How one Hillsborough judge's professional baseball career prepared him for the bench
TAMPA, Fla. - It's an unusual career path, but one Tampa Bay area judge said playing professional baseball helped prepare him for the bench.
Hillsborough Circuit Judge Robin Fuson grew up in Lutz. He played at Northside Little League, Chamberlain High School, Valencia Community College and then 10 years in the minor leagues before finishing his baseball career as a coach with the Oakland A's.
"To get to travel everywhere, get paid to do it. It wasn't good money in the beginning, but it was lots of fun," said Fuson.
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He played on many teams from New England to Oregon to Mexico and the Dominican Republic. He said he lived with teammates from different cultures, races and economic backgrounds.
Fuson said that experience has been crucial to his ability to remain impartial as a judge.
"No matter who's standing before you, it's not their background. Everybody gets the same deal," said Fuson.
His baseball and legal lives have rarely intersected, but they did in the case of Darryl Strawberry. Fuson had played against Strawberry in the minors, but in 2000 he was the prosecutor as Strawberry faced drug charges.
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"I wasn't somebody out there trying to get Darryl Strawberry because he was a star, and I wasn't somebody who was going to give him a break because he was a star," said Fuson. "I just wanted to treat him like everybody else. He became a shining example of someone who took responsibility and made his life better than it was."
But what about Fuson's life? He has a 1989 World Series ring as a coach with the A's, but as a player, he never made it out of the minors.
"It haunts me," he smiles. "I know I'm too old to play and that's one good thing."
With no deliberation, the judge has advice for young guys like he was.
"If you love the game, play the game until they tear the uniform off of you, until you can't play anymore. Eventually that's what happened to me," Fuson said.
He wears a black robe now, but in his dreams, this judge will always be wearing a cap and cleats.