Brian sped around around first base and slid his way onto second with great speed before the throw made it back into the infield. He rose to his feet and dusted himself off before sending a thumbs up to Ken with a grin.
"Nice Brian!" The dugout yelled and celebrated the good hit.
"Batting 3rd, Ken Takagi."
Ken stepped up to the batters box with a small smile on his face and went through his ritual of tapping home plate and the end of his cleats. This time he ignored Leo. He needed to focus on the pitcher and stop worrying about what kind of leads would come his way.
He turned to the coach to see if he had any instructions for him, but there was nothing.
'We need to secure a run no matter what.' Ken thought, his eyes moving to Brian on 2nd. He made a small gesture with his left hand below his waist, pointing to 3rd. This was something they'd come up with beforehand.
Brian nodded and casually took a lead from 2nd base, his eyes focused on the pitcher.
Leo had one of the fastest arms behind the plate, so stealing a base, particularly 3rd was quite risky. However, Ken had a plan in mind.
The pitcher entered his wind up and a fastball came towards the outside. At the same time, Brian took off running without hesitation. His head was down and he sprinted with all his might.
WHOOOOSH
PAH
Ken swung the bat, purposefully missing the ball and positioning his body in the path between home and 3rd base in an attempt to block Leo's view. Yet what he didn't expect was for the guy to move forward towards the pitcher while catching the ball.
With an athletic move, Leo easily avoided Ken and performed a throw in motion towards 3rd base.
'Crap!'
Ken watched on nervously as Brian raced against the oncoming ball with all of his might. It was neck and neck the entire time, and even when Brian slid along the ground and touched the bag, the glove came down at the same time.
Everyone looked towards the umpire in question, waiting for his verdict.
"Safe!"
"What!?" Trent on 3rd base called out in disbelief.
Ken breathed a sigh of relief after hearing the call. He heard the dugout whoop and holler out with glee and couldn't help but smile. The call could have gone either way, but he was glad that it ended well.
He saw Leo wordlessly return to his spot behind the plate, seemingly unaffected by the outcome. It was this kind of attitude that allowed him to perform consistently during games.
Ken glanced towards the pitcher who looked to be a little annoyed still. 'I guess not everyone can be as unfeeling as Leo.' He thought with some amusement.
However, he changed gears in the next moment. Usually he might consider going for a bunt in this situation, but it would make more sense to go for a big hit. If he hit it short, it should be a fly-ball and allow Brian to tag up for an easy run.
If it carried enough and he hit a home run, they'd find themselves up 2 runs in the first inning.
'Go big or go home…' Ken thought, adjusting the grip on his bat slightly.
The pitcher nodded his head and got into position, lifting his leg and taking a long stride from the mound. His arm whipped past his head and sent the ball from his fingertips.
Ken's eyes narrowed and he calculated the trajectory of the ball as well as he could.
WHOOOOOSH
THWACK
Ken smacked the ball hard, hearing the sweet sound of the pitch striking the barrel of his bat. It flew out into right field and did not look like it would ever stop.
With his eyes locked onto the ball, Ken willed with all his heart that it would go over the fence. He tossed his bat gently onto the ground and made his way to first base. By the time he arrived it was already set in stone.
PAH
Cheers rang out from the dugout, but many of the crowd did not applaud. Michael held up the home run ball securely in his glove and shouted with glee.
"YEAHHH!!"
He and Latrell were one of the only one's who rooted for Ken in the audience, but they didn't let that stop them. Ken pointed towards them as he rounded first base unable to hide the grin on his face.
Ken continued around all the bases and arrived to see a smiling Brian at home plate, waiting for him. He made sure to stand on the plate before the guy jumped and latched on to him like a monkey.
Suddenly Steve's reference about Brian being an Orangutan came into his mind, causing him to let out a peel of laughter. In good spirits, he headed back towards the dugout only to see the coach waiting for him with sparkling eyes.
"Nice hit! I never doubted you for a second." Coach Brown said slapping him on the back.
"Thanks coach." Ken replied lamely.
Once he went down the stairs to the dugout, he received even more congratulations from his teammates. Besides Steve, Ayden was the most pumped.
"Haha! You should have seen Leo's face when you hit that bomb." He said with enthusiasm.
"What? I doubt that guy would ever react to such a thing." Ken said in disbelief. The Leo he knew would not even dwell on such a thing, especially so early in the game.
"Nah, I swear. His eyebrow twitched when it happened." Ayden assured him.
Kaden slapped his brother on the back, "How could you even see it from here? The guy had his face mask on as well. I think you're just talking out your ass."
Ken ignored the brothers and pat Steve on the shoulder who was about to head on deck. "Be patient and pick your shot. You got this."
Steve nodded, his expression showing that he was locked in. "You know it."