The other day, I was rummaging around my closet for something, and I came across my batpack. In that moment, I realized I hadn’t been to the batting cages in a couple of months. Standing there holding my batpack with my bat sticking out and staring at me, I knew something important: I missed being in the batting cage.
It’s not that I’m any good when I’m in the batting cage, I am decidedly not. In total, the batting cage is a very happy place for me. Sure, I walk away happier when I’ve had a particularly good session, but the session need not be good for me to enjoy my time in the cage. It’s a callback to my lost youth as well as a way for me to bond with my youngest daughter. Trust me, you haven’t really lived until your seven-year-old is hitting tanks in a Bluey romper.
Call me simple if you wish, I am a simple guy after all, but there’s something to be said for the serene act of getting in the cage, choosing softball or baseball, choosing your speed, and waiting with the bat on your shoulders for that first ball to come out of the pitching machine. Sometimes, most times if I’m being honest, the aim of the machine is off, and the first few pitches are wasted while I try to get it aligned properly. That’s all part of the fun; it’s not a battle against a machine as much as it is a part of the process.
Unfortunately, we had plans all weekend, and thus a trip to the cages wasn’t going to happen. The beauty of the batting cage is that it’s almost always there. Even when it’s closed for the night (unless you’re lucky enough to have a 24-hour cage near you), you know it will be open tomorrow. Indoor or outdoor, there are plenty of batting cages to be found in any city. I have my favorites, but at the end of the day, a batting cage is a batting cage, and I’m going to make it a point to get to one this week.
Lead photo courtesy of Unknown – Pro Batter Sports
