The best of the best

Good morning! A bleak day in PA....the game will begin at 1 pm, so I will be glued to the computer monitor. The little screen changes every few minutes with an update. It's the only way to watch the game from the house. Fun, eh?

OK, I received multiple text messages from the bus from one grateful pitcher. He was calm, relaxed, and kind of funny. It's the new Buddy versus the last week Buddy who tore the locker room apart (in a figurative sense).  I understand the blues of not getting what you want...but when you choose to be member of a team, you are bound by their rules. It's more of a dictatorship rather than a democracy. You have no control. The only control that you do have is the ability to work as hard as you can trying to get noticed. That's it folks...the rest is up to the sensibility of the coaches.

 
Now, let's look back at recruiting....the coach never said that he would start or even play. He said that he had a place on the team and would have to earn the right to hold the ball. As he reflected this week on perhaps transferring to another school that had recruited him,  I don't recall the coaches promising a start either.

Another thought is that he wants to start...great BUT not on his terms. My take on it is that he wants to be the best of the best, not best of the worst, which is why he selected the university. To be the best, you have to beat the best out. In other words...by the team losing last week, he has the opportunity to play this week. Is it because he beat them out or because they beat themselves out. Understand? Maybe not.

I was once told by a tennis coach (sorry)...'you are playing not to lose.' Get it? My play was tentative. He was saying that I need to go for it. Be more aggressive...a bit more reckless....This is what one can see now in baseball. If I lose out, I lose to a better pitcher and team. If I win, it's because I worked hard to win....not to not lose.

Anyway, today is the first day of his journey back from surgery and rehab. I will be watching the computer screen with my lucky sneakers on, hoping that he has a chance to prove that his hard work was worth the effort as the ball is handed to him as he pitches to win among the best of the best.....

Happy birthday, Uncle C!