We had a busy fun filled summer with a lot of baseball, some travel to Colorado then more baseball and just like that it was time for school again. Well, that one sentence pretty much sums up our summer. We had five boys playing on ten teams, one Daddy coaching, a Mommy and two Grandma's running between 120 games last summer. It may have been crazy and busy but we love our baseball summers.
Tristan played his second year in the pony league for 13-14 year old Memorial Green team. He played many positions this year and had the opportunity to pitch a bit. However, his favorite is still catcher.
Tristan really excelled and became a bit of a leader on his team. He had many great plays this year including a few tag outs at home plate as well as a few amazing catches for outs at first base. He really hustled after the ball and was on top of the game.
He became a stronger hitter and got on base many times this year too. It's amazing watching him play now.
Colin played for five different teams throughout the season. He started on the 12 year old Memorial Orange skills team which had begun practicing in February and played games from March to June. It has been amazing watching his skills excel this year as well as watch his confidence grow stronger. He found his comfort in right field and really worked hard becoming the best right fielder he could be. His skills team won the Memorial Weekend Tournament!
Colin's second team was the 11 year old Memorial Orange skills team. This team did not have as many pitchers on their roster and Colin was able to play in four games as pitcher and power hitter. This was a true honor and boosted his confidence. Playing on this skills teams gave Colin a chance to be a leader and find a pure joy of the game.
Colin's third team was his in house/regular season team the Oklahoma State Cowboys coached by none other than the amazing Coach Greg Shockey. Boy was Colin excited to have his Dad as his coach this year. This year was a truly amazing year for Colin. Baseball was a time he could be himself goof around and shine as a leader on his teams. On this team Colin excelled at first base, pitcher and fielder. He had many great games as pitcher. You could just see him beam with pride every time he took the mound.
With the benefit of having such an amazing coach Colin's team won two championships. They first was the in house Memorial Little League tournament and then the Hillside Championship! I'd say that is pretty darn good for a coach that had never played baseball before.
Colin has the proud title of the only Memorial Little League player to have one a championship two years in a row. Way to go Colin!
Team four, Colin would fill in from time to time for Tristan's team as they had barely enough players most games to complete a nine player roster. Unless, Colin had a game of his own he would be watching Tristan's game anyway so why not play. It was fun to have them on the same team every now and then.
Last but not least, Colin played on the post season All Star team. He again showed great leadership, pitched, played first base and all around did amazing. It is a good thing Colin loves baseball so much. It has been great watching him come out of his shell a bit this season and help lead his teams.
Liam was a busy guy too. He started the baseball season in February with the 9 year old skills team. They played 6 skills games for the Memorial Orange 9 year old skills team.
In our league if you play on the skills team you have to play in the regular in house which we are more than happy to do. Liam's in house regular season team was also The Oklahoma State Cowboys and had many of the same kids from his skills team. They made it into the finals during the playoffs and took home third place.
Liam's third team was the post season Memorial All Stars 9 year old team. Liam is such a social little guy that he is naturally a leader and great teammate to all. He has found a love for being the catcher. I cannot believe we have two kids that want to be catcher. It looks like a tough position if you ask me. But they love it and that's what counts.
Last but certainly not least we had Declan and Grayson playing t-ball this year. Boy oh boy were they both ready to get out there and play like the big boys. They sure have earned their spot as the players after all the games they have been to. Luckily for us they were able to play on the same team, they were the Red Arkansas Razorbacks.
We had a great t ball coach that figured out Grayson right away. The coach made sure to separate Declan and Grayson on the field during a game so they'd both pay attention a little better. He also was able to get Grayson to be a pretty good fielder by the end of the season.
They were so proud to make a play or hit the ball that they made sure we were all watching.
It has amazed me how much these two little guys know about the sport. Yes, they have been going to games since they were babies but they are always playing around turns out they may have been paying attention more than I realized.
I enjoyed so much watching the various stages of the game. From the little tee ball guys who ran all over the field to the big boys who hit hard and played with passion.I love how each boy has taken on a beloved sport and made it their own. They all are so proud to wear the uniform, go out and give it their all. It may be a crazy busy time for our family but it is truly a wonderful time too. We wouldn't want it any other way.
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