Happy Days

Well, last night Dee's team completed their sweep of their league's first round. At 10-0 they've been a mighty impressive bunch of nine and ten year olds. So now, if they win the second round, they are league champions. If someone else wins, they play that team for the championship. Should be innaresting.

Last night, before their final game, the coach went all inspirational on them. He told them that the championship was theirs to win, that they needed to go back to basics, oh, and that they needed to pound the other team early and not to let up at any time. Then they did an hour of batting and fielding practice and marched to the game field as a team. In other words, the game was over before it started.

Dee himself, after his three game hitting streak, has been having some difficulties at the plate as of late. A trip this weekend to the batting cages didn't even snap his mini-slump. But that's okay. Having seen most of the other teams, I realize that he could be starting in the infield for several of them, but as a reserve on his team he's probably picking up as many skills as he would with more playing time and less quality coaching (not that all the coaches aren't great and all). And it's also okay because he's loving the glory of being on a top team. And, yes, I know to you "North of Route 9'ers" winning isn't everything; but to a nine-year-old obsessed with baseball playing in a town and in a league that has a long, glorious baseball history it sure goes a long way.