Dodgers Forever

It makes me sad sometimes, for Joe and for me, that I wasn't able to put together a cohesive group of parents and boys so that the Junior Dodgers (a.k.a. Joe's Dodgers) could have the same extended run that JP's Dodgers had.  Some of my best, most memorable, days coaching JP's Dodgers were after the boys turned 10 and 11, when they really began to learn the game of baseball and experience success.  

My original group of Junior Dodgers had multiple brothers of boys on the Dodgers, which meant I was dealing with parents I knew and, hopefully, dads who could help me coach over the long haul, much as Chris, Randy, Will, and Tony did with JP's Dodgers.  It wasn't to be, though, as a few of the little brothers weren't as into baseball as the big brothers and the dads weren't interested in committing the time and energy necessary to build and sustain the group.  A few of the younger boys quit baseball early on or drifted away to other leagues.

What I learned, though, is that you can't replicate in a Petri dish something that formed organically and grew on its own into a living, breathing entity.  It took me a while to realize that but there it is.

I also learned that with JP's Dodgers, I was fortunate enough to catch lightning in a bottle.  The right families, the right boys, the right coaches.  It all just fit, organically (there's that word again), and it was a beautiful thing while it lasted.  It's still a beautiful thing in my memory.

Last weekend, JP was playing in a tournament for HBC's 15U team at Shelby Park at the same time Wes and Benton were playing for HBC's 16U team, also at Shelby Park.  Later, JK arrived with his dad, Randy, as he was playing for a different travel team (the Redbirds).  The fields were side-by-side and on a beautiful fall morning, I walked back and forth between games, talking to Chris, Will (and Eileen), and Randy.  

We reminisced about days gone by and Dodgers' games played in the distant past.  It was special.  Wes hit a walkoff home run over the left field fence to win his game - a shot that probably traveled 340' - and I smiled with pride and joy as Chris told me the story after the game, holding the home run ball in his hands.  

Wes was the first Dodgers' player to hit a home run, year ago, in Donelson, on the 11U all-star team that won the Cal Ripken State Championship.  We lost that game in Donelson to older boys, 12 - 1, but our players were ecstatic about the home run Wes hit to deep center field.  

The point of this post, though, is how much I've enjoyed coaching Joe this fall.  It's different being the head coach compared to being an assistant coach.  Different for me and different for Joe.  I coasted a bit though the years Joe played for Oliver Davis and the D-backs.  Although I was an assistant coach and ran things in game when Oliver was absent, it's different being the head coach.  I missed it.  Those were fun days, to be sure, and it was a close knit group of families in the early days.  Still, I missed two years of running my own team.

As Joe and I drove to Gallatin for his HBC game after the Dodgers' finale last Saturday afternoon, we listened to music as we often do when we're driving together.  We share a love for music.  Always have.  We talked about the game and the Dodgers' win but for the most part, we rode in a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company and our time together on a busy sports Saturday.

At one point, Joe reached up and paused the music, which was unusual.  I looked at him curiously.  He took a second then looked over at me from them passenger seat with tears in his eyes.  Tears of happiness and a little sadness but mostly nostalgia, I think.

"Thanks for coaching me this fall, Dad," he said.  His voice broke a little as he continued.  "This fall has been my favorite season playing baseball."  

I smiled.  "Why is that?"

"Just the team, all of the guys from the Dodgers, the Braves, and D-backs.  It's such a great group and we've had so much fun.  Mostly, it's because you were my head coach again."

If I could have stopped time, I would have.  That moment.  That conversation with Joe.  It meant everything to me. 

It very well might have been my favorite season coaching baseball. 

Dodgers Forever.