kids and bulldogs

My son never got hooked on the dogs and I think that is a blessing. His mom is super happy because she never liked 'all things bulldog'. Her not 'liking it' is a huge understatement.

A buddy of mine and I were talking dogs and Little League baseball yesterday and he reminded me of a 'kids and bulldogs' story that damn near got me killed. I have told it before, and my memory is slipping and I might miss a detail but the jist of it is still lodged in my head.

We were in Lumberton, NC and at noon the temp hit 99F. It was smoking hot. We had two catchers on our team and the plan was for one to do four inning and the other three, and then flip flop in the second game of the double header. First kid goes out and in the middle of the first or second inning tells his mom he can't do it and she has him pulled. My son moved from second to catcher. It was tied in the 7th and we lost in the 9th. He caught 7 or 8 innings.

When the next game started it was 102F and the coach called on the other kid to catch and he said he was too hot. I told my son he would go back as catcher and for him to go as long as he could and then we would have to figure something out.

He caught 7 more innings that day in the temps over 100F. He was dripping wet with sweat. People soon realized the job he was doing and the heat and his willing to compete.

After the game tons of parents from both teams were congratulating him on sticking it out. Some older guy asks him what's his secret.

Out of the mouths of babes, my 13-year-old son said, "At our house bad things happen if you quit."

I tried not to look at my wife but when I did, her eyes were killing me a thousand times over.

Congrats to the Little League kid with the walk off this year.

S