The Hitting Zone

After school, we found out from Dave that only a couple of guys from the team were coming over. Garret wasn't a surprise, given that he was the twin's best friend and had a future planned for after high school. Mitchell wasn't much of a surprise either because he catches for them often and still had plans to meet up with Dave this summer to get more work in. Joey did throw me off though, but not as much as seeing Dalton and Logan.

They were a bit awkward coming in at first, but Noah treated them like any other teammate. He got them each a water and directed them to the living room to find a spot to sit.

"Wow. Surprised that all the seniors couldn't make it." Garret commented when we knew no one else was coming.

"Some of us need to pass our finals because we're continuing our education." Dave threw a pillow at him.

Garret caught it and put it behind his back. "Sure. But if you're still here then I feel like everyone else should be fine too."

"I'm an honor student too." Dave crumpled up his empty water bottle and chucked it at him. "Plus, you have to consider how many have parents that would be upset if they weren't at home, studying for said finals."

"He's just worried that his party on Wednesday might be a flop." Kyle laughed. He reached out to pat Garret's shoulder as if to comfort him. "Don't worry, superstar, finals should be done on Wednesday and everyone will be there to freeload off of you. Make sure to have plenty of snacks."

"I second that motion!" Noah raised his hand.

"Yea, I'll be there Wednesday." Joey added. "I want to see what it's like when you're a top draft pick."

"It'll be casual." Garret told everyone. "Plenty of food to appease the masses. Even Noah's bottomless pit of a stomach."

"I'm not insulted by that." Noah shrugged, unbothered.

We chatted casually about the upcoming draft as Stanford's broadcast started doing pregame interviews and introductions. They showed highlights from the previous two matchups with Texas A&M this past weekend and included highlights from the star players. Zeke and Rhys got their fair share of coverage, but Bradley got the most, since he was a projected top five pick in the upcoming draft.

"Kind of feels wrong that you could be drafted the same round as Bradley Thompson." Dave said to Garret, glancing at him with suspicion. "It's like you're a poser."

"I bet I could take him." Garret held up his left fist. "If I can strike out Jake, I can strike out anyone."

"That was one time." Dave rebuffed. Before I could feel happy that he defended me, he sold me out. "Plus, it's not as rare as you might think. Jake took on a bunch of pitchers this past weekend, all his age, and that Peace guy from Servite got him to pop out to himself."

"That's not a strike out though." Garret nodded to himself.

"Goes to show that Jake isn't unbeatable." Dave said.

"Didn't that guy get him out before?" Joey asked. "Servite has always had great pitchers. Where did you go this weekend to run into him?"

This led to the short explanation of Noah and I trying out for the U16 regional team. Mostly everyone in the room already knew I made the team so it wasn't a big deal to talk about it.

"Will it keep you guys busy all summer?" Joey asked.

"No." Noah answered then held up his hand. "But before you even ask, no I don't want to play football with you. Jake and I are still going to train seriously. With Dave too of course." He grinned. "At least until we can start driving ourselves to the cages."

"You can't drive yet?" Garret laughed.

"I'll be a junior just like the twins when they got their licenses." Noah shrugged. "Maybe not until school has started in the fall, but by the time season starts I should be set." He nudged me. "Jake too."

"I have a funny feeling you'll be doing all the driving." Mitchell joked, making the guys laugh.

Grampa came in, announcing the food will start to be ready so we had to come out and get it. He really did his best on the steaks, seasoning them and the veggie kabobs. We loaded up and went back to the living room, giving Grampa the best seat in the house. Me, Noah, Dalton, and Logan took the spots on the floor, looking up at the tv as the game started.

Stanford ran into trouble early when their starting pitcher got hit by a comebacker in the second inning with the game tied at one. The athletic trainer and pitching coach went out to him, but it was easy to see that he couldn't continue on. He took the line drive to the hamstring and no doubt it left a mark.

The announcers barely discussed who could possibly be coming out to take over when the camera flashed to the bullpen and showed Rhys swinging his arms across his body and rotating them in circles. He started to do all kinds of stretching.

["This is a bit unusual." Announcer one said. "Rhys Johnson looks to be the only one warming up. As most of you know, Johnson started the first game on Friday, helping the team to their first win, only giving up two runs off a homer by Smith."

"I think this is a great idea for Stanford." The second announcer chimed in. "Their backs are up against the wall. If they lose here, it's the end of the line. If you want to move on, you need to put your best guy out there."

"Johnson has had a tremendous freshman year, having recovered from Tommy John near the end of his junior year of high school. The only one fighting him for Freshman of the Year in the conference is his very own teammate, Zeke Atkins."

"I've heard it was Atkins that talked him into going to Stanford as he was eyeing to stay at a local community college. His dad is a well-known pitching coach for the San Francisco Giants and would be able to train him privately before entering the draft the next time he's eligible."]

"Hey! It was my idea!" Noah shouted at the tv.

"They did say Atkins." Logan shrugged.

"Yea, but they implied it was Zeke." Noah rolled his eyes. "I was the first one to bring it up. He was still debating whether to just go in the draft as a late rounder or build up momentum at a community college. I've got to get him to set the story straight." Noah clapped his hands together.

We watched as Rhys did a quick warmup in the bullpen before taking the mound. He did another couple of pitches, working up speed as the announcers talked about his nearly record-breaking season for freshmen.

Rhys took over and took charge on that mound. His fastball was smooth and his slider could move. He averaged a strikeout an inning, only giving up a couple of hits, but no walks or runs. Yet, he wasn't even the true star of the game. That was actually a battle between Zeke and Bradley as the both of them hit two homers each! Texas A&M pitchers didnt stand a chance against the pair. The game ended in a lopsided 11-1 beat down.

We got to watch their team celebrate on the field, throwing their hats and gloves in the air. The announcers talked about how they would host the Super Regional against a well-rounded Auburn program this upcoming weekend. It would be a best-of-three series. Winner would head to Omaha.

"Would you guys go to Omaha to watch?" Dalton asked Noah.

"Heck yes!" Noah pumped his fist.

Even I nodded in agreement.

"Kyle wouldn't be able to go though, would he?" Joey asked. "Like how soon do you head off to the minors?"

"When the contract is signed." Garret answered. He stood up. "If they make it to Omaha, we might already be on our new teams, getting our feet wet."

"We could get rid of him by next week?" Noah grinned. "What a relief."

Kyle threw a pillow at him.