Father's Day Gift

This year for Father's Day my sons took me to see a Yankee game. July 1 was my first trip to the year old new stadium and with clear skies, breezes from the northwest and 78 degrees the day was beautiful. Joan, Ted, Tim and I attended.  The Yankees played the Seattle Mariners- CC Sabathia pitched and led with a 2-0 lead until the 8th inning when Seattle tied it up. In the bottom of the 8th A-Rod launched a home run to right field to give the Yankees a 4-2 lead. All they had to do was get three outs in the top of the 9th.  In came Mariano Rivera, the closer.  Mariano, 40, is still considered the best closer and delivers fast balls at 90+ mph. His 'cutter' appears as a fast ball as it approaches the batter, but then...it explodes and cuts down and in to a left hander (down and away for a right hander).  He gets batters out with either a strike out or a ground ball.

As the father of pitchers and players you gain an appreciation for the physical and mental aspects of delivering the ball across the plate in a sequence of speed and location that keeps the batter's swing timing subject to uncertainty. We got to see Mariano do his genius as he retired the 3 batters in the 9th and then this weekend he is the subject of the feature article Mariano Rivera, King of the Closers in The New York Times Magazine.  It is a great article about his mental attitude and performance as a pitcher and don't miss the video that explains how the ball moves as it leaves his hand and moves toward the batter.

Ted has a great skill in organizing. I think he learned it from a) his German heritage and b) his training as an Eagle Scout and c) as a teacher. So this trip came about with Ted's clarity and skill in getting tickets and having us all ready and out the door on time. He orchestrated a great day.  We have begun a new tradition. Now if he can only help us get there and back without traffic.