The middle of March means that I am smack in the middle of spring training. I've had an oppurtunity to pitch against competition twice. My first apperance went great against AA competition. I was confident and executed my game plan the way I wanted to. This was approx. 10 days ago. In the days that followed, I was given the oppurtunity to be in the bullpen for 2 big league spring training games. Many times, minor leaguers are sent with the big league team to "back up" the schedule pitchers in case one of them gets in trouble. I wasn't fortunate to get into either game, but the chance to rub shoulders with the guys that are already where I want to be is almost as valuable. Unfortunately, this pushed my next apperance in actual game back almost a full week. For a pitcher, it is necessary to be able to adjust to changes in the daily routine. In my case this time, I fel t a bit rusty on the mound as well as apprehensive because I was pitching in the AAA game. It didn't go quite as well as my first outting, but there were still some positives to be taken. Although I gave up a few runs, I minimized the damaged and made an adjustment during the inning to correct the problems I was experiencing. This was 2 days ago and I will get another apperance tomorrow in the AA game. I am excited to throw again, but also looking forward to having a better outting this time. Of course, if the outting isn't perfect, it won't be the end of the world. It is, after all, spring training and an opportunity to work on things to get better. None the less, I am competitive and ready to go after the hitters I face.
On another note, my boss from the painting company back home came out to AZ to watch me play some. It was a welcome break from the repitition and "groundhogs day feel" of spring training even if it meant adjusting my routine for a few days. I guess its a bit of a catch 22. While its nice to get a chance to see a familiar face and get out of the hotel for a while, it requires a little extra effort to accomodate some one else for a bit.
Another minor inconsistency has been the failure of my equipment company and agent of getting my equipment to me in a timely fashion. In fact, I still don't have any of the stuff I ordered. I don't know what exactly the hold up is, but it has become a bit of an extra concern that all of the equipment I was supposed to have waiting for me by the beginning of spring training has not yet shown. I've been using stuff that I brought myself from home. Despite this being the case, I've refuse to allow it to bother me much because I still have the responsibility to pitch whether or not I have new equipment.
There's less than 2 weeks left in Spring Training. I and everyone else will know where they will be playing baseball this season by March 29th.
Stay tuned.
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