Twenty-five years ago, those heartfelt words were spoken directly to me by my wife’s obstetrician, Dr. Mary L. Rivera-Casamento, inside the waiting room at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center in New York City.

I was bewildered. Nervous. Stressed. Yet, this surprising news came as a complete shock.

As she led me into her office, my wife’s facial expression had this slight grin that I can still envision to this very day. We were going to be parents. And I knew we were going to be very good parents, role models and most importantly our child’s first teacher.

Today, we are the proud parents of two adult children who are now 24 and 21 respectively (our second child, Sierra Noelle, who recently graduated from SUNY/Purchase College, was born in 1996).

I’ve always said, “Finding a good doctor can be tough. But once you find them, don’t let them go.”

Our oldest daughter, Talia Marie, was born in 1994. Immediately after her birth, she was diagnosed with newborn jaundice. After a few days of treatment in the hospital, we were able to take our newborn home and enjoy the life of parenthood.

Prior to leaving the hospital, I asked one of the nurses at the workstation if she knew of any pediatricians in the area.

She responded, “We usually refer our patients to the pediatrician across the street.” We decided to schedule an appointment with this new pediatrician.

As I look back, I can vividly recall meeting Dr. Marlene Wüst (now Dr. Wüst-Smith) and immediately saying quietly to myself, “She looks Latina. You don’t normally see Latina doctors.”

In our initial meeting, Dr. Wüst, who is of Dominican-Cuban-German ancestry, possessed the innate qualities every parent wanted to see in their primary doctor. She had a calm demeanor, was extremely attentive to numerous questions, and a beautiful, congenial smile. She made my wife and I feel as if Talia was the most beautiful child she had ever encountered throughout her entire medical career.

For close to a year, she was Talia’s primary doctor who provided unbelievable care. She shared detailed information about each vaccination our daughter was going to receive after a particular visit. She even asked us numerous questions on what Talia was doing on a month-to-month basis.

Sadly, when she broke the news that she could no longer be Talia’s pediatrician, I quickly asked, “Well…find me the second-best pediatrician in the New York City area.”

She replied, “I can refer you to the one who actually taught me who just opened a practice in Lower Manhattan. Her name is Dr. Vicki Papadeas.”

Dr. Wüst kept meticulous medical reports on Talia and to this day, I actually have a copy of those eye-opening notes. Here are a few insightful things Dr. Wüst jotted down in Talia’s medical report. It’s truly amazing what she observed about our firstborn child in only a few, short months of her infancy:

• Primarily bottled fed. Very alert (one month)

• Coos, smiles, follows objects (two months)

• Smiling, coos, very social (three months)

• Plays, very friendly and playful. Very cute. Developmentally advanced (six months)

Although I’ve been a fine arts teacher in New York City for a number of years, I embarked on another exciting career as a freelance sports writer. What I have found about these challenging careers is there is a common trajectory between becoming a doctor and becoming a professional athlete.

I believe there are some similarities.

Early in their formative years, potential ballplayers who are looking to get signed to a contract by a Major League Baseball team are considered prospects. In the case of a doctor, these prospective men/women will begin their extensive course work as medical students (using this baseball jargon, these medical students can also be deemed “prospects.”)

Once they have successfully passed their certification exams, rotations and course work, they will graduate from medical school and apply for residency – thus the beginning of their “minor league career.” Usually over a three-year period and once they’ve completed the mandatory years working inside a hospital (including passing certification examinations), they will be able to practice medicine and are officially licensed, board-certified doctors.

Like a baseball player, these hard-working men and women who sacrificed countless hours and enjoyed little rest, worked diligently over a lengthy period of time are now officially called up to “play” in the big leagues of medicine.

Through observations and years of experience, an astute, baseball scout can possibly and successfully predict if a prospect will develop into a fine ballplayer. These talent evaluators will fill out a report and submit their findings to their respective team for consideration.

For Dr. Wüst, who conscientiously treated my daughter throughout her infancy, carefully observed a child demonstrating remarkable aptitude and similar to a baseball scout was quick to include these observations in her medical report.

It’s as if Dr.Wüst, through her very own “crystal ball” was already predicting the future of a six pound, four ounce baby girl who would one day reveal to the world her dream of becoming a doctor.

July 5, 1995 was the one-year anniversary of Talia’s first appointment with Dr. Wüst. Sadly, it would also be Talia’s last appointment with her favorite doctor. Before we left her office, I hugged Dr. Wüst, and as she held her little, cheerful patient for one final time, I said to her matter-of-factly, “I hope when Talia grows up she can be just like you.”

Twenty-four years later, Talia Marie Torres, 24, is a medical student and currently living in Ohio. She is studying to be a pediatrician – just like Dr. Marlene Wüst-Smith and Dr. Vicki Papadeas. •

Danny Torres is a high school teacher and freelance sports writer based in New York City. His work has appeared in a number of publications/websites including Memories and Dreams, the official magazine of the National Baseball Hall of Fame; LatinoSports.com; LaVidaBaseball.com, Mets Magazine; and mlb.com. A proud native of the Bronx and a close friend of the family of the late Roberto Clemente, Danny can also be reached on Twitter @DannyT21.