Chapter 24

I was up, dressed to run, and downstairs at eight. I wondered what our alternative was as I looked out at the heavy rain coming down. Andy walked into the lobby and said, "Let's go to the gym upstairs and use the treadmills. I hope this stuff stops so we can get the game in. It's either that or a double-header on one of the next two days."

We ran on the machines and then used the weight machines for another twenty to thirty minutes. I told Andrew that I was going to clean up, eat a big breakfast, then go to the ballpark to see if they have indoor cages. I was sure they would have some.

That's what I did, and as I was dressing and watching the Weather Channel, I could see the rain stopping any time now. There was a big hole between the current and the next band of showers.

The attendant at the mechanized batting cages wasn't hot on me using their machines, and said I would have to get out if his players came. That wasn't very nice of him, but it was typical of people who are not used to being polite.

I used their machines for over an hour, working on placing hits as well as regaining my proficiency at bunting. It was getting busy but there was no food yet when I went back to the visitor's clubhouse,. Someone said the bullpens were dry enough to use and it looked like there would be a game.

I found Scott about the same time I found Hanigan. Hanigan told me, "Come throw to me and let me see how you're doing. You don't pitch until tomorrow, so you have time to work on stuff before then if necessary."

We stretched, loosened up, and began throwing until we went on the track outside the bullpen to do some long toss. Back inside the bullpen, I went through my pitches and the only thing Hanigan wanted to work on was my changeup. He said it was decent, but he wanted my motion to be exactly like the fastball, and for the ball to be in the strike zone. I only threw for a half-hour before we called it a day.

Hickey was watching and told me that I should be throwing my changeup more often because of the way I was able to get the ball around 75 mph with accuracy. That was good to know, but they were the ones who called the pitches, so just tell me and I'll throw anything I can.

Hanigan gave me a shoulder bump as we went toward the dugout saying, "You freak these people out. You've been pitching games like they've never seen before, and you're not pounding your chest or being tough to deal with. You're a right guy, Matt, and I want to catch you for as long as I can. We'll be doing it tomorrow, so let's show them how to do it."

Today's game had me filling in for Escobar as he had some kind of stomach problem. I was sorry for him, but happy that I was playing. We did some good infield practice to make sure I was working well with Longoria, Zobrist, and Loney. They are so good that they make you look like a pro.

Live batting practice was nice because of my earlier time in the cages. I was able to bunt, place hits, and really wail on a few into the stands from both sides of the plate.

Joe had me batting sixth where Escobar usually hit. Jennings watched balls rocket by him for three straight strikes without taking the bat off his shoulder. Shelton gave him some shit for standing there looking at balls. Joyce was up next and hit a ball all the way to the center field wall where the centerfielder jumped and caught the ball in the webbing of his glove.

Up third today was Will Meyers who I know had been consistently working with Shelton since he was back from the DL. There was something about his swagger as he approached the plate today. I knew he had it in him to make contact. As a pitcher, I watched guys as they approached the batter's box to see if they were tentative or confident. It somehow helped me to see their body language.

Will didn't waste time and put the first pitch into the left field corner for a double. Longoria followed with another to almost the same place for another double, scoring Meyers. Loney was batting ahead of me and I had told him to get on base so that I could drive him home before he went to the on deck circle.

Loney is a cagey lefty who will almost defy the pitcher to throw him something worth hitting. What's funny is that they usually do. This time it was James Loney who put a ball over the shortstop's head because he was a fraction late on a fastball. That scored Longo, but kept Loney on first.

The pitching coach came out to have a discussion with the pitcher. That brought all the infielders to the mound while the pitching coach was telling him to settle down and throw strikes. I hope he did so that I could hit the ball.

I had been watching the pitcher and knew what he did to throw his curve, changeup, and slider. His fastball wasn't that fast, but it was always delivered with a leg kick. Loney doesn't run fast, so he isn't a running threat, but it is tempting with a pitcher who raises a leg.

I saw Loney take a longer lead than he normally does as the pitcher began his delivery. Loney ran for second as his leg went up. I had to protect him, so I swung at the ball to distract the catcher. I was almost heartbroken when I felt the bat hit the ball. I didn't want to hit it.

Not to worry though, the ball went high enough into the left field stands to quiet the entire stadium. I was totally surprised and trotted around the bases in a state of shock. When I came across home, Loney was slamming me on the helmet and back, hollering, "You said you would drive me in, and that was as good as it gets."

The rest of the game was anti-climatic as we scored a few more and Detroit scored a couple, but the final of seven to two was decisive. It was a 'Holy Shit', or would that be an 'Oh Boy' moment?

I sat in the clubhouse with a bunch of food on a plate, stuffing it into my mouth while my teammates were toasting each other with beer. I had that satisfied feeling of having done what I was being paid to do, having had a two for four day with the home run. My infield work was perfect with Zobrist and I turning two double plays, and I had also fielded some really tough ground balls. Tomorrow was a pitching day for me, so I was already gearing myself up for the tension. I somehow knew it was going to be a good game for me, but I also already knew it wasn't going to be a no-hitter. That actually made me happy.

I took a huge sack of food back to the hotel and was enjoying it all evening. The girls said the game wasn't televised, so they had to listen to it on the radio and had enjoyed visualizing the game as it was described. They told me to get a good night's sleep so that I would pitch well tomorrow. We said the loving stuff and I read a book on my tablet until I fell asleep with the TV on.

Oh boy; today is going to be good. I felt it, I knew it, and so it had to be good. Andy joined me while I was stretching out behind the hotel. Loney, Scott, and, wonder upon wonders, Will Myers came out with a sheepish grin almost as soon as Andy was beginning to stretch. The man said, "If the amazing Matt is having this much success because he runs and works out, I'm into that. I'll work my butt off until I'm hitting five or six hundred with him.

We all laughed as we began a fast walk that turned into jogging, followed by running. Once our breathing settled down, Loney asked Meyers, "Do you think you can catch up to the boy wonder?"

Will was finding his pace and said, "I know I can, but I've been a little slack while he's been taking instruction and practicing daily. That's my fault for thinking that I had it and was going to keep it, but you know what, it came back to haunt me. Matt has the right idea and I want to follow it."

Loney told us, "The man is more than just a workout nut; he's doing a lot of nice stuff for the community. I'm even moving Nadia to St. Pete as soon as my condo is ready."

Scott was listening and told everyone, "My girlfriend lives above Matt and wants me to move in with her. That's like becoming a sugar daddy or something like that, so I don't know what to do."

I told Scott, "Nancy and her mom can handle an extra person around the house, so if you think you can be a good man for Nancy, move over there for a while. See if you think you'll fit, and what's to lose if not? If it doesn't work, you'll be back in a bachelor haven in seconds.

It was Andy who said, "Spoken like a guy with two, I said two, total babes waiting for him at home."

Myers said, "How do you do it, Matt? You were in the university studying and all that, but you end up with two babes?"

"It was easy, my man. One is a buddy since kindergarten. The other became a buddy in junior high and all three of us became super friends when we were freshmen in high school. It's now a few years later and we're committed. See how it happens?"

Meyers said, "I wish that had happened to me. I didn't go to college, but that was my fault because I had offers. I thought I would go right to the majors, and that didn't happen either. Kids really do need more conditioning before they come to the majors. You did it the right way, Matt, and you'll benefit from it."

We agreed to meet for breakfast in twenty minutes when we slowed to a walk. All of us were in the restaurant in the twenty-minute span. They all were aghast as I ate two huge breakfast steaks and close to a dozen scrambled eggs. It was Myers who said, "Holy smokes, do you have side boards on your stomach to hold all you eat?"

I told them all, "I should have had potatoes today, but I wanted all the meat. Now, I'll go do my lifting and then take a nap before eating a hell of lot more than I just ate."

Andy told Will Myers, "Talk to the trainer to see how Matt does it. He'll send you to Matt's nutritionist so you can compete with him."

I was at the ballpark at two so that I could make sure I could throw to Scott. I used the batting cages and hit balls for nearly an hour before I had a chance to use him.

Scott thought all my pitches were within the areas I needed them to be.

I relaxed and ate a big lunch, or actually a before game dinner. It was too bad, because I was ready long before game time. I had three protein shakes with the meal, and was sipping on another one while sitting in the visitor's clubhouse.

Hanigan finally showed up to warm me up after batting practice. He told me, "I figured you would warm up early today, so there was no need for me to be here to harass you to get ready. Let's do each of your pitches four or five times before going though them in rotation. Your changeup has been working very well, so we'll practice that and work on keeping your sliders down."

The game was almost like practice. It was as if a batter wasn't even at the plate. I threw exactly 9 pitches the first inning. Their pitcher went through our first three batters the same way, except that he had two ten pitch at bats before getting the strikeout, giving him a 26 pitch count.

The second inning was almost a duplicate of the first, except that the first two batters made contact on the first pitch and the infielders took care of ground balls. I was through six batters with only 14 pitches.

Longoria batted fourth today, with me following him, and Loney following me. Longo put one just over the reach of the third baseman and the leftfielder for a double. I was up next, batting left, and the first pitch was belt high but right at me. I bent backwards as the ball went to the backstop behind home. The catcher didn't even try to catch it. It was unusual that he didn't even make an attempt. Longo went to third and considered coming home until the catcher finally retrieved the ball.

The next pitch was a changeup that didn't make it to the plate. I stepped back and gave the bat a few practice swings and shook off a sign telling me to watch a pitch. The pitcher would throw a strike to get closer to a full count if he thought I might watch one. Sure enough, the next pitch was a fastball that was just under the letters and on the outside part of the plate. I hit the ball hard, but I must have been late on the ball as it went high in the stands left of the left field foul pole. It was far enough left that there was no question it was foul.

The pitcher must have thrown the ball faster than I thought or I was slow on my swing. Another ball came far enough inside that I had to leap back while bending. Okay, three balls, one strike, and Longo on third. We needed the run to get a rally started.

The pitcher looked like he was going to throw his curve or changeup, and threw a gentle curve that didn't. It hung about belt high and soared back out toward deep center field. The ball bounced on the upper railing and went over. Longoria scored and I followed him to get the high fives and fist bumps from the people in the dugout.

We picked up another run in the second and two in the fifth. It was in the sixth that I was feeling a little funny. I was going to be up to bat and had to sit down. I called the trainer over and told him something was wrong. I was beginning to sweat, and I was nauseous to the point that I ran into the clubhouse and began throwing up. Both trainers, Jim Hickey, and Joe followed me into the clubhouse and listened to me puke. I looked up at Joe and told him, "I'm not going to be able to bat and I don't think pitching will work either. I'm sorry, Joe, something's wrong."

The trainer who is a doctor questioned me and began taking my blood pressure. He was puzzled as I had only eaten what most of the other players had eaten. I might have had more than most, but it was the same food.

I was getting dizzy and starting to pass out when the trainer called for an ambulance to take me to a hospital. I don't remember leaving the clubhouse, but I woke up in the hospital with several people around me. A nurse told me, "We've pumped your stomach, Honey, so you don't have anything of whatever was hurting you left inside. It was definitely some form of food poisoning, but we don't know from what. We've sent a tech out to the ballpark to see if they can get a sample of your puke. It's probably already been cleaned up. He'll also get a sample of all the food out there to see what might be contaminated.

I then heard someone say, "David Price was just brought in with the same problem." That's strange because Price was nearly a vegetarian. I know he'll eat seafood, but there wasn't any seafood available on the buffet today. They had a couple of types of beef and a lot of chicken. They had a tray of lasagna that I was going to sample later, along with several types of rolls and breads.

A nurse came in and asked, "What did you have to drink before and during the game?"

"Water and Gatorade is all. I had protein shakes with what I ate. I had two or three of them."

The nurse pulled a cell phone from her pocket and pushed a couple of buttons. She said, "Jerry, find the protein shakes they have for the players and make sure no one else has been drinking them. Put what they have in a bag and bring them to the lab."

She told me, "That's got to be it. Price only ate some celery, a carrot, and a roll, but he also had a protein shake."

The next person I heard about was Scott, who was being attended to now. He was trying to emulate what I eat to get into the same physical shape I was in. Darn, I hope he didn't get hurt eating what I eat.

I had blood tests, peed into a cup, and had my mouth swabbed. After about two hours, the physician trainer came in and said, "You're fine and they are going to let you leave. We found the problem with some contaminated protein shakes. They're being tested to see what's in them. I don't know whether this is good or bad, but only three of you guys got sick from them. Everyone else was drinking pop or iced tea. The three of you guys who got sick are the only ones who drank the shakes."