USSSA World Series

This was our first world series with baseball and it was quite the event.  Everything kicked off last Thursday with the Skills Competition.  Each team could compete in baserunning, throw around the horn and home run derby. Jackson played short stop for Throw Around the Horn...

and was one of eight that did Baserunning.  

These boys did good, too!  They got second place in Around the Horn and second place in the Homerun Derby.

Elliott came home with us and showed off his mad diving skills.

Jackson showed him his newest trick--the backflip--that he had been working on.

A few hours later, Elliott, Jackson and I were at the Ranger game.  First order of business--pin trading.  Each team orders custom pins and then the kids can trade them at all of the events.  It makes for a fantastic souvenir after the tournament is over.

Let's go Rangers!

We met up with the rest of the team on the other side of the field.  Where it was HOT!!!

These kids handled it better than the adults, I think.  Most of us almost melted as we waited for an hour in 99 degree heat to get into the ballpark.

An hour and a half later, our boys were parading around the field.  Yay Fury!

There were over 3800 kids in the parade of teams that night.  That's a mighty long parade!

Next up, game time.  It was a dreadfully boring game, with the Rangers never getting on the board, but these boys still had fun.  They danced so hard trying to get on the jumbo tron.

And as always, I enjoyed spending time with my baseball-loving boy.

The next night we were ready for some games.  Jackson started off at short stop and pitched an inning, too.  

His team played really well and won 13-1!

They played their second game immediately after and started off shaky, giving up 5 runs in the first inning.  They shut them out the rest of the game, but came up a run short and lost 5-4.  Bummer.  They lost the next day to a really good team.

My sweet friend Emily brought her son to watch game 4.  Jackson got brought in during mid-first inning and pitched almost three innings.  His little buddy Riley was impressed, and so was his mama, but then again, I'm always proud of him!

They came up one run short that game, though, and then lost the next one by one run as well.  It was so hard to be so close every game and come up short.  Their last game ended at 10:30 pm on Sunday night, and if they would have won, they would have played at 8 am on Monday.  After that, they would have had to play four more games to get to the championship.  Good grief!  We all love baseball, but that would have just been insane.  Jackson has really enjoyed playing this season, but I think even he is ready for a little break.  Fall ball starts in September, so it'll be here soon enough:)

GO FURY!