The fastest kid on the team was standing beside me on first base looking pretty pleased with the nice single he had just dropped into the second base gap, scoring his teammate to move the team into a 4-4 tie. I give him a high five as he looks up at me grinning with satisfaction. The next batter steps to the plate; the first-baseman settles back into his spot as I lean down. “If it’s in the dirt, go,” I whisper. The ball leaves the pitcher’s hand and bounces low off his catcher’s glove. It’s lost in the dirt; he goes…three steps…then runs back. “Why didn’t you go,” I asked? “I don’t know,” he replied. I didn’t know either; while he is a newer player, he’s one of the fastest kids on the team! What’s going on here?
