So people on this forum had to teach ME how to react to such times. I learned a lot - I was mentored - it was cool. And on we went......
In his next outing, the kid did fine and so did I. In a more recent outing, our big lefty junior (hi-level D1 material and being actively scouted) had a bad game. We were playing a Korean team and those kids can play. They got to the big guy, rattled him a bit, he walked a bunch, he got hit. He held his composure. He knows he's good. We all know he's good. And he graciously left the game when the coaches decided it was time to take him out in the 5th.
And who do they put in against this Korean juggernaut of a team? My 14 yr old freshman son. He looked like a little weed out on the mound compared to these guys. But he's unfazed. He's so much more 'mature' than me. He strikes out the first batter (bases loaded and we're up by one by the way), and gets the last two to ground out with out #2 a play at the plate where we got the runner. And that was the game.
The point is that I, as a parent, had only been focusing on the qualities of each pitch (adding up to 'The Numbers') and had totally missed the fact that my son has evolved into a hard-nosed kid who is not intimidated and actually thrives on the David-vs-Goliath thing. I have learned a lot from him.
(PG, we'll be at the South Underclass - if your crew sees a weed growing out near the mound, just let it pitch!!
)