N started off the game catching, and his best buddy was pitching. I must say, without any bias whatsoever, they are quite the duo. N has really stepped up to the plate (man, I'm on a roll) and embraced the role of catcher. He loves it, and he's pretty dang good at it. Although he had some issues when he first tried it out with hustling, he's adapted really well. That boy can rip his helmet off and go for the ball with the best of them! Napoli, watch out!
Although the other team scored a couple of runs, our boys held them to two and then came back and scored four in the bottom of the first inning. All of our boys were making some pretty awesome plays today. BOTH of N's best buddies hit homers in the game! He was so excited for both of them, and all of us parents were screaming like crazy!
N played first base, pitched for 1 1/2 innings, played second, and then caught again to close out the game. Our guys had a few listening issues, which allowed the Rangers to score 5 runs in one inning and take control of the game. Coach had warned us at the beginning of the season that he rarely gets mad, but when he does, he goes big. When our boys (and I'm pretty sure it was unintentional; they were just really wound up) ignored his command and allowed 5 runs in one inning, he (literally, not metaphorically) kicked the bucket he had been sitting on, and called for a huddle. The parents kind of laughed nervously, but once again quickly realized how blessed we are to have this man as our coach. He didn't yell, but instead called them all over and explained that he was the coach for a reason, and that the boys needed to listen to him...even if he ended up being wrong.
The boys answered with a 5 run inning of their own, and it was intense. The whole game was one of those "on the edge of your seat" ballgames, with lots of screaming and cheering from the parents and a ton of excellent plays by our boys. They really stepped it up for the last game, and man! What a way to end the season: Rangers 8 - Marlins 9. Overall, they went 5-3, which was pretty good, considering we only had 9 players when we were a full team, and had several games where we were down a player or two.
As soon as the game was over, N came up to me and said "How was my report card? Which piece of gear do I get first?" His dad and I made him a deal: good report cards = catcher's gear, piece by piece. If he's serious about playing catcher, and wants to make that commitment, I'm all for it. I think he'll be a really good one; he's already really alert when he's behind the plate, and he's done really well at all of the positions he's played. Yeah, I know...spoken like a true mom.
It figures, on the last game of the season, I got caught up in the fact that I KNEW N was getting mad at himself for how he was pitching... After he'd walked 2 players, I said (before I even realized it) "It's okay, Honey...um, I mean...boy?" Whoops! He heard it too, and I got a nice glare from the pitcher's mound, but it turns out he was more irritated with B talking to him while he was getting ready to warm up behind the plate, than with my little mistake.
I'm really sad the season is over; we've made some pretty great friends and I hope we'll still hang out. I'm still crossing my fingers that we end up on the same basketball team this winter, but the chances of us being on the same team in the spring is pretty slim. N's the oldest of the group; he's already 10, so I'm guessing he'll get bumped up to the next age group. I'm also concerned (mom mode) that we got ridiculously spoiled with our coach this season. Most of the other coaches seem to be pretty vocal, and with N's tendency to be hard on himself, I worry. I know, I know. I'll stop now.
All the boys will be together again on Tuesday for our team party. I'm trying to come up with a cute idea for the boys...Any ideas?
Aubs
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