Prior to the season, we discussed Little League tryouts with our older son. He had the option of trying out for AAA or the majors. He played AAA ball last year and was clearly one of the best players on his team. If he stayed at the same level, he would be guaranteed to be a starter and likely the star. His other option would be to reach a bit and play in the majors. While he has the talent to be there, he would be competing with boys as old as 12. Two years may not seem like a lot, but it is an enormous gap. If he made the team (and there would be no guarantees), he would likely slot in as a reserve fighting for playing time.
My boy decided to give the majors a shot. He's always been competitive. It was, in my opinion, the right choice at the time. While it's fun to be the best player on your team, it's also not as satisfying if you are playing inferior competition. In order for him to grow, he needs to be challenged.
The good news is that he made the majors. I thought he was talented enough to make the leap. It turns out that he made it with plenty to spare. He was assigned to the Twins. I've since learned that they try to set up the teams so that you continue with the team over the years.
Well, the results so far have been about what I expected. He's certainly not the top player on his team. As much as I want to be a proud father, I also have to be realistic. He's better than some of the kids and probably in the middle of the pack. He can certainly field better than most and pitches fairly well but his hitting needs to become more consistent. He's already set himself a goal to be the second best pitcher on the team by the end of the year. To be honest, I think he could actually do it if he applies himself.
At the same time, he is now learning the realities of what had previously been just a possibility. In the first game, he got to play the whole game. In his second game on Saturday night, he was told that he would be spending the first three innings (of six) on the bench. He was none too pleased. It turned out to be a tight ballgame. Along the way, he did make some nice fielding plays at second base. When he came up in the top of the fifth, the Twins were trailing 2-0 and there were two men on. The Orioles pitcher had been mowing our guys down all night, so I was nervous. He took two pitches and then connected on the third. Unfortunately, he caught the ball a little low and popped it into short right field. While the Twins would eventually plate one run, they ended up losing 4-1.
At the end of the game, he was really upset. He went into his standard rage mode. It was less about the loss and more about the fact that he only got to play half the game. I tried to let him know that it was part of the process, but he didn't want to hear about it. It's really tough to have to watch helplessly while he goes through his acceptance process.
There was another game Sunday. I thought he had an excellent session in the batting cage before the game. While they were warming up on the field, things seemed to be going fairly well. The last drill was just to take a few grounders. As the coach hit grounders around the horn, my son's turn came up. The first ball came and he just did not pick it up properly. It went whizzing past him. Coach then hit him a second ball which he proceeded to let slip under his glove. I guess it was no surprise when he started out Sunday's game again on the bench.
I could see him seething. He started throwing his hat around and making mad faces. Instead of encouraging the others, he started to wallow in self-pity. It was hard to watch. I tried to talk to him, but he kept storming away. At some point, he took possession of the scoreboard remote control and was going to keep score. I walked over and asked him for it while directing him to the bench. He reluctantly went back. The first three innings were a constant push to get him back into the dugout to be present and trying to remind him to watch for things like pitcher tendencies and umpire calls.
He finally got in the game in the fourth. He was able to make a few nice plays in the field. He caught an easy pop-up. In the sixth, he had a ball hit sharply to him that suddenly veered off to his left at the last minute. It could have easily slipped by, but he snared it and made a strong throw to second to get the out. The only downside was that it was another well-pitched game. The Twins ended up winning 4-1 (symmetry!), so they didn't bat in the bottom of the sixth. That meant he didn't get to hit at all.
Ironically, one of the least talented kids on the team started the game in left field. He came up with two men on in the third and got a piece of a ball which whistled down the right field line for a two-run double. It doubled the Twins score and turned out to be a critical play in a close game. He ended up getting a game ball for his efforts.
I think that this will be a long process. There are 20 games on the regular season schedule and then playoffs. If the Twins perform as I expect, they should make it. They have only played 5 games (3-2). We missed the first two because of our recent trip to visit my brother. I expect that my young man will have many opportunities to prove himself. I just hope that all of this watching and waiting drives him to push himself harder instead of having him fall prey to his frustration.
As they say, only time will tell. We'll both just have to learn to be patient.
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