I don't know who started it, but when I rounded third base, I started to hear chants of 'Bambi!' I lowered my head, feeling more than a little embarrassed. It must have been Garret. He had just called me that before my at-bat. I tagged home plate to push the score to 2-0.
Garret pulled me close to him and smacked my helmet. "I knew you could do it! Great job! Watch me do the same thing." He gave me a small push towards our dugout.
The team greeted me with high-fives, slaps on the helmet and shoulder, and compliments all around. Even the two other sophomores, Logan and Dalton, had nice things to say. Noah wasn't mad with them so I smiled back and nodded. I reached my bag and changed out my gear.
"I heard Coach say that Bryce is still going in." Noah said. "That's gotta suck for Garret. He's thrown really well so far. Three completely clean innings. Strikeouts are high too."