“Does he want to get married?”
Eric laughed. “I’m happy to keep answering questions, but I think we’re getting into the territory where you really should be asking him and not me. Those are important questions, and you should both hear the answers.”
I nodded. “Yeah, I’m sorry. I guess I needed a little boost. Sometimes I worry that I won’t be enough for Chase. If he doesn’t get hurt, he’ll be in the Hall of Fame someday. I know everyone thinks my goal of managing in the majors when I’m young is lofty, but Chase’s career will be bigger than mine. I know that.”
Eric placed his hand on my thigh. “You know what, Aaron? Someday this will all come out in public. It has to, and it needs to. I predict that everyone will see what an incredible couple you are, and that will take care of any controversy. It’s a brand new ballgame these days. You and Chase are making it new. The rest of the game will have to adjust. When all of the dust settles, you’ll be living legends.”
I bit my lip. “I don’t know about that. At heart, I’m just an ordinary guy. I think Chase is, too.”
He slapped my thigh. “Sometimes ordinary people do truly extraordinary things. I’m done now. That’s the most profound thing you’ll get out of me today.”
I smiled and said, “Okay, go ahead and enjoy the rest of your day off. Thank you so much for talking. I needed it. Let me know if there’s something I can do for you.”
Eric smirked. “There is something.”
“Yeah?”
“Keep Eckert far away from me. Or at least keep him quiet. Your suggestions make sense, but he just barks out orders. That’s never worked for me.”
I rose from my seat and said, “I’ll do my best. It can be difficult sometimes when Eckert pulls out a comment about Huggins like a trump card. Dinner at seven?”
“I’ll be there. Is Javier coming, too?”
“Oh, crap. Thanks for reminding me. I need to give Javier a call.”
Eric waved his hand. “Why don’t you leave that up to me. I’ll make sure he’s there. Sometimes it’s hard to get Javier out of the bedroom on days off. It’s not what you think either. I’ve never met an adult that can sleep so many hours.”
I laughed. “Okay, I’ll trust you on that one.”
Everyone was all smiles around the table at dinner. Chase said, “They were perplexed, I tell you. One woman from BB Daily kept insisting there must be some secret to my success. She asked, ‘Is it meditation, Chase? Do you have the perfect method for visualization? Have you targeted specific muscles?’ I wonder if they asked Albert Pujols questions like this.”
Eric said, “I think you need to send them a DVD of the movie The Natural. I think there are freaks of nature in the world like Michael Phelps or Tiger Woods.”
Chase screwed his face up into a frown.
“Oh, come on, Chase. You know I’m not saying you’re a freak,” said Eric. “I just think when they were sending the fertilized eggs down to earth in the stork’s beak, they said, ‘This one will play baseball!’”
We all laughed in unison. After the server arrived and took our order, I said to Javier, “I guess I should have mentioned that you could bring a date if there’s a special woman.”
Javier sighed and shook his head. “No woman now.”
“But there was one?”
Chase said, “Javier was hot and heavy with a raven-haired beauty for a couple of weeks.”
Javier lowered his hand into his hands and mumbled, “Married.”
“What the fuck? A married woman came onto you?”
Javier nodded and said, “Next thing. No talk about this.”
I nodded in agreement and asked, “So Eric, how’s your love life?”
He muttered, “I won’t talk about yours if I don’t have to answer that question.”
Chase interjected, “Deal! Now, who’s getting the surf and turf along with me? They bring the entire lobster to the table here, and I’m feeling like a carnivore after all day with the media vultures.”
I said, “I think I’ll stick with chicken.” I patted my belly. “It’s going to go there if I overeat.”
Chase smiled at me. He asked, “Javier, lobster?”
Javier held his fingers to his eyebrows waving them like a lobster’s antennae. Then he shook his head, “No, I eat meat from the grocery store.”
Eric laughed. “Count me out, too. I’m going for the steak, but for me, it’s steak alone. Seafood gives me hives. I think you’re out there on your own, buddy.”
Chase grinned. “I can handle that. I’m freaking starving. They gave me a box lunch, and it was a wimpy half sandwich with a tiny salad. I’m ready to eat!”
11
Chase
It was early June in Charlotte, North Carolina. We had an evening game coming up, and I was lying back in the grass in right field stretching out my hamstrings in the mid-afternoon. I closed my eyes and daydreamed about living in a little house with Aaron on stilts above the beach. We could hear the waves crashing at night. We had a Great Dane, and we were considering adopting a baby. I smiled thinking about Aaron wearing a baseball jersey, for my benefit, with blue jeans as he made breakfast. I could almost smell the bacon frying.
“Hey, Chase, can I pick your brain for a minute?”
I opened one eye to see the long, slim frame of Mo Sadler leaning over me. He had sunken cheeks, and I could see dark circles under his eyes. I knew it wasn’t eye black, because he wasn’t an outfielder.
I said, “Hey, Mo, when are they gonna start feeding you enough? You could use a little bulking out.”
“Oh, you are awake. I thought you’d fallen asleep out here on the grass.” He reached his long right arm down to help me up.
I took his hand, but I only rose to a sitting position. I patted the ground beside me and said, “Sit. What’s on your mind?”
I watched as his lowered his lanky frame. When he bent his legs in front of his body, his knees rose almost as high as my head.
Mo groaned as he sat. “I hate to admit this, and at my age, but I’m having some romantic trouble.” He turned his head and looked me in the eye. “I know the situations are likely different, but I thought maybe you could give me some advice.”
My jaw dropped. I didn’t have an issue sharing observations about romance, but I wondered why Mo thought I had any experience that could be helpful. Somehow something about my relationship with Aaron must have leaked out.
I gritted my teeth and tried to hide any unease. Instead, I smiled a little too wide and said, “Sure, buddy. What’s up? At your age, I’d think you have women all figured out.”
Mo shrugged. “I’m not sure I have anyone figured out, not even me.”
I put a hand on his bony shoulder. To my surprise, I could feel thick cords of muscle, too. No wonder he was so scary on the pitcher’s mound. There was real firepower in those muscles.
I said, “Send her roses.”
“Roses?” asked Mo.
“Do you really care about her?”
Mo wrung his hands together. “Oh, yeah, I do. I hope we can get married someday. We’ve been dating for six months. She doesn’t seem as excited now about me as she was when we started. I want to figure out a way to jazz things up a bit.”
“Six months? You’ve been hiding her from all of us the whole season? Have you ever sent her flowers?”
Mo shook his head. “No. I’ve bought her a couple of presents when she mentioned things that she wanted.”
“Roses then, buddy. Surprise her. That’s the best way to bring the excitement back. Bring her a bunch of roses and then wrap the lucky lady in those long arms. Let me know how it goes.”
I breathed a sigh of relief when the conversation with Mo ended. I was shaking inside. I was worried about what would happen if news about the relationship with Aaron got out. That was bad enough, but what worried me most was how Aaron would react.
When I saw Aaron show up as batting practice got started, I waited until Eckert joined him, and th
en I approached the little group gathered around home plate. Aaron smiled in greeting. “Hey, Chase, do you want to be on deck?”
I spoke in a low voice and said, “I want to talk to you about something first.” I glanced over at Eckert and added, “In private.”
“Oh, sure, sure. Two more swings, and I’ll see if I can make a helpful comment. Then we can head over to the visitors’ dugout.”
I watched Price, our second baseman, take more swings. He was a tiny bit too early, and he was pulling every ball into left field. Most of them landed outside the foul line. I smiled to myself when I heard Aaron say, “Slow it down a bit. You’re jumping ahead of every pitch. It’s a timing problem.”
I ambled over toward the dugout with Aaron at my side. He began to chatter ahead of me, “Hey, I started watching a new series on cable last night. I loved it, but then I had to stop because I want you to watch it with me. I thought about watching it curled up in your lap, and that was ten times better than alone.”
I chuckled softly and asked, “Are you done? I’d love that, too, but I have something more serious to talk about.”
Aaron raised an eyebrow, “Serious? What’s going on? I hope there’s nothing wrong. Is your family okay?”
“Mo knows.”
“Mo? Knows what?”
“Mo Sadler. You know, our relief pitcher. He knows about us. At least I’m pretty sure he does. He was hinting at it about an hour ago.”
I watched Aaron look out toward the bullpen where Mo was leisurely throwing balls to Javier who crouched in a catching position. Aaron turned back toward me and asked, “Do you think Javier told him?”
I shook my head. “I’m not jumping to that conclusion. I don’t know how he knows. Maybe we weren’t careful enough. The only important thing is that he knows. What do we do?”
Aaron growled, “Shit!” He kicked at the turf. “I guess we need to take it easy and lay off each other for now.”
“What does that mean?”
“Only together in public.” Aaron raised his head and stared into my eyes.
“Why? Oh damn, I should have kept my mouth shut. I don’t know if I can do that. It’s going to harm my game if we stop cold turkey. That will harm the team. You’re a coach, Aaron. You don’t wanna do that.”
Aaron reached up and mockingly scratched his head. “Hmm, I thought your talent all came naturally.”
I scowled and started to open my mouth when I heard Eric’s voice behind me. “Chase, I heard there’s someone who wants to see you in the locker room. I think you need to go right now.”
I turned with a questioning expression. “In the locker room. Who wants to see me there?”
“The GM. I was tugging my jersey over my head when I heard, ‘Where’s O’Rourke? I need to talk to him now.’ I pulled the jersey down, and I saw Huggins dressed in a suit. It always looks weird to see a guy in a suit in the locker room.”
“Why me?”
“I don’t know, but I told him I thought you were on the field. I said that I would let you know he was looking for you.”
I turned back toward Aaron, and he added, “You better go. He’s not someone you want to keep waiting. Good luck.”
I wanted to reach out and hug Aaron, but after our brief conversation, I knew that wasn’t a good idea. Instead, I said, “See you both later this afternoon. I’ll let you know what’s up.” I jogged toward the tunnel to the locker room trying to pinpoint something specific in my head that might have caught the GM’s attention.
When I stepped into the locker room, Meyer Huggins was talking to Eckert. I hadn’t noticed that Eckert disappeared from the field while I was chatting with Aaron. I respected Huggins, but I was always nervous around men with enough authority that they believed they needed to dress in well-tailored suits during the daytime.
Huggins looked up and said, “O’Rourke! I’ve been looking for you.” He waved a hand to dismiss Eckert while turning his attention to me.
“Is there something I can help you with, Sir?”
“Indeed you can, young man.” He placed a thick, fleshy hand on my shoulder.
“What’s that? Do you want me to make a public appearance? I can shake hands at the Chamber of Commerce or visit kids in the hospital.”
Huggins shook his head. “No, it’s nothing like that. I just want you to make sure your head is in the game. I want it focused on baseball. No distractions, O’Rourke. This is the season where you set the standard for the rest of your career.”
I nodded. “Oh, of course. I got a little distracted the other day because Eric Hinsdale was so excited about his sister having a new baby. He’s an uncle for the first time, and…”
Huggins interrupted me. He squeezed the shoulder. “I think you know what I mean. Remember our talk about responsibility? It means no distractions. Focus on baseball. We might even have a chance at the postseason. Distractions can only cause problems.”
I nodded. “Yes, Sir. Baseball is my life. You can count on that.”
Huggins turned abruptly on his heel, and I watched him walk away. I heard my announcer voice in my head proclaim, And the GM delivers the classic pep talk to his rookie star.
I shook my head. I watched our starting pitcher for the day’s game pass in front of me and wondered again how Mo found out. I needed to make sure nobody was around the next time that I kissed Aaron.
12
Aaron
I couldn’t help feeling somewhat wary around Eric after listening to Chase’s story about Mo. Eric stopped me on my way into the stadium the next day. “Hey, Coach. I haven’t seen you outside of batting practice for almost a week. How is everything? Is cloud nine still a comfy place?”
I smiled weakly. “I’m doing okay. How are you?”
“I’ll be even better when the slump ends. Chase was avoiding me yesterday, or it felt that way. Is he okay? How did things go with Huggins? He never told me the details.”
I mused, “That was strange. It was a rookie player talking to the general manager. How often does that happen?”
Eric said, “It hasn’t ever happened to me. I suspect that could be either very good or very bad. I hope it isn’t the latter.”
I shrugged. “Chase said it was a pep talk. He didn’t get called into the office. They met in the locker room with other guys around.” I paused and then asked, “What’s been up for you, Eric? Have you had any interesting conversations with other people lately? Are the gossip channels busy?”
Eric’s eyes narrowed slightly. I saw the confusion on his face. “I don’t think I know what you’re talking about. I’m doing my thing. I played wingman for Javier the other night. He went for a blonde for a change. I thought he had her, but then the prettiest one in the bar got away.”
“How many women is that this season already? Maybe we should have a wager on how many girlfriends Javier has by the All-Star break.”
Eric chuckled. “Javier’s a good guy. I think he’s a complete gentleman to all of them. He just isn’t ready to settle down at all. He enjoys playing the field.”
My cell phone buzzed in my pocket before I could respond. I pulled it out and read the screen. “Damn, Eric, I’m sorry. I need to run. This is important.”
“Something up? I hope it’s not bad news.”
“Huggins wants me now. The message is from Eckert. He said that I should go directly to the office suite. He says it’s potentially big news.”
“Wow. I’ll keep my fingers crossed. They better not be sending you back to the minors. I don’t think Chase could handle that.” He smiled and said, “I’m not sure I could either. We’ve got a good team going right now.”
“Well, thanks, you’re a good friend, too.” I offered a quick hug, and I hoped I was right about Eric being a real friend. He waved at another player on the way in while I strolled into the stadium.
It only took me a few short minutes to find my way to the office suite. Huggins was waiting for me at the door.
I did my best to smile broadl
y and said, “It’s great to see you, Mr. Huggins. I heard from Ben Eckert that you wanted to see me. I did my best to get here as quickly as possible.” I didn’t know if my prompt response mattered, but I thought it would do no harm to point it out.
Huggins shook my hand, and he said, “I asked you up here because baseball is a game of opportunities. I assume that you would agree with me on that point, Beck.”
“Oh, yes. I completely agree on that point. Is there a specific opportunity that you have in mind? Maybe there’s another player on his way up that I can assist in pushing his batting success to the next level?”
“No, it’s more personal than that. I’ve heard that you are planning to be a field manager by age 40. That’s a lofty goal, but you’re not 30 yet are you?”
“No, I turn 29 later this season. I suppose you know a thing or two about advancement in baseball at an early age.”
Huggins grinned. He said, “Oh, yes, general manager at age 34. My predecessor here at the Yellowjackets did nothing for the team in that first season. I like to think that I’m helping push things forward. Charlotte has the potential to have one of the best teams in the league. After all, I encouraged the staff to bring Chase O’Rourke up to Charlotte quickly. I saw him in a game at Chattanooga, and I knew that he had greatness in him.”
With a nod, I said, “Oh, yes, Chase is a tremendous player.”
“So I have an opportunity to discuss with you, Beck.” Huggins gestured toward a chair. “Please, sit. Can I get you some coffee?”
I shook my head. “I don’t indulge in caffeine after 10:00 a.m. I started that rule when I was still a player. If I ignore the principle, I get the jitters, and then I don’t sleep well.”
After he poured himself a cup of coffee in the corner of the room, Huggins returned to me and said, “Maybe that’s why I’m not a player. Of course, I don’t have the build for it either, but I’m not careful enough with my personal habits. I’m sure that’s not your case.”
A Brand New Ballgame Page 8