BASEBALL
I played one season of baseball in high school. It was during my junior year. Every spring, I worked at Kents Farms planting Christmas Trees and every summer I pruned them. But I wanted my junior year to be different and I would have done anything to get out of going to Kents every day after school that spring. Baseball was the perfect excuse!
I had played little league and baseball and neighborhood ball until I moved to Andover. I just didn't have a lot of interest in the game - been there, done that.
My first experience was at Coach Gill's Store where we bought socks and everything for our uniform. I wasn't expecting to buy those things, but I was mowing a dozen yards every weekend so it wasn't a big deal.
My next memory is from the first practice. We had just finished running around the entire field when I decided to get mouthy with Coach Gill. I remember Pete saying "shut up or he'll make us all run another lap". I think that was the only time I questioned Coach's wisdom.
During practice, I was knocking the balls out of the park. That earned me the name "Hondo!" Which I took proudly. Unfortunately, sports are only partially about physical might. There is a great deal of psychology too. Even though I was knocking them out of the park during practice, during games I became psyched by the pitcher and couldn't hit anything. I've heard this can be a common problem. Unfortunately, I didn't realize that was my problem until the season was nearly over otherwise I could have worked on it.
I remember when Pete was upset during a game and pitched with fire. He had a nearly perfect game! I remember when Tank made a diving catch of a foul ball and was knocked out cold. I remember Johnny doing batting practice in the gym and the ball slipped out of his hand, hit the wall, and bounced right back into his hands as if nothing had happened. And I remember learning a lot from Coach Gill. Coach could be tough, but players listened to him and respected him.
A final memory I have involved a terrific catch I made - my best play! Left field was my domain. It was pretty boring. Coach kept a good player in Center Field (I can't remember who was there. Was it Big Guy?) And it was the left and right field's job to back him up. It was very boring. But every time I heard the crack of a bat, my entire body lifted off the field ready to run. This time, it was a long hit down the baseline. I took off sprinting as fast as I could. I reached out with my glove and gave a little dive and snagged the ball out of the air! I made an impossible catch and it was the best play of my short baseball career.
I hope my trip down memory lane brought you memories too - whether it was baseball or softball or some other sport. I played other sports in high school, but I'll never forget the year I played baseball. I am glad I took a season off from work to play. Let this be a reminder to us all: life can't be all work! Take some time and go play!
