“W—What the hell is he doing!?” Cheryl was beside herself with shock and anger as she stalked around the office the next morning. With every step she took, hot air would shoot out of her nose like an angry dragon.
“Now now, calm down Cheryl. You know how youth can be sometimes.” Mark said, trying to get her under control.
“Calm down!? Do you hear yourself right now Mark? I know he’s your grandson, but there’s a limit of how much favoritism you can show.” Cheryl snapped.
Mark was not inclined to address the obvious slight, so he ignored it. “While it’s true that he went a little overboard, think on the bright side. It’s been a single day since then and we’ve already received a surge in season ticket sales. You can’t tell me you don’t think there’s a correlation between the two.” He replied calmly.
“I don’t care about season ticket sales. We can’t control a player like Ken, he will only cause troubles for us in the future.” She said, turning to the GM.
Geoff had his legs crossed as he sat behind his desk, tapping his fingers on the desk. “You might not care about ticket sales but our organization certainly does.” Geoff interjected.
“But at what cost? We will be the laughing stock of the whole baseball world if we don’t qualify for the World Series.” Cheryl complained.
“Then that means we just need to qualify.” Mark said calmly.
“With all due respect, we didn’t even have a winning percentage last season. Jason Rogers is injured and won’t be cleared for at least 16 weeks and the only backup we have is a rookie catcher. Please be realistic coach.”
Before Mark could respond, there was a knock at the door.
The door opened a moment later and a man wearing a blue suit and striped tie walked in. He had a square jaw and receding hairline, yet he was wearing a wide smile.
As soon as he walked in, everybody got to their feet.
“Mr. Ilitch, what brings you here?” Geoff said with surprise. Judging by his demeanor, it was clear the person he was talking to was above him.
“Geoff, Mark, Cheryl.” He said, nodding. “I assume you’re talking about our newest draftee, so I thought I’d come and join you.”
“Ah, of course. Please take a seat, sir.” Geoff said, directing him to one of the open seats in the room.
Cheryl had zipped her mouth shut. While she could complain in front of Geoff the GM, doing so in front of Charlie Ilitch, the majority owner of the club was a different matter entirely.
Even Geoff and Mark appeared to be a little on edge.
“You’ve got yourself quite a grandson, Mark.” Charlie said, letting out a small laugh. “Hasn’t even played a single game and already he’s already making an impact.”
Mark smiled, “He is quite a character… Both my grandsons are.”
“Mmm, exactly. Which is why I want you to start him in the season opener tonight. We’re at 90% capacity and I expect more to buy tickets when we open the gate. If he has a good game, we could keep up this momentum throughout the season.” Charlie added, his eyes shining.
At his words, both Cheryl and Geoff were dumbstruck. Mark on the other hand was grinning from ear to ear.
“Consider it done. I was planning on letting him play at some stage anyway.” Mark said with a laugh.
“Very good. Well, regardless of the outcome, don’t be too harsh on Ken. Even if he doesn’t complete his 3 goals, we’ll find a way to keep him at the end of the season…” Charlie said, getting to his feet.
“I’ll be watching tonight, make sure to get us that win.” He said before leaving promptly.
The room was quiet for a while after the majority owner left. Cheryl who had been rather agitated before was now wearing an exasperated expression.
“Well, if Charlie says so, there’s no point in complaining anymore.” She said, letting out a sigh.
“Don’t worry Cheryl, we’ll look back at this in a years time and laugh.” Mark said. A smile was still plastered on his lips after the previous discussion.
“I hope you’re right, Mark.”
Geoff got up from his chair let out a small sigh, “That’s enough about Ken for now, how are the preparations for the season opener tonight going? Is Kurt Gibson still throwing the ceremonial first pitch?”
“Yes, but then he’ll be right back in the booth afterwards.” Mark said with a laugh.
Geoff shook his head and chuckled dryly, “That guy would probably play a few games for us this season if we let him.”
“Everything else on track?”
Mark nodded, “The players should be arriving soon for a light practice. Are you still attending the meeting before the game?”
“Yeah, I never miss the first one of the season.”
The three chatted for a while before Mark bade his farewell.
Without going to his desk, he continued to the locker room and found Ken and a few others already getting dressed.
“Gentleman.” Mark said, wearing a smile.
“Coach.”
“Can I speak to you for a moment Ken?”
Ken nodded and followed his grandfather out of the room and into the hall. After posting the video two nights ago, he had yet to hear from anyone within the organization, even Cheryl.
There was a slight sense of dread as he stood in front of his grandfather, the coach of the Ligers. Would he be reprimanded for his actions?
“So, it looks like you’ve caused quite a stir on social media.” Mark stated, a small grin pulling at the corner of his lips.
“Yeah… You could say that.” Ken replied feeling a little awkward.
“Well, there’s no fixing it now, we’ll just have to roll with the punches. Which is why you’ll be the starting pitcher tonight. Can I count on you?” Mark asked.
“EH!? Really? Of course I’m ready!” Ken exclaimed in shock.