WYWW Shining Moments: Young pitcher throws mom a change-up
My son, Doug, came out of the womb a baseball player. He LOVES baseball. We still talk about the time when he was 5 years old and was taken into the Seattle Mariners’ locker room to meet Jay Buhner, his favorite player at the time.
Yet, that isn’t my favorite memory. It was the first game of his first season that he was able to pitch to the other team. He’s doing his thing pitching when he throws a ball that went so slow, it looked like a beach ball. I could see the other coach salivating at this gift from the baseball gods.
When the opposing player swung and missed, I couldn’t control my motherly self and yelled, “Doug, just pitch the ball like you can!” He turned and said, “OK, but that was my change-up.” He had all the adults laughing at the fact that he was trying to change speed on the ball when others were just trying to get the ball across the plate.
Doug went on to play college ball at the Division III level, yet his first pitching experience was a memory that was definitely a shining one.
— Julie Knight
