Page 17 of Batter Up!

Jude Fox, known for having a great bat but not being the best defensively, said his dream was to go to Disney World. That got a few laughs.

Cooper’s biggest dream was to bang a girl at every ballpark we played at. We all rolled our eyes but laughed along with him. I was definitely rooming with a man-whore and could see myself taking Coach Mack up on using one of his spare rooms from time to time.

Hayden said his biggest dream was to get a Gold Glove, and there were a lot of nods in agreement. He said he prided himself on making quick plays at first base, and he had a lot of flexibility. I definitely respected that.

When it came to Ivan’s turn, the bullpen coach, Benito Hernandez, offered to translate for him. Ivan said his dream was to bring his wife and child to America to watch him play and for them to be proud of him. It didn’t matter if it was single A or in the majors.

After Ivan, it was my turn to introduce myself. I said the first thing that came to my mind, “I’m Tyler Stone from near Nashville. I’m a catcher, and my biggest dream is to throw out my brother when he tries to steal on me.” Of course, the guys wanted to know my brother’s name. I hated feeling like I was name dropping, but I was proud of Landon. He had been Rookie of the Year his first year, and this past year, he had received a Silver Slugger award. When I told them his name, a few of the guys murmured that we did look a lot alike.

“So, gentlemen,” Coach Mack continued after we had all taken our turns. “I am really excited about this team! We have something none of the other teams have. We’re starting from the beginning with a clean slate and have no wins or losses as a team.” A cheer erupted around us at that, and our manager gave a bright smile that showed he liked our enthusiasm. “We also have something none of the other minor league teams have, something I asked the scouts to look for specifically.” We all looked around at each other, wondering what he had asked the scouts to look for. “We have three switch hitters in our starting line up. I’m a switch hitter myself, and that was important to me.” I felt my chest swell with pride because I knew I was one of the switch hitters he had mentioned. “Anderson, Stone, and Walker will be big assets to our team.”

“You didn’t tell us you were an ambi!” Cooper whispered to me.

I just shrugged like it didn’t matter, but I knew switch hitters were a big deal. It also meant double the work.

“I wish I was ambidextrous,” Hayden said from my other side. “My high school coach tried to get me to hit as a lefty, but it was bad. I couldn’t even hit it off a tee.”

Coach McAlister quieted us all down, and I could tell he was about to get serious. “I’m really excited to see what talents every guy on the team has for us to put together. I’m going to have two practice schedules for the next few weeks until the start of the season. There will be a 6:30 a.m. practice for the players who feel they need to improve some aspect of their game. We will have fielding, batting, and specialty practice. We’ll be watching lots of film and scrimmaging.” Coach Mack paused for a second as a lot of murmuring was going on around the room. I had no doubts that my roommates and I would be at the early practices. Even if Cooper Dixon wanted to sleep in, we wouldn’t let him.

“There will also be a 1 p.m. practice for everyone. At that time, we will concentrate on the positions you want to play and find out what skills you are best at.” A few of the guys looked at each other and gave each other knuckle bumps and chin nods and mouthed ‘1 p.m.’ Coach Mack studied all our reactions and made some notes on his tablet. “By the way, I hope to see you all at 6:30 if you want to remain on my team. There are a lot of young men who would love to be in your position.”

I had to smile because I was really starting to like and respect our head coach.

After practice, I was exhausted but loved the feel of my sore muscles, and I was feeling really good about this team and the coaching staff. I lay in my bed, and for the first time that day, I thought of her. I resisted taking out her note and reading it again. Cooper was right. I was acting like a chick, but I really felt something for her, and I didn’t even know her name.

My phone rang on my nightstand, and I answered with a grin on my face, “Hey, Cart!”

“T! How is my favorite baseball player? Is life everything you dreamed?”

I laughed. “Well, we have a cooler instead of a fridge, we have an ironing board for a kitchen table, we have to wash dishes in the bathroom sink, and I’ll make about $500 a month after room and board and everything is taken out. But my roommates are cool, even if one doesn’t speak English.”

“Damn, bro. That’s rough, but you’ve got this.”

“Oh, and I think I’m really going to like the head coach.”

“Manager, Tyler. Landon always said you call the head coach the manager in the pros.”

“Whatever,” I said with a shake of my head. “Anyway, Coach Mack is awesome. He reminds me a lot of our high school head coach, Coach Hudson.”

Cooper groaned, just like I knew he would. “Hudson was a workhorse and expected way too much from teenage boys. He was one of the reasons I knew I’d never want to go pro.”

I had to laugh. “And he’s the main reason Landon and I both decided to go pro.”

“Yeah, yeah,” my brother said. “Coach Hudson loved you both.”

“One of my roommates, Cooper, is a lot like you. You two would get along really well.”

“Alec and I were talking about coming up for opening weekend to visit and watch you play. Maybe I'll meet him then.”

“Fuck, yeah, you better!” I said. “You’ll have to get a hotel room, though, because we have no space here, but I would love that. I’m guessing there's no chance of Mom and Dad coming with you?”

“Mom wants to but doesn’t want to make Dad upset. He’s still angry.”

I groaned out loud. “Sorry if he’s taking it out on you at all.”

Carter actually laughed. “He loves me, bro. I’m the good son.”

I shook my head, even though he couldn’t see me. “I still don’t understand how you can like working there.”

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