I guess let's start from oldest to youngest.
Joseph had a great season last year playing baseball for Franciscan University as a pitcher, but this year was a disappointment due to an injury. When Spring practices began at Franciscan, Joseph noticed pain in his shoulder that simply would not go away. After weeks of trying different things (PT, rest, ice, ibuprofen, etc) and visiting different doctors, it was determined that he had a torn labrum which required surgery. He had the surgery as soon as he could in Pittsburgh so that he could heal and do physical therapy over the summer and be able to play baseball for Franciscan in the Spring of 2023. His surgery was a success. He did physical therapy all summer, and his shoulder is feeling ready for Fall practices at Franciscan. Praise the Lord! We are praying for complete healing and an awesome season for his junior year at FUS!
Michael got selected to play baseball for NSU his Freshman year, but due to a delay in his former high school getting all of their paperwork done for the NCAA, he was sadly forced to "red shirt". However, he was able to practice with the team every day and definitely improved his baseball skills so that he would be ready to play for the Helena Senators over the summer. Even though Michael was a Freshman in college this past year, he was still of eligible age to play on the Senators Legion baseball team as a "super-senior". He had a great final season with the Senators, ending with the highest batting average on the team (.408), being awarded the "Most Competitive Player," and also being voted "All-Conference 3rd baseman" by all the coaches in the state. The Senators won the State tournament last year (guessing that was the ultimate high of Michael's life so far), and they almost won it again this year, but sadly ended up losing in the championship to the Billings Royals by 1 point. They played their hearts out and should be proud of their amazing season. They were ranked #2 going into the State Tournament with a record of 44 wins and 12 losses; at one point they had a 20 game winning streak during the season. Michael pitched a no hitter against Kalispell during the tournament, made an amazing catch that caused him to flip over a wall in foul territory during a crucial part of one of the State games, and almost hit a homerun (ended up being a double that hit the top of the wall and missed by only a couple of feet). It will be a year we will never forget, and the end of an era for our family. We've had a son in Legion baseball for the past 5 years, which has pretty much taken over our summers (and our life) for sooooooooo long---and now it's over unless Nathanael or Isaiah decide to play Legion ball in a few years. Time will tell. :)
I didn't get very many pictures of Michael this year, but here are a couple I found on Facebook :)
Michael with the other seniors and super-seniors on "Senior Night."
Michael hit 3 for 3 at the game, with a TRIPLE, a double, and a single.
So proud of my Super-Senior!
Paul, Joseph, and Nathanael were out of town on senior night,
but Isaiah, Dominic and I were sure proud to be there!
Nathanael had a busy season of baseball because he was one TWO different teams this year. He was on a regular city league team, and also a traveling team for extra experience and fun :) His city league team was very good this year and was coached by one of the really good All Star coaches. During the regular season, I think his team was undefeated. However, right before the final city tournament, one of the team's best pitchers got injured, so the team did not end up doing great in the tournament. He had lots of fun though, made new friends, and certainly improved his baseball skills. He learned out how throw a good curveball this year, and did great in the batter's box and as the team's short stop. His playing style and personality are very similar to his big brother Michael, and he plays the same 2 positions that Michael played at that age (pitcher and shortstop) :)
Isaiah--last but not least--had a memorable season of baseball! This year was his first season of being a real pitcher on the mound, which he absolutely loved (just like his older brothers!) He also really liked being the catcher, so we will see if he becomes our first son to play that position in the future. He was blessed to have 2 great coaches who love baseball, taught the kids well, and were always building the boys up with encouragement. At the beginning of the season, I honestly didn't think his team was "in it to win it". They were a great bunch of kids and had tons of fun, but I didn't really think they had a chance of winning the city tournament. Boy was I wrong. Once the tournament began, these boys went on a winning streak and almost won it all! They made it to the championship game and lost, but they were so proud and happy to have reached the championship game (and got a trophy!) that I don't think they cared that they lost :) The best part to me was how a few of the kids who were usually too timid to even swing the bat suddenly started hitting the ball and helped the team nearly pull off the championship in the end! It was beautiful to see the shy ones start to shine and feel like heroes!
