Nothing can beat day with daughter at the ballpark

Everything is better at a ballpark. The grass smells better. Hot dogs taste better. The sounds are unlike those you hear anywhere else.

Maybe it’s the language the kids speak. Old men like me still understand the words. We once spoke them ourselves.

“Rock and fire. Hey batter, batter, batter.” Nonsense really, but just hearing the words can take you back to a time less complicated if you speak the language.

Sitting in the stands set up beyond the fence in center field at the Bangor East’s Taylor Field, we take it all in. My 8-year-old daughter talks 100 miles an hour about how pretty it is.

I often wonder how much she really enjoys sports. Does she feign to like them because I do, or is it genuine? She plays soccer, moved up from tee ball to softball this year, and took up drums. She swims and cuts cleanly through the water with nice, easy strokes.

She often comes into the family room and plops down on the floor to sit through Red Sox games with me. She always comments on the score first and then tells me if the Red Sox are playing at Fenway or are on the road. She knows the difference between home whites and road grays. She calls runs, “runs” – not points.

We leave the bleachers and make our way around the field. We stop and lean against the fence just beyond first base, down the right-field line. It is one of my favorite spots because it gives me a great view of the pitcher and how hard he is throwing.

The players are 9- and 10-year-olds from Lincoln and Brewer. The Lincoln pitcher throws pretty hard.

We move on, continuing our walk about. It is beautiful. Taylor Field was once described to me as a dump. No more, and the folks there did it basically all themselves. Sure, some local citizens and businesses donated money, but it was the parents of Bangor East Little League who provided the muscle and still do.

One of the guys with the muscle is Bill Masters. Although he would prefer that I talk to others who have been involved, he’s part of the story.

He comes over to us and invites us to go up into the press box. When we arrive, my daughter suddenly bolts forward and gives a man a hug. It is our family doctor, Bill Wood. They have a joke because my wife and daughter had seen him an hour before in his office.

Dr. Wood is one of the many Bangor East volunteers. On this day he is the announcer. He does it with flair, congratulating the kids on making good plays. He is also pulling double duty, calling in a prescription for a patient who is in the press box.

As my daughter sits next to the doc and munches on an ice cream sandwich, I visit with Masters and Bob Stevenson, the long-time commissioner of District 3 Little League. They talk about the field. Masters says it really is a “field of dreams.” And talks about the struggle to get it done.

In mid-conversation Masters stops and softly says, “Oh, that’s too bad.” His eyes were on the field and an outfielder had a fly ball go off his glove.

It is the remark of a man who spends his time coaching and working with kids. The kid’s uniform didn’t matter.

He apologizes and leaves the press box – the adjacent field must be prepared for a game.

On the mike, Dr. Wood announces that day’s concession stand special, three ice cream sandwiches for a dollar.

And it is time to go. We take a slow walk around the field. The game goes on. Kids shout encouragement to the pitcher and the batter. The wind kicks up the infield dust. It’s easy to drift back in time, even if only for a second.

A commotion on the field brings me back. A Brewer player is a daring kid. He steals second and then tries to go to third when the throw gets away. He is caught in a pickle. He dashes back and forth, almost teasing the Lincoln infielders. He out-races the ball to third and heads for home on an overthrow. He slides head first into home. Safe, but out. It’s illegal to slide head first.

I find myself laughing. Laughing at the kid’s audacity and his obvious joy. Kids playing baseball. Taylor Field. Three ice cream sandwiches for a buck. It is perfect.

Don Perryman can be reached at 990-8045, 1-800-310-8600 or dperryman@bangordailynews.net.