Hallelujah Hatrack

The Bear had a baseball game on Saturday, and since Connecticut over the past few weeks resembles the book of Genesis during Noah’s time the infield was unplayable, unless we wanted to outfit a bunch of 6 year olds with hip waders, and at that point a quick trip to the outdoor section of Dick’s Sporting Goods was out of the question (although, now that I think of it I am running low on boot warmers and wolf piss…).

Anyway, we decided that since the outfield was actually not underwater we’d play out there and let the little boys and girls take aim at the center field fence.  The kids thought with was a great idea and we were off and running.

During the first inning they hit a couple of nice shots (including The Bear almost taking the third baseman’s head off with a wicked line drive) but no homers.  The second inning produced more of the same, as did the third.  We normally play three innings, but since the game had gone quickly and the butterfly chasing and dandelion picking was being kept to a minimum (I suppose due to the lack of supply caused by the recent overwhelming precipitation) we decided to play a fourth inning.  We also decided to move home plate about 10 feet closer to the fence.

Our first batter got to first base on a dribbler that the shortstop couldn’t handle due to having his finger up his nose.  Our second batter roped one to center – two men on.  The third hitter caught the second baseman napping – literally.  Bases loaded.  Our cleanup hitter then proceeded to jack one over the fence – Grand Slam!!!  Our runners circled the bases and the rest of the Astros greeted them at home plate where high fives were abundant (we tend to discourage pats on the ass because a) this is a co-ed league, and b) we don’t want any of the coaches show up unexpectedly on Dateline NBC).  Our next batter, who is almost as big as me despite being in kindergarten, followed up with a solo shot.

The other team, the Yankees, also had a batter (coincidentally, named after Mickey Mantle) who went deep with a jack even farther than the other two.  His dad is a buddy of mine so this was extra special for me.

Now, I coach because I love the game (and I can’t stand to see it played incorrectly, so I make sure the kids know how to play) and because I love the kids, but Saturday was especially fantastic.  To see the looks on the faces of the kids who hit home runs, as well as the looks on their team mates’ and parents’ faces, was worth a million dollars.  A lot of people ask me why I invest so much of my time with kids (baseball, soccer, Sunday school, etc.- about 12 to 20 hours each week) and it’s days like that that are my answer.  I can live off of that experience for a good couple of months.