(left) Pete in his high school baseball team picture as a junior in 1955 - Pete is 5th from the right on the bottom row; (right) a photo taken at the National Baseball Hall of Fame (Pete Peterson (provided))

We’re into the time of year known as March Madness as college basketball teams compete for the NCAA national championship.

In this edition of Reading Baseball, Pete Peterson has the story of how he had his own version of March Madness nearly 70 years ago. It didn’t involve basketball, but his dream of playing professional baseball.

Reading Baseball is a series of essays and commentaries by Richard “Pete” Peterson, the author of Growing Up With Clemente and editor of The St. Louis Baseball Reader.