Second game of work for John

On the roads, USA – By now many of you know that my son, John Lamb, had his first taste of competitive baseball on August 14 in Surprise, AZ with the Kansas City Royals rookie affiliate. Unfortunately, I was not there to see the effort but was happy to hear from John after his inning of work. I cannot express the sincere relief in knowing that my son is back in the saddle with living out his dreams of playing professional baseball. Tomorrow is the scheduled second game of work for John in the Arizona League and should only be two innings on the mound. All the anxiety during the rehabilitation from surgery and minor hiccups along the path have now finally been replaced with adrenaline of competition.

John sounded optimistic about his performance which was mentioned in the Royals minor league report and also Baseball America’s Prospect updates. He indicated he felt good and that his arm was working free and easy. The two strike outs, no walks or runs sounded like he was throwing strikes as needed to help his team get outs. Friday’s work should involve no more than two innings based on the plan set by the Royals. All of the anxious feelings that circulate through the mind of a recovering athlete have been set aside during preparation for the next game.

I can only imagine the level of adrenaline running through my son as he heard the umpire say “play ball.” John has always had a pretty level appearance during his play and some have even misunderstood his cool demeanor as not caring. Anyone that has shared a dugout with John knows that’s not the case. His adrenaline is no different than that of most professional athletes and is simply controlled in his own way. Believe me when my son pitches his blood is flowing with controlled emotions and desires to win.

Today will provide another small step of work for John and getting him one bit closer to joining a team on the farm for the Kansas City Royals baseball club. Sadly I will miss today’s game also due to my recent return of pulling freight on the roads of America. I hope the stars align to allow seeing him pitch on August 22 when his workload should be increased and it will provide this Dad more opportunity to see his son play professional baseball.