Switching Gears

1

Steven got up out of bed bright and early like always, but something wasn't right. He just couldn't figure it out. It got even more odd when he open his closet to find multiple shirts with Rays Baseball on them.

I don't remember having this many Rays shirts, Steven thought as he ran his fingers through the numerous Dri-Fit type shirts he'd wear under his pads. He passed one non-rays outfit: a simple grey shirt with jeans. Steven sighed and put it on, not wanting to know what would happen if he put one of the Rays shirts on.

Steven later opened the curtains covering his balcony door to see nothing other than the sun rising over downtown St. Petersburg. This definitely wasn't the skyline he was used to seeing.

"Am I seeing things?" he muttered, rubbing his eyes. Downtown St. Petersburg still stood in front of him. Glancing down to the small table on the balcony, he saw a Rays hat like the ones the actual Rays wore. He slid open the door and picked up the hat to have a startling vision of himself in a Rays jersey, throwing a strike to a shadowy batter. Steven dropped the hat to come right back to his balcony. What was that?  thought Steven, his mind swimming in confusion.

He paused for a second and then walked back inside, hat in hand, not giving him creepy visions. He placed it carefully on the kitchen table, and then wandered back into his bedroom.  Steven glanced over at his phone sitting on the bedside table. He grabbed it and went to the team's group chat, stared at it for a moment, and typed out "team meeting. Here, and now."

"But it's so earlyyyy!" Vladdy texted back a few minutes later. Soon other replies like that and a few "fine" 's followed.

Later on, the team came in, one by one, or sometimes in pairs, into Steven's "new" apartment.

"You all probably know why I called a team meeting." Steven started, nodding over to the hat in the middle of the table, "And I hope I'm not the only one who had a weird vision when they first touched their hat."

He glanced around to see everyone nodding in agreement.

"So what are you saying we're going to do about it?" Ondrej asked.

"I don't know, but if the Rays- or us -play today we go to the field and see what happens." Steven said with a sigh.

Phone in hand, Tyler spoke up and said,"We play today- and against the Toronto Blue Jays."

"Well isn't that just great." Ryan replied. A few collective sighs and noises of disappointment followed.

"But what if those visions are showing us what we're going to do, if we are now the Rays?" Victor asked after a few moments of silence, "We all had different visions, did we not?"

Everyone nodded. "So you're saying I'm going to pitch?" asked Andrei quietly from the far end of the room.

"Along with me." Steven added.

"And me." Peter continued.

"I'm pitching too." added Ondrej.

"I pitch too." Nikita added in his rough Russian accent.

"Anyone else?" Asked Steven, looking around the now quiet room. Everyone shook their heads in response.

"Well now we know who's pitching, but what about the others, and if we even can do these things successfully- let alone at the major league level?" asked Ondrej quietly.

"We all have seen our fair share of adversity. I can say with full confidence that even this won't set us back." Steven replied flatly.

"But we haven't switched sports before! Let alone without any notice other than our clothing and these hats!" Alex shouted, "You're crazy if you believe yourself, Steven."

"Alex-" Steven started.

"I don't wanna hear it!" Alex shouted back.

"Look- you played your position well in your vision, right?" Steven asked in a calm voice.

Alex paused and said in a much more mellow voice," I did."

"Then that's enough for me to believe this team can pull something off." Steven replied, "The time of when we should all be at the rin- field- is on your phones. Team meeting is dismissed."

Everyone filed out of Steven's apartment, except for Vladdy, who sat and waited until everyone cleared out.

"Is there something you need, Vladdy?" Steven asked once it was just the two of them in the main room.

"Yzerman called on my way here. He said that Bettman was responsible for all of this." Vladdy replied.

Steven sighed in return and said," I wouldn't expect anyone else," he paused and continued,"Does he know much about where and why?"

Vladdy huffed and replied,"No. His memory was fogged this morning, and he doesn't remember much from last night. He also said just to tell you, and nobody else. Not even Heddy."

"Why? I feel like that's pretty valuable information there." Steven asked.

"Bettman mentioned if he said anything, 'his days as a GM would be over'" Vladdy continued quietly.

"Well isn't that just pleasant?" Steven added with a nervous laugh.

Vladdy's face suddenly hardened, his fist clenching by his side.

"Vladdy?" Steven asked.

"We're going to find Bettman and make things right." He replied after a long pause.

"You can't just go up to Toronto and take him on by yourself. Him and his minions will crush you! If you're going, you're not going alone." Steven continued, nearly frantic.

Vladdy turned from the wall to his friend and mumbled,"Watch me." He turned started for the door when Steven got up and put a strong hand on his arm.

"We do this together or we don't do this at all. That's an order." Steven said, looking straight at Vladdy.

His face softened and said,"Fine. See you at the field."