All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go

So this week I have felt like the girl who was left at home when everyone else went to the party. The stomach flu put me on the disabled list for Tuesday’s game at Coastal (which has always been one of my favorite games of the season). I couldn’t believe I was going to have to miss this one. I mean really, the Chanticleers were ranked 4th in the nation (what is a chanticleer anyway-some kind of chicken) and we ALWAYS rally up for the competition. It was being held at the minor league stadium in Myrtle Beach and the best I could do was feel sorry for myself and wave goodbye to Ted as he pulled out for the game. He’s a great guy and everything but even he wouldn’t miss this game to sit home with the sick wife. He made sure I had some ginger ale and then booked it down Highway 17. I proceeded to mope around until the game came on the radio. Let me say I have new found respect for the folks who have to stay home and listen to the games on the radio. I’m pretty sure if I had had to watch the bobble dolls roll around the bases I might have thrown my laptop out the window so at least I had the benefit of live audio. That said, I found it very annoying and SORELY missed Tony Ciuffo. I mean he was the best with the color commentating and statistical analysis and I’m not gonna lie he gave me a personal shout out a time or two which was awesome. I wish I could tell you my perspective of the game from the stands but I guess you’ll have to read the box scores. I can tell you we beat those chickens again and it was a beautiful thing even from where I was sitting.

Wish I could say the same for the game against Wilmington. I was home again, the commentating was much better (I listened to the broadcast from UNCW) but we gave it away in the bottom of the ninth.

I do want to give a shout out to a couple of players who seem to be peaking at exactly the right time. Jamie Holler’s bat is coming to life and has had hits at critical points in the last couple of games and Dre Watts seems to be the man of all positions right now. One game you see him at the plate and the next on the mound and he’s doing a good job at both.

Next week I intend to ATTEND the games but in the meantime here are my top ten benefits for listening to the game from the comfort of your home:

10. Food is free.

9. You don’t have to sit next to any hecklers.

8. You don’t have to ride for hours in the car.

7. You can wear your pajamas.

6. You can curse at the radio and no one will think less of you.

5. You can watch the USC vs. FL game at the same time on TV.

4. You can text endlessly with Allisyn Miller for another perspective.

3. You can go straight to bed when the game is over if you want to.

2. You won’t get sunburned.

AND the #1 benefit to watching the game from home when you have the stomach flu is………………………………………….drum roll please………………………………

1. The bathroom is just down the hall.

Southern Conference play starts next week at Joe Riley Stadium.

See you at the field.

The Cycle of Life

I don’t think Cole will ever really understand or appreciate the value of being surrounded by his family until long after his college baseball career has ended but I can certainly tell you that I realize the value and was so happy this weekend when so many of our family members came to Boone and got to witness a great CofC performance. They drove from D.C., Chattanooga and Charleston and it’s hard to describe how proud I was that Cole had a good, no great, weekend and they got to witness it. Someday he will get what that means, maybe he gets it now, I don’t know but I sure do love that our family is so supportive. I hope this ride goes all the way to Omaha because I’m pretty sure there will be a lot of people there supporting #12 and the ALL the rest of the Cougars.

I understood what ‘hitting for the cycle’ was before this weekend but I don’t think I really got how difficult that was until the whispers started in the stands that Cole just needed a homerun left to hit for the cycle this weekend. I thought to myself “just a homerun” oh no problem, I mean really?? I hate to admit I didn’t think that was going to happen. Then he stepped up to the plate and I told my sister in law who was sitting next to me that this was going to be the one. I know, it sounds a little corny but I swear I get “the feeling” and it happens. I’ve gotten it before and told the person sitting next to me (and it’s not just for Cole). I’m not ready to sign up for the psychic channel just yet but I swear I do get ‘the feeling’.

There were so many great performances this weekend that I know I can’t note all of them but these were my highlights. David Peterson, I mean really, how do you get hit three times with the ball and stay on the mound and continue to pitch a great game. What a competitor that kid is! Jose continues to knock the cover off the ball, two homeruns in one game. (I wish he had hit those against UNC on Wednesday and shut those nasty hecklers up who were sitting next to me). We turned several double plays this weekend at the hands of Jamie Holler, Joey Bergman and Greg Blake. All three of those guys played tremendous defense. It was like watching a well orchestrated dance sometimes they were so in sync. And I have to give a shout out to Coach Lee for defending our team against our rude opponent at one point. I have just enough red neck in me to appreciate the puffed up chest and verbal challenge when it’s for the right reason.

I am starting to get this nagging feeling in the back of my mind and, ok, in my heart too about the end of the season. People keep talking about needing to get the 40th win and how many more opportunities we have to accomplish it and every time I think oh no, the season is almost over. This has truly been a great year for our “fan family”. We have made some wonderful friends and as much as I’d like to believe we will stay in touch I know I’ve been down this road before and rarely talk to folks that I spent years with in hotels and at baseball fields. So, I hope we make this season last as long as possible and maybe, just maybe, all my family can come to Omaha.

Mothers, Wins and Autographs

There really is a part of me that wants to be everyone’s mom. Ask the people I work with, they’ll tell you I mother them when they are hurting, I mother them when I think they are misbehaving and then I let them know that someone loves them when they are in need, the most important mothering skill of all. This weekend when the moms were told we were going out on the field with our sons I didn’t immediately think, ‘this is going to be awesome for me’. Instead, I thought this is going to be very tough for some of these guys and I can only imagine how their moms will feel when they hear about it. Don’t get me wrong I still think it was a great idea and I truly felt honored by it. I just wanted every boy to have a mama there on Sunday. I knew this was a great chance for Cole to honor his grandmothers and it meant so much to them to be able to stand down there and be so proud of ‘their boy’. I adopted Greg Blake and Ryan Daniels for the day since their moms couldn’t be here but when I turned back after the anthem and saw all the boys sitting in the dugout I just wanted to run over there and wrap my arms around each of them and just be their mom for that one brief moment. I know there was no doubt their moms love them and wish they could be here, I just didn’t want them to sit alone. I know, I know, we moms worry about this kind of stuff way more than our boys do, but let the record show if you ever need a surrogate mom I’m your gal.

So we moved right from the emotional feeling of wanting to be the “all mom” to watching the mom with it ‘all’ on her plate. There they were, The Shieder Family walking slowly out to the mound as fast as little Mack’s legs could carry him, he got his baseball and let it rip (okay it kind of dribbled out of his hand) but he knew what he was doing. He was throwing out the first pitch-really did it matter how far it went-there wasn’t a batter yet. He scooped it up and did it again. I took a quick look around because I didn’t have my BIG sunglasses on and I was at risk of major rivers running down my cheeks without them. It looked like I was in good company because my sister was just one pitch away from going in to the big ugly cry. I’m telling you I’ve seen a lot of moving things in my life but by golly (did I really say that) I think this one took the cake. That little boy, who wasn’t walking a couple of months ago, who got out of MUSC on Wednesday from major chemotherapy, who had a mask on his face, marched right up there to get the job done. I never saw a greater pitch, ever. My life changed Sunday because of Mack Shieder. He has courage beyond comparison, his parents have strength that is immeasurable, and the family is surrounded by love that is unbound. This young family can teach us so much. I am holding them up now as my example to live by and learn from. I thank them for allowing us this glimpse in to their lives and am happy that baseball could do some small thing to make one of their days better. Maybe more will come from this but if it doesn’t a lot of people saw the best pitch of their lifetime.

I want to give a HUGE shout out to Ryan Johnson who had his jersey hung on the wall of fame on Saturday. I have known Ryan for a long time. I knew he played for The College and I knew he was a very good pitcher but I sure didn’t know he was one of the greatest to ever wear a Cougar uniform. He’s a modest guy; he works hard now for the Town of Mt. Pleasant teaching young boys about baseball so he’s come full circle and that is a wonderful thing. I’m glad to call such a great guy my friend and proud that the College acknowledged him.

Oh those mighty Cougars how they roared this weekend. Friday night was beautiful. We went ahead early and although we gave up the lead we charged back and sealed the deal. Rodriguez was truly the man of the night at the plate and I would say Owen Brittle was the man on the mound. I think it takes a very special mindset to be a closer and I’m sure glad my son isn’t one because I would have to leave the stadium. Owen looks like he loves the challenge and God bless him for it. Kevin Decker had a very nice outing on Saturday night as we put another win in the record books. Sunday the story had a different ending and The Citadel won but I’ve got to give a big shout out to Joey Bergman for his major league play at second to hold the runners-it was phenomenal. My highlight moment of all the games this weekend was after game two when I had to run down on the field to tell one of the marketing guys something and looked over in the dugout and there was a pile of young boys surrounding Jose Rodriguez waiting for him to sign their hats. Now that, my friends, is a great thing. He was patiently signing away and those young boys thought they were sitting at the feet of a giant and that’s why I love baseball.

We're packing up to head to UNC on Wednesday (after we play USC Upstate tomorrow) and then on to App State for our last SoCon series of the season.  I can't believe how it has blown by.  I have so many memories from this year and am so glad that I have committed some of them to paper but I am sure there will be a future blog all about that. 

Until then,

See you at the field.

Baseball is Big-Life is Bigger

So the best laid plans don’t always work out and this weekend was a perfect example. We headed up to Davidson, planned on watching the Cougars take all three games, hang out with all our baseball friends, possibly grab a nice dinner and then get home Sunday evening in time to throw in some laundry and get ready for the week.

Instead we saw two games and spent Saturday in the emergency room trying to quiet an infection that flared up in Ted’s hand. While I paced around impatiently and simultaneously apologized to Ted (for being so impatient) and stressing to the nurses that we didn’t have all afternoon to spend at the hospital I realized further how hard it is to be someone’s caregiver and confined to a hospital.

Ted asked me what I was going to blog about this weekend on our drive home and I told him I really hadn’t had time to think about it because my mind was consumed with his getting well. I am pretty sure he will see a hand specialist tomorrow and we will get on a path of recovery but it made me think about the Shieder family and little Mack and how it must feel to be his mom and dad. I can’t help but think their minds are ALWAYS consumed with their little boy’s well being. The day of mindless playing must be the exception rather than the standard for this family. They have to be consumed with the next chemotherapy treatment, his blood counts, and whether they are exposing him to something that will be difficult for him to fight off. There must not be the routine “let’s go out and play” that our boys have experienced. I was shown again this weekend that baseball is big but life is bigger.

Next weekend is a big weekend for the Cougars. We play The Citadel. It is always a huge match up and you NEVER know who is going to win it but you can always be sure there will be a crowd. It’s going to be an even bigger weekend because we are going to be “At Bat for Mack”. The team will take bp in a shirt for Mack to raise awareness and money for this little boy and his family. Please come out to the field on Sunday (or all weekend for that matter) buy a t-shirt or a wristband or just make a donation to help make this family’s life a little easier. Sunday is Mother’s Day, celebrate your mom and take a few minutes to think about what it must be to be Mack’s mom and celebrate Laura Shieder because not only will she celebrate being a mother she will be celebrating her little boy’s second birthday. So see, baseball is big but life is truly bigger. I love the game and I love it even more when we can do something great because of the game.

The College swept Davidson this weekend and we had lots of heroes. Please go to the CofCsports.com website and read the game notes.

See you at the field.

Playing for a Living

A friend of mine called me on my way to work this week; she was ecstatic because she was going to guide a kayak trip down Shem Creek and she couldn’t believe her great luck. They were going to pay her! If I could have one wish for this friend it would be that she could do this every day of her life. She has survived cancer TWICE and knows the value of living in the Lowcountry and all its’ splendor. I have to admit, while I was happy for her, I was challenged to head back into my office and my second week of budget hell.

I have given a lot of thought to what it takes to make a living ‘playing’ since our phone call. There were several baseball players sitting around my dinner table the other night and of course the majority of our conversation was about ‘playing’. I looked at each of them and considered the cost they were paying to play. One of them came in on crutches, one had both his ankles taped so thick they looked like casts, one’s knees were swollen and hurting and the other one had numerous screws and a plate in his wrist. All of this stemming from the game they love to ‘play’. Is it really ‘playing’ when they spend hours of every day in the batting cage trying to perfect their swing? They practice on the field in the sweltering heat and the bitter cold to try and field a ball coming at them at 100 miles an hour without making an error. Do you think they call it playtime when they are spending countless hours in the weight room lifting and resisting and then sitting in ice baths? They run, run, and run to steal, advance, and hope to score. Really, is it playing?

The next time someone tells me how lucky these boys are to be ‘playing ball’ I am going to say no, there isn’t any luck involved. It really is about the work and sacrifice they are willing to make (when no one is watching) for the three hour performance where they are judged if they miss the 95 MPH fastball, if the ball takes a bad hop and they aren’t able to field it, or if they are thrown out at the plate after running as fast as they can to try and score. My ‘budget hell’ requires me to sit at a desk for eight hours a day which I am pretty sure doesn’t come close to comparing to their ‘game playing’ prep. And if any one of them is fortunate enough to make a living ‘playing’ in the major leagues it won’t be because they GOT LUCKY.

The Cougars turned in a magnificent performance this weekend and won all three against Wofford. It was kind of tough for me to watch because there are several guys on the Wofford team that I have watched grow up and while I definitely wanted the College to win I also wanted those boys to have great games. I have to say John Cornely looked terrific on the mound Sunday for Wofford.

Several shout outs are in order this week:

David Peterson couldn’t have given his visiting parents a better performance (they are here from California and made the trip last year when his pitching rotation got changed and they never got to see him pitch) he threw a shut out complete game-that was awesome.

Joey Bergman-grand slam-was that for your grandad Joey (here from Rhode Island) sweet, as your dad would say.

Christian Powell struck out eight batters on Friday night-incredible.

And I guess I can’t publish one of these without mentioning Matt Leeds again I know I sound like a broken record but the kid is killing the ball.  I find myself expecting him to hit a homerun every at bat, which I admit, is just wrong.  It looks like the SoCon agrees with me because he was just named Player of the Week.  Way to go Matt!

We are playing a huge cross-town rival this Tuesday, The Citadel at Joe Riley Stadium at 6:00. Come out to the game and cheer on the Cougars. The Citadel always hosts a ton of fans. Let’s show them we support out team too.

See you at the field.

(Photos I took at the Blue Angels air show this weekend-it was awesome).

Going to Bat for Mack

So today we aren’t going to talk about baseball. I want you to stop what you are doing and think for a moment, what YOU would do if the person you loved most in life (your little baby) just stopped walking one day. You had no idea why. You took him to the doctor and it took a while but finally they found out the reason-----he had leukemia. What would you do? You would fight for his life. You would spend every single penny you could find on getting him treatment. You would spend several months in a hospital sitting next to him trying to ease his suffering. You would research every possible case to find a treatment to prolong his life and increase his quality of living. This is what Laura Ann Shieder does every day for her son Mack and now we are going to help. We are trying to organize a day that the baseball family can come together and help this little boy and his family. We are “Going to Bat for Mack”. Please, please stay tuned to this blog and my facebook for more information. When we get the date set bring your entire family to the field, buy a shirt, make a donation and say a prayer for little Mack Shieder. We are going to “Go to Bat for Mack” and help him win his battle.

Be grateful for the blessings in your life. Tell your family you love them. But more than anything know that baseball is such a small thing in the big picture unless we can do ‘Big Things’ through the game. Now let’s “Go to Bat for Mack.”

Blessings on Easter

When I got up this morning I knew it was going to be a perfect day. Don’t ask me how but I’m sure it had something to do with not needing a quilt on the bed last night and the smell of coffee already wafting down the hall and my sweet pup’s wet nose waiting patiently on the bed for a pat on the head. All those things can bring so much pleasure to me before I ever even step a foot on the floor. I laid there thinking about the games we had already played and the game coming up and how tough every win has been and how hard the boys are working. It made me so prideful as I reflected on yesterday and all the great things that happened in that game. Greg Blake was just incredible at the plate powering ball after ball over the fence. It was beautiful, and how great was it when Kobly Epley laced one out and his mamma was sitting there with her grandbaby in her lap and couldn’t stand up – I stood taller for you Janet because I know what it meant to you for him to hit that homerun. And for the entire Leeds family to be in town to see Matt’s great weekend performance and Knox, and Schiller, and Brittle, and Huttie’s families all there for their games and to see what really great players they all are.

Do you ever have to pinch yourself and say is this really real? I know it sounds corny but this morning I again said I am going to really focus on living in the moment. Maybe I am getting weird(er) as I get old(er) (and oh yeah you better not let me find out who issued that happy birthday message at the field or bad things will happen-you should know me well enough to know that I hate being singled out like that) but I swear I keep thinking about how important it is to make sure I FEEL what is happening. I don’t want to worry about what game I am going to on Wednesday when I’m at Sunday’s game because I want to see and feel and be ‘in’ every moment. I wanted to see Rob’s face today when he came home and the pitcher barked back at him, I want to hear the crazy words that Chris Campbell can come up with when he is heckling. Today was the best Chris when you said ‘Hey Pitch, I’ve seen a snake with a better arm than you.” Now that is good stuff. Do you have a book of those one liners because I certainly haven’t ever heard them before? I want to be able to hear the grunting sound the pitcher makes when he comes slamming off the mound but more than anything I want to be in the moment my son makes a great play. I don’t know if there is a way to describe what it feels like when a mother is watching an amazing thing happen at the hands of her son but I am going to try and recap it here:

High fly ball comes soaring through the air to the outfield, it is right center, I watch the ball, I watch Cole, and I have a moment of uncertainty that the ball is uncatchable. Then I look back at him and he is running like a wild animal as fast as his legs will carry him, it’s still coming and he is still going and then he projects himself-how he knows when the right second is to leave the ground I will never know but he is laid out flying through the air with arms fully extended, I steal one more look at the ball as it lands in his glove before he slams into the ground. I realize I have been holding my breath the entire time and it is now ok to exhale because he gets up and starts off the field. With this catch he garnered the third out of the inning and kept GA Southern from going ahead. The stands went wild. This was truly one of the catches of his life and worthy of an ESPN highlight. This is the way it read in the post game notes ‘Rakar caught a ball in center field to end the inning’.

See how much value there is to living in the moment. You just can’t get it from the game notes or from someone telling you about it. You have to see it and feel it yourself. I want to hold my breath and almost cry sometimes because I am so filled up with pride for my son. So when people say to me – you are crazy for going to all these games I just smile and think- you don’t know what it feels like to catch a fly ball at the fence to save the game and I do.

We swept GA Southern 3-0

Wednesday we head to USC

See you at the field.