Take Me Out To The Ball Game...

Last night was the first regular season game for Mr. A and his team. It was over the river, but not through the woods and Grandmother's house was no where to be seen, but we got there.

The boys were raring to play. They'd practiced, they'd improved and they wanted to show what they were made of. And they did. They looked so wonderful out there...the first three innings, Mr. A was on first base. The pitcher faced a total of 10 batters in those first innings (quite a change from the Early Bird Tourney) and Mr. A was part of all nine of the outs, two of which were very close.

The bats were swinging...and connecting too. Mr. A managed to once again get hit by a pitch. I'm starting to believe that he thinks a game isn't complete without getting to base at least once in that manner.

Starting in the fourth inning, Mr. A was catching. He's a good catcher, with good blocking abilities for those dirt pitches, but he needs to coil that spring a little tighter and jump out of the crouch faster. The new pitcher was wonderful that first inning and with a 3-0 lead, everyone was feeling good.

Unfortunately, the pitcher lost his momentum and control starting in the fifth, and a few early season miscues gave the other team a 4-3 edge. The boys were feeling a little down, but the coaches rallied them, and they came back out with swinging bats at the top of the sixth. We pulled ahead 6-4 and were racing to get the game in before the ump called it off because of the approaching dark.

Whatever edge the boys pulled back out during the top of the sixth they lost again, and the game ended up 7-6. All in all, they did a wonderful job, and I hope they all know that they can be pleased with their performance.

Sadly, the umping wasn't the best. The strike zone was impossible to figure out, and I was sitting directly behind home plate, so I had a very good view of what was being thrown. Then some of the parents got into it with the ump during the sixth, and that was all she wrote. I really believe that some of the calls the ump made that inning were a direct result of the parental shouting. I'd bet you can't figure out exactly which of the parents almost got booted from the fields, can you? Not me! The coaches were told however, to control the other 'rent that the boys can lay claim too, and I kept muttering under my breath for him to SHUT. THE. HELL. UP.

The boys and I discussed such behavior on the way home. I let them know that the irritation and disgust that a parent has is okay, but it is never okay for a parent to directly challenge the officiating. If anyone should be challenging that, it should be the coaches, and while the coach was upset, and did talk to the ump, he didn't make a major stink. I made sure both the boys knew that should either of them display such behavior in front of me, there would be consequences.

It's early in the season though, so hopefully this was just opening jitters...but I'm not holding my breath on that...

Until later...