148 Game: VS Lincoln High School 11 (1/2)

Dave got on the mound. The first one to leadoff for Lincoln, was the left fielder/pitcher/home run hitter. Batter number seven. A fly out to center and then a home run. I turned behind me and watched as the outfielder backed up; obviously wary of this guys hitting power. Dave wasn't scared though, he came with strength and speed from the first pitch.

Batter seven didn't back down either. He missed the first pitch, but was able to foul off the next few. On the sixth pitch, he hit it perfectly. It zoomed off the bat and flew to the outfield. Zeke jumped but wasn't able to come down with it. It continued over the outfield fence. A home run. Again. By the same guy. I watched as he jogged around the bases with a smile on his face. His team and a little of the crowd clapped and cheered, but it didn't have that much of an impact on the scoreboard, 5-2.

I glanced at Noah, unsure if we were going to go to the mound again like we did with Kyle. Noah just shook his head at me, then gave a little point towards the dugout.

I looked to the dugout, trying to figure out what he was trying to convey.

”Hey loser! We're even now!” A shout came from our own dugout. Followed by some laughs. Kyle was leaning against the fence and yelling at Dave. ”At least I lasted more than three innings before giving up a home run.” He antagonized.

Dave rolled his shoulders back and toed the rubber, seemingly not paying his twin any attention. He faced batter eight with the same mentality as the last batter. He started strong and fast, barely taking rest in between pitches. Batter eight was lucky to put one in play down the first baseline. Julian went and got it. I ran over to cover first, but so did Dave. I awkwardly stopped and so did Dave. Julian ended up sprinting back to the base by himself getting the first out of the inning.

He threw the ball back to Dave, who headed back to the mound. Julian then surprised me by jogging over to me. He put his glove up to cover his mouth. ”Why'd you stop?”

I shrugged. ”Dave was going?”

Julian shook his head in dismay. ”Remember the three b's? Ball, base, backup. I had ball. Daniel has third. Noah had second. What does that leave you?”

”First?”

Julian nodded. ”You should have ran over to first no matter what. Either to go to the base itself. Or if I threw to Dave, to back him up in case I threw a bad ball or something. Understand?”

I blushed and nodded. I made another mistake. That's two that I know of. I glanced back at Zeke, wondering if he's counting the laps I'll have to run. He didn't even look my way thankfully.

”You'll definitely get laps.” Julian said nonchalantly. I jumped as he had just read my thoughts; I felt even more embarrassed. ”You're a strange one. Sometimes you're hard to get a read on, but then others you're like an open book.” He cracked a smiled and patted my shoulder. ”Come on, Bambi. Let's finish this game strong.”

I nodded and we went back to our respective positions. Batter nine was someone new who had replaced the left fielder after he moved to the pitching position so I didn't have any guesses as to what he would be like. It didn't matter though, he swung on the first pitch and sent the ball right over Daniel's head. Mahki came in, caught it on a bounce and threw to Noah. I sprinted to the bag to cover in case the guy kept running. Noah turned to throw to me at second, but the runner stayed on first.

He threw the ball to Dave instead. ”Next batter. Don't mind.”

Dave's jaw was clenched and he said nothing. Just gave a light nod and faced the next batter. Batter one has one hit so far this afternoon, but Dave has gotten him to ground out before. Kelvin gave out the signs for the pitch and to watch for a steal.

Dave slowed down. He looked more meticulous in his set up and motion. The batter whiffed the first pitch. Strike. Even his aim looked more accurate. Strike. He got the ball back and slowly got set again. He took a deep breath and let it out over a long period of time. Lifted his glove and pitching hand to his chest. Lifted his left leg, then stepped far forward with it, and his right arm followed the flow of his body. Strike.