Paper Marlin: My First Game

Fish are supposed to like water, but the Marlins are “Fish on land” and we don’t particularly enjoy being wet.  Still, the game was played despite a steady drizzle and a continual chilly breeze.  The Marlins showed their mettle in a 5-3 win last night to bring “our” record to 2-0 on the young season.

Because I was in Las Vegas, I missed our first game.  With only one practice under my belt, I figured I would not see any game action last night, but I was excited to take the next step in my journey as a “Paper Marlin.”

I arrived early and was warmly greeted by my teammates and Coach Lou, Coach Harry and Coach Bill.  Coach Lou put me at catcher for some infielder drills.  Basically, each infielder took a turn at fielding a grounder and throwing it home.  After a couple rounds, I got the timing down and did okay.  The infielders all handled their end flawlessly.

When Coach Lou posted the lineup, as expected, I found myself listed as a DNP-CD (Did Not Play-Coach’s Decision).  A couple of my teammates gave me cheerful taps as shows of support.

Christopher (our starting pitcher) held the opposition scoreless in the first.  Niko doubled in two runs to start our scoring.  We later added 3 more runs.  Behind the solid pitching of Christopher, Phil and Andrew, the Marlins took a 5-3 victory.

The real fun was the inside baseball stuff I witnessed.  Throughout the game, I saw the coaches work with players on fielding, batting and base running.  The coaches worked with each pitcher on reading signs and executing pickoff moves.  Situational defense was planned, including who backs up each play.

The players were attentive and the coaches were patient.  Then I saw several of the plays unfold during the game.  Some worked and some were not quite right, but the players all hustled and the plays all showed promise.

I did not just cheer from the bench though.  I warmed up our right fielder every inning.  Coach Lou talked to me about coaching first base.  I think that might happen in the next game.

Unfortunately, I will have to miss our next game and practice as I will be in New York.  After that trip though, it is time to get serious in my Paper Marlin journey.  I am sure my Marlins teammates will do fine.  They are a great bunch of boys with the right attitude and excellent coaches behind them.