Ode' To Bickle

i have a friend named scott bickle. first of all i must say he is a great guy to have as a friend and he is destined to be an even better dad. bickle use to play for the softball team that i coach, or coached since last night was my last game to coach.

bickle is the most entertaining softball player i have ever seen. he is a former marine who is short and stocky, 5'4"/190 is my guess. every time he would get up to bat he had his mind set on making it home, and i don't mean eventually. i mean right then, like smack, he hits the ball and runs. no matter how far he hits the ball he runs until he is either out or at home plate again. it is a wild event to witness.

in honor of the great bickle this season my team adopted the "bickle play". this play is generally used in the later innings of the games in which we are getting beat pretty bad. which i'm sad to say is most games. here is how it works. someone with decent hitting ability gets up to bat. either i or one of my base coaches yells out "BICKLE", and the next thing you know the batter hits the ball and runs. it doesn't matter if the ball went to short stop or right field, they run. they run like forest gump until they are either out or cross home plate.

doing this is so much fun, and it confuses the other team to no end. last night in our final game of the season we got to call the play three times. i gave eric the honor during the 4th inning, but he flied out. then i called the play for carter in the 5th inning and he made hit home successfully. in that same inning with two outs and no one on base eric or carter, i can't remember which, yelled out "BICKLE" when i got up to bat. it was on like donkey kong. i hit a fly ball to right center and started to haul ass. about the time i was half way to second the right fielder missed the ball. at this point i had a glimmer of hope and kept hauln'. around second and onto third. which is where the other team figured i would stop, but oh no. i couldn't stop. we called the bickle play and it wouldn't be very bickle of me to stop. so i round third racing the fastest third baseman in the world to home plate. he was rushing to cover home since the girl playing catcher didn't have the skill to catch the ball and tag me out. then next thing i know i hear the ball smack the glove and i layout on my side with my hand swiping the pate. only to hear the words..."HE'S OUT!" i don't think i was out cuz the tie goes to the runner, but what blue says goes, right. either way is was an exciting moment. so here's to bickle. who inspired us to run like it was the last time you would ever run again.