The Hitting Zone

The celebration took even longer to break up this time around. Two perfect games from two different pitchers in a span of not even two weeks. We were riding high, bouncing around, grinning like a bunch of idiots.

"Heck!" Kyle exclaimed, pulling Noah into a headlock. "You've got to catch for me too now!"

"No way!" Noah shoved him away. "You guys can't trap me there. Try to think of how Mitch would feel."

"Yea, how is Mitchell?" Kyle stopped messing around and went to look for his catcher.

He wasn't the only twin to disappear. Dave, the star of the game, the MVP, was off to the side, talking to Oscar. The freshman backup.

"Come on. Let's go." Noah spotted them two as well.

I physically cringed, not really wanting to know how awkward that conversation must be between the two. It should have been Oscar to go in after Mitchell got hit by that pitch, but Dave made the decision to go with his brother. It can't be a good feeling.

"I just wanted you to know that I didn't think poorly of you as a catcher." We heard Dave saying. "I was just in this groove and I needed a catcher to match my energy."

"You don't think I would have matched your energy?" Oscar sounded confused.

"It's about the connection." Dave said, moving his hands around. "You're a great player behind the plate. Good skills like placement and all that. But you're still new to when calling games. I knew if Coach put you in for Mitchell, the pace would get messed up. I would either have to shake you off the whole time or you would have to look to Coach in the dugout to make pitch selections like last time."

Oscar didn't look offended. He looked thoughtful. His eyes shifted as he saw Noah and me approaching. Dave noticed him looking and looked too.

Dave reached out and pulled Noah closer. "I've been pitching to Noah for years. He just knows what I want and what I can do. Heck, most of the time we wouldn't even need signs."

Oscar slowly nodded. "I understand. It's nothing personal. You just wanted what's best for you."

Noah laughed. "It's personal. You can say it. He's selfish."

Dave shrugged helplessly. "I am. A little bit. I just knew what I wanted. And I had to see it through. Everyone knows I haven't been having an easy time on the mound this season." He looked at Oscar. "I know how it feels to lose your chance at playing in a game and I wanted to apologize."

"I'm not mad." Oscar looked at Dave directly. "A little disappointed, but I entered this season knowing I wasn't going to get a lot of playing time. I'm a freshman at the highest level. I'm using this year to learn and get better. Maybe challenge Mitchell for his starting spot next year. Definitely be a starter by my junior year. I'm more interested in knowing how to get connected with pitchers when I can't get game experience." He laid out what he saw for himself in the future and what he wanted. I was impressed with his calm demeanor and how steady he was talking to a senior pitcher like Dave.

Dave took off his hat and scratched his head. "Well. I don't know. It's not just game experience that matters to a battery. It's practice too. Mitchell and I paired up a lot over the summer especially. Like don't you pair up with Robbie a lot? You know what he likes to do and what he's good at."

"Yes, I do know the rhythm that Robbie likes to follow." He said.

Coach chose that moment to come by and gesture for us to get back to the dugout. "Time to cleanup and let us take care of the field."

"Will Oscar be the catcher for Saturday?" Noah suddenly asked him.

Coach stopped to look at our small group. He frowned. "Why? Are you thinking I'll make you catch again?"

Noah grinned. "Come on, Coach. We're just talking. Dave didn't want him to feel bad."

"I know what Dave was thinking asking you to be his catcher. Trust me, as soon as he gave up a hit or walk, we would have switched you out immediately." He looked at Oscar. "Without a doubt, you'll be the starter on Saturday." He frowned. "As soon as we know the extent of Mitchell's injury, we'll think about next week." He started to look around. "That kid better not be messing around at a time like this." He left us, probably going to look for Mitchell and ask why he wasn't heading to the hospital yet.

"He didn't say whether I'll be making the pitch selection." Oscar watched Coach's back with intensity.

"Ask him tomorrow at practice." Noah shrugged.

"I think it'll depend on who's on the mound." Dave commented. "Not too many guys will trust a freshman with the pitch selection. It's different when it's coming from Coach."

We walked back to the dugout and joined the others in cleaning and packing up. Mitchell was sent out by Coach as he listed instructions to get checked by a doctor. X-rays would be needed if he wanted to practice.

Coach addressed the team afterwards, just before we left for the night. "Good game, boys. Excellent composure by Dave on the mound with solid fielding behind him. I would like to see more hits on Saturday so tomorrow will be a batting practice kind of day."

"Who gets to pitch Saturday?" Kyle asked. His face was practically begging 'pick me, pick me'.

"I'm giving the ball to Robbie to start with." Coach announced. "It's no secret that Mitchell will rest Saturday even if nothing is broken. And if it's worst case scenario, we might be seeing more of Oscar behind the plate. He and Robbie have worked together before and I especially liked them when they faced Jake last year."

"Does that mean I'll be doing the pitch selection?" Oscar took the chance to ask, speaking up in front of the team for the first time.

Coach nodded. "Absolutely. If the offense cooperates and we get a bigger lead, I would like to see you pairing up with quite a few pitchers in a live situation." He squinted. "If I don't like what I see, we'll change it up. That goes for everyone."

Noah rubbed his nose and whispered to me. "I have a feeling he's talking to me."

I raised an eyebrow.

"I think I'm the third string catcher now."

My lips twitched. "He can pull someone up from JV."

"Booo. No way." Noah didn't like that idea. "The lower levels are on a struggle bus. Our team, our roster, is perfect right now. We can't be messing it up."

I shrugged. Coach never kept things exactly like it was. He likes to experiment and isn't afraid of change. Especially when it comes to winning.

Coach dismissed us and set us free. Out by the bleachers, a lot of the students had gone home already, leaving the adults. Parents and...scouts. And reporters.

Mr. Cameron was easy to spot as he beelined for us as soon as we walked off the field. "Dave, awesome game! And Noah, I didn't know you could catch! Really unexpected."

"Is it?" Noah deadpanned. "I have two older brothers that pitch. Who would believe that I didn't know how to catch?"

Mr. Cameron was stunned by the attitude.

"Don't worry about him." Dave laughed. "He clearly doesn't like doing it. But I appreciate him stepping up when our regular catcher got hit by that pitch."

"Yea. That's tough." Mr. Cameron said. "Do you guys know if he's okay? What will be the plan for the rest of the season if he's hurt?" He eyed Noah in particular.

Noah sighed. "I'm not going to become a catcher if that's what you're wondering. We have a reliable backup who will definitely be behind the plate on Saturday. For now, we're waiting to hear back from Mitchell. He went for x-rays, I guess."

Mr. Cameron noted it down. Then looked at Noah. "I also noted that you were able to continue your hit streak. Your batting average has impressed quite a few people. Especially when they look at your stolen bases."

Noah perked up, excited about this kind of thing. "Yea, I'm quite happy about it too. Getting on is important for the team, but being able to get those extra bases really make me feel like I'm contributing."

Mr. Cameron asked him a little more about his at bats. Then talked to Dave about his pitching. He saved me for last, asking how I felt about our league record as we were more than halfway through the regular season. "Your last game of the season is less than a month away now. Any thoughts?"

I pursed my lips and thought about it. Noah and the twins would probably say something like 'we'll win it all' but that's not really me. Even Zeke would say something like that, but he would also- I looked at Mr. Cameron. "We'll win one game at a time. We don't take any game easily."

He nodded. "You guys do have the best record with Servite just behind you with their one loss. I believe it'll be a deciding factor for the season when you guys play them the second time around. You'll have the advantage of being the home team too."

"That's not an advantage for Jake." Noah laughed. "He's more scared of people cheering for him than against."

Mr. Cameron laughed along, knowing me and my personality. He didn't make a big deal about it and just asked more questions about the next few games before saying goodbye and that he'll see us Saturday.

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