JP on the Hill

Yesterday, I was lucky enough to arrange my schedule such that I could watch JP's second middle school baseball game of the season, against, Brentwood Middle School.  I missed his first game the day before because a mediation went longer than I had hoped.

I knew JP was scheduled to start at pitcher, which was another reason I really wanted to be there.  He pitched well in the fall and I was excited to see how he looked on the mount this spring.  As a bonus, I took my longtime friend and 80 year old mentor Ed Silva, to the game.  He was to be a guest lecturer in the family law trial practice class I am co-teaching at Nashville School of Law, so I had agreed to give him a ride to and from his office in Franklin.  It worked out that I drove him to the game and he watched it with me which, honestly, was pretty special.

JP looked great pitching.  He breezed through the first three innings - no hits, no walks, and two strikeouts.  In the fourth inning, the leadoff hitter - a lefty - laid down a nifty bunt on the third baseline.  JP pounced on it and fired a throw to first that got away from him and sailed into right field, which left runners at first and third with one out.  He struck the next batter out.  With two outs, the runner on first stole second and an execution mistake on what was supposed to be a fake throw down to second base allowed a run to score.  The next batter grounded out to shortstop and the inning ended.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, JP led off with a booming double to right field, well over the right fielder's head.  Later in the inning, JP scored the first run of the game for MBA.  

He walked the leadoff hitter in the top of the fifth inning, then gave up a single to left center field on an 0-2 count, as he left a fastball too far out over the plate.  Coach Martin pulled him at that point, which I appreciated, as he was at 59 pitches or so.  There was no need to go too deep in the pitch count in the second game of the season, for sure.  BMS scratched out a run and led 2-1.

I had to leave before the last inning, when MBA rallied.  They had runners at second and third base but couldn't plate the typing run in the bottom of the seventh inning and lost, 2-1.  

It was cool - really cool, actually - to watch JP on the mound, in control the entire time.  He covered first base, twice, on ground balls to the right side.  He also made a nice play on a hard hit ground ball right up the middle.  He had good command, although he didn't throw his curve ball a lot.  He located his fast ball and felt like the other team was having a hard time catching up with it, so he kept throwing it.

It's going to be a fun season of baseball, at school and this summer with HBC.