gone the moment it happened. Darryl dropped his bat to the ground, like a god discarding a mortal’s weapon. The already deafening noise somehow got louder, and the air was filled with screams and cheers. The runner on second watched the ball on its towering arc, and then skipped and jumped the rest of the way around third. As Darryl watched the ball land in the left-field bleachers, he slowly moved toward first base and raised both hands into the air victoriously.
The Rangers in the dugout leaped over the railing and poured onto the field. The atmosphere was victory and heaven and perfection as fans hugged and kissed and high-fived like they had won the game themselves. Darryl kept one fist raised high in the air as he rounded the bases. His tattoos shimmered with red and green and blue as his sweat reflected the fireworks above. The security guards around the perimeter of the field struggled to hold the swelling crowd from rushing the field.
But throughout the victory, throughout the momentous cheers and screams and tears of joy, I had eyes only for Joel. The man I loved had fallen to his knees on the mound. I couldn’t share my team’s joy because I was busy sharing Joel’s pain. The greatest pain any baseball player could feel.
Broken and defeated, Joel cradled his head in his hands while the world celebrated around him.
45
Natalie
The team celebrated on the field in a giant pile. Assistants came running out with boxes of t-shirts and hats, all of which had the Texas Rangers T-logo and “WORLD SERIES CHAMPS” in raised stitching. The guys all donned them, and then Rafael tossed one to me.
“You too, Coach!” he shouted over the crowd noise. I grinned and pulled the shirt over my head even though it was several sizes too big.
Grounds crew rushed onto the field and quickly erected a stage in the infield. There were ceremonies to uphold and awards to give out. Darryl was named the World Series Most Valuable Player. The trophy was a silver obelisk with a gold pennant inlaid across the front. Darryl raised it high above his head, then joined the on-field correspondent for the interview.
“Darryl Bryant, you won this award thanks to your bat. Four home runs and eleven RBIs in the series, including the one which won the game tonight. Tell us what that was like.”
Darryl leaned into the mic. “I can’t describe it. It was unbelievable. The moment the ball left my bat I felt pure joy. I could barely move.”
“There’s been a lot of talk about your free agency status this year,” the reporter said. “As of right now, you are an unsigned free agent. Are you interested in seeing what other teams are willing to offer you, or does this championship make you want to re-sign with the Rangers?”
“I don’t want to go anywhere, but I’ll let my agent handle that. Right now I want to talk about another aspect of this team. Home runs are flashy, but our pitchers have carried us this season and in the playoffs. Gallaraga and Miner are established veterans, but the young guys have contributed so much. Carter, ‘Mingo, and Rafa. We owe it to the pitching staff for helping them reach their full potential.”
And then he pointed directly at me.
“Natalie Betts is the reason we won this trophy. Without her, we don’t even make the playoffs.”
One of the camera men twisted to aim his lens at me. I tried to slink away into the crowd but the players were behind me, pushing me forward. Suddenly I was being lifted in the air by multiple people. Rafael and Domingo and Carter. They lifted me up onto Rafael’s shoulders and then he carried me around above the crowd.
“Natalie! Natalie!” they chanted. Soon the entire team took it up. “Natalie! Natalie!”
After the ceremony, we went back into the clubhouse to celebrate. Once again plastic had been taped up everywhere so we could spray champagne on each other. Reporters ran around the room interviewing people. Rafael and Darryl were the most interviewed guys, but after them was me. Every reporter came over to me to get a statement or quote about the state of the team and my place on it.
“I’m just doing what I can to get the most out of them,” I said humbly. “They’re the ones with all the talent.”
I ran into Theo soon after. His shirt was covered with champagne and he was all smiles as he hugged me