11A/N: First off, my apologies for this story taking so long. That was not my intention. Life got in the way. My 91 year-old father passed away quietly at home two days after Christmas. He had not been ill, so it was a bit of a shock. However, that threw some curveballs my way. I am happy to report things have gone smoothly with his estate and for now, I continue to be in the home we shared.
It took an email from the OK Teach to get me going on this. I had my outline done and this first chapter pretty much written in my head in the spring. But I still had too much going on in my world. Which the OK Teach knew. She gave me the time and then, gave me the butt kicking I needed. It was just time to get at it.
Like always, all rights to the original Criminal Minds characters belong to Mark Gordon Studios, ABC Studios and CBS.
It's a baseball chapter. This final story is about Zach Hotchner. A baseball player.
*Knightly bow*
Chapter 1
October 2023
The five game NLDS between the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies was tied at two games each. The division rivals were going toe to toe once again. The pivotal fifth, winner take all game, was in Atlanta. Andy Minton was scheduled to pitch. Everyone on the team was confident of the outcome with Minnie on the mound. That was until he woke up with the flu that morning. That had Snit and his coaches scrambling.
After discussions between the coaching staff and a long session between Snit, Zach and Maddog, they decided to go with Bryce Elder, a second year player on the team. He had been called up from Gwinnett for the stretch run to the end of the season. He was also a member of the expanded playoff roster and had given the Braves productive innings. "The kid has ice water in his veins Skip," Zach commented to Snit.
"I agree," Maddux added. "He can get us three innings. The bullpen can do the rest."
After the end of the top half of the first inning, Zach came into the dugout and nodded Doggie to the walkway to the clubhouse. Snit joined them. "The kid's fastball and slider are spot on as usual. He's hanging his curveball. Harper barely missed that long foul ball. That's a good team in that dugout and Bryce cannot survive on two pitches. Come up with a Plan B." Zach Wheeler, the Phillies ace, put the Braves down in order in the bottom of the first.
Before anyone could look up on the Braves bench in the top of the second inning, the Phillies scored five runs. Elder left the game with the bases loaded and one out. Snit brought in Colin McHugh, their long reliever. Taking the ball from Snit, Mac looked at Zach. "Talk to me Goose," McHugh smiled behind his glove hiding his mouth.
"It's Marsh," Zach winked. "Splitter down and away. DP," he smiled. "Do some pilot shit."
"Got it," Colin laughed. One pitch later, he pointed at Zach as they walked to the dugout.
When McHugh finished the top of the fifth getting out of a bases-loaded jam, he walked into the dugout and looked at Snit and Doggie. "Cob got me through that. I'm on fumes."
Just then, a cloudburst opened up over Truist Park. The umpires around the diamond quickly ran into the end of the Phillies dugout that was next to grounds crew. The outfield bullpen doors swung open to let the two umpires working the outfield foul lines get out of the rain as well. Mark Rosen, the head groundskeeper at Truist Park, showed Cory Blaser, the home plate umpire, the radar image on his cellphone. "This will be over in three minutes," he smiled.
Blaser looked at Rob Thomson, the Phillies manager. "We'll ride this out in here." Rosen radioed the message to the Braves dugout. Two minutes later, Blaser led his umpire crew back out onto the field with a soft rain starting to lose its strength. The Braves' ground crew sprang into action, spreading water absorbent on the base paths and the mound. Fifteen minutes later, the game resumed.
Brandon Marsh, the Phillies centerfielder, took his position in centerfield. Marsh sported his usual long hair and even longer beard. Both hair growths looked like they were not washed in two months. Three of the Braves faithful fans lobbed three bars of hotel-sized soap onto the field as Marsh warmed up with his leftfielder. The bars landed in front of Marsh as he was serenaded with take a shower followed by hand claps that matched the cadence of the taunt. He picked up the bars and angrily hurled them back at the fans.
Jake Wendlestat, a third-generation NL umpire coming out of the Braves bullpen to retake his position along the right field foul line, glared at Marsh. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't throw your ass out of this game," he growled.
"Come on Blue," Marsh said. "That's crap."
Wendlestat got in Marsh's chest. "And Phillies fans haven't done worse? Grow some big boy pants," he growled deeper. "Expect your wallet to be some zeroes lighter in a couple of days."
Zach, while taking off his catching equipment, watched the proceedings in centerfield. So did the rest of the Braves' dugout. Zach looked around the bench. "Think you can use that boys?" he smiled.
He looked at the four batters that would be in front of him in the inning. "Wheeler is getting tired. He's dropping his shoulder on his slider."
Ronnie Acuña looked at him. "I noticed that too Cob."
"Let's do our damage," Cob smiled.
Orlando Arcia led off the inning with a loud single to left centerfield. Michael Harris hit a deep fly to left for the first out. Two pitches later, Ronnie banged a long double off the left centerfield fence. Ron Washington, the third base coach, held up Orlando at third as Ronnie cruised into second base. Ozzie came up and worked an eleven-pitch walk off Wheeler, loading the bases. Matt Olson, in the warm-up circle, looked at Zach. "Let's get this damn done Cob," he smiled. Zach winked at him.
Matt swung at the first pitch fastball from Wheeler and sent Marsh to the centerfield fence before he hauled in the long fly ball. Arcia easily scored on the sac fly from third, with Ronnie and Ozzie each moving up a base.
Zach weeded out Wheeler for his slider and drilled a homerun deep into Truist Park's signature Chattahoochee Falls in right center field. The Braves faithful in the stands came alive with the Braves down by one run.
The Braves' bullpen did their job until the top of the seventh. Joe Jimenez gave a bloop single to Alec Brohm. Bryce Harper settled into the left-handed hitter's batting box. He took Joe's first pitch and drilled it into the Chop House in right field. Harper cockily flipped his bat towards the Braves' dugout. Zach fumed.
He walked to pick up the bat. Blaser looked at him. "Cob don't." Zach walked back across home plate and holding the barrel of the bat, held out the other end to the Phillies' batboy. Harper got the Hotchner glare as he trotted down the third base line towards home. Harper cockily smiled at Zach, making the Cobra temper boil.
Sean Murphy, hitting as the DH, homered off Wheeler in the bottom of the seventh to make it a two-run deficit and chased Wheeler out of the game. The eighth inning was quiet, with neither team getting a man on base. In between the inning, Snit had looked at Maddux. "Get Iggy up," Doggie said.
"You sure?" Snit asked.
Maddux smiled. "The top of our line-up is batting Skip. Who's hitting fourth?"
Raisel Iglesias, the Braves' closer, came in to work the top of the ninth. He made quick work of the first two Phillies batters. Harper came up to bat and smirked at Zach as he settled into the batter's box. Iggy got two quick strikes on Harper. Zach signaled for a slider, which Iggy threw. Iggy left it hanging over the middle of the plate. Harper drilled the pitch into the Chop House in right field. He flipped his bat fifteen feet into the air towards the Phillies' dugout on the third base side, winking at Zach. "Enjoy your off-season with the wife and kids Cob."
As Harper started rounding the bases, Zach made his way out to the mound. "Cob, I'm OK," Iggy said, holding his glove over his face to hide his side of the conversation. Ozzie, Austin Riley and Matt Olson joined the two of them on the mound.
"I know you are Iggy," Zach said back, putting his catcher's mitt over his face. "I'm just out here so I don't drill that son-of-a-bitch when he crosses the plate." The three Braves' infielders shared a glance and smile, heading back to their positions. Marsh popped out to Olson to end the inning. Ozzie waited for Ronnie to run in from right field to tell him and Harris what Zach had said. Austin did the same with Kevin Pillar, the left fielder.
Snit looked around the dugout at his players. He saw absolute confidence. They were focused as Craig Kimbrel, a former Brave and now closer for the Phillies made his way onto the field from the Phillies' bullpen. Ronnie winked at Zach. "I can't wait to run on him."
"Get it started," Zach responded.
Which Ronnie promptly did, drilling a single into left field. He smiled at EY, Ernest Young, the first base coach, pulling on his "oven mitt", a specially crafted glove to protect players' fingers when sliding into a base.
Craig Kimbrel had a unique style of pitching. Before starting his throwing motion, he would crouch down on the mound, with his right pitching hand, hanging low at his side. The second he started his pitching motion, Ronnie broke for second. J.T. Realmuto, a very close second to Zach as the best catcher in the NL, had no chance at throwing out Ronnie. His throw wasn't even close.
Ozzie came up. With his wonderful ability to see the strike zone, Ozzie fouled off five pitches and finally worked a twelve-pitch walk out of Kimbrel. Zach looked at Matt. "Got the read Ole?"
"Yup," Matt confidently smiled.
Snit quietly flashed a sign to Wash, the third base coach. Wash did the signs for Ole and the runners. Kimbrel threw the pitch. It was close enough for Ole to swing at, slowing down Realmuto just enough that he didn't have a chance as Ronnie and Ozzie pulled a double steal. The Braves were set. Runners at second and third, no one out.
The next pitch to Olson was a slider that was diving away from Matt. Yet, it was close enough that Matt started to swing and then tried to hold up. The ball made contact with the bat, rolling weakly into the infield between the pitcher's mound and third base. Alex Brohm, the Phillies' third baseman, was playing deep to protect from a run being scored. Kimbrel bounced off the mound, fielding the ball and looked at Ronnie who was already fifteen feet off the base. Brohm was breaking for the bag as Ronnie bounced on his feet, giving Ole, not the fastest runner, time to get to first. Ronnie hustled back into third base, as Brohm fielded Kimbrel's late throw.
Bases loaded. Down three runs. Snit looked a Doggie and shook his head. Doggie was softly smiling.
Zach stepped into the batter's box, looking for one pitch. Kimbrel threw it. Zach drilled it into the Hank Aaron Terrace in the second deck of left field. Truist parked erupted. As the Braves' players were about ready to jump onto the field, they all froze. Zach took three steps out of the batter's box and then stopped. He looked at Harper who was playing first base. Home plate umpire Blaser started for Zach, hoping to fend off a melee.
Zach looked at Harper and flipped his bat in his left hand, catching the barrel. He flipped it again, catching the grip area. He reached out his right hand and took the barrel, swinging the bat out for the batboy to take it. Jayden Horton, jumping up and down towards the baseline, happily took it.
Bryce Harper started walking towards the Phillies' dugout. Zach pointed at him as Blaser reached Zach. "Don't piss me off you idiot. Enjoy your off-season." Blaser moved towards Harper. He just shook his head, continuing to walk off the field.
Greg Maddux put his arm around Snit's shoulder. "Don't piss off a Cobra," he grinned. They watched Zach round the bases. Between second and third base, Zach looked to the heavens and pointed.
Three days later, as the Braves were taking batting practice before the start of the NLCS at Truist, every player was wearing a grey t-shirt. The front, in big letters, said Don't piss off a Cobra. The back had a replica of Zach's tattoo.
Fifteen days later, Atlanta was celebrating another World Series Championship.
A/N: My apologies to all Texas Rangers' fans. It's FF. Author's prerogative.
NLDS is National League Divisional Series. DP is double play. NLCS is National League Championship Series.