Junior Year Box Set

Jeff Delahey: “Thanks, Gary. I’m in Cary, North Carolina, home to USA Baseball, where they are in the process of selecting the Under-18 team. That team will represent the United States in international play this year. I’m with standout center fielder David Dawson. David is also a top football prospect, and many football recruiting services have him listed as the number one prospect in next year’s class.

“Who knew you could play a little baseball?”

David Dawson: “Baseball has always been my first love. When my football activities took off, baseball was put on the back burner, and I just played it for fun. This year I decided to give it a shot, and a scout saw me and recommended that I be given a tryout for the Under-18 team.”

Jeff Delahey: “I’ve heard you’re a lock to make the team.”

David Dawson: “I doubt I’m a lock. They have two more cuts to make before anything is final. All I can do is my best and whatever they ask of me to help the team.”

Jeff Delahey: “I know you’re a team player … What everyone wants to know is which sport are you going to play? Football or baseball?”

David Dawson: “That’s what I’m trying to figure out. For now, I’ll play both and see what happens.”

“And we’re out.”

“That was painless,” I said.

“I’m saving the hard-hitting stuff for later.”

“What’s the deal with TV? I thought you despised those pretty boys.”

“I’m following you around during the football season.”

“And I agreed to that?” I asked, doing my one-eyebrow skeptical look.

“I told them you would. That’s how I got the job. You wouldn’t want to make me homeless, would you? My wife wouldn’t be happy.”

“I want to see the final cut before I’ll sign any releases,” I warned him.

“I could just follow you around. You’re a public figure now,” Jeff tried.

“Who would get a restraining order against some creepy old guy who said he wanted to touch me,” I shot back.

“The school has already agreed,” Jeff tried another tack.

“I guess you could blur me out,” I offered.

“Or I could agree to show you the final cut,” Jeff conceded.

“I’m not trying to be difficult, but I do have an image to protect. You might catch me doing or saying something I shouldn’t. I have other interests that surprisingly pay me very well.”

“Okay, I’ll make you a deal. If I do catch you being human, let’s talk about it before you decide to cut it.”

“I’m not looking to be one of those people on reality TV who makes a fool of themselves just to get ratings. To be honest, if it was anyone else, I wouldn’t even consider doing it. You’ve at least been fair with me. I’ll work with you, but not at the expense of my career.”

“I can’t imagine you doing something that would do that,” Jeff said to appease me.

Unfortunately, I had too much of my mother in me. That meant that at any given time, in the heat of the moment, I might say or do something I would regret later. Caryn had mentioned this documentary to me. But I’d put that away somewhere in my brain as something I didn’t need to deal with right then and had forgotten about it.

The problem was that no matter what they promised you, if they filmed something newsworthy, all bets were off. The only thing that would stop them was if there was some sort of penalty if they breached a contract. I had a feeling that if they found a dead hooker in my trunk, I might have a problem even with that in place.

“Okay, contact my people and get it in writing. I’m trusting you, Jeff.”

“No worries. You’ll be happy when this is done.”

I wouldn’t bet on that.

◊◊◊

The press and the production people from USA Baseball started to filter in with players. I answered questions about my experience here and what I thought about other players. I kept everything light and upbeat. You can’t go wrong complimenting a teammate.

I did get asked a lot about ‘the catch.’ I gave Moose all the credit.