I have told this story so many times, I figured it must be out there in the blogosphere somewhere. But I have changed computers several times since June 20, 2000, and a digital version has not revealed itself so here goes. It seems like yesterday to this old dad. My son Ryan had played for two years in the "community" baseball league. This was the league where anyone who raised their hand could pitch a maximum a two innings per game, scores were not posted and talent was scarce due to local talent already signing up for the "real" little league. Ryan was tenacious and determined to play in the "real" Little League". And he demonstrated several times that he had a cannon for an arm, even for an 11-year-old. He struck out every batter he faced the first season he pitched. One day he complained to me that he did not get to pitch very much because of all the strikeouts he rang up. The very next game he went 3-0 on the first 3 batters but proceeded to strike them all out. On six pitches each.
Very much in the forefront of his mind was the then popularity of one George Kenneth Griffey Junior, and how Ryan might match the popularity and bankroll of the MLB standout. As a young father trying to instill modesty and humility into his son, comments like, "How much does Griffey make every time he hits a home run?", were disconcerting to say the least.
But moving up to the real Little League he was faced with a qualifier: Tryouts. So in February, I suggested that we get out the gloves and do some throwing. The weather was awful that year and I don't think we threw more than twice before the March tryout date. Being dumped on a field with 80 other kids who had played in the "real" Little League for two years was an experience. Despite an off day with a couple of fielding errors and few hits, Ryan was drafted by the Purdy Pilots. About three weeks later the first practice rolled around. The coach had returning players that he knew could pitch so the first couple of practices Ryan spent time in the outfield and lots of time in the batter's box. During the third practice, the coach polled the players to see if anyone else wanted to try out for the pitching staff. Ryan quietly raised his hand and soon he was on the mound pitching to the coach. The first couple of pitches were fastballs right down the alley. But the coach wanted to see more. About four fastballs later he exclaimed, "We have a pitcher! We have a PITCHER!"
So for the first game, it was pretty apparent that Ryan would be the starting pitcher. Ryan went so far as to suggest that I "strongly recommend to the coach" that he start. I declined that suggestion and reminded Ryan that his performance will dictate his position.
