The soul begins to stir

There’s something rejuvenating about baseball. Something about its rhythm, its seductive promises, that awakens the soul after a long winter’s slumber.

Sitting in the Halls High press box yesterday afternoon, my mind traveled back across the years, stopping somewhere around 1993. Back then, this field didn’t have the nice brick facade. Up in the box, we didn’t have a microphone yet either.

I worked a few games here and there for coach Doug Polston, never dreaming I’d one day return as part of my life’s work. Funny how life takes its ironic twists and turns.

Last night’s game proved to be a tight affair. The Red Devils took a 3-0 lead on monstrous home run by Quentin Bowman in the third. But Karns came inching back late, pushing across a couple of runs.

The game wasn’t settled until the final strikeout. Halls starting pitcher John Michael Clarke turned in his usual solid outing, going the full distance for the Red Devils.

I felt the late winter chill run up my spine as the sun dipped behind the clouds and put my sport coat back on halfway through the game. But walking to the truck afterwards, my heart was warmed by the glow of the green field, brightened by the return of this grand old game, expectant that many such afternoons linger out there in front of me for the next six months or so.

In baseball, like the season from which it originates, hope springs eternal.