They are the Champions!

OK, so I gave it away already. Sue me.

The 10U championship game was scheduled for 3:15. Due to an extra inning affair on our designated field we did not get the first pitch across until after 4. We were the visiting team by way of a coin flip and had Jason the Ace on the hill. Jason and Rabbit both had 4 innings of eligibility left, everyone else on the team had 5. We were going to throw people out there until we found a good one! Luckily, we found a good one right away.

For this game Rabbit was moved to clean up, batting fourth. He came up with 2 out and a runner on third. On the first pitch he hit a hard single right down the 3B line driving in the first run of the game. He then stole second (much easier today, they were back on 60 foot basepaths instead of the 70 foot used by the 11U) and came around to score on a clean single by the next batter. We finished batting with a 2-0 lead and only allowed 1 in the bottom of the inning. In the second Rabbit was up again, 2 out, runner on third and 3 already across. He fought back, having been down 0-1 and 1-2. A 7 pitch at bat including 2 foul balls ended with a swinging strikeout. A good AB for certain, and after 2 innings we were ahead 5-1. After the third it was 5-3, and should have been much more. With two runners on and two out the opposing batter lifted a soft liner over the 1B bag. Rabbit on a full run made the play over his head saving at least one run. The umpire, opposing coach and his entire team congratulated him on a spectacular grab.



In the fourth Rabbit saw 6 pitches before walking. As was his custom, he stole second and third before coming home on another single. It was 6-3 after 4.

After Jason was done with his 4 innings the coaches had to decide between Rabbit and Will to close out the game. Luckily for my health they chose Will. He is a boy who can throw very hard and throws strikes. We allowed one in the 5th but only after scoring 3 in our half. It was 9-4 going into the last inning. By now, due to our late start, the sun was directly in the faces of the batters. They, and the catchers, were completely blinded. I am not certain but I do not recall many boys making contact. Rabbit missed 3 pitches in a row in his final AB and tells me he did not see any of them.

In the bottom of the last inning we let one run across, mostly from our catcher being blinded. But as had happened with us their batters could not pick up the ball. It would not have mattered as Will was throwing hard strikes. The game ended 9-5 with Bluewave winning the title.

Rabbit played stellar at first, and in fact played all 6 innings of the final game there. The team, only 9 boys were able to make the trip, really played well over the weekend. They have a lot to be proud of and are playing excellent ball together. It was an amazing weekend and Rabbit is still wearing his medal around the house. And why not, he earned it!

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