Continuing from yesterday the story Larry Burbank sent me:
“In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay’s team scored again.
“Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat. At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game?
“Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn’t even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.
“However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay’s life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact.
“The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed.
“The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.
“The game would now be over.
“The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game. Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman’s head, out of reach of all teammates.
“Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, ‘Shay, run to first! Run to first!’
“Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.”
More tomorrow.
Tom Glenn, Writer 