Tonight was a major setback for the Charlie O'Donnell Baseball Comeback trail....
So it turns out that this baseball team I found out about is like a team of allstars. This guy scouts all over for players, and replaces like half his team every year. We went to the batting cages tonight, and we went to the 90mph one. I think I fouled off four pitches, through no fault of my own.
Before we went, there was a high school kid there with his dad. The kid was getting all pissed when he didn't hit it... but for the most part, he was hitting a ton. He hardly seemed like he was having any fun at all. From the time I was 13 till I was 20, for six seasons, I had the time of my life. I played before that, but I was never any good. I played on teams where the coaches never made me feel like I could succeed. Then, one day, I had a practice with a team that was awful. I got a fluke hit at the end of batting practice and at the first game, I found myself hitting 2nd. I had never hit that high in my life, and for the first time, I felt like I could really hit the ball. And I did.... all season, for six seasons straight. And I had fun with it... I played all over the field... caught, played third, first. I played my butt off. It never came easy to me.
The last few games we played were special. I caught Brian three times, and they were probably the best three games he ever pitched in his life. I think I went like 8 for my last 10 at the plate. That was a hard way to go out, because I felt like I had more to give. I felt like, had I been coached better, given a chance earlier, I might have turned out a lot better.
Now, I watched all these kids with ridiculous natural talent put on a clinic. Baseball is something I've never been able to put away. I think that's a hard thing for a guy who grew up playing. Its part of your life, but it has a limit to it, because you can't play it forever. When I'm a dad, I'm going to give my kid the best shot possible of being really good.... I won't push... but, I never want him to feel like I did tonight. Especially the way I am, where I always think I can do something to fix a problem, its so hard to go up there, give all you've got, and come up with a big zero. Its a really empty feeling. I really wanted to be good tonight.