Day Two Hundred and Ninety-One

The High-A Hammerhead Debut

Dressed in his favorite color (gray), Adam enjoyed his High-A debut in Lakeland, FL this evening. I guess being the away team has its perks after all! (Sidenote: Home teams always wear white. Away teams always wear color!) Adam now plays in the Florida State League, which certainly has its upside. Not only is it one step higher up than the South Atlantic League (which Greensboro is apart of), it also gets the reputation for being more of a "pitchers league." Here's why: every stadium in the FSL is home to its organization's Spring Training. That means today, Adam played on the Detroit Tiger's Spring Training field. And when other High-A teams come to Jupiter, they're coming to the Marlin's Spring Training facility. The parks are bigger, the fields are nicer, and the stadiums...well, just look at this one! It's beautiful!! And from what I'm told, it's also harder to hit homeruns out of too!

Warming up for his debut, Adam had me as nervous as I've ever been. I still can't grasp the reality that Adam just doesn't get the butterflies like I do, but trust me, I have enough for the two of us...and his entire team too. But wow. Just look at him!!! I think he looks bigger in gray? Or, I know! It's the stirrups! FINALLY! Pants up! He's hiding tree trunks under there! :) 

It was such a beautiful night for baseball. After 2 days of post-poned games, the rain decided to cease and even allowed a bit of blue sky to shine through! I think I saw the sun for the first time since Thursday too! Haha. It's been 12 days since Adam last took the mound, so he was limited to only 5 innings. I think it'll stay that way at least until his next start, and after that, the Marlins will keep him on an inning count instead of a pitch count for the rest of the season. I haven't talked to Adam yet about what this means, but that's what he told me in hasty text message today...more on that later. 

At the beginning of this season, Adam set a few solid goals. One of those goals was to end his season on a team higher than the one he started on. Tonight, he accomplished that goal. And in good fashion too. His first pitch as a Hammerhead was a strike. His first game, a win. In five innings of work, he gave up 2 hits, 1 run, 1 earned run, 3 walks, and 4 strikeouts. I'm excited to see him settle in and get his routine back on track. Hopefully, he won't have to wait 12 days to throw again, as it's not good for his arm. Let's just hope that the pesky rain stays away and allows him to pitch! 

Good job, Adam! I'm so proud of you. So, so proud.

XOXO

Oh, just for fun:

It's 4 AM right now. Adam is asleep right next to me. Tonight's been quite the hassle. Alejandra and I left Lakeland and drove the 3 hours back to Jupiter. We picked up the boys at the field and then she dropped Adam and I off at our hotel. Yes, we're still living in a hotel. When we asked the front desk to look for our reservation, he apologized and said that he didn't have one for us. We stood there puzzled. The Marlins told Adam that they made a reservation and even had a confirmation number as proof. Adam got on the phone with the trainer. After a few words, his jaw dropped and his demeanor hardened...we were at the wrong hotel. Haha!! Ugh! That would, most definitely, happen to us at 2:45 in the morning. But good news: Adam and I sign our lease tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously, we can't wait until Sunday!! Wahoo!