"Growing up as a 5-year-old, I got to meet my first big league ballplayer through my dad and that player was Brian Downing of the Angels," Sweeney said. "He told me that he never met a better athlete than my dad. Brian would say, 'He could throw it, he could hit it, he could run. But he left pro ball to take care of his family, to take care of you and your seven siblings.'
"I remember thinking I wanted to be like Brian Downing and be a big league player. But really, who I wanted to be like was my dad.