Southpaw

Introspections and Change-Ups

Takigawa Chris Yu used to pride himself on his skills as a catcher. That's not to say that he used to be arrogant, but to Chris there was no better feeling than drawing out a pitcher's potential and feeling their pitches hit his mitt with all of their convictions. The feeling of working with a pitcher to pull of a pick off, or stopping steals. The feeling of coordinating with the team to pull off a double play. More than anything in the world Chris missed looking up from a catcher's crouch and seeing those same convictions, seeing the determination of the pitcher glaring at him from the mound.

So it was no surprise that after Chris injured himself, tearing his subscapularis tendon and pronator quadratus muscle Chris lost what he felt like was the meaning of his life, his calling. Ever since he was little, baseball had been his dream, his goal, his future. And sure, he was just a high schooler... and yes he had more time (in the future) but that didn't mean that he wanted to sit everyday and watch his team play the sport he loved without him. Still, if he had to give up his position as starting catcher to anyone, he was glad that it was to Miyuki Kazuya. 

When Chris had seen that crooked baseball cap and that mischievous grin in the first-year line up, Chris new that everything would be okay for Seidou. Because even though Chris had won against Miyuki in the senior leagues, he knew that Miyuki wasn't far behind him in terms of skill. In fact it was likely that if Chris were still able to play, Miyuki would surpass him some time in high school. So Chris was relieved, but deep down inside, the pride of a catcher kept him wishing to play on the field with his friends one more time. 

But a taking a year off off baseball in a place like Seidou is a death sentence for a player's high school career. Maybe Chris would be able to play if he came back, but more likely he'd be unable to. And ever so slowly, self doubt crept up on Chris draining the light from his eyes. Even worse, like rubbing salt in his wounds, the first and second years didn't know who he was, not really. They didn't know that he used to be the starting catcher, or how much work he'd put into practice, or how even now, Chris would go to physical therapy working towards being able to play ('one last game, please just one more catch!'). As Chris got stuck in the middle of his own self doubt and the doubts of others, he began to lose himself, melting away into guilt, sadness and anger. I had been a year since he had gotten his injury. It had been a year since Chris was last really truly happy.

Lately something had changed though. Not with him personally, but with Seidou in general. Chris may not have been much of a catcher anymore, but that didn't mean he lost all of his critical observational skills. It was perhaps a slow change, starting with Nori becoming a little more confident and working a little harder ('his sprained ankle could attest to that'). Even his successor Miyuki seemed to change. What was once a impenetrable defense of barbs and cruel commentary softened into a sarcastic comradery, bringing Miyuki deeper into the folds of Seidou's team. There was still a lot of work to be done for the team, but the changes seemed to be centered around someone in particular. A new first-year... Sawamura Eijun.

***

"Oi Sawamura, you can't be serious..." Kazuya said, feeling way out of his depth ('This kid must be some kind of prodigy? Or maybe really just an idiot...'). "What do you mean, you've never had a coach? Where did you you learn your different pitches from then?" The younger brunette chuckled sheepishly and scratched his head.

"Youtube? And pitching guides.... Oh! And Mei-Senpai helped me with my form!" Sawamura counted on his fingers. Kazuya's eye twitched partly from irritation, but also from hearing a familiar name ('Perhaps a mix of both...').

"Mei... Narumiya Mei? How do you even know him? Aren't you from Nagano?" Kazuya asked.

"Mhm! I met Mei-Senpai when I watched one of his games! He and Harada-Senpai looked at my form and helped me fix it!" Sawamura smiled.