First and foremost, I have to
acknowledge (for those at the FutureBacks office and everyone else) that my
allegiance lies with the Diamondbacks. I was always a Phillies fan since I grew
up in that area, but now I obviously follow the D-Backs the most. However, I
have to admit that I would certainly love to see the D-Backs vs. the Phillies in
the NLCS and I dream of the day when I can pitch against the Phillies. I can
only imagine that beating the team you grew up watching is a very rewarding
feeling.
I kept busy this past week. In
fact, I had a rather interesting week considering I did two things I’ve never
done before- umpire a baseball game and trap shoot. On Friday night, I umpired
at the little league where Matt Torra and I run that weekly pitching clinic.
They initially asked me to ump behind the plate, but I told them I wanted to do
the field since it was only my first time. I only had to make one difficult
call when the catcher made a valiant attempt to throw out a runner who was
stealing third base. I called the runner safe because he slid under the tag and
I don’t think some of the “little league parents” were happy about that judging
by the faint comments I heard. I think I will have a bit more sympathy for
umpires after this experience. I could only smile at how serious some of the
parents and kids seem to be about the little league game, but I guess it’s all
relative. When I was that age, I thought winning little league games was the
most important thing in the world.
Last week, when Torra and I were
running that pitching clinic, one kid’s dad asked if we would be interested in
going trap and skeet shooting at the shooting range and we thought it would be a
fun thing to do. Thus, on Sunday, I find myself holding a shotgun for the first
time (I’m not much of a hunter or fisher) and shooting clay pigeons as they fly
through the air. I was shocked when I hit the second pigeon I attempted because
I honestly thought I would be lucky to shoot one all day. Matt and I actually
held our own and by the end of the day, we were contemplating pursuing careers
in trap shooting. Obviously not, but we were definitely excited that we hit a
few pigeons.
As for rehab, we are all beginning
to notice that the temperature here in Tucson is slowly rising and approaching
triple-digits. It’s been in the low-to-mid nineties on a daily basis and it
really seems like our running and stretching routines are getting harder, but in
actuality, we are just feeling the heat. I can’t even imagine facing
temperatures from 100 to 110 degrees every single day, but I guess in a few
weeks I won’t have to imagine it. I’m the type of person who enjoys the change
of season. I like 90 degree summers, but I also like chilly falls and snowy
winters. However, during the baseball season, I definitely don’t enjoy pitching
in cold weather, so I actually think this Arizona heat is ideal for baseball.
I hope everyone has a good week as
I’m sure the weather is heating up nationwide. See you next Monday.