Player Profile #5- Nick Smith

This is Nick. He has been playing longer than me, which is about all I know about his baseball history. I know he works for Pixar, as an editor, but I don't think they have a baseball team. Nick is an anomaly in our game, as he a.) appears to have stopped aging at 39, and b.) is still faster on the base paths than most of our team.

At the plate, Nick is one of the more frustrating hitters to face, as he loves to hit line drives the other way, right field gaps are his favorite, and since he has the speed still, he can make you pay for it.

Another reason Nick is an anomaly to our game is that he is "normal" by society's standards. He is married, with kids, and a full time real job and two cars, in general seems to have his shit together. ..which helps when we need him to get permits, gear, SQ dates, etc.

Nick's defense is almost as stellar as his offense, I can't figure the number of times I have seen him dig something out of the dirt on a play that I thought there was no chance we would get the guy. As a pitcher, its a good feeling. As a sub-par shortstop, it's a life saver.....

Nick's kid comes out from time to time, when he isn't living the good life of a young buck, and has accompanied us to SQ a few times. He is one of only two guys from our team to hit a home run at the Field of Dreams, and from what I heard it was a shot. He gets that from his pops.

The other thing I like about Nick is that he is a committed cigarette smoker. I don't condone smoking (cigarettes) by any means, but if you are gonna do it, I admire it if you are realistic and unapologetic about it. There is a certain style in being glad you flied out for an RBI, so you can sit on the bench and have a quick butt before the inning ends. Richard B. still takes the smoker prize, for his warming up on the mound with smoke in lips, and behind mound smoke stash.
Nick is also reliable, and he lives close enough to me that I can bum a ride from him from time to time. What more do you need?

Keep a sunny day in mind for Sunday!

S. Paige