Getting ready for the big game
That smile is proof of how excited he was to play baseball
Last Saturday was Ethan's first T-ball game. But it wasn't just a game, it was an all day affair. We had to be there at 8am to take team photos. And they had an "Opening Day Carnival" so between practicing his batting, crab walk and alligators, there were tons of unlimited jumpers and ridiculously priced fundraising food to keep us busy. His game started at 2pm, but NOT without incident.
By incident, I mean losing his glove and not realizing it until 5 minutes before their game was supposed to start.
What's a rookie T-ball mom supposed to do? First, panic. I walked around 4 baseball fields full of baseball fans looking for a brand new unlabeled kids' glove. No luck. Next step? Beg!!!!!!!!! I managed to find a very nice Team Mom from the Dodgers team (they played before Ethan's team) that was willing to lend me her kid's glove. But it was all such a scramble, next thing I knew, Ethan was already out on the field warming up with a pink glove! The only girl in his team had an extra. He didn't care, so I didn't care. Mike may have squirmed a little, but I'm sure he'll get over it.
I tell you what.......... it's not the glove, but the player that matters.
Ready at 2nd base, Ethan caught the first ground ball (they were all ground balls) of the game -- pink glove and all -- and we were all so proud, but poor guy didn't know what to do with it after he picked it up.
I heard the coach from home plate yell "THROW IT TO FIRST!". So we all started to echo and yell the same thing, until we realized that these are 4 year old kids.... who had 2 practices before the game...... who know NOTHING about the fundamentals of the game, so they don't have much context for helpfully yelled directions like throwing it to first.
By incident, I mean losing his glove and not realizing it until 5 minutes before their game was supposed to start.
What's a rookie T-ball mom supposed to do? First, panic. I walked around 4 baseball fields full of baseball fans looking for a brand new unlabeled kids' glove. No luck. Next step? Beg!!!!!!!!! I managed to find a very nice Team Mom from the Dodgers team (they played before Ethan's team) that was willing to lend me her kid's glove. But it was all such a scramble, next thing I knew, Ethan was already out on the field warming up with a pink glove! The only girl in his team had an extra. He didn't care, so I didn't care. Mike may have squirmed a little, but I'm sure he'll get over it.
I tell you what.......... it's not the glove, but the player that matters.
Ready at 2nd base, Ethan caught the first ground ball (they were all ground balls) of the game -- pink glove and all -- and we were all so proud, but poor guy didn't know what to do with it after he picked it up.
I heard the coach from home plate yell "THROW IT TO FIRST!". So we all started to echo and yell the same thing, until we realized that these are 4 year old kids.... who had 2 practices before the game...... who know NOTHING about the fundamentals of the game, so they don't have much context for helpfully yelled directions like throwing it to first.
Ethan catches the first ground ball
Ethan hit the ball off the tee really well. I think out of the 3 times he went to bat, he only missed once.
Run, Ethan, Run!
Even Jojo stepped up to announce the players and did some "commentary" during the game
The rest of the game was a hoot. Each kid on the team got a chance at bat, they hit as many times as needed to get the ball more than 2 feet in front of them. No scores were kept. No one was tagged out. And all the kids out on the field chased after the ground balls......... EVERY TIME.
I must say the coaches did a great job trying to keep it fun for the kids. One of them stayed on home plate, giving the kids tips on how to plant their feet, position their hips, swing the bat and run to first base. The assistant coach stayed on first base to encourage the hitters to run towards him. There was also a little league team that shadowed all the players on the field so they could give them tips.
Team Mom cheering on the Team in the dugout
Overall, as chaotic as it was, I think everyone had a blast. I got to hang out in the dugout -- I probably should have been on the stands with the rest of the parents but I wanted to take some good pictures of the team without having to look through a fence.
I'll post more team pics as soon as I get them uploaded onto Picasa.
This was Ethan's last at bat. He was 2nd to last on the line up, so after the last batter, he got to run from first base all the way to home base. Gotta love that slide to home plate!!
I'll post more team pics as soon as I get them uploaded onto Picasa.
This was Ethan's last at bat. He was 2nd to last on the line up, so after the last batter, he got to run from first base all the way to home base. Gotta love that slide to home plate!!
GO CUBS!
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