the finals. That’s not the best, but it’s really good.”
“I feel like I can go back to being normal again,” Ross says.
Perhaps, but that re-entry back to his old life could prove to be a bumpier ride than he imagined.
David Ortiz, Ross’ former teammate with the Red Sox who also is spending his first year in retire- ment, has, other than a tour promoting his own book, faded into virtual oblivion compared to Ross.
Maybe one day, says Ortiz, who hit 541 home runs to Ross’ 106, he can grow up and be as famous as the old backup catcher.
“Man, I’ve never seen my boy dancing before,” Ortiz says. “I saw him a few times, and I was impressed, to be honest with you. That’s something money can’t buy.”
And, just in case you’re wondering, Ortiz has no inclination to become the second major league baseball player to be on the dance show. His knees are too bad, Ortiz says. Pick someone else.
The next to take that leap will have a hard time living up to Ross’ eightmonth run, even if he’s glad it’s over.
“There’s only so much baseball and dancing you can do,” he says. “I don’t have to be miked up every single day. I won’t always have the cameras on me. I don’t have to do all of the sound bites. “I can be just dad again.”