I Connick the Terminator

Chapter 40: Sister Rita

Sister Rita

This story was inspired by an event that happened during the 2003 Baseball Season and the movie " The Rookie'.

We were playing in the quarter final round of the state championship. We were going into an unchartered game three. We were forced to use an outfielder/pitcher that had not pitched for about a month. This player's name was Lance Heisler. He was asked to pitch in game three of this series, because, up to this point, we won our games because of dominant pitching performances by a senior named Joey Doan and a sophomore by name of Brandon Sage. Brandon did not do well in the second game of this series. We had to use Lance. Lance was in the bullpen warming up before the game and I was supervising his preparation. He stopped throwing for a moment and he showed me a coin, that he had in his back pocket. The coin, about the size of a silver dollar, had a baseball player on the front of it and the saying THROUGH GOD ALL THING ARE POSSIBLE on the back. I told him to keep the coin in his back pocket for the duration of the game. Lance threw a nasty split fingered fastball. If you have no idea about a split finger fastball; it basically tumbles out of the hand of the pitcher and deceives the batter. Lance was asked to pitch for four innings and then we could bring in a middle relief pitcher, by the name of Derek Montalvo.

The game started off rough! Our third baseman, Brett Henry, bobbled his first two ground balls. This was unheard of, because he was a great fielder. The game progressed and we started mounting a comeback. We were one run away from tying the game, Lance, our fastest runner was standing on third base. With one out, the ball was hit to center field. Lance was going to tag up and score the tying run. The center fielder had other plans. He threw the ball on a line to this catcher that looked like Stone Cold Steve Austin. As Lance slid into home, the catcher decided to stuff Lance's head into the dirt as maliciously as he could. This behavior ignited the most intense baseball game I had ever been a part of. Our batters and their catcher just about got into a fight every time we approached the plate. The umpire would have to step in between the two athletes to prevent a fight. We came from behind and tied the game to go into extra innings.

Their Coach could only be described as the Devil, seeing as this team's mascot was the red devils. He walked around with his chest poked out and displaying his two state championship rings on opposite hands.

Derek Montalvo is now pitching as a middle reliever. The other team, in the top of extra innings, have advanced a runner to third base. The devil Coach was trying his best to influence the umpire to call a balk.

Out of nowhere, the umpire exclaims BALK! This advances the winning run, of the semi-final round of the state championship, across the plate for the possible win. The winning run was balked across, unbelievable!

One of our coaches, Oliver "fireball "Sinclair, was not happy about this judgement call, during such a crucial moment of the game. He made his way across the field, in the bottom half of this extra inning,  his path to his first base coaching box took him behind the catcher, calling him a big goon.  He then went to the field maintenance group, that were watching the game, outside of the fence.  He informed them that he would not make it through the inning. Not paying attention to the batter, all focus was on this umpire that had hurt our feelings with his call and possible chances of winning this contest fair and square. Well, needless to say, the umpire did not want to discuss his decision, with Coach Sinclair any further and a disagreement ensued. A very loud disagreement ensued. A lengthy disagreement of opposing wills and strong vocabulary ensued. This took about twenty minutes before the dust from the disagreement would settle. Coach Sinclair was ejected for arguing.  Junior Varsity Coach Lonnie Rawlings took up the vacant spot in the first base coaching box to continue the game. Another disagreement happened between Coach Rawlings and the umpire, which delayed the last half inning even further.

We bunted a runner over and had two base runners with one out. With runners on first and second, Lance Heisler came to bat.  This was a beautiful day for baseball that included a clear  blue sky. While sitting there in awl of this day and the game that was being played, I heard that distinct  ping of an aluminum bat hitting a baseball. I watched a ball go high into that clear blue sky. I was transported to a place that movies have captured somehow, everything was quiet and in slow motion and as I sat there on my bucket and watching this ball, I thought to myself that this ball has a chance. I watched the ball travel beyond the outfield fence and was then transported back to reality, to the sounds of cheering. I also found myself jumping like Joe Carter, when he hit the game winning homerun for the Bluejays, so many years ago. Lance, the guy with the coin, the guy who pitched, the guy who got stuffed at the plate, hit a three run walk off homerun to win the game. Man what an experience!

Around this time, the movie the Rookie was playing in theaters. They mention the Patron Saint of impossible dreams, Sister Rita. My mother worked for the archdiocese of Mobile, so I asked her to get me a Sister Rita medal. She did and it was the size of a small child's necklace, so I gave it to my daughter. I did not give it another thought.

Our season ended with two losses in the state championship. On the way back to Mobile, one of the players told me his mother had a coin for me. I thought it might be like the one that Lance had.

One day, while walking behind the football stadium at Baker high School, the player's grandmother called me over to her car. She told me she had a coin for me. When she presented the coin to me, I could not believe my eyes. On the front of the coin was a baseball player, when I flipped the coin to the backside, there, to my surprise, was Sister Rita. How does this happen? I had never seen a medal like this before. Devine Intervention.  That coin is in my wallet today.  I make decisions with it.