For the last three years, Little League baseball has become a rite of spring for the Matsumoto family. Saturdays and weekday evenings have been spent down at the ballfields either playing or coaching. Both boys have enjoyed some big hits, made wonderful friends, and consumed too many overpriced ring pops from the snack bar.
This season, though, presented a couple changes in our usual baseball routine. For starters, Jenni and I decided to coach Ryan’s team together. (Go Thunder!) While we have both coached other teams and other sports, this would be the first time we would be on the same staff. Secondly, Chase did not play baseball this year. Even though he has a sweet lefty swing, it was time for him to take a break from team sports. These two changes in combination, presented an interesting challenge for the our family: if three Matsumotos are heavily involved with practices and games, what is the fourth Matsumoto to do?
As we headed to our first practice, Ryan carried his baseball bag and Chase carried his “survival kit.” Jenni had filled Chase’s old baseball backpack with books, walkie talkies, crayons, sandwiches, and juice boxes. Short of some touch screen electronics, everything an eight year old boy could want for a couple of hours. (In case you didn’t know, my wife comes from a strong Boy Scouting family and takes “be prepared” very seriously.) With the exception of the walkie-talkies failing, the survival kit was a huge success. Chase ate his snacks, read his books, and played with some of the younger siblings hanging around practice.
Prior to opening day, we had a long talk with Chase about Ryan’s games. Both mom and dad would be in the dugout; it would be his job to manage himself. Again, the survival kit would be deployed. If he needed adult help, his grandparents would be in the stands along with some of our friends who we identified for him. Admittedly, Chase has some work to do on remembering names. I would ask him who he talked to during the game and would reply, “The mom who keeps score” or “The lady with sunglasses.” Networking shortcomings aside, games would be a test for Chase—a couple hours of independence.
Just like his older brother, while Chase was good at practice, he was even better for games. In my best possible coach-speak, Chase really “stepped up” this year and “knocked it out of the park.” Cliches aside, Jenni and I are tremendously proud of how Chase conducted himself on the sidelines this year. Only one or two times did Jenni or I need to come off the field to attend to a problem Chase was having. I think he had very few problems because he was too busy charming the pants off everyone. Anecdotal evidence you ask for? Of course.
Jenni and I figured that the more invested Chase was in the team, the more he might pay attention. So we printed out a Thunder roster with the players’ names and numbers. So game one, Chase is sitting in the stands. He exchanges pleasantries with a mother. Once she is settled, Chase slides up to her, roster in hand and inquires, “So, which player is your son?” And our little baseball ambassador was off and running.
Our catcher’s mother told me that Chase’s first words to her were, “Did you know there’s three types of people: Introverts, Extroverts, and Controverts? Guess which type of person I am?” Chase likes to open conversions with “Did you know…” and hearing this story made me think of Chase in the Jonathan Lipnicki role from Jerry Maquire; “Did you know the human head weighs 8 pounds?’
At some point during spring, Chase developed an interest in the periodic table. We purchased him a book on the subject that included a fold-out poster. One afternoon, as we packed up for the ball fields, I tried to convince Chase that the poster should stay at home so it doesn’t get ruined. I ultimately lost that argument because Chase needed to talk about bromide to the The Lady With Sunglasses. Sure, there were plenty of fidget spinners in the stands this season, but how many kids could identify the noble gas group of the periodic table? Our team was made of an terrific group of families and it’s touching that almost every parent in the stands has a Chase story. Whether it’s of the mother’s buying him candy because he’s so cute or debating with another father over whether candy is better now or thirty years ago, it seems like Chase made an impression on everyone. There was even a grandmother on another team that loved sitting next to Chase because he could carry on his end of a conversation about baseball or chemistry.
All in all, it was an amazing season. The Thunder made it to championship game and while we didn’t win the boys performed very well. After the game, Chase gave me a big hug and we consoled each other. Ryan had an great year and found a competitive spark I didn’t know he had. Jenni was our designated coach pitcher and received a round of cheers whenever she came on the field. Of all the teams I’ll be a part of, the Matsumotos are my favorite.
It probably won’t surprise you that within the mission statement of Little League is to “…develop superior citizens rather than superior athletes.” What is surprising is that Little League did that for Chase without him even putting on a glove.
