"Knuckleball?" I repeated after him. I vaguely knew of the pitch from all the games Noah made me watch. But it didn't come up often.
"Minimal spin and erratic movements." Coach told me. He patted my shoulder. "Don't think too much about it. Not very many people can throw a knuckler, and only 10% can throw it like Robbie just did. I'm surprised too. Knuckleballs are hard to control, but it looks like Robbie and Oscar had worked something out to make it effective."
I hugged my bat to my chest. How can I not think about it? If Oscar had caught my foul tip, it would have been a strikeout.
"Hey, hey, I said don't think about it." Coach held my shoulder and gave it a small shake. "That was a one-time thing. Really. Robbie probably won't be able to corner you on two strikes again. If he doesn't do that, then his knuckleball is useless."
I frowned. "Can't he just throw the knuckleball all the time?" I thought it was a pretty good pitch. It fooled me twice.
He shook his head. "Its movement is unpredictable. Even to the pitcher and catcher. Knowing that, you could either attack his other pitches early on. Or if he goes with just the knuckleball, then you could estimate which might fall out of the zone for a ball." He gave my shoulder another squeeze. "There's a reason it's not a popular pitch."
Oh. I sighed with relief.
We went back to home plate. I stepped into the batter's box while Coach got behind the catcher. We started move through the list of pitchers again. I cruised through, hitting the first pitch into fair territory every chance I got.
At the end, Mitchell and Garret were waiting for me.
Coach and I stepped back to let them warmup together.
"I'll be completely fair this time." Coach told me in a low voice. "Borderline pitches will have to be dependent on Mitchell's placement. I don't want to give either of you an advantage over the other."
"You don't think I'll be able to hit the first pitch?" I asked with a small smile.
Coach chuckled. "Why do you have confidence against Garret, but not against Robbie? I feel like it's pretty clear who the better pitcher is."
I scratched my cheek. "I wouldn't say it's confidence. More like, I'm comfortable? I know Garret. He's good. If he beats me, I won't feel bad about it."
"You should never feel bad about striking out. Or getting out." Coach told me seriously. "It happens. No one is perfect. Not you. Not Zeke. Not even your brother, who is bound to be MVP of the American League."
He says that...but if someone strikes me out, they get to make the varsity team. Won't that mean one of my friends will lose their spot? There were a few seniors that graduated, but I don't want to be the reason someone doesn't make it.
"Swing freely." Coach told me.
I nodded slowly. I planned to anyways. It's just Garret. Even if he strikes me out, he deserves to be on varsity. Plus, the record is in my favor.
Mitchell nodded at me as I got in the lefty's box. "Lefty, huh? You know it's more advantageous for the pitcher to face the same sided batter, right?"
I paused. "I...didn't." After all, I found it easier to face Garret's cutter from this side of the plate.
Mitchell shrugged. "It's whatever you're comfortable with."
I glanced back at Coach.
Coach grinned, yet didn't say anything.
I couldn't tell if Mitchell was being serious or if he was trying to psych me out. Maybe a little bit of both? I'll have to ask Noah later.
Garret got set and started his motion. His first pitch was a fastball, high and inside. I leaned back.
"Ball." Coach stated.
"Tsk." Mitchell threw the ball back to Garret and got set once more.
Garret nodded at the sign and straightened up. He started his motion and threw another fastball at tremendous speed. Low and away. I gritted my teeth and took a swing at it, catching the ball at the end of my bat. It was a line drive...just foul of the third baseline.
I stepped out of the box to take a practice swing. Garret's speed surpassed all the others. It was hard to adjust after seeing so many mediocre pitchers. I stepped back into the lefty's box after Garret got a new baseball.
1-1. Garret nodded at Mitchell and got set again. He did his motion and the ball was coming to us quick. I had long started my swing beforehand, knowing I would need that extra millisecond to keep up with Garret. The pitch was low and away again. The only difference was that it was the cutter and it was dropping off. Unable to pull my bat back and let it pass for a ball, I reached out and fouled the pitch off for strike number two.
1-2. Garret had the biggest grin as he stood on the mound, looking down at me. Mitchell got him a new baseball and squatted down behind home plate again. Garret nodded once, straightened up and waited for me to get set.
I took an extra second outside the batter's box. I know I said I'd be okay if Garret struck me out, however I still wanted to win. I want to be like Zeke, a pillar for this team's offense. Especially since I know I can't emulate him on the field.
Now...what would Garret do? Normally, I would guess another cutter. Or something that's also low. Shouldn't he have learned a new pitch? What would it be? I bit my lip. I have a guess.
I know of another left-handed pitcher that learned a new pitch over the summer.
I walked around Mitchell and Coach in order to stand in the righty's box.
"A bit late." Mitchell remarked.
I relaxed my shoulders, trying to ignore him. He was trying to get inside my head. Maybe I was a little late, but I have experience.
I was set and Garret started his motion. His throw was similar to a cutter. I started my swing, prepared for something low and inside. The ball took an even bigger break. I opened up my stance and sliced the ball to right field. I knew it! I grinned at Garret as he looked to the ball in right field.
"Wow." Mitchell stood beside me. "I can't believe you were able to hit that. And to even send it to right field."
I smiled at him. "I've seen a slider before. From another lefty. He's even better."
"Really?" Mitchell was surprised.
I nodded. "Zeke has a friend named Rhys. He's going to Stanford too." I lowered my voice. "He also throws faster than Garret. His slider is much better too, but don't tell Garret. His is good too."
I can just imagine how much he'll dominate between his speed, cutter, and now a slider. The twins would have to learn a good breaking ball to ever catch up with him.
Garret came off the mound with a heavy sigh. "Why couldn't you just stay in the lefty's box? I would have had ya chasing that slider."
I grinned, happy with my performance at the end. I'll have to text Rhys to thank him.