At some point, Coach Brown had given up on the game. Instead of bringing in Ken for the closing innings, he had decided to save him for the following match where they would have to fight tooth and nail to succeed.
As the game progressed, he could truly see the difference between the two teams. He had originally thought that Steve would be able to match Leo behind the plate, but the latter had been far better than he had expected.
While Steve seemed to have an instinctive feel for the zone, Leo was methodical. Every pitch he called for served a purpose, slowly coiling around the batter until they suffocated under the pressure.
The game also showed the difference between their pitchers. The Crocs were truly blessed with an abundance of great pitchers, all conditioned to throw accurately following Leo's leads.
Across the 3 pitchers who took part in today's game, the Bobcats were only able to secure 5 hits over the 9 innings. This was a record low for them, something that the coach had not seen ever since taking the position of head coach 2 years ago.
So he walked into the meeting room feeling at a loss. The players had showered and gathered after the match, ready to hear him speak. There were many things that Coach Brown could pinpoint as the reason for their loss, but the ultimate reason was because of a single player, Leo.
Coach Brown stood in front of the group silently for a while, his gaze moving over the team slowly. He could see their downcast expressions and feel the depressed atmosphere. This was probably the worst loss they'd experienced at this school.
It was one of those losses where a player would question if their team was actually decent or not.
Brett Brown let out a deep sigh before bringing both his hands up and slapping the sides of his face loudly.
SLAP!
The act got the attention of everyone in the room and they stared at the man with shock, not expecting such an action. However, it was effective in shifting the mood.
"Alright! Enough of this moping around." He said, his cheeks stinging from the loud slap. "I want us to not dwell on that last game, we need to look towards the future. Think of tomorrow's game as a single elimination, it is a must win. We have the right players and the skills necessary to succeed, we just need to believe and execute."
"Ken, you'll be starting the pitching tomorrow. You'll be in for 7 innings, so I need you to pace yourself. No wasted pitches and no risks, we need to keep their batting line up at bay." He said, pointing to Ken and Steve who were sitting next to each other.
"Yes sir." The two echoed back in response.
"As for scoring our own runs, we need to go back to the basics. We only had 5 hits last match, we are much better than this. Your top priority should be getting onto base in whatever way you can. Trust your teammates to send you home." He said, his voice getting louder and more passionate.
Slowly the atmosphere began to turn from gloomy into something more positive.
"I'm talking bunts, walks, hit by pitch, steals, whatever we can do to get onto base and get into a scoring position. We have worked hard all season to get here, I don't want to look back on this moment and regret that we did not try our best."
"Are you with me!?" His voice boomed.
"Yes sir!"
"I SAID, ARE YOU WITH ME?"
There was a tingle in the air, stoking their camaraderie.
"YES SIR!"
"Good! I want us all to rest for the remainder of the day. I need you in top shape tomorrow's game." Coach Brown finished, turning on his heel on his way to the door.
"Coach, aren't we watching film today?" Ken called out in question. Usually they would review their game and talk over points of improvement for the team.
Coach Brown stopped on the spot and turned. "I have no desire to watch a game where we lost so badly. I've already told you what we need to do tomorrow, if you want to study the film you can do it in your own time."
With that he walked out of the room, leaving the team in a state of incredulity.
Steve laughed loudly, breaking the silence, "He's right. Why would I want to watch a game where we got crushed?"
A few chuckles rang out in response. Somehow, the coach's odd actions had made them far less depressed than before. He had not minced words, nor had he fed them lies about their bad game.
While it might not have been conventional, it seemed to work.
"Well, you heard the coach. Get plenty of rest today." Ken stood up and said, addressing the team. "If I see any of you awake after 9pm tonight I'll be banging on your door at 5am for a morning run."
A few groans rang out in response but Ken ignored them, letting out a small chuckle. The mood had improved so he felt good enough to leave everyone to their own devices.
Once he left the meeting room, he pulled out his phone and saw a message from Latrell, wanting to meet up for some dinner tonight.
"You gonna come out tonight and meet up with Latrell?" Ken asked Steve in the lobby.
"You paying?" He asked with a cheeky smile.
Ken rolled his eyes, "Dude, I hope you know that you'll need to pay me back in the future. I already have an itemized account of everything that you owe me."
"Eh?" Steve was taken aback, "How much do I owe so far?"
Ken told him to wait a moment before opening his phone and finding a document. "At the moment its $5,138.52"
"EHHHH!? That much?" Steve's jaw dropped, almost not believing the words.
"Surely there must be a mistake…" he said, a cold sweat forming on his back.