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Health & Fitness

Paper Marlin-Part 5: Lincolnwood Marlins March Towards the Playoffs

The Lincolnwood Marlins are gearing up for the playoffs, but will the Paper Marlin ever see any action?

A lot has happened since my last Paper Marlin update.  We have had a couple of tough, but valuable practices and a few games.  We now stand at 7-4 with two regular season games left.
Unfortunately, I will not be able to make those last two games.  I will be in Michigan with my family, but I will be with the Marlins in spirit. I will definitely be in uniform and ready to go next Tuesday for our opening game in the playoffs.
As previously promised, I would not cut corners and therefore I participated in the practices with my teammates.  I must admit everyone was patient with me as I fumbled through relay drills, double play attempts and more.  Coach Louie Atsaves corrected me a couple times and I did my best to keep up with my younger (but more talented) teammates.  I came away a better player and more prepared for action (along with being a lot sorer than my younger teammates)!
More importantly, I saw Coach Louie work with everyone individually and as a group.  I saw everyone go through each drill, whether or not it was for their usual positions.  I watched as each of my Marlins teammates seemed to soak up the coaching.  I am continually impressed with their maturity.
I also have to commend my teammates for continuing to make me feel like a part of the team.  Some have given me defensive tips, like Josh Solorio and Chris Portokalis or throwing tips, like Peter Kougias.  Andrew Pabst even tried helping me with bunting (but my lack of speed pretty much rules out bunts).  
It doesn’t have to be baseball 101 either.  Whether it is a greeting by Dylan Moreno, a joke by Phil White or any of the other silly things teammates do at “our” age (or any age really).  Over the course of the practice, every Marlin helped me in some way either directly or by example.  
The next few games were a mixed bag of results.  We had a fantastic come-from-behind win.  Christopher Atsaves had a key hit and Frank Ocana made an excellent play in the outfield.  I really thought this would be a big moment in the season.  We showed heart, determination and skill.  It was thrilling.
Last night was a bit of a different story.  We lost by a large margin in score, but I really think the game was closer than it looked.  Peter Atsaves had an excellent pitching performance.  Niko Constantopoulos had a big hit.  Glynn Elliott made a very nice play.  We just were outplayed this night.
After the game, Coach Lou took the opportunity to stress fundamentals again, making the point that the Marlins could have been on the winning end, if we played up to our potential.  Despite the loss, the Marlins remained positive.
Because I will miss the last two games, it doesn’t look good for this Paper Marlin playing in a little league game.  The playoffs are not a place to play a 48 year old rookie for the first time.  Still, I have not given up my dream.  Stranger things have happened.

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