Sean took a deep breath before heading for the batter's box. Noah passed me by on his way back inside the dugout as I headed outside for the on deck circle. I held out my hand for a high-five and he obliged.
Sean had previously hit a single in his last at-bat so there was a certain level of excitement as he came up with a runner on third. We could take the lead back as soon as we lost it.
The pitcher, as a righty, was able to easily do some check throws to the third baseman, keeping Jesse closer to the bag. After two, the pitcher threw his fastball right down the middle, but Sean whiffed. 0-1. Another check throw. There were some audible 'boos' as the ball was thrown.
"Face the batter head on!" Some man yelled from the stands. I glanced his way, but couldn't spot the man.
I don't know whether the pitcher heard the man or not, or whether he chose to listen because of that loud instruction, but he really did face Sean head on. He stopped worrying about Jesse on third and started throwing the heat in the strike zone. Sean went down swinging, ending our offense.
"Let's goooo!" The pitcher pumped his fists and yelled for everyone to hear.
His team, dugout, and fans took the lead in yelling and getting loud.
"Heads up, chins up!" Garret clapped his hands in the dugout. "We aren't losing." He was quick to take the field and the rest of us followed.
Including Bryce.
I casually checked the bullpen to see if anyone was warming up. Nope. Okay, we're sticking with Bryce this inning. He would start with the seventh batter.
Bryce was put in a tough spot early, throwing two balls outside the zone, not even getting the batter to flinch. He bounced back with two strikes, getting to the 2-2 count. On the fifth pitch, the batter made contact, hitting the ball just over the infield. It took once bounce before Garret got to it and quickly threw the ball back in. A leadoff single.
Noah, who had the ball, went to the mound to take it back to Bryce. He covered his mouth with his glove to say a few words that I couldn't even hear despite being the next closest player around.
Bryce nodded. Then nodded again. Whatever Noah was saying, he clearly agreed with. He also got extra time to calm down after giving up a hit. Noah stayed until the ump started to walk their way.
The game resumed with a runner on first and Bryce facing the eighth batter in their lineup. He did one check throw, then threw a fastball inside the zone for a called strike. He threw a similar fastball near the same spot for a swing and a miss. 0-2. Bryce shook off Mitchell's sign twice before agreeing on one.
Low yet center in the zone for a called strike three! Before I could even change expressions, Mitch threw the ball to Sean at first base and the runner dived back. Mitch threw nice and low, near the base for Sean to catch and go lay on the tag almost simultaneously.
"Out!" The closest umpire declared.
Sean grinned as he straightened up.
"Are you kidding me?!" Stuart Hall's coach came jogging out of his dugout and started to argue the call with the crew of umpires.
I quickly moved away and joined the other infielders just off the mound as the game was put on hold. Mitchell also came from behind the plate to make it complete.
"Wonderful throw, man." Sean slapped Mitch on the back. "I almost missed that sign."
Mitch chuckled and readjusted his chest padding. "I'm just thankful he didn't try to go for second instead. Could you imagine how stressed Jake would be during a pickle?"
The guys all laughed as I rolled my eyes. Just because they were right, didn't mean I appreciated being the butt of the joke.
"The baserunner is gone." Noah glanced at the coach talking to the umpires. "No redos allowed." He grinned at Bryce. "You have a clean slate once more. Even though the next guy is the pitcher, don't slack."
Bryce snorted. "I never slack off."
"You know what I mean." Noah laughed. "Stay calm and don't get lost in your head."
We talked a little more as the opposing team's coach let the umpires get an earful. Eventually he was warned to return to his dugout or he would be ejected. He complied though it was clearly heard that he didn't agree with the call. I didn't have a good view nor was I prepared to look when it happened so I couldn't say if we got away with one or if the ump had it right.
Bryce finally got to face the ninth batter, the relief pitcher. So I would have to face him at the top of the sixth. Bryce shut him down quickly, getting him to swing at a ball in the dirt on a 1-2 count. The inning ended and we were still tied.
I hurried back to the dugout and switched out my gear. I stepped out of the dugout and Garret was only a step behind.
He laid a hand on my helmet to hold me back from taking practice swings. He leaned in and lowered his voice. "If they give you the chance to hit, swing for the fences."
I looked up at him, surprised. "Shouldn't I try to tire the guy out if they let me bat?"
Garret turned us slightly back towards the dugout, our teammates within our sights. "Don't bother with that strategy. We need a run. We need the lead. Attacking the pitcher to make him tire is useless right now. There are only two innings left. This is probably your last at-bat."
I gripped my bat tightly. That's right. This really might be my last at-bat depending on the situation.
"Batter up!" The home plate umpire called for me.
Garret gave my helmet a pat and stood up straight. "If you don't get the chance, I'm right behind you."
I relaxed my shoulders and headed for the batter's box, choosing to bat from the right side. Once I was set, the pitcher started his motion. So, he was going to throw to me. I did have this chance. No matter whether it's in the zone or not, I'll have to try to aim for the fences like Garret said.
The ball had movement like a breaking pitch, drifting away from me and towards the other batter's box. I swung fast and hard, hitting the ball opposite field corner. The right fielder chased it to the fence, jumped, and came down empty-handed.
My teammates in the dugout went wild and got loud. I clenched my fist as I started my victory trot around the bases. Both Coach Luis and Mr. Miller gave me light slaps on my backside and spoke words of encouragement. I tagged home to make the score 4-3.
I glanced up in the stands to see Dad and Jeremy standing tall and clapping their hardest. Rhys was also still there, but didn't take up as much space or had much of a presence compared to the two of them. I grinned and gave them a small wave as I headed back to the dugout.
