“Yuri’s grandmother, Yelena, moved in, and she’s helping run the farm,” Dad explained.
In a strange way, that made a lot of sense. Mrs. Antakov was a tough old bird. She would watch the farm like a hawk. I knew my grandmother hadn’t really wanted to come out of retirement but had done so to help me. That, and she wanted to be closer to family. The two grandmothers had bonded. I was sure they would make a good team.
Once we hung up, I looked at Caryn.
“Sorry, I didn’t get a chance to tell you,” she tried.
“Caryn, don’t bullshit me. There were plenty of chances for you to tell me you needed to go back home. In a lot of ways, I envy you. There’s a lot I miss from there.”
“Like a decent shower, and ketchup?” she asked.
“Isn’t it funny that you miss the strangest stuff? Then there are those things you love here.”
“Like that rocket fuel they try to pass off as coffee,” Caryn suggested.
“That’s almost like mainlining caffeine. It tastes horrible, but I can’t wake up without it now. We’ll have to figure out how to make it once we get back.”
“Is there anything I need to take back with me?” she asked.
“If you would take back some of the cigars I bought, that would help me greatly. You can only take $100 worth through customs. The way it is, I’ll have to get several people to take boxes back for me. I plan on using the cigars as special gifts.”
“You’re sure you’re okay with this? In the big scheme of things, your acting career is much more important than hiring some employees,” she admitted.
“I’m good. If I need someone to help me, I’m sure I can count on Fritz. Plus, you’re just a phone call away.”
We talked about the Quickie Mart. My idea had been to turn it into more of a produce stand and not be open as much. Late nights just invited the sort of incident that happened last night. I trusted my dad and Caryn to figure out anything that might come up. She went to her room to pack.
◊◊◊
I spent the afternoon with Coach Conde, doing batting practice. He had a couple of new pitchers for me to try to hit. He confessed that he was using our time to scout prospects. Coach Conde convinced me to pay him, and he would use the money to get them here for tryouts.
Because it was the weekend, he could have two pitchers come in from the eastern part of Cuba. They were from Guantanamo and Las Tunas.
The kid from Guantanamo was a nervous wreck. He was a skinny kid who had a sneaky fastball. It wasn’t overpowering, but it had a lot of movement. It took me a while to figure him out, but once I discovered his tells, I crushed him.
“What just happened?” Coach Conde asked.
“His glove goes up a fraction of an inch higher when he’s throwing the fastball. It causes his nose to disappear. If I can see his nose, he’s either throwing his changeup or curveball.”
He had me call out the next ten pitches as I peppered hits all over the diamond.
After only three pitches, I could tell the kid from Las Tunas was good. I mean, ‘he should be playing in the major leagues someday’ level of good. He had a monster curveball that just fell off the table. If he had only a little more control of it, he would be unhittable. With a decent strength program, his fastball would be good enough to make a rotation. The kid was a raw talent who was on the verge of becoming special, with the right coaching.
I was able to hit him, but I wouldn’t want to face him in a few years. He was just growing into his body, and it was clear he was doing everything solely on his natural gift for throwing the ball. I cornered Coach Conde after our session.
“I hate to tell you what to do, but the last guy is going to be special.”
“What makes you think that?” he asked.
I told him what I thought.
“I just don’t think he’s ready,” he replied.
“If you don’t get him on a strength and conditioning program and the right coaching, he’ll never grow into his talent. You need to get him into a structured program like yesterday.”
“I’m just not sure,” Coach Conde admitted.
I shrugged. It wasn’t up to me to convince him. That didn’t mean I couldn’t help the kid. I got his name and contact information before I left. When I got back to the hotel, I downloaded my bodycam video and emailed it to Lucas Kite, the scout for the Cubs. He would know what to do for the kid.
◊◊◊ Monday May 30
Today was the culmination for my character: it was the day I was killed in the movie. I think every actor dreams about a dramatic death scene. Maybe that’s every little boy. I remember my brother and me playing army guys or cowboys and Indians. Part of the fun was dying in some spectacular way.
We were filming in the Plaza de la Catedral, which was in front of the famous cathedral of San Cristobal de la Habana.
It was a perfect early summer day, with blue skies and just wisps of white clouds. The temperature was supposed to reach 88 degrees with a chance of afternoon showers. The afternoon rain was always welcome because it cooled everything off for the evening.
