433 Game @ Golden West (3)

Bottom of the third. Garret's domination didn't end or stutter. Batter eight struck out. Batter nine was Brady and he smacked a grounder between third and short, but Noah reached it in time and threw him out at first. I had an urge to clap for the great play, but it didn't feel appropriate with the seriousness of this game. 

Starting back at the top of the lineup, Garret got the batter to strikeout for the second time of the game, moving his 'K' count up to six. He smirked at Dave as soon as we got back to the dugout. "Just four more to go. One an inning."

"That's only if you pitch the whole game." Dave snorted, still unwilling to recognize Garret for his efforts. 

I took a seat next to Noah as our teammates got ready to tack on some more runs. Hopefully. 

I really wanted to talk to Noah about how well Garret was doing on the mound, but he must have read my mind because he shot me a glare, stopping the words from leaving my mouth. 

"This is called tacit understanding." Noah grinned at me, patting my shoulder. "I know what you want to say, but it's best not to say anything at all."

I nodded. Right. Noah doesn't want to jinx him. 

Mahki grounded out to the third baseman, who made an amazing throw to first to get Mahki out by mere inches. The umpire said 'out' and there was no replay or take-backs in high school baseball so Mahki came back to the dugout. 

Zeke stepped up to bat next. He was already 0-1 for the day so it was safe to say that everyone in our dugout was hoping for something to happen. Preferably a homerun. Zeke made Brady work, letting the pitch count climb and climb. He definitely won't be able to pitch against Servite on Saturday. 

On a full count, Zeke successfully connected and blasted the ball to the outfield. Noah and I both jumped up to watch it fly. The right fielder was chasing it down to the outfield fence, then timed his jump, trying for the ball. It happened so quick that I wasn't sure if he caught it or not. 

The way the crowd cheered gave me a hint. I sadly watched as the right fielder pulled the ball out of his glove and throw it back to the infield. 

"What a steal!" Noah sighed, flopping back down. He pulled his helmet out and set it on his lap. "That really could have been a homerun if that outfielder wasn't playing so far back."

I sighed too, showing my agreement. Zeke was now 0-2 on the day. I watched him closely as he came back to the dugout and Tanner moved to the batter's box. Zeke was stoned face, not showing any particular expression. It looked like he was thinking it over. 

"Will the scouts look down at him now?" I swiveled my head to Noah to ask. 

Noah laughed. "Nah. Some might say he has trouble with submarine pitchers, but those kind of pitchers are super rare in the majors." He looked at Brady on the mound. "Brady might get drafted because he can get someone of Zeke's caliber out."

Tanner struck out. 

Noah put his helmet down and nudged me. "C'mon. Let's defend our one run. Zeke doesn't need our worry."

Right. Zeke is the best. I should worry about my own performance. I didn't want to mess this up for Garret and the team. 

We took the field to start the bottom of the fourth. The lefty who had a walk previously was up first. He was fast too. I couldn't forget that stolen base in the first inning. It was too much of a surprise. 

Garret couldn't use his cutter against the lefty so he went at him with his fastball. On a 2-2 count, the batter swung and pulled a grounder between first and second. I sprinted over before making a diving stop. From my knees, I threw the ball to Julian. I didn't want to give the batter the chance to get on base. 

"Out!" The umpire said. We got him by a few feet. 

I smiled to myself as I got up and brush the dirt away. 

"Good play!" Julian grinned at me. 

"Nice one, Jake!" Noah told me from the other side of second. 

I turned red with the compliments directed my way. Those two weren't the only ones to say nice words too. I heard some comments from our dugout and the stands. It just made the blood rush to my face even quicker. I did my best to block it out as Garret worked on the next batter. 

Batter three had a strikeout in the first and followed it with another strikeout in the fourth. Garret grinned towards our own dugout before facing the cleanup hitter. He had also struck out in the first, but this time he got a piece of Garret's pitch. Just a piece. A small piece. He popped it up to Jason at third to end the inning. 

"Three more to go." Garret taunted Dave right as we got in the dugout. 

"Oh, shut it." Dave threw an empty water bottle at Garret. 

I shook my head. "How does Garret have so much energy?" I asked Noah as he put on his helmet and batting gloves. 

"Pitchers are just different." Noah shrugged. He grabbed his bat and headed for the on deck circle. 

Jason was up first. He was sent back to the dugout after three straight strikes. Brady wasn't wasting balls anymore. He looked a little tired and it was only the fifth. He had a ways to go to finish out the game. 

Noah struggled against him as he upped his speed and directness. The only advantage he had was that Brady was throwing all pitches into the zone now. He got lucky and made contact, popping the ball up. 

I stood up and watched as it headed towards center field. It was a good spot. The center fielder was too far back and the middle infielders weren't back enough. But Golden West wasn't just known for having Brady. They had a good team with good players too. The center fielder sprinted forward and slid in the grass to make the catch. 

"Wow!"

"Nice catch!"

"Woo-hoo!"

The stands were clapping loudly. Their team had made outstanding plays in back-to-back innings. Against both Atkins boys too. How unlucky. 

Noah was groaning as he slumped in his seat. "Ugh. That would have been awesome if I got the hit. Just unbelievable."

I nodded in agreement. "It would helped give me a chance to bat this inning."

"Jerk." Noah playfully punched me in the arm, barely using any strength. "I would have had a hit against Brady! Before Zeke, too. Ughhh." He groaned some more. 

Alex ended our offense by grounding out to short on just the second pitch. Brady made quick work of the inning again. 

I picked up my glove and took the field with my team. Next time I'll have to make him really work. Try his best to get me out. I'll make his pitch count soar so they'll want to sit him down. He's been too dominant against everyone on my team except for Garret. 

I looked at Garret on the mound. He was warming up with the same seriousness he had in the first inning. Even though he was giving Dave a hard time in the dugout, once he was on the mound he was completely focused.