Diary

Tom
Mieczkowski

May 3, 2005

Watching the seniors play their final games as Emory Eagles was bittersweet. It was awesome to see Will deal against LaGrange and see Josh run down a couple more fly balls. It was even better to end this season on a positive note with a win.

However, it was heartbreaking to realize this was the last time I would ever step on a collegiate field with them. But there is life after baseball.

I know I will see these guys again, but I can't believe that what brought us together won't be a part of our lives anymore. When my class came to Emory, the sophomore class was the only group of older guys who would talk to us without making fun of us.

These were the guys that we looked up to because they were talented and had a cool head on their shoulders. With Splint clogging up right field, Will having a 10-0 record from the bullpen, Kris coming back from shoulder surgery, and Barrett just finding his groove in the outfield, it made my freshman year very special.

I would also like to say that Rosie, Keenan, and Pinck also contributed to that year which ended in a fifth-place finish at the World Series. But enough with the sentimental stuff. These seniors still have one piece of unfinished business.

The first ever Pitchers vs. Position Players scrimmage.

To elaborate, the pitchers will be playing the field and hitting and the position players will be pitching and playing the field in positions they do not typically play. In a reliable report, I was told that the pitching matchup will be Barrett vs. Lumsden, followed by Murchison vs. Glushon (or Meizler).

If I was a betting person, which I'm not, I'd go with the pitching staff to put on a hitting spectacle and run away with this thing. The pitchers have secretly been training with the best hitter (according to batting avg.) in Emory history, Will Carr.

I would like to divulge the starting lineups, but I feel as if that would give the position players time to develop a strategy in order to give us a competitive game. The first pitch will be thrown at 1 p.m., but due to a scheduling conflict will not be available on Teamline.

In my opinion, the best way to forget about this season is to get out on the field and have some fun, which is what this game will do for the team. Next year, I expect this team to bounce back with a lot of energy and put Emory baseball back on the top-shelf of Division III baseball programs.

Tom Mieczkowski is a junior from West Chester, Pa. He would love to answer e-mail questions from Emory recruits and fans.