You Can't Steal First Base

Posted on Thu Jul 21st, 2011 @ 8:14pm by
Edited on on Thu Jul 21st, 2011 @ 8:15pm

Mission: Too Close for Comfort...
Location: Holodeck One
Timeline: While Docked

=First Inning=

"Steerike Two!!" The umpire bellowed out in his annoying drawl.

Alexis merely shook her head, trying not to begin cursing... whether out loud, or in her head. She couldn't afford to break her concentration.

The last pitch had come in straight with some heat, but had begun to curve to the outside of the strike zone before reaching home plate. Alex had seen the curve coming, and had tried to check her swing. Her arm muscles, however, protested in response to the sudden halting of momentum... an elbow twitched, and her checked swing crossed over the plate.

Focus. Alexis reminded herself silently. She was nearing a full count, so the pitcher would be opting for pitches that she would try to swing at. Sure enough, the Human pitcher checked the base runners over his shoulders, then wound up and fired a fastball down the pitching lane.

Alexis saw this one coming as soon as it left the pitcher's hand. It was coming in straight and hot, and it was going to stay that way. An experienced batter in the past, Alexis' mind knew how to analyze a pitch, fill in the variables, and then relay the information to her body in order to get the correct swing. Before... it had been as simple as Kentucky Windage. She waited for the correct point, and swung... her hopes immediately dashed as she whiffed away at air.

"Steerike Three! Ouuut!" He umpire bellowed out again, gesturing for her to take a hike.

Fighting to maintain a semblance of good sportsmanship, Alexis managed not to stalk off the field, or throw her bat. She knew how to hit, but she also knew why she was having so much trouble with doing so now... it was simple: all of the variables had changed. Her height was different, along with the length of her arms, and thus, her distance from the plate. Muscles that had once been able to swing away with a bat for hours on end now struggled with movements that were doable, but completely unfamiliar. Even her overall stance just felt... wrong.

Alexis had once been a respectable batter during her time in the Cadet League... now, she might as well go play ball with little kids.

=Fourth Inning=

Even fielding shortstop was a tortuous experience. She could catch a ball, but her arm and glove no longer snapped up in place by trained reflex action, as they had before. As a result, she had at least one confirmed error credited to her missing a catch, and a bruise the size of a baseball forming just above her left breast. Alexis was lucky she had the safety protocols on, or she'd likely have a busted rib or two as well.

Now it was her turn at bat again. The same pitcher as before regarded her with supreme confidence: he was now well aware that she was the weakest hitter on the team. As a result of his confidence, he was opting for fastballs, in an effort to save his arm strength for more skilled batters. As embarrassing as it was, she couldn't blame him. She'd learned that the hard way by staring at the first pitch, expecting something more devious, then swinging in vain at the second as it cruised by in the high outside corner of the strike zone... just barely out of her reach.

The pitcher wound up for his third pitch and delivered... another fastball. Alexis tried to forget about correcting for variables and simply swung from instinct.

Crack! The shock of the bat making contact made her arms rattle, but Alexis followed through with her swing and immediately tried to rebound into a run for first base. Unfortunately, she didn't get to run very far. She'd hit a line drive straight back toward the pitcher's mound, and the man who'd thrown the ball had managed to recover from his pitch, then fling his glove up at the last second to catch the ball... right before it would have tagged him in the chest.

The holographic crowd's shouts of anticipation quickly dissipated into a quiet murmur, and Alexis could only grit her teeth and growl in silence as she made her way back to the dugout.

=Seventh Inning=

Alexis' team was winning, but that meant little for someone only interested in this activity for personal victories. She now had two strikeouts, and two errors credited to her... obviously not her finest performance. Now she was at bat again, and the pitcher knew he had her number... in his mind, there was no way she was going to hit anything that left his hand.

With a full count of three balls and two strikes, however, it was clear to both he and Alexis that she was getting better at judging when to swing. With two outs in the inning and the leading batter on deck, there was no way he was going to risk walking her, and face a batter who instead had his number... no, he was going to throw in the heat, knowing she would swing and miss. He knew that, Alexis knew that, and they both knew that each other knew that.

Time seemed to slow down, even though the outcome of this game meant absolutely nothing. The pitcher wound up and delivered, and the expected fastball streaked in straight and true. Time began to speed up, and Alexis heard the breath leave her lungs as she heaved a swing.

Again, her swing met only air.

"Steeri-" Alexis heard the umpire begin to screech, but then heard the catcher behind her let out a sharp curse. Out of her peripheral she saw the man scrambling from his squatting position. Alexis didn't give herself the time to wonder how a catcher missed a fastball. Run! Her mind bellowed out the simple order to her body, which immediately took off running.

Alexis had never been a strong runner before the incident. With her former body she could have carried a grown man in a fireman's carry from one end of the Arizona to the other and back again, she'd rather do that than try to sprint the same distance. Now, things were different...

Casting aside her bat, Alexis locked her eyes on the first baseman as she sprinted forward at what felt like warp speed. There was clear urgency in his eyes as he looked toward the catcher... she might actually make it. The plate neared, but the baseman's glove also began to snap up. Kicking her legs forward, Alexis aimed her feet at the plate and executed a picture-perfect slide. Bare moments after her feet jarred into the base, she felt a gloved hand tag her in vain.

"Safe!!" The first base umpire bellowed decisively, and the crowd cheered at the spectacle: successfully stealing first base was a very rare event. Alexis stood and allowed herself a moment of triumph as she brushed at some of the dirt on her pants. She'd just done something she'd never, ever thought she'd be able to do... get on base that fast. It was a significant victory in light of what now seemed like minor defeats. Technically she hadn't stolen first base... she would still get the strikeout, but not the third out to end the inning. It was a strange rule, but baseball was full of them.

The next batter stepped up and let out a few practice swings, and the pitcher prepared for his windup. Alexis began to lead out a few steps... setting her sights on getting back to home plate.