All Right! Let's hear it for the Sandwich Club Baseball Team!!!

The team I coach (4th and 5th graders) won their league championship game 12-11 in extra innings (normally a 6 inning game). The line was as follows:

We fell behind 2-0 and later 8-2. But the boys came back to make it 8-7 after 5. In the top of the 6th inning, they held them scoreless. My guys then rallied to score another run to send it to extra innings.

In the 7th, I thought all was lost. Suddenly, the other team started hitting the ball farther than I had ever seen them hit. After a couple of calls that didn't go our way, we went into the bottom of the 7th down 11-8.

My biggest concern was that with the temperature hovering close to a humid 90 degrees, my guys would not be physically up to the challenge. But with the top of my order up, they took it one step at a time with tremendous confidence that they would come back yet again. After the first two batters reached, my number 3 hitter (who was one of my most valuable players) was called out on strikes. My number 4 and 5 hitters then hit back to back singles (although the second singles was stretched to a double following an error) that made the score 11-10.

Next up was my pitcher (also a good hitter). He hit a shot that went for a double to score the tying run.

The next hitter - who happens to be one of my 4th grade students - then hit the game winner on a 3-2 count.

Man, I am tired. I'm not sure my heart could've taken another inning.

So, my son, who suffers from Asperger's Syndrome and has never played baseball in his life, got a clutch hit the inning before and scored the tying run.

I'm still bursting with pride. Especially after the way the team accepted him and cheered for him (and then went nuts when he got that hit). He's thrilled that he got a 1st place trophy and I'm thrilled that these boys hung together.

All in all, it was a great way to start the week.