When The Spruce Tree Squirrels Played For The Pennant
A bear cub and a cat were standing together around the chain-link fence that defined the home run line of the iconic Fenceway Park Baseball Stadium. The two friends were watching the championship game between their hometown Spruce Tree Squirrels and their most hated rival the Crow Street Crows.
The Spruce Tree Squirrels had just completed an amazing season. After a slow start, making it to the championship game seemed nearly out of the question but here they were, final game of the year, for all the marbles. The bear cub and the cat were on the edge of their seats...
Bottom of the Ninth. 2 outs. Runners on 1st and 3rd.
The series was tied 3-3.
The Crow Street Crows were clinging to a tight 2 run lead and the Spruce Tree Squirrels had the last at-bat.
The stadium was tense and electric as Marty Masotani Jr, the bear cub and the cat's favorite player, and the MVP of the league, made his way to the batter’s box.
The bear cub and the cat grew up together playing little league baseball in their neighborhood ever since they were both new to this world. They had bonded early on because during their little league games both the cat and the bear recognized in each other a determination and commitment to the game of baseball that their other teammates just never seemed to
"STEEEEE-RIKE!"
Yelled the umpire. The bear cub and the cat tensed up. Marty was a great hitter, but he watched that one go right by him. Right down the middle. No worries though! Both the bear cub and the cat exhaled, looked at each other reassuringly, then yelled some cheers and support to their hero:
"You got this Marty!" Yelled the bear cub.
"The game is as good as won Marty! Knock it out of the park!" The cat added.
Then, the entire stadium went quiet as the Crows pitcher wound up for his next pitch. The bear cub and the cat could hardly contain themselves. They felt the hope and the yearning for Marty to come through and hit a home run in the pit of their stomachs. The action stood still in a calm moment and before they knew it the moment wasn't calm anymore, it was happening again
The pitcher has gone into his stance
He looks off the runner at first
He goes into his windup
The pitch is on its way
The ball slices through the air - it's destination certain to be the catcher's glove unless Mighty Marty has something to say about it.
And he does, he sure does, Marty takes a massive swing and
CRACK
The sound of leather colliding with wood at the right speed has the effect of sucking the air out of the lungs of every spectator in the stadium. This humid and warm summer night felt like it was put on pause for a moment, as the ball flies up and away, through the air, making its way to the fence. Taking forever.
The bear cub and the cat are transfixed, tracking the trajectory of the ball nanosecond by nanosecond. They sense their bodies involuntarily leaning to the left. Some magnetic invisible force, pulling their bodies to the left, as far left as they can go, as they watch the ball inching dangerously close to the foul pole in right field. With the knowledge of very basic physics the boys knew for certain that leaning very hard to the left would counterbalance the forces in the air just enough to help keep the ball in fair territory. They leaned with all their might.
The ball crossed the fence. The boys, the stadium, the forest, all ready to explode with cheers and
"FOUL!"
Yelled the umpire.
A wave is an inanimate object that moves with a force of its own generation. It cannot be stopped, it cannot be diverted and it cannot be silenced. The wave of "Booo's" sent in the direction of the umpire at that moment was unstoppable. It was fierce. It was vicious and it hurt the umpire's feelings. The umpire went to his grave contending that he was not phased by the boo's but in his most honest moments with friends and family he confided in them that even though he stood by the call, he never wanted to disappoint so many people at once ever again.
The bear cub and the cat were crestfallen. They looked at each other with such excitement and such despair. This was it. Either pure elation or certain doom comes next. Marty was behind in the count. He was the bear cub's favorite hitter, maybe of all time, but this was the championship. Nerves can get to anyone. The count is 0-2... Yikes. It's a pitcher's dream. The closer for the Crows was in charge now.
The pitcher stood tall on the mound. He looked down his long beak at the catcher. He shakes off the first signal. The bear cub and the cat can hardly stand it.
The next signal suits the pitcher just fine. The pitcher didn't look at anyone or anything other than the glove he was throwing to. Yet, every spectator in that stadium could have sworn they saw that pitcher, that bum, turn directly to them and smirk. Taunting.
He winds up. The bear cub and the cat's hearts stop.
The sound falls out of the stadium once again as Marty winds up to take a swing. No matter what the game ends here.
Marty makes contact. No one moves. All eyes in the stadium now tracking the trajectory of the ball as it leaves Marty's bat, unsure of where the ball's journey will end.
Like the sparkle of a wick when a firecracker is lit, the ball made its way across the sky. Burning in a long arcing parabola, the ball raced through the stadium hoping to deliver the spark that would ignite the firecracker. Ignite the celebration. That spark that would win the game. That would give the Squirrels the championship. That would give the bear cub and the cat a memory that would last them till the end of their days.
As soon as the ball landed, the stadium erupted. It was a home run. All that was left was the celebration. And it happens. The whole stadium goes crazy. Fenceway Park has never been louder.
The bear cub and the cat are jumping up and down. It's involuntary. This, being the biggest moment of the bear cub and the cat's lives up to this point. The Squirrels won the championship. They were there. They watched the greatest player in the history of baseball, become the greatest player in the history of baseball. They loved this game. They were never, for the rest of their lives, never, not going to love this game.
They high five strangers, they hug each other, they hug strangers. Marty trots around the bases and the fans start spilling on to the field. It was a madhouse. Players were carried off by the hometown crowd. Celebrations went on well into the night and for days thereafter.
The bear and the cat kept in touch throughout high school. Often folks would ask them to tell of the night that Mighty Marty won the pennant. The bear cub and the cat loved telling the story together. They did so till the day they both graduated and said goodbye to each other for the last time. They never tired of telling the story to anyone who asked or was willing to listen.
When they went their separate ways each kept their half of the story alive. Retelling their experience to strangers anytime they asked what it was like to watch one of the greats. Neither got tired of telling the story, each time their appreciation for that moment in their lives deepened. It was how the two stayed in touch. They never called, they never saw each other after high school. But still, each time either one told the story, it was like they were together as friends for their whole lives.
*A wave is a disturbance (change from equilibrium) of one or more fields such that the field values oscillate repeatedly about a stable equilibrium (resting) value. My apologies for the description that was offered above. Sometimes one can get caught up in the moment and is liable to just make things up