Big League Dreams Ch. 02

I wondered if I was getting traded, which I wasn't really interested in, because the organization had been good to me, and I was comfortable. On the other hand, it also would mean that another team wanted me, and maybe there'd be a better route to the show. Still, the unknown made me nervous.

Steve motioned to the dugout bench next to him. He was smiling, so I figured things must be O.K.

"Ray, I just got the word that they want you up at AA." He shook my hand. "Congratulations. You deserve it." There'll be a plane ticket here for you in the morning, but you aren't pitching tonight. You can go home now, if you want."

Double A, I thought. That's a big step, bigger than it sounds, actually. I was excited about the news, and that I wasn't traded. "No, Steve, I'll stay, cheer on the team, and say good bye after."

He nodded. "I think that's the right call, Ray."

I got up and moved over to sit next to Al. "Thanks, Al, for your help."

He clapped me on the back. "You deserve it, kid. You found the pitch, thanks to those kids, and figured it out." I nodded, and he continued. "You're getting a chance here. Don't fuck it up."

We won the game, and afterwards, I told the guys my news, which led to congratulations, and a couple or more post game beers, although I was careful not to overdo it—showing up at the new team hungover would not help me any.

When I got back to the apartment, Nicole was waiting. She took the news of my imminent departure calmly, as I expected, but gave me a memorable last night together that left me a little sore in the morning.

The next morning, I told the Pullmans that I was heading north to AA, and when they offered to hold the apartment empty for me, I told them that would be bad luck, and they recognized the superstitious nature of ballplayers. Allison seemed disappointed, and insisted that we follow each other on Instagram. I did, although I rarely looked at it, and most of the people I followed were high school and college classmates and a handful of ballplayers.

With my baseball career at its highest point, I felt amazing as I packed up the old Buick and pointed it north. As I drove, I focused on the fact that AA was where players with potential were weeded out, and the ones who succeeded often only spent a short time at AAA before getting their shot in the major leagues. But it's also where many promising careers fizzle out. I was facing a challenge, and I hoped that Allison and Will's changeup would allow me to meet it, despite my physical deficiencies. But I realized that with these deficiencies I'd made it further already than anyone believed possible, including myself, if I was being honest.

*

Like most players working their way up the minor league ladder, I had to adjust when I started at AA. It was great seeing a bunch of the guys who I had won the league with the previous year again, but there was an edge to everyone, probably because we were all getting close to the crossroads, and we knew that not everyone would make it to the show, and the big money. Still, we were a team, and like the prior year, I eventually found my role and became one of the guys.

It was a tough season, because despite the talent on the team, we fell short of a playoff spot. I was a contributor to our late run, but it wasn't enough, and this group was not used to failure. Focused as I was on keeping my head above water and trying for the post season, I had mostly forgotten the Pullmans and their incredible hospitality, although Allison occasionally sent me congratulatory messages on Instagram, and I did see her and Will's prom pictures, and that she had been accepted at Clemson for college. She had turned into an attractive young woman, and I hoped that she enjoyed college.

I continued to work on my craft, focusing on varying the movement on my changeup, and started the next season as the closer on the AA team. I dated a few women and slept with a couple, but it was very casual all around. Late that season I was called up to AAA, one step closer to the big leagues, and certainly further than anyone ever expected of me. I spent the rest of the season in the small city that hosted our team. AAA was tough—there were a lot of guys with major league service, some on their way up, others on their way down, and it took a lot of mental toughness for me to get them out with my middling fast ball and breaking stuff, but my changeup was able to fool AAA hitters more often than not. I learned to use my other pitches to set up the change, and my statistics showed that I actually threw very few strikes, but lots of pitches that were close enough for most of the opposing hitters to chase.