Walking onto the field, Ken was filled with mixed emotions. He had dreamed of this moment for the past 6 months, yet never in his wildest dreams would he imagine that it would be as the Captain.
Even as he stood atop the mound he could hardly believe how it had all played out. The overwhelming support from the team when he was nominated as Captain had been both surprising and heartwarming.
The older players in the team like Ayden, Kaden and DJ had been the loudest in their support. Some even looked relieved that they had not been given the burden of captaining the team, leading him to question if he had made a mistake.
But as he looked around the field he could see the eyes of his teammates locked onto him. He could feel their trust and their belief in him, making Ken feel warm inside.
'I can't let them down.' He thought, gripping the ball tightly in his right hand. His eyes moved to Steve behind the plate and he felt his confidence surge. With his best friend behind the plate, there was no one in college that he couldn't defeat.
With this belief, he slowly raised his leg and kicked off the pitcher's plate, taking a large stride forward. Dirt kicked up from the ground as his front foot planted, followed by his arm whipping past his face.
PAH!
***
After the scandal had died down, the media moved onto their next big scoop. They had a seemingly short memory, focusing on the juicy drama or relevant events in the area to get their clicks and views.
For much of the season, Columbia flew under the radar, at least in the media's eyes. Perhaps they were neglected due to being in the news for so long, but by the middle of May, the team could no longer be overlooked.
With the new addition of Brian Sweeney, and the emergence of a few others in the team, the Bobcats had clawed their way to 6th in the NCAA Division I rankings and secured a berth in the Regional playoffs for the second year in a row.
"Welcome to ESPN+ the home of College Baseball. The Bobcats are set to face Penn in the Ivy League conference final to decide who takes home the championship. After their heartbreaking loss last season, there's no doubt that they'll come out swinging from the beginning."
The commentator's voice spoke from the TV in Chris and Yuki's lounge as they sat ready to watch the final game. There was a sense of excitement in the house as they prepared to watch their son take the field.
"What do you think will be the deciding factor for today's game?"
"Well Phil, I think the obvious answer is Ken Takagi who has been pitching lights-out for the entire season. If you remember the finals last season, he was suspended and unable to play which ultimately led to the Bobcats surprising loss."
"I agree. But it's not only his pitching that has been lights-out, he's also 5th in total home runs in the division, behind his teammate Stephen Adams who has improved tremendously this season."
"Exactly! Where did this guy even come from? To go from sitting on the bench to leading the division in home runs, just where is Columbia getting these kids from?"
The two chatted back and forth while they waited for the game to start, playing highlights from previous games and talking about the match up.
"I can't believe Steve has improved so much." Chris said, his bewilderment evident.
Yuki giggled, "He's been training with Kenny this whole time, of course he'll get better."
Chris nodded, but inwardly he was skeptical. He had seen Steve play in High School, and while he had some power, he struggled to make contact with the ball. But now, it was as if anything within the strike zone would easily be struck.
'You can't teach that…' He said inwardly.
"Oh! There's Kenny!" Yuki called out, pointing to the screen.
Ken was dressed in the trademark blue uniform for the Bobcats, his tall figure walking out onto the mound. He looked even bigger on the screen.
"Honey he looks nervous…" Yuki said with worry. She had watched Ken play in big matches before in both Koshien and the U18 World Cup and it never got any easier.
"Nervous? Can't you see that devilish grin?" Chris scoffed.
Yuki shook her head, "I've seen him make that face when he's constipated." She replied matter-of-factly, "He's definitely nervous."
Chris rolled his eyes, "I'm more worried for the Penn batters. I remember how crushed Kenny was last season when they lost, he'll want to get payback tonight."
"Shh, it's starting!"
Yuki tensed up as the match began and Ken got into his wind up. The angle changed to behind him and they got to watch the fastball rocket into the top of the strike zone.
PAH
"Sheesh, 101mph on the first pitch. I'd hate to be batting for Penn today Phil."
"You can say that again. Ken is currently leading the division in ERA and strikeouts, will he hold on tonight and do it in back to back consecutive years?"
"If he keeps pitching like this, I don't see why not."
Hearing the commentators praising her son, Yuki smiled sweetly. "I like these guys." She added, cuddling up to her husband.
Chris simply smiled. These were home commentators, so it wasn't out of the ordinary for there to be some bias towards the Bobcats. Though this didn't bother him at all. Who wouldn't like to hear people talk well about their son?
Yuki shouted with glee as Ken took out the first 3 batters in the Penn lineup with ease. She didn't know a lot about baseball, but she knew that getting a strikeout was a good thing.
Chris on the other hand was blown away by not only the leads, but also the pitches. Being a coach himself, he wished that their team had the same level of talent as these two.
'I wonder if we'll get to play each other in the post season…'