The summer is quickly winding down and the Holly Springs Salamanders have found themselves a spot in the playoffs! We had a much better second half to the summer and have been playing some very good ball. It has felt great to give the town of Holly Springs something to cheer for during the summer time. We wouldn’t trade these fans for any other support group in the Coastal Plains League.
This second half has been full of great memories and moments that I will cherish. It’s been a blast getting to know all of these guys and now having a new group of friends spread across the country. The times we have off the field goofing around are something I will miss tremendously. Speaking of the goofs, they have continued into the second half (not surprisingly). As I was walking up to the plate one night for my first at bat during a home game, “Let it Go” from the Frozen movie soundtrack was playing in the background. My first thought was that this must have been a mistake. As the game went on, it just so happened that this song played for every one of my at bats.
Teammates of mine, Joey Roach and Brian Miller, soon confessed to being the main culprits to this walk-up song crime. Luckily, I wasn’t the only victim of this joke as a few other songs were replaced with “I Really Like You” by Carly Rae Jepson and “I Feel like a Woman” by Shania Twain. There’s nothing like the fun of summer ball.
Another fond memory of mine from this past half came during a game when I had the day off. Every game there is a dance off sponsored by Massage Envy in about the sixth inning or so. For this one, I was chosen to participate against my own dad down on the field in front of an impressively big home crowd. Let’s just say he brought his A-game and I was very surprised at his moves, granted he had to call the 80’s and borrow them for a bit. I have posted the video below and I hope you all enjoy and do not suffer from too much second-hand embarrassment.
One last great memory that I had the pleasure to be a part of happened only a few days ago. One of our players’ host brother got the opportunity to be our bat boy for a game. Five year-old Grayson Macpherson brought the most energy of any of us that night and never once lacked any bit of hustle and heart. Every sprint out to home plate to retrieve the just-used bat was full out leaving nothing back. The excitement in his eyes from being in the dugout with us for the whole game was enough to make anyone wonder how this could not be the greatest game ever invented. Seeing how much all of this meant to him was the highlight of my summer. It was something very special to observe. Grayson stole the show from the first pitch to the last and led us to victory that night. After the game was over I helped him tip his cap to the crowd who was all cheering for the newest Salamander.
All of these little moments have played such a huge part in making this a summer to remember. Life and baseball are all about the little things. In baseball, if you do the little things right, you usually win the game. In life, if you enjoy the little things, you most likely turn out pretty happy. So if you are happy as a person, it’s safe to say you are winning the game of life. You can’t make up the bigger picture without all of the little pieces being in place first. Here is the link to the dreadful dance off…
Roll Humps and Go ‘Manders!
Drew Butler
