Big, Slow People
During the softball tournament my team The Lions put on a hitting clinic.
One guy after another hit a line drive and we hammered the younger, more athletic team that we were playing.
My sons were livid with how it all played out.
"Obviously it's a game that is played better by big, slow people," Matt said.
That's good for a laugh.
"It's about experience," I told them.
For years and years we had played the game, and the mind is a funny thing. The muscle memory experience of having done something over and over and over is always going to beat the guy that's inexperienced at it.
The more you do something the better you get.
We've all heard that through the years.
It's certainly true.
For full disclosure here the opening of the game went like this:
My brother John led it all off with a first pitch home run.
First pitch.
He hammered it over the left-fielders head.
So.
I strolled to the bat hoping that I could hit it further.
I swung and missed. Felt a little like Reggie, I swung so hard.
Then I fouled off two pitches and was called out.
You have to put the third one in play.
Damn!
The hoots and hollers were loud.
But it comes back.
I hit the ball hard every time after that and even hit my own home run...a long shot to center. I didn't even hit the ball that far when I was not so big and not quite as slow.
But what also struck me about the game was the fact that some people are certainly blessed with speed and others are a little slower on the take-off.
I never had foot speed.
"You run like a dump truck," my lightning fast older brother once told me.
He can fly.
His kids can fly.
Jake moves really quickly out of our family.
Sam?
Matt?
They got my speed...poor dopes.
"Can we use a runner for Sam?" Jake asked during the game.
And the thing about experience is that it can sometimes beat youth.
"Did you see the catch Sam made though?" My beautiful wife asked.
Sam is a lefty. He was wearing a right-handed glove.
Long drive to him in the outfield and he made a lunging grab.
Caught the ball in a glove with his off-hand, took the glove off and threw it back to the infield.
Big and slow couldn't have pulled that one off.
But here's a secret for all you young guys...
...big and slow...
...needs a long, long, long rest.
One guy after another hit a line drive and we hammered the younger, more athletic team that we were playing.
My sons were livid with how it all played out.
"Obviously it's a game that is played better by big, slow people," Matt said.
That's good for a laugh.
"It's about experience," I told them.
For years and years we had played the game, and the mind is a funny thing. The muscle memory experience of having done something over and over and over is always going to beat the guy that's inexperienced at it.
The more you do something the better you get.
We've all heard that through the years.
It's certainly true.
For full disclosure here the opening of the game went like this:
My brother John led it all off with a first pitch home run.
First pitch.
He hammered it over the left-fielders head.
So.
I strolled to the bat hoping that I could hit it further.
I swung and missed. Felt a little like Reggie, I swung so hard.
Then I fouled off two pitches and was called out.
You have to put the third one in play.
Damn!
The hoots and hollers were loud.
But it comes back.
I hit the ball hard every time after that and even hit my own home run...a long shot to center. I didn't even hit the ball that far when I was not so big and not quite as slow.
But what also struck me about the game was the fact that some people are certainly blessed with speed and others are a little slower on the take-off.
I never had foot speed.
"You run like a dump truck," my lightning fast older brother once told me.
He can fly.
His kids can fly.
Jake moves really quickly out of our family.
Sam?
Matt?
They got my speed...poor dopes.
"Can we use a runner for Sam?" Jake asked during the game.
And the thing about experience is that it can sometimes beat youth.
"Did you see the catch Sam made though?" My beautiful wife asked.
Sam is a lefty. He was wearing a right-handed glove.
Long drive to him in the outfield and he made a lunging grab.
Caught the ball in a glove with his off-hand, took the glove off and threw it back to the infield.
Big and slow couldn't have pulled that one off.
But here's a secret for all you young guys...
...big and slow...
...needs a long, long, long rest.
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