Dave got on the mound. The first one to leadoff for Lincoln, was the left fielder/pitcher/home run hitter. Batter number seven. A fly out to center and then a home run. I turned behind me and watched as the outfielder backed up; obviously wary of this guys hitting power. Dave wasn't scared though, he came with strength and speed from the first pitch.
Batter seven didn't back down either. He missed the first pitch, but was able to foul off the next few. On the sixth pitch, he hit it perfectly. It zoomed off the bat and flew to the outfield. Zeke jumped but wasn't able to come down with it. It continued over the outfield fence. A home run. Again. By the same guy. I watched as he jogged around the bases with a smile on his face. His team and a little of the crowd clapped and cheered, but it didn't have that much of an impact on the scoreboard, 5-2.
I glanced at Noah, unsure if we were going to go to the mound again like we did with Kyle. Noah just shook his head at me, then gave a little point towards the dugout.
I looked to the dugout, trying to figure out what he was trying to convey.
"Hey loser! We're even now!" A shout came from our own dugout. Followed by some laughs. Kyle was leaning against the fence and yelling at Dave. "At least I lasted more than three innings before giving up a home run." He antagonized.
Dave rolled his shoulders back and toed the rubber, seemingly not paying his twin any attention. He faced batter eight with the same mentality as the last batter. He started strong and fast, barely taking rest in between pitches. Batter eight was lucky to put one in play down the first baseline. Julian went and got it. I ran over to cover first, but so did Dave. I awkwardly stopped and so did Dave. Julian ended up sprinting back to the base by himself getting the first out of the inning.
He threw the ball back to Dave, who headed back to the mound. Julian then surprised me by jogging over to me. He put his glove up to cover his mouth. "Why'd you stop?"
I shrugged. "Dave was going?"
Julian shook his head in dismay. "Remember the three b's? Ball, base, backup. I had ball. Daniel has third. Noah had second. What does that leave you?"
"First?"
Julian nodded. "You should have ran over to first no matter what. Either to go to the base itself. Or if I threw to Dave, to back him up in case I threw a bad ball or something. Understand?"
I blushed and nodded. I made another mistake. That's two that I know of. I glanced back at Zeke, wondering if he's counting the laps I'll have to run. He didn't even look my way thankfully.
"You'll definitely get laps." Julian said nonchalantly. I jumped as he had just read my thoughts; I felt even more embarrassed. "You're a strange one. Sometimes you're hard to get a read on, but then others you're like an open book." He cracked a smiled and patted my shoulder. "Come on, Bambi. Let's finish this game strong."
I nodded and we went back to our respective positions. Batter nine was someone new who had replaced the left fielder after he moved to the pitching position so I didn't have any guesses as to what he would be like. It didn't matter though, he swung on the first pitch and sent the ball right over Daniel's head. Mahki came in, caught it on a bounce and threw to Noah. I sprinted to the bag to cover in case the guy kept running. Noah turned to throw to me at second, but the runner stayed on first.
He threw the ball to Dave instead. "Next batter. Don't mind."
Dave's jaw was clenched and he said nothing. Just gave a light nod and faced the next batter. Batter one has one hit so far this afternoon, but Dave has gotten him to ground out before. Kelvin gave out the signs for the pitch and to watch for a steal.
Dave slowed down. He looked more meticulous in his set up and motion. The batter whiffed the first pitch. Strike. Even his aim looked more accurate. Strike. He got the ball back and slowly got set again. He took a deep breath and let it out over a long period of time. Lifted his glove and pitching hand to his chest. Lifted his left leg, then stepped far forward with it, and his right arm followed the flow of his body. Strike.
"Strike three. Out." The ump announced.
Dave got the ball back and the next batter switched spots with the one who just got out. Dave stuck with what was working and continued getting strikes. He easily got another strikeout, effectively ending the game, giving us a 5-2 win.
The team jogged it in to the mound to congratulate him and then we gave high-fives to one another. With the exception of Chris. I spotted him still in the dugout, packing up.
"Don't worry about him." Noah laid his arm around my shoulders, leaning on me. "He's just a bitter upperclassmen. When he first found out that I made varsity as a freshman, he acted the same way. He just thinks he's better than everyone here."
I rubbed my nose, feeling a little insecure. "Coach said he was right though. I'm not fast enough." We watched as the team started to move back to the dugout. "And Julian pointed out another mistake. If I have to be honest, I don't think I should be a starter."
Noah pulled me closer. "That's a load of nonsense. Just think. How many other players out there have a perfect batting average? That, by itself, gives you reason to be a starter. Normally they would place a bad fielder but good hitter in the outfield. Unfortunately your weak arm would be even more of a problem there."
I pulled my hat down, feeling embarrassed by the compliment and insult.
"We'll just keep practicing until you get it right." Noah concluded. We walked back to the dugout together.
Brian Swoope intercepted us, clipboard in hand. My stomach sunk at the sight. He grinned. "You already know what I have here right?"
Noah sighed. "How many?"
"Fifteen. Each." He laughed at my pout. "That's only three miles. You can do that in half an hour easy." He waved and went back to some other guys.
"'Only three miles'?" I groaned. How hateful.
Noah laughed. "Three miles is shorter than a 5k race."
"Why would I care about that?" I mumbled as we separated and started to pack my own bag.
"Because we run 5ks as a family. And now you're a part of our family." Noah packed his own bag.
I started to object, but then realized what he had said in the last half of his sentence. I'm a part of their family? And as a family, they run 5k races? So I have to run a 5k race with them? I felt a mix of loss and elation. Happy to be included in their family but upset that it would mean more running. I guess there really is pros and cons to everything.