Baseball

Baseball

The pitch of the ball and the swing of the bat that misses. Strike one.

Another pitch, another swing and a miss, strike two.

The batter is in an 0-2 hole, the pitcher is ahead in the count; one more pitch and he’ll retire the batter. The batter yells: “Time Out!” The umpire grants it. The batter steps out of the box, adjusts his gloves and helmet, gives the bat a soft tap against his shoe and is ready to go again.

He knows the stakes: the pitcher is ahead in the count, the game is tied at 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth, nobody on, two out, 0-2 count, these thoughts keep racing through his mind. “Bottom of the ninth, I’m in danger of striking out, nobody on base. If I don’t want to see a tenth inning, I’ve got to do something about it, at the very least start a rally.”

All this he thinks about as the pitcher throws two pitches, both are out of the strike zone for our lucky batter. The count is now even at 2-2, just like the score. The batter’s patience has been rewarded he just has to focus. Another pitch, ball three, full count. The pressure intensifies along with the batter’s focus. He just lives to see one more pitch.

The pitch comes, a fastball registering at 95 miles per hour. The batter is focused and ready to swing. He waits until the ball reaches the plate, he swings, and this time he connects. He watches the ball sail, sail high and far. He knows he’s done it. He’s won the game for his team! He has hit a walk-off home run!

The crack of the bat,

The roar of the mighty crowd,

All part of the game.

The greatest game in the world, America’s Pastime, Baseball.