Wayne: What was that one play that you will remember for the rest of your life when you were playing ball in Petaluma?
Dalton: There’s plenty of hits and diving plays from little league to high school that I will always remember, but my biggest memory was actually the Egg Bowl my senior year, when we beat Casa Grande 40-14 [Click here to see Dalton’s highlights of this game]. We were both undefeated and I had two interceptions and one receiving touchdown, while my best friend Sean Sullivan rushed for 200 yards and two touchdowns. That game is high school football to me.
Wayne: Now that you have moved around, do you miss your hometown?
Dalton: I never expected to be in Savannah, Ga., but I think I’m lucky that I’ve been able to see another side of the country in college. Being away from home has really taught me how lucky I am to live in a town like Petaluma though, and just the hometown feel is like nowhere else.
Wayne: Do you have any coaches in your youth that inspired you to get better at the game?
Dalton: I was lucky enough to have some great baseball coaches at a really young age like Mike Krist, Paul Sequeira, and Marc Nadale, but my biggest inspiration as a player will always be my father Ken Johnson, who coached me in little league and high school. He was always willing to do the extra work with me and not everyone is lucky enough to have a dad that was a great player and coach.
Wayne: As an adult what aspects of baseball looking back what life skills do you practice today that you attribute to the game of baseball?
Dalton: Baseball has been great to me. The game gave me friendships for a lifetime and paid for my education, but I’ve also had lows with the highs. It’s truly the game of life and the biggest teacher of adversity. I’ve had trouble dealing with the adversity before, but the game will force you to deal with adversity and be a stronger person to succeed, and to me that’s one of the greatest life lessons you can get.