719 V2 ch191 (1/2)

Inside the dugout, the other freshmen were congratulating Max on getting out of the jam against the upperclassmen. It rubbed me the wrong way that he accepted their congratulations with a grin; not even bothering to give Noah a word of 'thanks'.

”Freshmen.” Noah scoffed under his breath as I put on my helmet.

”Don't bother with someone like that.” Garret said softly as he also got ready to bat.

Noah shook his head. ”I definitely won't. His kind of attitude and lack of skill can only get him so far. I'm fine. I just feel bad for the others who look up to him or think he's good. I even feel bad for Ethan.” He rolled his eyes. ”I just need to forget about it. One more inning to go.”

Garret slapped him on the shoulder. ”Good to see you maturing. Once upon a time, you would have made your snide remarks heard.”

Noah smirked. ”I let my attitude out on the mound. That was enough.”

Garret looked to me. ”Ready?”

I nodded.

We took our bats and headed for the exit.  Joey was still up on the mound, warming up.

I glanced at Garret. ”Are you jealous?”

Garret chuckled. ”Of not pitching more than him? Nah. Not a big deal. It would have been fun, but it's also good not to over do it. I'm not like the twins, who have some work to do on their motions. Just getting along with the catchers is good enough for me.”

Garret was very relaxed.

”I also like playing on the field too.” He explained as he started to stretch. ”Really, as long as I get to play, it's good. I'm grateful not to get benched.” He lightly swung his bat around. ”I'll already have to give it up when I get to the next level. Gotta appreciate every inning I get.”

I stepped away to give him more room to work on his swing. Garret loves baseball as much as Noah does. Just being on the field excites them. Practice, scrimmage, or a game. They'll bring the same intensity and enthusiasm to it all.

I used to think they were crazy, but now I was slowly getting the feel of it. I'm still not excited about running or practicing, but I do like seeing myself improve.

Joey finished warming up and the umpire waved at Garret to step up. Garret went around and got in the lefty's box. Joey was getting tired and showing some fatigue, throwing a few pitches out of the zone. On a 3-0 count, he tried going with a fastball down the middle. Garret didn't waste it, swung and made contact.

The ball flew to left-center field, dropping in the grass and rolling to the fence. Garret sprinted out of the box, rounded first, and made it to second base without needing to slide.

I sighed. Guess I should just be happy to be with Noah and Garret.

Joey was set. He started his motion after agreeing on a pitch. I watched it closely. Two-seamer. Inside. Real inside.

I realized a little too late that the ball was breaking towards me. I did my best to turn inside and took a hit to my left hamstring. I hissed in pain. Joey lost control, but he didn't lose much speed. That hurt.

”You alright, kid?” The umpire was the first one to reach out to me, helping me steady on my right leg as I grasped my left thigh.

”Jake, I've got you!” Noah had reached me next, putting my arm around his shoulders and supporting most of my weight.