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The New York Yankess face the Albany Diamond Dogs in their regional finals.
The game is being played in Central Park.
Approx. 38,000 in attendance.
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A man and his son emerge out of a tent at the sound of whistling.
> THE SON
They're coming out!
> THE FATHER
Easy now, they ain't throwing the first pitch for another half-hour.
The Diamond Dogs emerge from a temporary batting cage erected beneath a line of old oak trees.
Several Yankees jog out from the opposite side carrying folding chairs and equipment bags.
The Central Park crowd goes wild.
> THE SON
Its really wierd seeing the Yankees play in a Park.
> THE FATHER
You saw them play at Yankee Stadium, once.
> THE FATHER
You were six.
> THE FATHER
You'll get used to it.
> THE SON
Did you ever see the stadium?
> THE FATHER
Well, yeah??
> THE SON
So, how was it?
The father watches the grounds crew chalk the baselines.
> THE FATHER
It was great.
> THE FATHER
Bigger. Duh.
> THE FATHER
Shame its a dog park now.
On the other side of the ball-park, people shuffle behind a reporter and a cameraman, trying to get into the shot as they go live.
> TV REPORTER
Okay, give me a sign when we go live.
The man with the microphone fiddles around with his headset.
> CAMERAMAN
What kind of sign?
> TV REPORTER
Jesus Doug, any fucking sign.
> TV REPORTER
You could cawk like a macaw for all I fucking care, just give me a sign.
Doug just nods.
The reporter nearly drops his microphone.
> TV REPORTER
Jesus fucking Christ.
Doug points at the camera. A red light glows.
> CAMERAMAN
We are live dipshit.
> TV REPORTER
This is Thomas Pierce with SNY, coming to you live from Central Park where the New York Yankees are set to face the Albany Diamond Dogs in this year's National Baseball League Regional Final.
> TV REPORTER
The Diamond Dogs arrive after a remarkable seven-game winning streak through the Eastern Tour, while the Yankees are looking to make their third Championship Series appearance in five years.
> TV REPORTER
If Albany can knock off the Yankees today, we'd be looking at one of the greatest upsets in modern baseball history—and the Diamond Dogs' first-ever appearance in the Championship Series.
> TV REPORTER
Meanwhile, on the other side of the continent, the Oakland A's and the Portland Sea Dogs are battling for the Western pennant. Whoever comes out on top will book their place in the Championship Series, meaning this year's finals could feature two clubs making their debut on baseball's biggest stage.
> TV REPORTER
With nearly forty thousand fans camped throughout Central Park over the past three days, today's crowd is expected to be one of the largest the National Baseball League has seen all season.
> TV REPORTER
How was that?
Doug slowly pans across the crowd.
> CAMERAMAN
Didn't mention the heat.
> TV REPORTER
Nobody tunes in for the fucking weather.
> TV REPORTER
Besides, all heat here is gonna be coming from Gerrit.
Thousands of tents cover the eastern side of Central Park.
Children throw baseballs between the guy ropes.
Several vendors weave through the crowd carrying coolers.
The son watches him dissapear into the crowd.
> THE SON
Do you think baseball'll still be around when I'm your age?
Yankees begin throwing warm-up pitches.
> THE FATHER
People'll always find an excuse to hit a ball with a stick.
> THE FATHER
We're all told at some point in time that we can no longer play the children's game, we just don't... don't know when that's gonna be.
> THE FATHER
Some of us are told at eighteen, some of us are told at forty, but we're all told.
> THE SON
Sounds like a movie qoute.
> THE FATHER
It is but it was fitting.
The son laughs.
A section of Yankees supporters immediately begin booing.
> ANOTHER FAN
YOU'D TAKE HIM ON YOUR TEAM!
> THE SON
Do they even get paid anymore?
> THE FATHER
Yeah they do.
> THE FATHER
Very, very little.
The public-address system crackles to life.
> ANNOUNCER
Ladies and gentlemen...
Please welcome...
Your New York Yankees!
The park erupts.
The Yankees jog onto the field to a wall of applause.
The Diamond Dogs follow moments later to a chorus of boos.
The home plate umpire brushes the dust from the plate.
The catcher settles into his crouch.
Spectators are grabbing onto the chain-link fence to get closer.
> ANOTHER FAN
LET'S GO YAAAAAAAAAAAANKEEEEEEES!
Somewhere in the opposite section, fans from Albany are barking.
> ANNOUNCER
And here he is.
> ANNOUNCER
Thirty-one-year-old right-hander Gerrit Cole.
> ANNOUNCER
One more game.
> ANNOUNCER
And one chance to put the Diamond Dogs down and out of the Championship Series.
Gerrit digs his cleats into the dirt.
He nods.
> THE SON
I can barely see the strike zone.
> THE FATHER
You'll see it when he throws.
> ANOTHER FAN
PUT THE DOGS DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWN GERRIT!!
Gerrit Cole comes into position, lifts his leg and . . .
. . . FIRES!
*CRAAAAAAAAAACK*
The lead-off hitter sends the very first pitch screaming into foul territory. The baseball climbs high above the crowd.
The father points.
His son sprints off.
> TV REPORTER
Shakey start for the Diamond Dogs!
> TV REPORTER
Foul on first pitch.
The ball sails over the first-base line.
A dozen people immediately break into a sprint.
It ricochets off the top of a folding chair.
The son dives. Face first.
A brief moment of silence . . .
He raises his arm, palm wrapped around the ball, clutched like a fist.
The nearby spectators erupt into applause.
> THE SON
HELLL YEAAAAAAH!
The father laughs to himself.
The boy comes running back, covered in dirt and grinning ear to ear.
> THE FATHER
Good job shit-bird.
The father plays with his hair, like a pat on his head.
> THE SON
I CAN'T BELIEVE I GOT IT.
He holds it up like a trophy.
The father takes it, turning it over in his hands.
> THE FATHER
First inning. First pitch. Not bad.
> THE SON
Think it's worth anything?
> THE FATHER
Does it matter?
He tosses it back.
> THE SON
What do you mean?
He catches it cleanly.
> THE FATHER
Its worth the world to you now.
The umpire dusts off home plate once more.
An attendant jogs out carrying another baseball.
The crowd settles back down.
> TV REPORTER
That one's headed home with a very happy kid.
> CAMERAMAN
Hell of a catch.
> TV REPORTER
Better than anything Albany will show today.
The pitcher steps back onto the rubber.
> ANNOUNCER
First pitch... Take two.
