There was electricity in the air. Anywhere you looked there was anticipation and awe on the face of every person in Kauffman Stadium. There were great expectations for their hometown Kansas City Royals because of the struggles endured in the recent past of the team’s history. Not only was this the Royals’ first playoff appearance in nearly thirty seasons, but they had reached the World Series. This was a very elusive goal that these twenty-five men had been dreaming of since they first touched a baseball in little league years ago. Now it was finally within reach, yet still so far away.
Of all these championship hopefuls, there was one player in particular who had overcome enormous odds. His name was Drake Flynn. He was a lanky, twenty-two…show more content… The national anthem began to blare over the sound system within the ballpark and all were silent. The final bars of the Star Spangled Banner concluded and the crowd erupted with cheers as the Royals took the field in game seven of the World Series. James Shields, the team ace, took the mound on such an important moment of the team’s season. During all the excitement, Drake faded away into the outskirts of the right field bullpen, waiting for the possible phone call that would send him into the game. Shields had been one of the top performers in the season, with his powerful fastball and devastating curveball that sent batters back to the bench. He was expecting the same results tonight as he was contested by the powerful bats of their opponent, the Los Angeles Dodgers. For the most part, Shields was correct. Through the first six innings he had recorded all eighteen outs without much opposition. However, the same was true for the Royals and their offense. The Dodgers had the reigning Cy Young Award winner, given to the most outstanding pitcher in each league, Clayton Kershaw on the mound. Kershaw stood at a fearsome six foot, five inches and looked even larger when he stood on the mound. He used every inch of his long frame to hurl explosive pitches at every batter he faced. He was also left-handed, increasing the difficulty of making contact with any of his pitches. Kershaw was cruising through the Royals’ batting order, holding them hitless during the first six