Separate Lives

Today was the Girl Scouts softball tournament.

Tabitha's Green Eagles did not make it to the final round, for a number of reasons. For one thing, they played both of their qualifying games on a prairie restoration project that sloped down from home plate at approximately thirty degrees. They had to track the ball by following the waves in the grass as they rippled away into the distance. For another, they actually rotated their players as the rules suggested, rather than keep the best ones in the most important positions all game. On the one hand, you get annoyed at teams that don't follow the rules. On the other hand, you have to ask yourself if tangling with such morons is really worth the time and trouble.

Short answer: no.

So the Green Eagles had a grand time and left with happy memories. We'll take that.

Lauren's Hot Pink team had an exhibition game today, though. Well, all of the t-ball teams did. Whoever showed up was divided into two big teams, and we played two innings of coach-pitch ball that was even less coordinated than usual since the girls had not played together in this configuration before.

Not that you could tell, really.

The thing about softball at this level, I've decided, is that there really are two completely separate games going on and the only thing they have in common is the mere physical coincidence of playing on the same diamond.

There is the batting team, which tries to hit the ball and run around the bases. And there is the fielding team, which tries to retrieve the ball and throw it to someone on or near a base. Neither of these teams pays the other any attention, really. The batters hit the ball and run. They stop on all the bases. Eventually they come home. There isn't any room in that scenario for anything the fielding team does. And aside from putting the ball into play, the batters don't really impinge on the consciousness of the fielders either. They retrieve the ball and throw it, and their job is done.

Eventually the two sides switch.

Next year, we introduce the infield fly rule.