Can't Be Broken
Can't Be Broken
Unbreakable Spirit: C-Monsters Mindset
Have you ever been told you're not good enough? That dream you're chasing—too big, too far, too impossible? Ryan Gusto's remarkable journey from high school reject to Major League Baseball pitcher demolishes these limiting beliefs.
Gusto was cut from his high school baseball team multiple times, barely making varsity his senior year. Where most would see a dead end, he saw an opportunity. Through relentless persistence, he talked his way onto a junior college team, excelled beyond expectations, and eventually caught the attention of MLB scouts. Even when faced with the double blow of a global pandemic and Tommy John surgery costing him two full seasons, Gusto refused to quit. His breakout AAA season with a 3.7 ERA and 141 strikeouts earned him a spot with the Houston Astros, fulfilling a dream that seemed impossible just years earlier.
What makes Gusto's story universal is that his superpower wasn't some rare talent—it was his mindset. When confronted with rejection, he chose to believe in himself. When obstacles appeared, he found a way forward. As former Navy SEAL Jocko Willink suggests, when things go wrong, say "Good"—because difficulties are opportunities to level up. Your mind is your greatest asset in any challenge, far more powerful than any physical attribute.
Your blessing in life comes when you find the "torture you're comfortable with"—that struggle that forces growth and ultimately leads to your greatest achievements. Whatever your dream, whatever your setback, remember that you can figure out a way forward. Keep learning, keep believing, take one step at a time, and remember: you can't be broken.
What up, what up, what up, and welcome to another episode of the Can't Be Broken Podcast. I'm your host, seamonster, and in today's Seamonster episode I wanted to share a story about adversity, about setbacks, about overcoming that and overcoming, overcoming obstacles, and how everybody can do it and everybody has the power in figuring out a way and just a positive mindset of keep going, one thing at a time, one step at a time, one event at a time, whatever that means one day at a time and moving forward and overcoming, and that bad things are going to happen, and to figure out a way to get it done. And so it's kind of all those things combined into one. But first let me start off with the story that I wanted to share with you guys. It's a really, really amazing story of a major league baseball pitcher by the name of Ryan Gusto.
Speaker 1:Ryan Gusto is a major league baseball pitcher for the Houston Astros. Now, if you're a Dodger fan, I know that sucks, we hate the Astros but it's an amazing story of his journey to major league baseball and how it applies to so many kiddos that get told that they're not good enough, that they might not make the team or that they are not making the team and that they're just not there yet or having grown into their full potential, and at that point they feel broken. And when they feel broken they quit or they don't know what to do or how to find a way. So let me share this story and then we'll dive into some of the ways that you can overcome that, and hopefully this helps. But Ryan Gusto is a major league baseball pitcher that just joined the Houston Astros in 2024 in September, and the journey he's had since high school to Juco ball to the minor leagues is a setback after setback after setback, is a setback after setback after setback, and yet he fulfilled his dream and continues to overcome adversity and obstacles and setbacks through his resilience of believing himself and taking one day at a time and working hard and having a purpose taking one day at a time and working hard and having a purpose.
Speaker 1:And so Ryan Gusto was cut from his high school baseball team multiple times. Multiple times he didn't join the varsity team and actually really didn't play until his senior year he was cut, didn't make it, wasn't good enough, wasn't big enough, didn't throw hard, but he made the varsity team and during that time he wanted to continue trying to play and trying to make it, never gave up. And so he bugged and continued to call the local JUCO school there, the junior college, and bug him to try to give him a shot on the team and to walk on and that he'll give him a shot to be on the team at least just to be part of something. And after so many calls and so many letters and emails and all these different things, the Juco coach agreed and let him on the team and during that time, um, he excelled. He grew, he threw harder, he worked out hard, he never gave up. He was training with a purpose and he excelled in junior college. He did really well. Um, let me give you some of his.
Speaker 1:He ended up going to Florida Southwestern State College and he had a 2.88 ERA and after that he went to the Suncoast Conference. He won actually the Suncoast Conference conference pitcher of the year. During that time, scouts were looking at him and he got drafted. He got drafted and negotiated in the 11th round by the Houston Astros and negotiated a 400,000 signing bonus. He navigated some setbacks in 2020 in the minor leagues after COVID hit and he had Tommy John surgery costing him two full seasons. After getting back to the minors.
Speaker 1:He had a breakout season in 2024 in AAA and dominated with a 3.7 ERA and 141 strikeouts, earning him Pitcher of the Month for the PCL League. After that he got called up by the HoustonL league. After that he got called up by the Houston Astros to the to the majors and he finally broke through with them in 2025, the opening day roster. He made and he contributed and he is still contributing now actually shutting down the Dodgers when we played them this year. So he pitched against us Now actually shutting down the Dodgers when we played them this year, so he pitched against us.
Speaker 1:And what an amazing story of a kiddo who had setbacks from the pandemic to surgery, to phantom call up, and now he is a starter and a reliever for the Houston Astros, never gave up, never quit on himself, always kept working. And a kid who only played varsity his senior year and didn't even contribute, went to JUCO, kept on bugging the coach to give him a shot He'll walk on and all the setbacks from COVID to Tommy John surgery and now he's in the bigs. And how did that happen? Why did that happen? Is he special? Is he different? Well, I would say he is. And why? Because he didn't quit. That's special because he believed in himself. That's special because he believed in himself. That's special because he figured out a way to keep moving forward, to keep pushing towards his dream with a purpose.
Speaker 1:And the thing is that we all have that special part of us, we all have that inside of us. But we get told no, and we believe it. We get told you're not good enough, you're done, You're not athletic enough, so-and-so. And you know what, sometimes it's good. It's good to hear the truth, even if it's not something you want to hear, even if it's something that it's going to hurt you, because it's letting you know where you stand. The difference is, what are you going to do with that? Are you going to believe that and stay down, or are you going to believe that and take it as a learning lesson and get better and move forward? How did he get there?
Speaker 1:Let me tell you one of the fucking ways that he got there and that all kids and everybody in any sport or job or school or anything you do in family, just in life, can do to move forward and overcome adversity and obstacles and crises moments. You can figure out a way, figure out a way we have lost that a little bit. Why, I don't know. I want to say that this generation no, no, no, every generation we tend to believe everything right in front of us. We tend to listen to others. I'm not saying, don't listen to others. If I'm a coach and I'm giving you advice and I think, hey, you're not there yet, I'm going to tell you you're not working hard enough. Hey, listen, if you don't do this, what's going to happen? You might get cut, you might not make it, you're not big enough, you don't throw hard enough, you don't have the it factor right now. But I sure hope you figure it out. I sure hope that you make a plan to figure out where you want to be and how you're going to get there, and I will give you an honest and truthful feedback of where you're at and how to get there. It's up to you to put in the work. It's up to you to figure it out. It's up to you to execute that plan and move forward with it. That's how you get where you want to be. You fucking find a way to move forward.
Speaker 1:There's a guy that I follow. His name is Jocko. I want to say Willinick, I don't know how to pronounce his last name, but it's Jocko Willenick or Willenick. He's an ex Navy SEAL. He has a book out and he says when things are hard and things are breaking down and things go wrong, say to yourself good, why? Because then you know you're going to level up.
Speaker 1:When things are wrong, when you don't get your way, when you get put down. Good, because you know you're going to learn, you're going to grow, you're going to be better, you're going to be aware. Only if you learn from it, only if you keep moving forward, only if you keep moving forward, only if you adjust and figure it out and move forward and keep going and don't stop, will you overcome that. And don't believe. Believe in yourself, believe that you can do it. Your biggest asset is your mind, not your bicep or tricep or core or legs or anything like that. No physical asset. It's your mind.
Speaker 1:And as long as you keep telling yourself to move forward, that you're better than that, that you'll figure out a way. That you're better than that, that you'll figure out a way that you're gonna overcome no matter what, that you believe in yourself and that you have a purpose and you have a plan, you will get where you wanna be. Listen, your blessing in life is when you find the torture you're comfortable with, because the greatest things that come out, the greatest gifts, are when bad things happen, because you know you're going to level up, you're going to be better, you're going to learn. So don't give up, keep moving forward, keep believing, keep trusting the process. It's never too late. It's never too late based on how old you are.
Speaker 1:Who's told you stuff? Where you're at right now, things happen for a reason. Things happen for a purpose. There's so many great stories out there of overcoming obstacles and adversity and you can be one of those and you can help others and you can overcome and you can tell your story. Just keep learning. Don't let anybody stop you from achieving your dreams, your goals. But it's not going to happen without the work. It's not going to happen without the belief. But it's not going to happen without the work. It's not going to happen without the belief and it's not going to happen if you don't figure out a way. Just remember you can't be broken.
