Motivation can come from a variety of different sources for both amateur and professional athletes.

For some it’s simply the will to excel, for others it’s a genuine love of competition, for a few more, it’s a chance to prove you can accomplish something someone said you couldn’t.

Former major league baseball player Jerry Kindall probably drew from all those factors growing up in St. Paul in the 1940s and early 1950s. He also relied on a more underlying, fundamental form of motivation — his faith.

Kindall, 73, was in town last week as the keynote speaker for a Fellowship of Christian Athletes luncheon at the Alltel Civic Center. He gave his testimony to the group, expounding how his faith has always comforted him and directed him throughout his life.

A stellar high school athlete in St. Paul, Kindall’s life journey included a stint in the military, a spot on the University of Minnesota baseball team that won the NCAA national championship in 1956, and a nine-year major league baseball career, during which he played for the Chicago Cubs, the Cleveland Indians and the Minnesota Twins.

After his pro career, he went back to Minnesota to get his master’s degree and serve as an assistant coach under the legendary Dick Siebert. A few years later, the University of Arizona came calling, asking if he’d be interested in the head coaching job for the Wildcats.

As much as Siebert wanted to keep Kindall on staff, he told his assistant he’d be a fool not to take the job.

The new venture came with its share of pressure. The Wildcats had been to the College World Series nine previous times but had never won it.

“They told me they wanted to hire me because they expected me to win the national championship,” Kindall remembers. “They said they’d been to Omaha enough and knew what it was like getting there, now they wanted to win it.”

Kindall obliged, taking over the program for 23 years, beginning in 1973. He led Arizona to three national titles and was recently elected to the College Baseball of Hall of Fame.

Kindall says he’s lead a wonderful life and received more than he could have ever asked for, but it hasn’t been without its adversity.

Back in 1965, he was the regular second baseman for the Minnesota Twins when an injury sent him to the sidelines.

“I had a muscle tear at the top of the back of my left leg,” he said. “It started when I got hit on a double-play pivot and then, a couple of days later, I got taken out again and I was done.”

The Twins called up Frank Quilici to play second base and the team went on to reach the World Series — losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games. Kindall rode the bench the whole Series.

“That was very disappointing but I didn’t feel sorry for myself,” he said. “I had my faith to rely on. I had religious parents growing up and it’s always been a big part of my life.”