Instead, Will had to shake off his mistake while Baines and his teammate, Carlton Irvin, circled the bases. Irvin had gotten a double before Will took the mound, so that run would go against Descalso’s E.R.A. rather than his…which only made him feel worse.
The only upside to fucking up was that it gave him an extra mile or two per hour on his next three pitches, which was all he needed to strike out the next batter. As he feared, however, it was too little too late. The team ended up losing by a run.
Happy fucking Father’s Day, Will thought darkly as he stormed into the clubhouse after the game. Way to ruin it for your teammates and everyone who paid to see the game.
The other players and the coaching staff gave him a wide berth as he went to his locker, grabbed his things, and headed to the showers. He didn’t blow saves often, but when he did, he took it hard. That meant he had the showers to himself as he did his best to shed his anger so he didn’t take it out on anyone else.
It worked. By the time he toweled off, the worst of his ire had dissipated. It wasn’t his first blown save and it wouldn’t be his last, he reminded himself. He just had to learn from it, much as he advised Jasmine when her first audition hadn’t gone as she’d hoped a couple weeks ago.
Don’t pitch sliders to Andre Baines, he mentally noted as he returned to the locker room, especially if it’s fucking raining.
Though he’d worked through his frustration, he wasn’t enthused about facing his teammates as he made his way back to the locker room. He passed a few who had the obvious intent to hit the showers now that he was done. They avoided his gaze, telling him he wasn’t the only one pissed about the loss.
Some of the guys had stopped by the team’s café to grab a meal before heading out. Others were meeting with the trainers in the gym. Despite that, there were quite a few players still standing at their lockers or sitting in the nearby plush armchairs provided for their use.
He knew most of his teammates didn’t blame him for the loss anymore than he’d blame any of them if they made a costly error. Games were a collection of decisions and actions made by the team that had to come together perfectly for them to win. None of that made him feel any better as he walked past his teammates to his locker.
“All I want for Father’s Day is an hour-long uninterrupted nap,” short stop Austin Duvall said to the small group gathered near Cole’s locker a few feet away. “The baby hasn’t slept through the night once in three months.”
And the team had been listening to Austin complain for most of those three months, but Will didn’t mention that.
“Stretch out in the lounge before you go home then,” Evan said.
Much like always, Will couldn’t tell by the Aussie’s cool tone if he was irritated by Austin’s griping or if he was trying to be genuinely helpful.
Seriously, he wondered as he secured his watch around his wrist, how did Dorsey ever become best friends with Cole Parker?
“Maybe I will,” Austin said. “Thanks for the suggestion. What’re you guys doing for Father’s Day?”
“Everly and I have our six-month pregnancy photo shoot scheduled with Sierra,” Cole answered, “so we’ll be hanging out with Dorsey and the family. Grilling up some steaks and letting the kids swim and play.”
“Gettin’ all their energy out,” Martinez chimed in. “Smart plan. We’re headin’ over to my in-laws’ place. Wife figured we should hang out there since we’ve got the Family Fun Day thing next weekend.”
Family Fun Day was an event hosted by Caroline Sanderson for her players, coaches, trainers, and other team staff once a year. She opened up the stadium to the team and their families, arranged special activities and games, provided food and drinks, and otherwise allowed them to appreciate the time with their families since they sacrificed so much of it while traveling during the season.
Will had skipped it the year before, knowing Katie wouldn’t be comfortable around so many strangers. He’d been waffling about bringing her this year. She’d come a long way in the nearly three months she’d been working with Jasmine, but was she ready to engage with other kids?
At a team meeting earlier that week, Caroline made it