What the heck are you doing in Arizona?!

Several of my friends have seen my instagram pictures/tweets and asked me "What the heck are you doing in Arizona?"… so I thought I should take a minute to clarify. In short my answer is Spring Training. I am starting my first "big girl job" in March but I had a little down time and I decided what better way to spend it than with Logan as he pursues his baseball career. Each year all of the professional baseball clubs hold spring training in either Florida or Arizona. Logan's ball club, the Seattle Mariners, holds spring training in a town just outside of Phoenix called Peoria. Each year the club invites the members of the 40-man roster as well as a few selected non-roster invites (a fancy way to say players who are in the minor leagues) to attend big league camp. This is a pretty big deal because it means you get to play in actual big league spring training games against big league players and in front of the big league club's coaches/managers. For the first time this year Logan was invited to big league camp! On Friday the 22nd Logan pitched during the 6th inning of the very first Seattle Mariners Spring Training game vs. the Padres and he did AWESOME! He threw a total of 10 pitches, 9 of which were strikes and he had 1 strikeout. WAY TO GO LOG! What a way to start off the season. Logan has been a closer since we have started dating. This basically means that when the game is on the line he is brought in during the 8th or 9th inning to finish things off and keep the other team from scoring. While he is on the bump I am ALWAYS nervous! I say a prayer for him every single morning and I say the same prayer for him again every time he takes the mound. Normally I do not know when he will pitch because it is the coach's decision as to when they need to bring him in. However, during Spring Training games the guys are on a schedule so they can all have playing time. I have to admit that KNOWING that Logan was going to pitch for sure was so incredibly nerve racking for me! I  was probably more nervous than he was. I even walked all the way out to the bull pen to see him warm up (seeing how cute he looked in his Mariners uniform was an added bonus!). When I saw him I discreetly whispered "HEY 71!"…. and then i realized that he probably didn't even know his new number and so I just said "LOGAN!" and he turned around and smiled at me and gave the "baseball head nod" as I call it. Somehow it made me feel better to know that he was down there warming up and still smiling! I made my way back to my seat just in time for him to jog out of the bullpen and take the mound. As you have probably heard baseball players (and pitchers in specific) are known to be pretty superstitious. Logan has a routine that he does prior to pitching but it isn't anything crazy like he has to eat some specific food, wear a certain pair of socks, or say a particular phrase. He just goes out there, says his prayer and does his thing. I, on the other hand, am much less cool and calm. I always try to take pictures and make videos of him while he pitches. If he throws a strike and I am taking a picture I keep taking pictures until he throws a ball and then I immediately put my phone away until he gets the out. This continues for an entire inning..so needless to say I look pretty dumb taking my phone out and then putting it up, taking it out and putting it up. I guess I finally know what my mom felt like watching me all of those years at dance competitions and Miss Texas. It is hard to sit and watch and be so out of control of the outcome. All I can do is pray, cheer, take pictures and be waiting for him with a smile after the games regardless of the outcome! I found a shirt that I really need to invest in and it says something like "You pitch, I pray!"… Truer words were never spoken! Logan is pitching again tomorrow and I am already excited to see him on the mound again. He has a calm, cool confidence going into this year and I think it is because he knows that God has brought him to this team at this time for a reason. He is ready to use his talents to glorify Him and I am ready to stand by his side and watch as his dream comes true!