The scoreboard lied last night
I have been known to do some smack talk from time to time and always in a light-hearted way as I am not all that competitive. When my boys are the victims of a legitimate diatribe, and if they actually won the game that is the subject of the smacking, I always tell them to just say "Scoreboard." The scoreboard doesn't lie. Well, it isn't supposed to. But it did last night at my son's baseball game.
We were playing a beatable team and the score was tied going into the 5th inning out of 6. We were the home team and when we took the field for the top of the 5th I winced a bit when I heard this boy was going to be taking the mound. Our pitching was a bit shaky but I knew that we would be in further trouble when he was going to be pitching. He hadn't pitched all year and when I think of the boys that I would want to see on the mound at this stage in the game his name is not on the list. It is not even last on the list. I knew that this would result in a loss for our team.
Boy was I wrong. Boy howdy did I go to the woodshed last night and get given a "what for".
Well, the other team scored the maximum 5 runs the inning that the boy pitched giving them an 8-3 lead. We scored a run at the bottom of the 5th to bring it to 8-4 and we held them scoreless in the top of the sixth. In the bottom of the 6th one of our guys decided to uncork a three-run home run and we lost the game 8-7. We were in it to the end and the other team had every reason to tell us "Scoreboard." They won fairly and honorably. But the scoreboard lied.
Boy did it lie. Boy howdy did it tell a different story than the one I saw; the one we saw.
I saw a trio of coaches that could not have cared less about the score and put their faith in a boy that we all love and that wanted to pitch. I saw a boy give it his all, all alone, with plenty of support mind you, but all alone as he worked on his form with the score tied in a late inning. This was no blow out...the game was on the line and there he was dirtying his feet with the dust on the mound.
I saw a coach move in and encourage him when the bases were loaded and enough walks were given to score a couple of runs. I saw batters swing and miss as the utter concentration that pitcher gave to the task at hand yielded more than a few strikes. I saw a team cheer him on seemingly casting the 5-run inning to the wind and placing all their trust in their bats. I saw a last inning rally that shook the other team. I saw my son drill two balls and get totally robbed on his potential second hit of the ball game in 2 at bats. I saw the boys messing with each other after the game and racing each other to the fence in stockinged feet.
Scoreboard? You can say that, but there was much meaning beyond that score that was not reflected in the final tally. I saw so much more and left there knowing that the men that handle my son week in and week out are so much more than I am.
Boy are they. Boy howdy are they.
We were playing a beatable team and the score was tied going into the 5th inning out of 6. We were the home team and when we took the field for the top of the 5th I winced a bit when I heard this boy was going to be taking the mound. Our pitching was a bit shaky but I knew that we would be in further trouble when he was going to be pitching. He hadn't pitched all year and when I think of the boys that I would want to see on the mound at this stage in the game his name is not on the list. It is not even last on the list. I knew that this would result in a loss for our team.
Boy was I wrong. Boy howdy did I go to the woodshed last night and get given a "what for".
Well, the other team scored the maximum 5 runs the inning that the boy pitched giving them an 8-3 lead. We scored a run at the bottom of the 5th to bring it to 8-4 and we held them scoreless in the top of the sixth. In the bottom of the 6th one of our guys decided to uncork a three-run home run and we lost the game 8-7. We were in it to the end and the other team had every reason to tell us "Scoreboard." They won fairly and honorably. But the scoreboard lied.
Boy did it lie. Boy howdy did it tell a different story than the one I saw; the one we saw.
I saw a trio of coaches that could not have cared less about the score and put their faith in a boy that we all love and that wanted to pitch. I saw a boy give it his all, all alone, with plenty of support mind you, but all alone as he worked on his form with the score tied in a late inning. This was no blow out...the game was on the line and there he was dirtying his feet with the dust on the mound.
I saw a coach move in and encourage him when the bases were loaded and enough walks were given to score a couple of runs. I saw batters swing and miss as the utter concentration that pitcher gave to the task at hand yielded more than a few strikes. I saw a team cheer him on seemingly casting the 5-run inning to the wind and placing all their trust in their bats. I saw a last inning rally that shook the other team. I saw my son drill two balls and get totally robbed on his potential second hit of the ball game in 2 at bats. I saw the boys messing with each other after the game and racing each other to the fence in stockinged feet.
Scoreboard? You can say that, but there was much meaning beyond that score that was not reflected in the final tally. I saw so much more and left there knowing that the men that handle my son week in and week out are so much more than I am.
Boy are they. Boy howdy are they.
I am so happy to hear that Drew is coached by capable and strong men. I am even more glad that he has a capable and strong father who can see past the "scoreboard" to the victories that matter most.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Steve. Yes, Drew's coaches were excellent this year and we were thrilled that through it all the team won the championship. These moments make the winning so much more meaningful!
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