Chapter 23

The day off was welcome and the girls had a surprise for me when we woke up around nine. They told me to go run and we were going to have a late breakfast with a sponsor afterward.

I ran for an hour and came home feeling good. The girls told me to shower and we would go meet the sponsor we were joining forbreakfast. They had clothes out for me when I got out of the shower, so I knew this was important to them.

We met Nancy and Freddie on the way to the garage, as they were headed in the same direction. Sherry told me to ride in the back and enjoy the sun and wind with the top on the Mercedes down. We didn't chat much as I was enjoying just relaxing, knowing there was no pressure to play today. I would be pitching on Saturday and felt I would probably pitch well. My confidence level was bouncing off the ceiling. I told the girls, "You know I should go in and use the batting cages for a few minutes and loosen up if Scott is there. The whole thing shouldn't take more than an hour. How about doing that after breakfast?"

Jeannie was driving, and Sherry turned to me and told me, "We'll see if there's time. Just enjoy the day."

The girls surprised me when we pulled in the sales lot for the Mercedes dealership. They parked in a slot right next to the showroom. A young man came out as soon as we stopped, and told Jeannie, "Let me get this cleaned up for you, and we'll do your scheduled maintenance while you're here."

That was nice, but I didn't understand. We went into the showroom and it looked like they were going to have a party since all the cars had been moved out, and a lot of tables with fancy tablecloths and place settings set up.

A salesman came up to me and said, "Welcome home, Matt. We're all sure glad you are OK after that terrible false accusation. The boss is waiting for you in his office."

I was met by a group of men who I sort of recognized, but had not officially met, when I stepped into the owner's office. The owner stood and said, "Matt, I want you to meet a couple of other auto dealers and a few influential St. Petersburg elected officials and County men. We're gathered here to let you know that we're proud to be associated with you, as well as the rest of the Rays"

The man took a few minutes to introduce each of the people by name and title. When I came to the Ford dealer where we had the autograph signing, the dealer said, "Just plan on doing another autograph day like you did before. Since you and Loney matched the money I gave you and the autograph money for the Children's Cancer Center, I'm going to join you and do it with you. You guys gave my dealership a nice boost from what you did."

The Mercedes dealer said "Come out to the showroom and be seated. We are going to have one hell of a breakfast, and your plate is going to be full of what you like to eat."

This was all super nice. When I was seated in the center of the front table, with the girls on one side of me and the dealer on the other, waiters began bringing out plates of food with covers on them. Everyone was served except me, and then a big burly waiter came out carrying a gigantic oblong plate. He pulled the cover off the plate and swept his hand over the plate while presenting it to me. "This is the biggest filet broiled to perfection for you, Mr. Williams. We thought you might like a few shrimp to go with the meat, and there is also a tray of scrambled eggs ready for you."

I must have been blushing when Sherry kissed my cheek and told the dealer, "You really outdid yourself with that piece of meat. Now be surprised when this little guy puts it all away."

The dealer said, "That's almost twenty ounces of filet. There can't be many who could eat that much. I hope he has more than his fill."

We began eating and the conversation was about how the dealers in the area were all going to have autograph signing days with me and whoever I can get to come along. They were saying that I needed to drive each one of their cars for a month so they could all get the benefit of my exposure. Sherry said to me, "You're going to have to give up your trusty Jeep, Honey. I know you love that thing, but we need the garage space."

I told Sherry, "Let's find someone who needs a car and we'll either donate it to them, or figure out a way for them to own it. The Jeep is in really good condition and has served me well."

The Mercedes dealer told me, "How about all us dealers find a family that needs a car, and we'll make a presentation of it to them. You'll have to be there so we can get some good publicity out of it."

I nodded as I finished off the last bite of filet, as well as a half a plate full of scrambled eggs and at least a dozen shrimp.

The dealer said, "Now, we have to go to the garage and make a commercial. Every dealer here now wants you to come to their place and make a commercial for them too. We want to prove to this community that we honor men like you, and we want you to represent us and let people know how good a man you are. Let's go make a commercial."

The girls were handing out T-shirts with my number and Matt printed on it front and back on the way to the garage. All the salesmen and office staff was wearing one of the T-shirts, and the girls told me to slip one on over the shirt I wore.

The dealer was standing in front of a nice sedan, and asked me to read what was on the big teleprompter after he introduced me. We had fun repeating it a couple of times to make sure we had a good take. The man was smart; he had my two ladies and all the ladies from the dealership crowd around me while wearing one of my T-shirts, as he told the viewers that they needed to come to his dealership for real quality and a lot of fun. He pointed to all the women around me while I had a big grin on my face.

The Ford dealer said he was going to outdo this commercial, and for me to be ready. Jeannie said she would coordinate with him for the date and time for a commercial and autograph signing.

Who would believe that we would use up most of the afternoon having a good time with these people? I thanked them all for their continued support and I would do my best to make them proud.

Sherry asked me if I still wanted to go work out at the ballpark as we drove from the dealership.

I used my cell phone and called the clubhouse secretary. I asked her if Scott was still there and if I could still get into the mechanized batting cages. She replied yes to both, and said that several players were there and more were coming.

We went to the ballpark where I changed into workout clothes. I checked with Scott and he said that he was working with a couple of pitchers, so for me to use the batting cages and go out for some infield work before pitching. The girls sat in their usual seats while I used the live batting cages and did some infield practice. I warmed up my arm when that was done by throwing some batting practice pitches, and then threw my pitches to Scott who said they were all working today.

I put my street clothes back on and the girls and I left after telling Scott to be sure to stop by later.

The girls and I relaxed out on the patio for a while before deciding to walk down to the good seafood restaurant for supper. It was fairly busy when we walked into the place, but the manager came out, shook my hand, and told me how happy he was that I would eat at his restaurant. He was surprised to learn that I was a regular customer.

Several kids came up to say 'hi' as soon as we were seated, and I offered each one an autograph. Sherry had a small tablet that had plain unlined paper, so I wrote something for each of the kids who came to us. We finally were able to order and eat, and everyone in the dining room, and some of the cooks from the back came out, and applauded as we were getting ready to leave. The manager said, "We're happy you were able to put Baltimore behind you. We're proud to have you here and to know you."

Holy smokes; this was more than I could believe. The girls were grinning from ear to ear, happy that people were giving me a chance to be the person I was without the stigma of the Baltimore incident.

We had the TV on at home later, and were surprised to see the Mercedes commercial. They had made what we did into three separate commercials, and we were able to see two of them. They ran the interview the lady had done on the road when the news came on, and the newsman and woman then interviewed the men who were at the breakfast this morning. Someone was doing a masterful job getting me accepted back into the greater Tampa Bay area and St. Pete sports world.

We were lounging in the hot tub when Freddie joined us. She said that Nancy and Scott were out wandering on the beach, looking at the stars. She said that Scott was such a good guy, and she hoped he would get his chance to be a coach one of these days.

We played for a long time, but I didn't do anything with Freddie. She understood, but she was well attended to by both girls while she accepted the way I felt. I think I liked to keep our loving between us without sharing it with others. These were my ladies and I wanted to be their man.

I was up at my usual time in the morning and was about to go out to run without a T-shirt, but thought twice about it and put one on. I had a good time running this morning even though I had to run the streets. We went to Walmart after breakfast, to get a few things before coming home to eat a big lunch and lay down for a nap. We didn't play that long, and I was able to get a couple of hours rest.

The girls drove me to the ballpark where I did my workout and used the batting cages for a while. Hanigan was there when I went out to find Scott, and he asked, "Think you can pitch today? Price pinched a finger and has a blister on his forefinger. You're scheduled tomorrow, but they're having Cobb pitch tomorrow followed by Hellickson on Sunday. Let's see what you have today."

I had a day off yesterday at least, and I was rested. We went through my pitches and he was smiling like Scott does. He got up and said, "Save it for later. You're doing great. Let's get some batting practice and have a snack before game time." The man knew my hot buttons.

Joe stopped me on the way to the batting cage. "I see Hanigan caught up with you. Can you pitch today or should we use one of the relievers?"

"I'm good, Joe. I feel rested and my pitches are working. I'm on my way to get some batting practice, and then relax before game time. Let's win this."

Joe grinned but had a frown at the same time. I knew he was fretting over me pitching an even faster turnaround than he had planned., Hanigan and I went into the clubhouse after we took our turns at live pitching, and pigged out with the batters' book open to the players we were facing today. Joe came in and asked me if I wanted to hit, as always. I didn't want to give him a smart aleck answer, but darn right I wanted to bat.

We were finally given Toronto's batting order and we found out who the ump behind the plate was. That was important as every ump calls balls and strikes differently. This one had a big zone, but was death on balls near the letters. We had books on the umps too.

The girls hollered at me, asking what I was doing pitching, when we took the field. Shelton leaned over to tell the girls about Price, and then made the man come from the dugout and show them his finger with the Band-Aid on it. I was warming up meanwhile, while Hanigan was explaining my pitches and delivery to the umpire. I know Hanigan would tell him my weaknesses as well as my strengths, and he had a good relationship with umps.

I went through three innings with less than the minimum twenty-seven pitches. Four batters swung at first pitches and were thrown out at first. You have to mix things up a little the second time through. You need to throw some garbage they can't hit or that isn't in the zone or even close to it. The batters think you're tiring that way and will try to sit on a fastball. They were perfect for my sliders.

My first at bat was a four pitch walk. I didn't understand that and I didn't understand another four pitch walk to Matt Joyce. Longoria was batting cleanup, and you would think they would prefer to pitch to me or Joyce, and not to Longo. The pitcher threw a first pitch fastball down the middle thinking Longo would watch it. The ball shot out of the field into the stands on a line drive. We were instantly up three to nothing. We had a couple of more singles and drove in another run for a four to nothing lead in the first.

I was still perfect on the mound in the seventh inning, but I let a slider come in too far and it was up. The batter put it over the infield for a single. We were at one out with a man on first. That's always a wakeup call for me, so I made sure my slider looked like it was going to hurt the man at bat, and he would duck out of the way as the ball traveled back across the edge of the plate.

My last at bat was in the eighth, and the new reliever was throwing some fire. I'm good with fastballs, but this guy's balls were all at or about 99 to 100 plus mph. I wish I could throw that fast. I watched a third strike go past me while I was trying to figure out what day it was. We were still up six to one in the ninth when Joe pulled me for Balfour, the closer, as he hadn't had much work lately.

His first pitch was put into the stands. His second pitch was hit into the right field corner and the man ran to third standing. Peralta was suddenly warming up. This hopefully wasn't a repeat of a recent disaster.

I sat on the bench mesmerized by how a game can get out of hand so fast. Balfour finally struck out the last two batters with the bases loaded and the score six to five. Whew!! We won it but only by the skin of our teeth.

That evening and the next two games were life as usual. We won the series with Toronto and had closed in within a half a game of them. We needed to continue winning, and we needed the other members of American League East to keep beating Toronto and Baltimore. We might make the wild card, but the way to ensure getting into the playoffs is to be first in the division. The weekend series was going to be against Chicago. The White Sox weren't performing all that well, and I think all us wanted to make sure we didn't help them improve.

Hellickson was pitching Friday, and I was pitching Saturday because Chris Archer stepped on something wrong and his ankle was sore. We would have to see if Price was OK to pitch either Saturday or Sunday. We would bring in Bedard, the reliever, for another start if not.

Friday's game was like batting practice. We scored five in the first, four in the second, and another five in the third. Joe subbed everyone he could and gave his unused call up relievers a chance to pitch. We did very well and ended the game fifteen to six.

Saturday's game was a four thirty nationally televised game, so we all had to be at the ballpark no later than one. I was there by eleven using the gym, batting cages, and Scott in that order. Joe came out while I was throwing to Scott, and told me, "I'll need you to pitch today. Price's finger needs another day, and he'll be able to pitch on Sunday. Remember that we have a bullpen that will come in if you get tired. You know that I'll yank you if you're pitches begin coming up, so let me know if you feel tired."

The first three innings were easy. None of these guys had seen me before. I had a single in the second and was driven in by a ball to the left field corner by Longoria that scored both me and Zobrist. The next three innings were like the first three, only they were swinging on first pitches this time. All the balls were hit to someone so far. I actually pitched three innings with fifteen pitches.

Going into the seventh with less than fifty pitches can make a pitcher giddy. I knew better than to get cocky. Hanigan and Longoria came to the mound to remind me that these people were paid to hit the ball.

A first pitch curve at the bottom of the zone found its way to Loney for the first out. The next first pitch curve went straight to Escobar who fired a strike to Loney; out number two. My third pitch of the inning, and the first pitch to the third batter, was a fastball low and inside. The batter watched it as it was called a strike. He was pissed and told the ump how he felt. The batter was probably right, but a called strike is a strike.

The next pitch was a slider from right to left to the right-handed hitter. His bat met the ball and it was a rocket right back at me. My glove instinctively went in front of my face and closed over the ball as it hit. The batter just stood at home plate and let the bat fall from his hands. Even I was surprised I didn't get beaned by that one.