As basketball and swimming have come to an end for my son, we look ahead to what’s next. Next is baseball. We’re locked in this year, for the first time in a few years, in a good summer “house” league. I was able to volunteer to coach again as well. We had the draft; our team is locked in. The Phillies will begin practicing soon. I can’t wait.
Before we get rolling, we need to get the right equipment. I bought my son an expensive ass glove for Christmas, one that will definitely (it better) last longer than his last cheap glove. The glove is a bit bigger than his previous one; he needs to start breaking it in. It’s already been to “the lab”; my Dad oiled it up, broke it in the best he could; now it’s time to play catch. Although Spring has officially arrived, you really can’t tell yet. Soon…
So he’s got his glove, now he needs a bat. Our league’s rules state wooden bats ONLY; I’m cool with that. First off, isn’t that the way baseball should be played? I’ll never forget getting a Louisville slugger bat as a giveaway at Wrigley Field when I was a kid; I had the big Burger King logo on there, since they sponsored it. I used that bat all summer. Love hearing the crack of the bat as you connect with the ball on the sweet spot. Secondly, you see the prices of aluminum bats? Yeah… I’m going to save some money here, and I did… although not as much as I thought. Dick’s had a “baseball weekend” where everything was 20% off; I couldn’t find any bats his size in the store. I asked a guy for help, and he came back with 3 options; of course, my son chose the most expensive one, not knowing the price. It had Fernando Tatis Jr’s name on there; it does look pretty sharp. I told my son to take a full swing in the aisle since nobody was around. He did, and because of his long back swing, hit one of the hanging displays, chipping the bat… haha. It’s all good. Now we’ll at least know it’s his. The final thing we need is a helmet; he has one, but the face guard is required this year. We picked up a new one, but I found the old one, and its guard. Plus, we had already purchased him a new helmet; we just need to order the guard for that one. We’ll take back the one we bought at Dick’s. Nice to get that money back. Expensive sport… not to mention what we paid to sign up for the league… sheesh.
It’s all worth it though, no doubt. The only thing left is to start practicing. As soon as the weather breaks, we’ll be out there, playing some catch, breaking in that glove. May not get swings in for a few, but the glove… my son’s strength… warming up that arm; we’ll be on it any day now. Seasons are changing; we’ll be ready.
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