Big Papa Ruben Brings Size and Fun to Chattanooga Lookouts

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) Chattanooga Lookouts first baseman Ruben Ibarra may not be one of the biggest names in the game, but he’s definitely one of the biggest players. He’s listed at 6-3, 290-pounds. You rarely see 300-pounders playing baseball, but there’s Big Papa Ruben, injecting the game with size, and an equally big personality.

Said Ibarra:”Everyone gets a kick out of it when a D-tackle is playing baseball.”
Imagine what a D-tackle can do, swinging a baseball bat.
It’s not good for the bat.
Said Ibarra:”Yeah it seems to be a common theme here. Seems this is the graveyard for my bats. I’m joking. I’m joking.”
Not surprising that Ibarra comes from a family of big men.
His uncle and grandfather enjoy steer wrestling.
Said Ibarra:”I never did it because I was not man enough at a young age to do that. Let me tell you, I still ain’t to this day even on the practice stalls. They’ve got a whole arena set up in their back yard. The first time I ever took a family vacation out there I was going into my freshman year of high school. My uncle fell off and took a horn right to the chest. He got up. Spit out his dip. He goes it’s all right. Man it ain’t all right. I’ll stick to the baseball dude. You’re trippin’ man.”
Ibarra does have one interesting hobby though.
Yelling.
Said Ibarra:”It’s something I like to do. I yell a lot, whether it’s something good, courageous, or dumb. I’ve been stealing a phrase lately in the dugout right before a game. I’ll say a quote from ‘Major Payne’. Killing is my business ladies, and business is good! (laughs) Hey man. It’s supposed to be loose. It ain’t supposed to make sense.”
While that quote may not make sense, Ibarra’s approach to the game certainly does.
Said Ibarra:”I don’t go on the field thinking about how I can improve myself. I think about how can I win a ballgame. I love this game. When I come out to compete to win, that’s when I feel like I have the most fun, and I play my best baseball.”