Shoot the Gap - Anaple, Jim

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Résumé :
Since he was five years old all Tyler Kincaid really knew was baseball from when his great-grandfather gave him a 1920's era baseball glove and he began to use it. By the time Tyler was in his late thirties baseball was still, for the most part, all that he had known. But now, sensing his playing days were coming to a close Tyler began to search for what life had in store for him next. Tyler then found himself in the small town of Cummings Hicks where he was playing for this city's minor league baseball team. Little did he know that the town's mysterious past and an unlikely source would help provide him the answers he was looking for, by learning about some of baseball's most unusual history and anomalies.

Biographie:
I grew up in Toledo, Ohio, and my first interest was baseball. Baseball became a part of life almost by default. Aside from having our hometown Toledo Mud Hens, the Detroit Tigers were just a short drive to the north, the Cleveland Indians were to the east, and with extended family to the south in Cincinnati, not to mention having the Atlanta Braves' national telecast available too, it was rather easy to find a game. There was also three parks within a ten-minute bike ride from where I lived, so the opportunity to play was always there. Further, a friend's father just down the street was always up for starting a game of rundown or pickle in the street or in his driveway. Thank you, Mr. Koeniger! I think my father took me to my first Detroit Tigers game when I was around seven years old, and you talk about being in awe! Tiger Stadium was quite an amazing place to be. It was double-decked all the way around, with the upper deck coming out even with the lower deck, so it was like being in a baseball universe for a seven-year-old. One thing I always noticed from very early on at Major League Baseball games was all of the talking. Before the games, players would stand and talk in the outfield while running as part of their warm-up. When a runner was on first base, he would talk with the first baseman. The first baseman would talk to the first base coach, the third baseman would talk to the third baseball coach, and the talking at home plate between the batter, catcher, and umpire seemed endless at times. As a youngster, and even now, I couldn't help but wonder what they were talking about. So in part, that's what influenced this story.