We finished warmups before the official start time. It was an evening game so plenty of parents and students and filled up their stands. And who could forget the scouts? By now, I could easily spot them. It helped that I knew Willie and spotted him sitting with a few older men. Almost a whole section was dedicated to scouts.
"They're definitely excited to see Zeke and Brady face one another." Noah told me as I put on my helmet.
As the visiting team, we would bat first. I grabbed my bat. "Do you think Zeke will do better than last time?"
"We didn't face Brady last time so it's hard to say." Noah shrugged.
I grimaced. We probably could have won if I didn't skip that game.
"Hey, hey. Don't mind it." Noah patted my back, pushing me forward. "Just focus on today's game. We'll kick butt, okay?"
I nodded. I then joined Julian out by the on deck circle. He would be batting right after me.
"Have you seen a submarine pitcher before?" Julian asked in a low tone as Brady took the mound and started to do some warmup pitches.
I scrunched up my nose. "Yes, but no. Zeke took me to the game where he pitched against Servite, but I've never tried to hit off one before."
Julian nodded. "Don't get caught up in his motion and release. Watch the ball."
I can do that. I lightly swung my bat back and forth to loosen up. I was still deciding which box to use for my first at-bat when the umpire told me to step up to the plate.
I went for the right-handed box. It's not every game that I get to bat from that side when it's so fresh. No one has even touched the dirt and the lines are so precise. I felt so happy that I didn't even notice Zeke and Coach frowning at me from the dugout until I let the first pitch pass for a called strike. I was taking a step back for a practice swing when I caught them almost glaring at me. I shivered.
I couldn't even guess what I did wrong. I should just make sure I get on base so they won't be angry. And most importantly, so I don't have to go back to the dugout.
Brady's style was definitely unique. Ball. His knuckles were almost grazing by the dirt on the ground. Called strike. There was an awkward pause in his motion too. I fouled off the fourth pitch down the line, but barely. Kind of risky on my part. The timing was just a little too different. Ball. I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. Like Julian said, I should just watch the ball's movement and not his. I hit a foul line drive into the fence. Ugh. Definitely harder than normal. Ball. I let out a sigh of relief. That one was pretty close.
Supposedly, Brady's pitch selection was a fastball, slider and a sinker. I barely understood the normal movement for those breaking balls, let alone a submarine style for them. I couldn't tell what was what when the spin was too strange. I just did my best to foul two more before earning my fourth ball to get the walk. I let out another sigh as I tossed my bat towards my dugout, then headed to first.
Surprisingly, some of the parents and people in the stands were clapping as I jogged to my base. It was almost the same as getting a hit. I felt a little more relaxed knowing that the fans were happy with me. Coach and Zeke shouldn't be too mad now that I got on base.
Julian came up next, only lasting three pitches. He struck out swinging, not even grazing a pitch. Even with the good advice he shared with me, he couldn't do anything at the plate. Mahki went down in a similar fashion, but at least fouled off two of the pitches before striking out. I gulped. This Brady guy was better than I thought and I was already filled with praises for his style and skill.
Zeke stepped up and I took a slightly bigger lead. Slightly. Like two steps more. I trusted Zeke, but I didn't want to accidentally get thrown out when we already have two outs. Zeke worked the count like I did, getting Brady to up his pitch count to over twenty total pitches this inning. Then he smacked a hard grounder right back at the mound. Brady dodged and I was sprinting to second base.
The shortstop covered the center at the grass, snatching up the ball before it could sneak by him. He then threw to the second baseman, beating me by three feet.
"Out!"
The home crowd cheered for their team as Golden West went back to their dugout.
Dang it. I took off my helmet and went back to my own dugout.
"Nice hustle." Zeke joined me just as I walked into the dugout. The starters rushed to take the field. "Why did you choose to bat righty today?"
My eyebrows jumped at the sudden question. "Uh, because...it was...clean." My voice got smaller as Zeke's expression darkened. "Was that not a good idea..?"
Zeke's lips thinned. "It worked out in the end. You earned a walk and got on. It's just, Brady has the advantage against righty's."
I nodded. "I could tell. My fouls weren't going where I wanted them to."
Zeke raised an eyebrow. "Not everyone can place their foul balls. Don't get hung up on it. You did well." He left me to exchange his gear.
I went to my bag and did the same before taking the field. I hurried to my position and fielded a few rollers Julian sent my way.
The umpire called for the game to resume and the extra baseballs went back to the dugouts. Golden West sent out their leadoff hitter.
Garret stared him down, looking high and mighty on the mound today. I didn't know all the details on how he performed last time against them, but I heard it was a close one. Hopefully he was still effective against them.
The first batter went down swinging on three straight pitches. The second batter proved to be the real test as Garret struggled to find the zone against him. The reason being...he was left-handed. Garret's cut-fastball wasn't very effective against lefty's and he ended up walking him. So far, Garret was tied with Brady in statistics: one walk, one strikeout.
In the middle of his pitching during the third player's at-bat, the runner on first took off. I froze, not sure what to do, so I could only watch as Alex popped up after making the catch and then throwing to Noah who covered second base. The runner slid into the bag and into Noah.
"Safe!" The umpire declared, drawing some cheers from the locals.
I scratched my cheek, trying to think what I should have done.
"Focus on the batter!" Noah yelled out, throwing the ball back to Garret on the mound. He glanced my way. "One out, one on."
I nodded. More to myself than to him. We were in the middle of a game. I shouldn't get distracted so easily.
Garret turned his back to us, eyes on the batter. He nodded at Alex's sign and threw a cutter inside, getting the batter to swing and miss for strike three. Another strikeout. He was tied with Brady. All he has to do is get the cleanup hitter out like Brady did to Zeke.
Garret did one better. Or maybe it was the batter's fault for not being on the same level as Zeke. Their cleanup hitter didn't even touch Garret's pitching. The placement and speed were perfect, plus an occasional cutter, got the cleanup hitter to strikeout. End of the first inning. 0-0.