“It’s a great neighborhood. The team being there really kept it the heart of the borough, kept businesses alive, made it a place people want to be, you know, even before Brooklyn was cool.”
“Brooklyn was always cool, but that’s because of the people. None of this matters if you’re not surrounded by good people.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
Something clicks in my head. It’s not a fully formed idea, but when I pull up to Charlie’s driveway and park my car, it starts to come together, starts to become more than just an idea. It has me thinking back to that presentation that I have memorized, the thing I’ve had prepared for weeks now, the way I was going to convince Kai Nakamura to come play for us.
And now I want to scrap it all.
Because I have a way better idea.
Stepping into Charlie’s house, I look around: it’s warm, comfortable, and, despite its size and the clear amount of money that went into making it look that way, it feels safe.
Staring at the view, I know in my gut this is the way to get the job done.
“What if . . .” I start, and try to find the right way to say this.If I can talk Charlie into it, then I’ll know for sure. “What if we started the meeting here?”
“We might just convince him right into signing here instead and buying this house from me.”
“It’s more personal this way, though. Having him in your home. He’s a kid, leaving his family behind, everything he’s ever known, and chasing his dream here. Let’s show him what signing with the Eagles would mean: it would mean joining a family,ourfamily, and that we’ll treat him that way when he signs with us.”
“You think that will work?”
“It will if he’s the kind of guy we want around for the next ten or twelve years. If it doesn’t work, then I’m not sure he was the right fit for us in the first place. We just got rid of one cancer with Ethan Quicke. I don’t think Nakamura is that kind of guy, but it’s better to know sooner rather than later. We’re going to build around those kids playing in the fall league –~that’s the organizations future, and if Nakamura is anything like them, he’ll understand what we’re trying to do here and he’ll buy in.”
“And you think he’ll be able to tell all of that just from my house?”
“No, that’s . . . that’s just the first part of it.”
It’s completely crazy, the plan that just popped into my head, but if I’m right about the kind of player Nakamura is, the kind of player we need him to be, it just might work.
“So what’s the second part?”
“It’s a little bit insane.”
“I’m all ears.”
“It’s actually really insane.”
“Sullivan . . .”
“The kids.”
“The kids?”
“Cole, Archie and Xander. What if we brought him to see the kids?”
“You want to fly him to Arizona?”
“I want to fly him to Arizona and sit his ass behind home plate and let him watch an Arizona Fall League game that his future teammates are playing in. We can show him instead of tell him what we’re offering.”
“And you don’t think sitting in a minor league ballpark watching a game that doesn’t matter will have him leaning the other way?”
“I think if he sees those kids, guys his age, playing the way they play, wanting the same thing he wants, to come to the big leagues and show the world what they can do and maybe do it together, I think maybe it’ll work.”
“You’re right. It’s batshit, but . . . you’re also just . . . right. We’re not going to be the highest bid. We kind of knew that going in, but this might be crazy enough to actually work.”
“You really think so?”
