I forget sometimes how stark and beautiful the scenery in rural Washington is. The drive from Moses Lake to Sunnyside was absolutely idyllic – the rolling hills were marked with lush spring greenery, the late April sun was finally to flex some muscle and bring a little warmth, and the road was mostly clear of any traffic. I finally popped into the parking lot at little Sunnyside Christian High School.
The high school is at the very north edge of town. Dating back to 1947, the campus has a charming old school feel about it. The sprawling ballfields were bisected by a large parking lot, where I found a spot and set up shop.
I was a good hour ahead of game time so was able to set up my awning and position myself to dress in the shade. The afternoon was already getting warm, so I worked to assure myself comfort in my preparation. The parking lot was buzzing with after school activity. It seemed that regardless of what everyone was up to, they were fascinated by my setup. One woman smiled as she passed, uttering, “This isn’t your first rodeo, I see.” Interacting with locals is one of the delights of this trip, so I was tickled to see that my little trailer worked as an ice breaker.
My partner B.J. rolled in a while later. I could see that he was similar in age to me, and he carried a very no nonsense approach to things. When he asked what I planned to do after retiring from baseball I told him of my plans to retire in Italy. That perked him up.
“I recently came back from a trip to Italy,” he told me somewhat excitedly. He told me of his travels around the country. We spoke of various trips around Europe. I could see he shared my passion for travel.
As with many schools, Sunnyside Christian built their baseball and softball fields side by side. They occupy the massive field between the school and a neighborhood nearby. The one component they didn’t add, however, was seating. As we walked toward the field I chuckled at the wide array of folding chairs sprawled behind the backstop. Apparently the visiting DeSales folks were very familiar with this field quirk as they all came sporting chairs themselves.
One of the folks who chatted with me before the game was Sunnyside Christian’s athletic director. Although this was a 1B contest, which is the classification of smallest school, both teams are very competitive. DeSales, a private Catholic School from Walla Walla, was not long ago a powerhouse in the sport. He explained that they and Sunnyside Christian had a long-standing (but friendly) rivalry. There were seeding implications on the line of this double header. “We need to win at least one,” he said nervously. “Otherwise we go into the district tournament in a first round, loser out game.”‘
In spite of the implications, both teams were great. Sunnyside Christian took a fairly commanding lead in the first game, but DeSales clawed away in the top of the seventh to pull within one. The Knights hung on to post a 6-5 win.
We quickly changed for our second game as there are no lights at the field (which makes sense, as close as the field is to the neighborhood). B.J. emphasized the importance of players hustling in and out of the dugout, stating to both coaches at the plate meeting, “As soon as the sun is gone, so are we!” That cracked me up.
Game #2 breezed by as well, and Sunnyside Christian ended up walking away with a rare sweep of the Irish.
As the daylight begam to fade I finished packing up my gear, then made my way back to the field for a few last photos. B.J. bade me farewell, laughing about “wishing the assignor hadn’t given me the pressure of working with the state UIC!” He had nothing to worry about – he was a great partner, and we had a straight-forward day the way it should have been. The games were about the kids, not us.
I got back to my car and dealt with the litany of messages that awaited me. Between situations across the state, umpires from my group that needed help, or rules situation that needed addressed, they seem to be extra pervasive whenever I have a double header. I plowed through my messages, grabbed a Gatorade at the local mini-market, and headed down the road to the Tri-Cities.
