BEFORE THE FIRST PITCH

"Before the first pitch" was written by the Royals right handed pitcher Arsene Pinguelo for his grade eleven English class. I hope you enjoy it.

Cold rain descends upon the short grass and dark brown dirt of a baseball diamond. You are leaning against the grey dugout fence, taking part in the usual dugout conversation revolving around baseball when the second out of the inning is made. You pull off your black fleece revealing your grey uniform with Royals stitched across the front in blue. Lifting your right arm to remove the fleece reminded you that you have been pitching in the cold; lifting your arm triggered some pain in your right shoulder, as if someone had poked you with a sharp pencil. The third out is made, the cue for you to walk onto the field, mentally preparing yourself for the continuation of your battle with your opponents. If you had looked around, you might have noticed infielders attempting to avoid puddles as they field ground balls or a player on the bench reviewing the chart, noticing your high pitch count. You may have noticed a number of different things if you were not staring at the white ball with red stitching. The thought of throwing it reminds you of the pain it can cause, every throw being progressively worse until it feels as if an ice pick has been in bedded in your shoulder. The thought of throwing it, also reminds you how rewarding it can be; when you are able to throw a fastball across the corner of the 17 inch plate past the opponent's best hitter, you feel an incomparable rush of exhilaration. You approach the mound smelling a mix of sweat and rainwater, trying to find the balance between aggression and calmness required to pitch effectively. Your spikes sink into the mud of the mound as you stand along the pitcher's rubber that is 24 inches long and 6 inches wide, grip the ball across the seams, and prepare to hurl it through the rain to the catcher 60 feet, 6 inches away.