Following The Fastball

There are normal weeks in baseball… and then there are weeks where your American husband gets recruited to pitch for the Mexican military.

With one week to go before the home opener, the Diablos scheduled an exhibition game against the Mexican Military team. On paper, it sounded like a standard preseason matchup. In reality, it turned into something much more chaotic.

The military roster was made up of 18–20-year-old cadets from the academy in Mexico City. These guys mostly played pickup baseball on weekends. Meanwhile, the Diablos were in the middle of a spring training series in León, a casual six-hour bus ride away.

Naturally, both events were scheduled at the same time.

So the solution? Split the team in half and have one group make the six-hour overnight trek back to Mexico City.

Totally reasonable.

At this point, the starting rotation for the season still hadn’t been finalized. The Diablos carried 20+ pitchers in spring training and the games in León and this military exhibition would help decide who makes the regular season team.

While the team was settling into Leon, Justin got a call from his coach that he’d been assigned to the Mexico City group.

Fine. Normal. Then came the follow-up.

He wouldn’t just be playing in the game, he’d be playing for the Mexican Military team as their starting pitcher. The military team didn’t have enough pro-level pitching so the Diablos loaned 3 players; 1 pitcher and 2 hitters.

The official message, or you could say “military assignment”, read:

“Hello Justin, you will be playing for SEDENA. You need to be clean-shaven. No earrings, papa.”

As the only American, Justin was set to pitch three innings of the shortened 5 inning game. For the opposing team. In a military uniform. In a country he does not represent.

Back in Portland, Maine, I’m watching all of this unfold on a YouTube livestream, iPad propped up, Google Translate working overtime trying to keep up with the Spanish commentary.

The lower bowl of Alfredo Harp Helu is packed. And this is not your average exhibition game.

They roll out a full military ceremony: a marching band moves across the outfield while a line of soldiers unfurls a massive Mexican flag that stretches across center field. Halfway through, historic military planes fly overhead.

Through my very questionable Google translations, I piece together that the Diablos hosted this game exclusively for military families and no tickets sold to the public.

As ridiculous as it was seeing Justin, very clearly American, wearing a Mexican military jersey, he said the team couldn’t have been more excited to have him on the team.

And honestly, he leaned into it.

Because when else in your life are you going to casually say you started a game for the Mexican military?

When he walked back into the Diablos clubhouse afterward, the guys had already decided:

Commander Courtney.

A title he absolutely did not earn… but fully accepted.

Later that week, the team visited the military academy and took photos with the generals, just another completely normal, totally standard week in baseball.

If this season keeps going like this, I’m going to need more than Google Translate to keep up.