Page 24 of Falling Together

He shakes his head. “No. We have a good group of guys here. A few are cockier than others, but nothing that sticks out as a problem.”

“So the usual with baseball players then.” I laugh. “Good to know.”

“They have the skill to back it up, but nothing that boils over into fights or anything like that.”

“Good.” I nod. “I’ve had to deal with that at times, but that’s mainly kids fighting over stupid things.”

“You used to coach college?” he asks, sipping on a to-go cup of coffee.

“I did. Also coached my son’s team, too.”

“Nice. Is he still playing?”

I blow out a breath. “I wish. It was too late when we moved to sign him up, and he wasn’t all that interested in keeping it going.”

“Ahh. So something he was doing because you were interested in him doing it.”

“Got it in one.”

“Is the new coach here?” a voice calls out from the doorway.

“That’s me.” I stand, greeting the newcomer. “Grant Prescott.”

“Brian Simmons. Nice to meet you.”

“You too.”

Voices filter into the office. Glancing at my watch, I realize a good chunk of the morning has gone by in the blink of an eye. No doubt the guys are here in the locker room getting ready for practice.

“Shall we get started?” I ask them.

“Let’s do it,” Brian says, smiling at me.

Grabbing my hat from my desk and my tablet, I follow the other coaches into the locker room. Clanging from the metal lockers reverberates as a few of the players shoot the shit with each other. I stand at the front of the room, taking them all in. Most of them are in their late teens or early twenties. It makes me feel downright ancient some days.

I only hope I can keep up with these kids.

“Can I get everyone’s attention?” I call out. I don’t raise my voice, but the few guys in the front take notice, and eventually, the room quiets.

“I’m Coach Prescott. Just moved here from coaching in LA, and I’m looking forward to working with you all. From everything I’ve learned about the Loggers, I can tell we’ve got a great group of guys here.”

“Hell yeah!” someone calls out from the back.

“You’ve had some great success here, and I want to keep building on that. Fundamentals are important, but I also want us to enjoy our wins. Let’s get out there. I’m ready to see what this team can do.”

A few of guys nod at me as they pass while others clap me on the shoulder. I recognize most of them from studying, but it’s going to take a while before we’re comfortable with one another. I know what a good coach can do. They can elevate the people around them, or if they’re in a bad way, bring the entire team down.

I hope we can all keep each other going here.

By the time I’m outside, the sun is high in the sky and Gavney is having the guys run laps around the field.

Nothing like a little cardio to get the day started. The grass is in pristine condition. The clay beneath my cleats is begging to be torn up with a good, hard practice.

Being out here makes it easy to not question my decision of uprooting our lives and moving to Pinecrest. This is where I belong.

Blowing the whistle hanging around my neck, I call everyone to the pitcher’s mound.

“We’re going to split into positions, but we’re going to work on some bobble and recover drills. I’ve been reviewing the film and that seems to be a weakness.”