I can't believe I haven't posted for Transdyn since the first time we beat the Ringers. Almost a month ago.
I'm a little leery to start now. Superstitious and all. Because, we haven't lost since then, seven in a row, and stand on the brink of coming back from a 1-3 start to claim the regular season Cotton this Tuesday.
Including two forfeits in a row, first the conventional variety. Our opponents the Ballers got in a fight the week before and one of their best players was suspended, and their response was...don't show up the next week and don't have to courtesy to tell the other team. BP for Bonzos. That would be us, the Bonzos. they were the Bozos in this case.
Then in one of the most bizarre results ever, we played the Blue Dots, long time adversary. They showed up with a well known tournament pitcher, who may or may not also be on the roster of a C league team that played before us on another field. He was doubledipping on a night when the Blue Dots needed a pitcher. Mario, the teammate that doubles as a field monitor on his nights off, and who was sitting out with a sore back, was all over it and in my ear. "If you call it before the fourth inning it's a forfeit." Well I don't want to win that way. This team will come back and smother them.
I learn from the head ump Rusty (who also happens to either be listed on their roster or was until this year) that if I call the pitcher out after the fourth, he is out every time he comes up to bat, and he is tossed out of the game. We aren't scoring - by the top of the sixth we are down 5-2. My resolve is weakening. The pitcher comes up in a potential rally, and I say toss his ass. We hold but still can't score enough, and lose 6-3.
Except not. The fun was just beginning. Apparently the Blue Dot coach was suspended for two games over these shenanigans, and in his plea bargain, he trades the game for lifting the suspension, and we have a forfeit and our winning streak is intact.
That made the next week's game with the first place Ringers ever so important. Beat them by 3+ runs, and we hold the tiebreaker and if both teams win out, we win by that tiebreaker.
We tore them apart. We jumped on them for five in the first and when they crept back to 8-5 after five, we put up five and then nine in the last inning to win going away 22-8. It was the statement game we had waited for. Mario made a great grab on a line shot to second. Jas, D, and Rams all had four hits, and Cage had a double and a triple for the minicycle.
Then last week we continued the trend. In the first we batted around plating seven. The big blow was a massive bomb by D to make it 3-0 but we didn't stop there. We followed up with six straight hits to get four more runs.
However then we stopped hitting. The Ballers had re-tooled, and there were some new faces we had not seen before. Sir Guy kept it somewhat in check - he struck out two in the fourth. Somewhere in there Cage threw out a guy at home. But aided by some shaky defense, they closed it to 7-6 by the bottom of the fifth. Cage got to second on a wild throw with two outs, and the Ballers made a bad mistake. D had followed his home run with a much harder hit ball in the second, but it was right at the right fielder playing at the fence. So up he strode and they put him on to, presumably set up the force everywhere except home. To get to Hama. Now I understand walking D, but to get to Hama? Really? And then they played him shallow. particularly up the middle. He promptly put on an upswing and the ball carried and carried, and hit the very top of the fence in straightaway center! It careened back to the field, so he ended up with just a double but it gave us back a three run lead.
In the last inning, the Ballers managed to tie it up but we held it there with about three minutes left on the clock. Pauly strode up, determined to get the winning rally started. And Heffe and Chopper followed suit to get the bases loaded with no outs. Tom could not quite hit a deep enough fly ball to win it, but in fitting fashion, our next hope was super-sub Mark. He has been a trooper - it's tough to come onto a team full of injuries and contribute to it, only to be told that guys don't lose their spots due to injuries, and with regulars coming back, we had to tell him he has to stay a sub. And then of course we had to call him last minute once again this night. And what does he do but hit a sinking liner that the center fielder can't quite get to, and we win the game, and remain tied for first. nice job, Rook!
So it sets up the grudge match with the Blue Dots with regular season cotton on the line. They will be gunning for us - the last game was not pretty. The reason they even used the illegal player was that they apparently have been devastated by injuries, and they also got permission to add 'emergency' players. They gonna be loaded for bear, or at least Transdyn!
Should be fun.
Milestones:
6/10
Cage 20 3b (#4)
Pauly 300 h (#8)
Rams 250 ab (#19)
6/17
Jas 250 h (#11)
I'm a little leery to start now. Superstitious and all. Because, we haven't lost since then, seven in a row, and stand on the brink of coming back from a 1-3 start to claim the regular season Cotton this Tuesday.
Including two forfeits in a row, first the conventional variety. Our opponents the Ballers got in a fight the week before and one of their best players was suspended, and their response was...don't show up the next week and don't have to courtesy to tell the other team. BP for Bonzos. That would be us, the Bonzos. they were the Bozos in this case.
Then in one of the most bizarre results ever, we played the Blue Dots, long time adversary. They showed up with a well known tournament pitcher, who may or may not also be on the roster of a C league team that played before us on another field. He was doubledipping on a night when the Blue Dots needed a pitcher. Mario, the teammate that doubles as a field monitor on his nights off, and who was sitting out with a sore back, was all over it and in my ear. "If you call it before the fourth inning it's a forfeit." Well I don't want to win that way. This team will come back and smother them.
I learn from the head ump Rusty (who also happens to either be listed on their roster or was until this year) that if I call the pitcher out after the fourth, he is out every time he comes up to bat, and he is tossed out of the game. We aren't scoring - by the top of the sixth we are down 5-2. My resolve is weakening. The pitcher comes up in a potential rally, and I say toss his ass. We hold but still can't score enough, and lose 6-3.
Except not. The fun was just beginning. Apparently the Blue Dot coach was suspended for two games over these shenanigans, and in his plea bargain, he trades the game for lifting the suspension, and we have a forfeit and our winning streak is intact.
That made the next week's game with the first place Ringers ever so important. Beat them by 3+ runs, and we hold the tiebreaker and if both teams win out, we win by that tiebreaker.
We tore them apart. We jumped on them for five in the first and when they crept back to 8-5 after five, we put up five and then nine in the last inning to win going away 22-8. It was the statement game we had waited for. Mario made a great grab on a line shot to second. Jas, D, and Rams all had four hits, and Cage had a double and a triple for the minicycle.
Then last week we continued the trend. In the first we batted around plating seven. The big blow was a massive bomb by D to make it 3-0 but we didn't stop there. We followed up with six straight hits to get four more runs.
However then we stopped hitting. The Ballers had re-tooled, and there were some new faces we had not seen before. Sir Guy kept it somewhat in check - he struck out two in the fourth. Somewhere in there Cage threw out a guy at home. But aided by some shaky defense, they closed it to 7-6 by the bottom of the fifth. Cage got to second on a wild throw with two outs, and the Ballers made a bad mistake. D had followed his home run with a much harder hit ball in the second, but it was right at the right fielder playing at the fence. So up he strode and they put him on to, presumably set up the force everywhere except home. To get to Hama. Now I understand walking D, but to get to Hama? Really? And then they played him shallow. particularly up the middle. He promptly put on an upswing and the ball carried and carried, and hit the very top of the fence in straightaway center! It careened back to the field, so he ended up with just a double but it gave us back a three run lead.
In the last inning, the Ballers managed to tie it up but we held it there with about three minutes left on the clock. Pauly strode up, determined to get the winning rally started. And Heffe and Chopper followed suit to get the bases loaded with no outs. Tom could not quite hit a deep enough fly ball to win it, but in fitting fashion, our next hope was super-sub Mark. He has been a trooper - it's tough to come onto a team full of injuries and contribute to it, only to be told that guys don't lose their spots due to injuries, and with regulars coming back, we had to tell him he has to stay a sub. And then of course we had to call him last minute once again this night. And what does he do but hit a sinking liner that the center fielder can't quite get to, and we win the game, and remain tied for first. nice job, Rook!
So it sets up the grudge match with the Blue Dots with regular season cotton on the line. They will be gunning for us - the last game was not pretty. The reason they even used the illegal player was that they apparently have been devastated by injuries, and they also got permission to add 'emergency' players. They gonna be loaded for bear, or at least Transdyn!
Should be fun.
Milestones:
6/10
Cage 20 3b (#4)
Pauly 300 h (#8)
Rams 250 ab (#19)
6/17
Jas 250 h (#11)
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