Coach Dave Season Five: The Next Level: Coach Dave, #5

By Al Ainsworth

Legacy leaves its mark on a number of communities when a middle school coach's team learns to play baseball for reasons bigger than themselves.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Family Story Legacy Publishing
• Release date: Mar 2, 2019
• ISBN: 9781386918219

Al Ainsworth

Hi, I'm Al Ainsworth. The platform for my writing is values storying, the intentional passing down of values through story. What is your backstory? Whether you are another link in the chain of a long, healthy family history or whether you are struggling to become the first link in such a chain, story is a key to building a strong family legacy. The power of shared experiences passed down through story from one generation to the next cannot be minimized. When my father’s mother and my mother’s father passed away a number of years ago, the generations rolled forward a notch on both sides of my family. My children will remember very little about my grandparents; what they know about them will come largely through the stories I tell. My children’s children — when my children have children of their own one day — won’t know them at all...except through story. The experiences that my grandparents had, the stories they told, the lessons they learned will all be for naught if not passed down through story. Every generation needs to know their generational backstory. The generational clock will move ruthlessly on—as most parts of our lives associated with time are wont to do—and one day the stories of my parents will find themselves at the risk of extinction. And then mine. And yours. My writing is built not only for the purpose of preserving and sharing the rich stories of my life but also to provide encouragement and tools to help you preserve and share your stories.

Book preview

1

W ere you surprised by any of the guys who made the team? I asked Rob after he tossed his equipment bag in the truck.

Not really, he replied, sliding into the passenger's seat. Jimmy Garrison, maybe, but he's grown a lot since last year. With the school having separate seventh and eighth grade teams this year, I figured all of us who played summer ball together would make it. Jimmy probably wouldn't have made it if Billy Henderson hadn't moved over to Washington Central.

Well, do you like having tryouts out of the way early this year?

Yeah, for sure. We were all still pretty much in shape from summer ball, and it lets us all play together this fall—at least I hope that we all play on the fall team. Have you guys decided who's going to coach the team yet?

Bryce's dad and I turned in our names as the coaches, but we're just going to help out.

Excited, Rob turned to me. Is Coach Dave going to coach us, after all?

Nope.

Coach Dave Rivers had coached Rob and several of his teammates through their twelve-year-old season of recreational baseball in the Southburg Baseball League. Several more had joined forces with them for the all-star season that followed, one that resulted in a state championship. A new teacher at the town's middle school the year before, he had been called upon to coach that team, as well, guiding them to a semifinal finish. During the summer Coach Dave's team, featuring most of the players that would make up this year's version of the Southburg Middle School Eagles, stepped up to play Triple-A travel ball and won another state championship. With a short fall season to polish their game, Coach Dave's players were poised to add a middle school title to their collection.

Aw, man, I was hoping that he would coach us.

You know he'll be around watching you guys, but he felt like it was time to give another coach a chance to lead you guys this fall.

But what's the purpose of you and Mr. Dean coaching us? He swallowed and mumbled, No offense.

None taken. That's not Coach Dave's purpose—to get us to coach the team. We're still just around to help.

Then who? Even as he asked, he nodded. Kevin?

Now you're thinking.

Kevin's going to be the head coach?

Don't you think he's ready?

Yeah, but...

Kevin Forsythe had been Coach Dave's trusted assistant since their first season together with the Scarlet Knights. Knowing that Kevin came from a single-parent home, Coach Dave had looked for ways to keep him involved. Though Kevin was well aware that his physical abilities didn't match up with those of most of his teammates, he was excited to discover a proclivity for coaching his teammates. Coach Dave had shocked the tiny world of Southburg baseball when he had named Kevin his first assistant for the all-star team—ahead of rival coach Fletcher Brandt. Kevin had continued to grow in his role as an assistant coach through the school season. After throwing many rounds of batting practice through the various seasons, he added late inning blowout pitcher to his resume during the summer, closing out a handful of games on the mound.

You know how Coach Dave is always challenging you guys to add something to your game, stretching you beyond what you think you can do?

Yeah.

He's doing the same thing for Kevin. I don't know what happens to him after middle school ball—I mean, the high school coach is probably not going to bring him on as a coach—but you never know.

I guess so. It'll be interesting to see how he keeps fifteen guys happy with playing time this fall. You know some of the parents aren't going to be happy when their sons have to sit.

I turned and winked at Rob. That's where Dean and I will come in.

MY BUDDY BRUCE GARRISON lingered after dropping his son off at our house for breakfast on Saturday morning. Bruce and I had carpooled to work since I had moved my family away from everything we had known in the southern part of the state to a new life in the northwestern tip of the state. He had made our transition to the bedroom community of Southburg more palatable with his advice on everything from real estate to restaurants to recreation. He had remained a supporter of the boys on the team even when his son didn't make the middle school team as a seventh grader and didn't play with the travel team during the summer.

He broke the ice as soon as Jimmy closed the front door behind him. Brad, I sure am glad Jimmy's going to get to play with the team this year. I'm proud of him for the way he has worked in the backyard doing his hitting drills every day for the last few months. When Billy Henderson's family moved all of a sudden, that gave him the opening he needed. This might be his last shot to play. Might be the last shot for several of the boys.

What do you mean?

Not much chance that the high school is going to carry fifteen ninth graders next year. Even with a ninth grade team, a junior varsity, and a varsity team, there's not going to be room for that many kids. Competition's going to be pretty fierce.

Yeah, I guess so, but I haven't thought that far ahead. We'll play three tournaments this fall, and then there's the middle school season and tournament...

And right behind that is high school tryouts. Guys who have been competing with each other will be competing against each other.

I hadn't thought about that.

Danny Counce and L'Marcus Meek's dads have. And so have I. We've set up lessons with Fletcher Brandt. You know his dad is helping him now, too?

Since when?

Since his wife and Hunter moved back home. Fletcher's not going to coach this fall. He's focused on giving lessons at that warehouse of his. He's hitting all his middle school contacts pretty hard, lining up lessons and camps for kids preparing to try out for their high school teams. Being able to put a pro scout on his flyers sure doesn't hurt him.

And he's lining 'em up, huh?

When I called, he said his slots were filling up fast. I don't know how many he really has signed up—you know how Fletcher can talk sometimes—

Sounds like he convinced you.

Bruce laughed. Yeah, I guess so. We signed Jimmy up for batting lessons twice a week and for Fletcher's all-skills camp during fall break. He was offering a package—you pay for ten weeks of lessons and the camp and get his Christmas showcase camp for free.

"Offering that package or pushing it?" I teased.

Whichever, he allowed. Either way, I know that Kevin is a good coach for his age, but I figure this is a good backup to give Jimmy his best shot at being ready for high school tryouts.

I guess Devan's and L'Marcus's dads think so, too.

You gonna call and set up something for Rob?

No, I think I'll pass. Right now, I better get inside. That Baker breakfast isn't going to cook itself. See ya Monday, Bruce.

2

Wyatt Logan dug into the batter's box on the left side of the plate to start the Southburg Eagles' first game of the September Shootout in Center City. The switch-hitter tapped his bat on both sides of the plate and awaited the first pitch from a tall right-hander from the Plumlee City Royals. Four pitches later, Wyatt jogged down to first with a leadoff walk. Dean Ford greeted him there, pointing toward Kevin Forsythe in the third base coach's box. Kevin went through the signs, giving what I recognized as the steal sign to his speedy base runner.

Dean, Kevin, and I had run the team through a few practices to get them ready for our three fall tournaments. I was more than willing to let Dean and Kevin handle all the on-field responsibilities so that I could take my usual place among the group of dads who always gathered down the outfield line from our team's dugout.

Big Carlos Rosales shouted encouragement to his son, Little Carlos—or L.C., as he was known—who stepped in from the right side against the Royals' hurler. L.C. squared to bunt but pulled back from strike one as Wyatt swiped second. Wyatt's dad, Hunter, wondered aloud if Kevin would have L.C. bunt Wyatt to third or let him swing away.

When L.C. took ball four after a long at bat, Gary Rooster Hamilton shook his head and muttered, "Diggin' himself a big ol' hole out there for our three-four-five hitters. Rooster was right—the middle of the Southburg lineup was as formidable as any in fourteen-year-old baseball. Bo Nelson was a gap hitter with exceptional speed. Bryce Ford and Hunter Brandt would have been the best hitter on any other team we would face; together, they made for a pitcher's nightmare, especially a pitcher who was struggling with control like the Plumlee City pitcher.

Bo laced a single to left to load the bases, and Bryce lifted a deep fly ball to center to plate the game's first run. Hunter Brandt's line drive to first would have scored two more, but the Royals' first baseman snared the liner and stepped two feet to his left to double off Bo and keep the game at 1-0.

All right, elephant in the park, Big Carlos said. What's up with Fletcher Brandt?

He's sitting behind the backstop with his wife, Charlie Jones said. Charlie was the pastor of the Southburg Community Church. His son Hudson was taking his warm-up tosses on the mound as Charlie continued, I walked down to the concession stand to get Hudson something to drink, and there was Fletcher, sitting with Whitney, and—get this, Rooster—no little black notebook to be found.

Rooster laughed and rolled his eyes. Yeah, Hunter texted me that his grandfather had been challenging Fletcher to do some things to try to make baseball a little less important. He told him that the notebook was the first thing that had to go.

Fletcher Brandt had infamously carried a little black notebook in his back pocket since his son's early days as a baseball player. Fletcher had begun scouting all the other teams in the league while the kids were still playing coach pitch and continued the practice through the prior summer. When his wife had moved out, taking Hunter with her and helping him switch teams from his dad's team to Coach Dave's rival Scarlet Knights, Fletcher had been stunned but continued his baseball obsession. Only when a mystery scout who had been following both teams all summer called Fletcher and Hunter together after the state championship game did Fletcher's situation begin to change. The scout revealed himself as Harvey Smokie Brandt, Fletcher's biological father and Hunter's grandfather.

Danny Counce spoke up. "You guys know that Devan has been taking lessons from Fletcher. Well, I asked him one day if he was going to coach a team this fall. With this many kids on our team and with all the kids from other schools that he has coming to his warehouse, I would have thought that would have been a no-brainer. He just kind of grunted at first and shook his head. After Devan finished his lesson and went over to pack up his stuff, Fletcher came over to where I was standing off to the side and opened up a little bit more.

He said—and I remember the hurt look in his eyes when he said it—that as much as he loved the game, it had caused a lot of pain in his family while he was growing up and a lot more in his family as a grown man. He said, 'Danny, I just need to be a dad for a little while.' I can't imagine how hard it is for him to get used to just sitting and watching a baseball game.

Tyrell Barnes laughed and poked Rooster in the ribs. "Give him a game or two watching with his wife, and we