Background: I wrote this entire blog entry two night ago, and then hit the backspace key, which decided to take me back to espn.com instead of deleting the last word I had written. Upon forwarding, I found that the entire entry had been deleted…sweet. Here goes again!
On Tuesday we had two softball games, making up for the cancellations due to tropical monsoons in northwest Arkansas. The first game we ended up winning by run-rule, 19-8. I got put in right-center field, and although I have almost no outfield experience in my baseball/softball career, I played pretty well. I even threw a guy out at home who was trying to tag up on a fly ball to me and score…silly rabbit.
The second game was against the best team in the league (we are fourth best) and it started out very well. It was a heated game though. Steve, one of the YPs (Young Professionals) who just two years ago was playing MLS with the Chicago Fire, about got into it with the fat third baseman from the other team…bad choice for the tubster had it gone down. We went into the bottom of the 5th with a 18-6 lead, and if we could have held them to two runs or less, game over. They scored 5. We go 1-2-3 in the top of the 6th, and enter the last inning due to the hour time constraint on games up 18-11. We felt confident. If you guessed disastrous foreshadowing, good for you…but poor form for not having faith in the Hair Force (our awesome team name). They ended up scoring 8 runs and beating us 19-18, which did not feel good. It took us out of the running for the championship game at the end of the season, which hurt even more.
On Wednesday, we had our final two games. The first game was a little ridiculous, and we ended up winning by a count of 28-6. Bad news: As Steve, our thoroughbred soccer phenom was trying to dig out a inside the park home run, he pulled up short rounding third (horror flashbacks of Jr rounding third, for Reds fans) and grabbed his hamstring. Not a good thing, especially since we were whoopin ass at the time anyway, and our next game was against the second best team in the league. I got moved to second base, which I am convinced is my true love. I grew up playing third base on the days I wasn’t pitching, and there is no margin for error in the hot corner. You field, you throw, immediately, or he is safe. At second, your are so close that all you have to do is worry about fielding it, and the throw is like 20 feet. I played well, gobbling up like 9 or 10 grounders, and even almost turning a double play, 6-4-3, which is unheard of in softball since the bases are so close. I also threw a guy out who blooped one into right field and then tried to stretch out a double on me…silly rabbit. Background: Steve, for whatever reason, has taken to yelling “Silly Rabbit” any time I throw someone out. Most people in softball assume that the fielders they are playing against don’t have strong arms…Steve and I have some baseball backgrounds, so luckily the aforementioned ailment does not apply for us. Hence, we can throw some kids out when they test us. It is fun. I also had a bomb to left center. Anyone who has played baseball has probably had the feeling. You crush one, and you think it is a homer, so you start jogging to first base. Well, I did that, but my ball hit the top of the fence and bounced back in to play. I rounded first, headed to second, rounded second too hard, and got picked off….wow. I could hear Coack K, Coach Atkins, Coach everyone yelling at me all the way to Fayetteville…bad baseball (slash softball). Nobody really cared because the bases had been loaded and all three scored, and that put us up by like 15. However, for the remainder of the game they kept asking people in the stands if someone wanted to pinch run for the intern…they even went so far as to get a dog and attempt to take her out to first base to pinch run for me…we have fun.
So, game two is a big deal. Number 4 team (us) looking to beat the number 2 team and jump into third. At 8:30 pm, under the lights…the show! This team has a good defense..they only allow an average of 12 runs a game…we average like 19. Since Steve pulled his hammy, we shuffle the infield and I get put back into my home…third base! I snag lots of grounders, but the throws to first are tough, so about half the time they ran it out. We did put a few people out at second though. Let me fast forward to the climax.
We enter the bottom of the 7th….last inning…down 12-7. We score two runs, but in doing so it costs us two outs. Who comes up? Who do you think? Of course it had to be the intern. I am loving it though. Recall: Past two games I hit a homerun and hit one off the top of the fence. Recap: Bottom 7, two outs, 12-9, runners on 1st and 3rd. I step up, take the first pitch inside, ball one. Next pitch is a little high, but goes down for a strike. 1-1 count. The next pitch is meaty (what softball pitch isn’t?) and I blast it to center. I feel good about it, the pitcher let’s us know how he feels about it in the form of profanities, and my bench goes nuts. I start running full speed towards first (I learned my lesson) as the center fielder sprints out towards the fence. He gets to the fence, looks up, and catches the ball…at the top of the wall. Game. Phew, that one hurt. 18 inches away from being the hero the next day in the office…now, still the inter, lol. I felt bad, as we all probably would, but they tell me that they wanted me to go for broke there, because with two outs it is unlikely that we could have manufactured three more runs, and no one on the team has ever hit a home run other than Steve (injured) and myself. Tough loss, but still a great time. Not only was it a great way to bond with a bunch of the guys in a way that is impossible inside an office, but I had a lot of fun playing with them. They invited me to play with them in another league that starts up in July, so I told them that since I leave early August, I will be a sub any time they need me.
It is more fun in the office now, because every time I see one of these guys, we share a smile that represents the crazy things that we did during those six games I was present. Not only that, but playing softball transcends that barrier of comfort, so they are all completely comfortable talking around me the way they would around each other, and I am now able to ask them anything that is on my mind, without having to worry about repercussions. If there is one piece of advice I can give to any of you that have an internship, or new job, it is the same as I would give to someone coming into a new college….GET INVOLVED! The more involved you are, the more people you meet, and the more people you meet the, more resources you have to leverage. Do it!
That about does it, so until next time,
Signin out – CB
