April 15th

Tyler MacLean    

           It was a scorching hot day. Not my little brother's favorite type of weather, and I had no choice but to be a tiny bit nervous for him. The warm-up went great and things were looking promising, however Jamie has never before faced competition at quite this level. So there I was sitting out in the right center field bleachers with my hands trembling and butterflies in my stomach. If I felt this bad, I could not come close to imagining his anxiety, but no Jamie was calm and cool. He always was. He automatic flowers made of stone. Whether ten runs ahead or ten runs behind he just throws the ball, without a hint of emotion. Yet it was different this time. A different team, a different place and most certainly a different atmosphere. This had me petrified as the game was about to start.

      Adversity stepped in right away, as the first batter laid a perfect bunt and was followed up by a line drive single. If I was nervous before, I was scared to death now but somehow the big guy pulled it together and retired the next three men to step to the plate. We luckily got out of that one scratch free and even scored two runs for ourselves in the bottom of the first inning. My brother took the field again, I was still trembling, and the base hit from the first batter did not calm my nerves. The next three batters made it obvious that he shared not of the same emotions that I did. Those three men went down hard, one strikeout after the next.

     That was the turning point of my thoughts and feelings. What did I have to fear? Jamie had never let me down before and would never give anything less than his very best. My hands stopped trembling and there was nothing to worry about. Jamie struck out the next ten hitters in a row. Even in the fifth when a hitter laced a triple off the wall, the next batter was easily retired as well as the side.

      With one inning to go, and a six to nothing lead, nobody in the stands or on the field had any fear in their hearts whatsoever. The opposing team was forced into a strikeout, a grounder, and walk and finally a final thirteenth K to win the game. The celebration began, and nobody could have been as happy or more content than I was.

                                                                              Tyler MacLean