dylan hasn’t played baseball since he was in kindergarten….and at that level it was t-ball through the rec. league. he didn’t express any interest in playing again until this year and needless to say, sean was thrilled!
he wants so much for dylan to like baseball. he has such fond memories of little league growing up. such great memories attached to his childhood experience….he and his friends playing games at the school down the street all summer long, his best buddy’s dad being head of the league for so many years, etc etc etc. and we won’t even start on his love for his boston red sox! he had a hard time letting go of the fact that his son just didn’t have the baseball obsession.
when we signed him up for the pony league (the little league in our town), I was nervous….would all the other boys be so far ahead of him if they had all continued on since kindergarten? it’s very popular in our town and lots of boys are already on select teams.
well, after a rough start, he ended up doing really well and liking it too! he got a hit almost every game and that definitely helped his confidence level.
it was a great learning experience for him. he only knew one other boy on the team and as most of them had played together already, he was definitely the odd-guy-out. and not being the strongest player didn’t help with that either. boy it hurt this mama’s heart to see him sitting all by himself in the dugout….no one talking or cheering for him. he was definitely not used to that coming from soccer and basketball where he is always one of the strongest players.
we had lots of talks about hard work, not quitting, giving it your all, etc. and it really paid off. his catching was amazing by the end (he needed it playing outfield every time!) and he wasn’t quite as scared of the fast pitches coming towards him. it’s amazing how fast some of these 10 year olds throw the ball! he just started sliding the last couple of games after his confidence level increased.
there were a few moments of frustration when he struck out
but luckily sean knew exactly what to say to his son to get him back in the game
and there were lots of smiles
he says he wants to play next year…..so that’s great.
it was an interesting experience for so many reasons. it was a long season and a huge time commitment. we had to be at the field an hour before his game for practice…4:30pm….not easy when he gets off the bus at 3:50. rush home, get his uniform on, eat some dinner, MAYBE get some homework in….and pray that night’s field is only 10 minutes from the house! and adding makena to the mix only made it all that more challenging fun! she did great at the games. “go D go” she would say from the sidelines.
the assassins placed 3rd after the tournament…..great season!
and now onto the next sport…..our summer is full of soccer and basketball camps to prepare for the fall / winter!
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