CityView Magazine

54 | July/August 2019 baseballs. In case you ever wondered, the batboys replace baseballs that are fouled out of play or scuffed. e next game you attend, watch the home plate umpire and he will signal to the home team's dugout how many baseballs he needs aer a foul ball or two. en, the batboy will run out the baseballs in between pitches. My duties changed again aer the game. I had to return the water coolers and put all other items back in their proper places. I also had to rinse all of the Copenhagen juice off the dugout floor. I know: Yuck. en I had to deal with the two umpires who'd worked the game. In these encounters, there was a 50-50 chance the umpires would be polite. I'd knock on the door of their locker room and ask if they needed anything. Typically, they wanted four hot dogs and four Cokes – two of each for each man. Aer retrieving these items from the concession stand, where the staff was cleaning up and wanting to go home, I'd deliver them to the umpires who might thank me and give me a $5 tip. Or they might take the hot dogs and Cokes and say, "It's about time," and close the door in my face. For $5 a game, we deserved better. But I was just grateful to be there. e real sacrifices in my short career as a batboy were made by my parents and grandparents. Naturally, at age 13, I couldn't drive. My parents or grandparents had to drive me from our home in Haymount to the stadium at least two hours before each game. ey then drove back home. More oen than not, they then came back to watch the game, less for the contest than for me, the batboy. ey then had to wait for me to finish work to take me home. So it was a seven-hour day for them as well. Even if it was pouring rain and we knew the game would be canceled, they had to drive me to the stadium to get the official word. My father, then a major in the U.S. Army, was working full days on Fort Bragg. My mother had multiple sclerosis. But together with my grandparents, they always made sure I got to the stadium on time and back home again. I thank my parents and grandparents for the sacrifices they made. Sunday games were always the best for everyone as they started at 1 and ended by 4, which made Mondays easy for them. However, I will always remember the one Sunday game that lasted 17 innings and we did not get home until 10 p.m. My parents sat there for nine hours watching baseball for which I applaud them. In later years, I was All Conference in baseball at Terry Sanford High School and I played collegiately at Presbyterian College. I then turned pro as a lawyer, instead of in baseball, but I treasure memories of my days as a player and also as a batboy. I will never forget the smell of pine tar lingering on my hands for days aer I'd worked a game or the smell of Copenhagen chewing tobacco waing out from the dugouts. Pete Rose Jr. gave me his used bat. And besides Chipper Jones and the other Braves players, I met other future pros, including All-Star Rondell White. Generals outfielder Danny Bautista went on to play 12 seasons in the major leagues, winning a World Series ring along the way. Baseball is our National Pastime and I am just happy I could be a part of it! Christopher D. Foster is a Fayetteville native and attorney who practices in the areas of wills, trusts and estates, as well as business/corporate law, tax-exempt organizations and tax law. You'll Love Every Song. The River / 106.5 WMRV features Real Rock Variety. Fifty years after the Summer of '69, it still sounds as incredible as ever. Fayetteville's Soundtrack of Summer.

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