Today wasn’t my day offensively, but we came away with the win nonetheless. Shaw didn’t get the better of me, but his fielders did. Prior to now, I’ve been hard on myself, tearing apart each action until I could make it better, but now I’m in the bar, sitting next to a very good-looking woman while she talks about interior design and how much she loves her job, and I’m asking myself, why can’t I be more like Kidd and just sleep with any woman who comes my way?
Probably because I’m still somewhat hung up on Ainsley, even though I’ve stopped calling her. It wasn’t doing me any good to hear her voice and the same message repeatedly. She’s been hard to get over, and the few dates that I have been on haven’t yielded anything promising.
I’m not sure if the woman next to me is the one for me, either, but I’m going to try. I angle my body toward her and open up to her. She continues to ramble about her business and starts listing off her clients.
I hold my hand up, and she stops talking. “I’m not looking for an interior designer yet. I still rent and can’t see myself investing money into something I’m not keeping.”
“Oh my, I feel like such a fool. I thought that’s why you started talking to me.”
I shake my head and try to hide the grin that is forming. She blushes and tries to hide behind her long, dark hair, a complete opposite of Ainsley.
“It’s my fault. I started talking to you because I think you’re pretty. I think that my pickup lines need some work, don’t you?”
She covers her face, hiding even more of herself from me. I want to reach out and pull her hands away, but I’m not that forward. Slowly, she regains her composure.
“I’m sorry,” she says, sticking her hand out toward me. I take her hand in mine and shake it. “I’m Carrie.”
“Hi, Carrie. I’m Cooper.”
“Oh that’s funny, Carrie and Cooper.” Once she finishes her sentence, her eyes go wide with terror, and she’s covering her mouth again. “No, I didn’t mean it like that.”
“It’s okay. I was thinking the same thing.” I try to let her know that it’s okay, and it was only a blunder. Hell, I’ve done it so many times.
I signal for the bartender and order us another round of drinks. She’s making me laugh, and that is something I haven’t done in a long time. Not since I was in Florida. It feels good to be like this again.
Carrie and I spend the rest of the night talking, sharing a small corner of the bar with the Davenports and a few of their friends. Not once does Carrie ask about baseball or what I do for work. Maybe she already knows, since everyone seems to know Ethan. It’s nice to be able to sit and talk without the pressure of being on.
At the end of the night, I hail her a cab, not wanting her to drive home after drinking. Before she gets in, I give her my number and a lingering kiss on her cheek before she’s being driven down the road.
Davenport yells my name from behind, and when I turn to look at him, I see nothing but fear.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s Diamond. Stone just sent out a text that there’s a press conference first thing in the morning. He’s announcing his retirement effective immediately, and Stone will announce a replacement.”
“What?” I pull out my phone and read exactly what Davenport just relayed to me. “This doesn’t make any sense.”
“I think he’s been sick,” Daisy says as she wraps her arms around Ethan’s waist.
“Yeah, I read that over spring training, but he seemed fine.”
“Something is definitely up. I mean, why is Stone bringing in someone new and not making Fisk or King the interim?”
“I don’t know,” I mumble while reading the words of the text message over again. Diamond has been my cheerleader from the get-go, always there to remind me that I belong in the majors. I’m finally confident with my game play, but with a new manager coming in, he could want something different.
“We’re going to take off. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Yeah, okay.” I lean in and kiss Daisy on the cheek and watch them walk arm-in-arm down the street. Both our places are close to the bar, but in opposite directions. I pocket my phone and head toward my apartment with my thoughts running rampant. I hate feeling insecure about my future, and just when I thought I had it all figured out, a shit storm starts to brew.
After much speculation, Cal Diamond, our beloved skipper, announced
his retirement effective immediately. As we’ve been reporting for the past year, this is health-related, but Cal assured us this morning that it is not cancer. It is heart-related, and he will be facing surgery in the upcoming months.
General manager Ryan Stone introduced Diamond’s replacement, Wes Wilson. Wilson is best known for leading Team USA to an Olympic gold medal in our last games, as well as having a few NCAA titles under his belt. His recent stint in the minors adds to his résumé.
When asked why Stone didn’t promote from within, he stated, “The job was offered to Cole Fisk, who turned it down, stating he was comfortable at the position of pitching coach.”
Second baseman Bryce Mackenzie added, “I’m excited for Wilson to take the helm and saddened to see Diamond leave us. He’s been a great manager and I’m going to miss him.”