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april 18th; the hot sun cast it's warmth onto the players on the field. amaya could feel it much better now. the cap she wore blocked the sun from interfering with her sight. she was standing in left field. her favorite position. playing infield took real skill because you needed to be aware of all the runners and bases while also keeping track of flying baseballs. in the outfield, you could patiently wait for your moment. you could see the ball coming from a mile away. a good portion of the balls that made it outfield were able to be caught by one of the outfielders, making getting outs easier.
sawamura was a much better pitcher than people thought. even amaya could see that from the outfield. his fastball naturally moved which made it hard to properly hit the ball where you wanted to, "i really wish i was on the other team right now." that kind of pitch was what amaya lived for. some would say that moving pitches were her specialty. they were much more interesting than a basic fastball.
granted, batters would be able to hit sawamura's fastball, but they would jam it, or pop it up. those types of hits made it simple for the infield to catch and get the batter out. truly impressive. amaya wanted to see more.
then he walked up. masuko tooru. he used to be on the first string, and amaya knew he would not go down without a fight. his presence was big and intimidating. definitely not someone to underestimate.
after the first pitch, masuko adjusted his grip and position in the batter's box, "he's realized that sawamura's ball moves. he's going to try and hit it before it reaches the plate." he had intelligence unlike some other players who blindly swung at the ball. amaya assumed he was going to do his best in this game. it was his chance at getting back on first string.
clank! the ball hit the fence with lots of momentum and heavy force. he had a strong swing which wasn't surprising for his build, but it was still amazing to see such strength in person.
sawamura threw his next pitch. masuko responded with an aggressive swing. as soon as amaya heard the ball connect with the bat, she knew it was gone. the ball soared above the outfield's heads and over the fence, "that's a home run." the outfielders didn't even have a chance. amaya was dumbfounded. he hit the ball over with pure strength alone.
from the way sawamura was standing, he seemed completely devasted by the hit. he wasn't expecting that one. sawamura stood up smiling proud, proving everyone's thoughts wrong. he was the type of kid to get up from a loss. he didn't back down ever, never knew when to quit. he was so damn optimistic about everything. amaya wasn't sure if he was stupid or admirable. maybe both.
"all right! let's switch gears and do this again!" amaya smiled. he sure did have the personality of an ace. she hoped one day he would get there. playing with a kid with that talent and personality was inspiring. it made her excited to play baseball again!
again, sawamura threw the same pitch he had thrown the whole game, head to head battle of strength. there was a clank of the bat and ball. amaya's eyes widened. the batter not only managed to hit the ball, but he hit it all the way to outfield, and it was coming straight for her.
