The Stud

Vince steps to the plate in the bottom of the 7th, and final, inning.  His team is down by several runs, but they still have the horsepower to mount a valiant comeback.

The first pitch is delivered.  It is a high, arcing pitch…but it bounces short of the plate.  Ball one.

The second pitch is delivered.  It looks like a beauty, and Vince thinks likewise.  He rears back, tensing each muscle in his body, his hands tightening appropriately around the bat. 

Vince swings, and the sound of metal against a solid polyurethane core, leather cover, and
stitched nylon thread ball makes a tremendous sound.

The left fielder drifts back, but he is unable to circle himself under Vince’s towering shot.  The ball drops well over his head and rolls to the fence.

Vince rounds first and looks primed to walk into second with a standup double.  But, no!  Just before reaching second base, Vince, digs deep and heads for third.  The throw comes in from left field and is caught by the shortstop.  Out of seemingly nowhere, the shortstop guns the ball to the third baseman.  Perfect throw, perfect catch, perfect tag.  Vince is out by five steps.

Vince walks back to the dugout, jawing with the pitcher on his way.  What they are saying, we may never know.  Perhaps Vince is thanking the pitcher for serving up such a marinara dripping meatball.  Perhaps the pitcher is thanking Vince for making such a foolish base running decision with no outs, as one of the next batters surely would have produced a hit to drive Vince home.

As Vince nears the dugout, one of Vince’s teammates turns to me and says, “Vince is 80 years old.”

Despite getting thrown out by several steps, those words, “Vince is 80 years old,” have a lasting impact on me.  Had I been batting in Vince’s place, I likely would have popped up to short left centerfield or grounded out to the short stop.  Even if my 39 year old body had generated a hit, my weak Achilles’ tendon likely would have limited me to a single, and I would have pleaded for a pinch runner.

As I think back on Vince’s performance, I reach one conclusion and one conclusion only:  Vince is a stud.