All We Are Is Dust In The Wind, One 23 - Four 12

I have had the good fortune to manage two amazing teams this year. Lots of talent and team-made breaks and some luck, and had hardly lost a game.

But today it all came crashing down and Team One wiped us all over the New Dirt Field Five 23-12. Way too much Raul and his Crew, and our unbeaten streak was over.

I had been due for new cleats for over a year and finally received them this weekend after ordering them online. Salomon Speed Cross 4 - the latest rage in all weather all surface softball shoes. I put them on this morning, and they fit like a glove, except they were on my feet. I was all psyched. Power shmower, who needs power when you've got Creaker ball on a crisp Tuesday morning?

And then we went out there and stunk it up. Now, I told the team, I have to burn them, because obviously that is why we lost.

Team One struck early and often with hits and gifts from us, We were down 8-2 after two, and our MO all season was coming back from early deficits. But not today, as our bats went mostly silent, or hit line drives right at someone, and our defense was leaky all day. Give One the credit though, their entire order hit and they caught everything hit to them in the field.

Tim Orr had three hits including our one highlight, a home run blast to deep left. Joining him with three hits were Randy Crase, John Huzokowski, Dan DeClercq, JP Preston, and yours truly.

Randy and Tim made tough catches in LF, and LC, respectively,  Heffe made a nice stop on a smash to his right at 1B, JP had a K, and we turned one DP from Huzokowski to Steve Sloat to Bill Hoffman. That was about it.

It was good that we were out there though with all that's been going on with PG&E. Some of our players still had no power (and I am not talking about their bats), and so it was a pleasant diversion for all.

Special thanks to the field crew who showed up early to get some dirt spread around on Field 5. And especially Greg Slausson, manning the tractor as usual, despite being currently in rehab after his surgery.

Finally, the ritual burning of the cleats will occur at a time and place TBD. Stay tuned.

A Bittersweet End

I turned to Joe in the dugout, I think it was in the fourth inning, and I said "We're going to win this in the bottom of the last inning."

And then the Hawks immediately turned an 8-7 lead into 11-7.

Our answer: In the fifth, we scored one. But we also had two strikeouts, looking, and an out by Chauncey trying to steal second base on a single. I'm sure I have never seen two K's standing there in an inning, so it is at least a team record. Hell, it's probably never happened in the history of slow pitch softball. So we have that.

Then the Hawks added on, and it was 14-8. Time running out. The sixth would be the last.

And a funny thing happened. All the bad breaks and our failings in losing three games by two or less runs were swept aside. A Conehead hit (for Johnny) started it, of course. Then consecutive singles by the Kid, Heffe (old school blooper over the third baseman's head), Haze, Larry, Randy, a sac fly by Sting, and more hits by D and Chopper, and there was Sting, running for D standing on second as the winning run. Up strode Lefty, who took a couple of pitches, patiently waiting for the right one. He stroked a hit toward the gap in right center. Sting had to wait to make sure it fell in, and the hesitation made a play at the plate possible. But the second baseman bobbled the cut-off and Reg scored easily. Game over, 15-14. Vintage Coneheads.

It was bittersweet because this was the real Coneheads. We are actually pretty good when we have all our guys. Yes, it doesn't help losing McKnight, Pope and Bruce in one year, and Ol' G going down to knee surgery certainly hurt us as much as his knee pained him. But what really stops us is not knowing who is going to show up from week to week. How many games were we missing major parts of the heart of our order?

It was like eating dark chocolate. They tell you it's better for you, and you enjoy that bittersweet taste, but what you really wanted was the creaminess of good milk chocolate, with maybe some nougat on the inside. We wanted to make the playoffs, because if we had our guys, you never know what we are capable of. Not in the playoffs seems just foreign to us.

Derek and Chopper were on fire, going 4-4 each. D even got to second on one screamer. The youth, Chance and Chaunce, each went deep with a triple.

Oh, and it was Sting and Lefty who took called third strikes. Talk about rebounding, they won the game for us.

Oh well, just wait until next year. Hope springs eternal in this game. We have a good line on some 'young' new players (just 40, the new young). Maybe next year everyone will show up, and I fully expect G to come back as good as ever, which is pretty good. And at least for fall, we have the extreme youth, young Chance.

Have a good winter. See you at Masse's. I'll bring the chocolate.

Milestones:
10/7
Chopper        300 r (#15)

10/14
Sting             50 sf (#2)
Chopper       400 rbi (#9)
Sting             950 ab (#10)
Lefty            550 ab (#18)

10/21
None

Winter Ball Starts with a Bang

And the bang was John Look's smash over the left fielder's head for a two run homer to go up 15-10.

At the time the WolfPack had already come back from a 10-2 deficit (after 2 1/2 innings) to take a 13-10 lead. But somehow that two run blow was the statement we needed. This is a different WolfPack team, and it's a new year.

We ended up winning going away 23-13. I don't think we have ever beaten Mudcat Black - at most once. Everyone who was around last year remembers them shutting us out, not our finest moment.

So it's early and it's just one game but if you take out some early very shaky defense, we played a complete game. The D solidified and the bats came alive as it should be.

'Rookie' Paul Lisi led the way with a 5-5 day and team leading four RBIs. Mel and Al had four hits each, and eight others had three. All but two of us scored and all but two drove in a run or more. The bottom of the lineup (Les, John, Frank, Dave, Heffe (including a double, the only extra base hit besides John's HR), and JP) were 18-23. That's a good sign, and put it together with the top five going 19-24, and you might call it a good day at the plate.

And special note should be made of our new pitcher, Al Oxley. Not only does he throw strikes and mix up high and low and in and out, and make the plays up the middle, he is also a field general out there, and just knows the game. He's my hero!

Next week is the real test. We play Leo's, who also has owned us just forever. Let's see what we can do.

Four Outslugs One, 26-17

Team Four took a week off on defense but laid on the offense in defeating Team One, 26-17.

A double play took us out of our first inning rally and we came up with just one run. One soon was ahead 2-1, then 7-6, then 12-8, and it was the comeback trail once again for Four. We ended up scoring in every inning, at least three in every frame after the fourth.

There were a few great plays along the way. Randy Crase fired to Charlie Pastor to Steve Sloat to cut down Raul Delgado when he tried to stretch a shot down the left field line into a double in the first. Dave Rose threw to first to get a runner on a 'single' to right in the third, and the first baseman scooped the low throw. Later, Gary Namanny and Tim Orr made several good catches in the middle outfield.

The bottom four in the order scored 12 runs, once again proving that if the bottom hits, you win.

But the biggest hits came from the top. Al Munoz had a day: 5-5 and a key clutch three run bomb in the seventh with two outs. He had six RBIs altogether to lead the team. Steve Sloat recovered from a swing and miss to smash a two run homer in the fourth. Orr had a two out two run double in the fifth. Ray Aguilera (besides tossing key shutdown innings in the seventh and eighth) went 4-4 and had a run scoring triple in the sixth.

Kravin also had a perfect 4-4 day, setting up the top of the lineup for RBIs. Orr, Crase, Namanny, Sloat, and John Preston (who continues to rake and toss zeroes on the mound) had three hits.

Too bad - we have a bye next week and can't continue our hot streak!

Four Squeaks by Two 10-9

Dramatic ending: Top of the ninth, Four up one over Two, 10-9. Two on and two out. Tying and lead run.

Bob Muegge at the plate. He had already put a grounder on the line past the slow footed first baseman earlier in the game.

The first baseman had taken an inning at rover in the eighth. Two balls found their way past him.

He was determined nothing would get by him this time. He moved second baseman Steve Sloat over. "I have to cover the line."

Muegge took a mighty swing, and hit a line drive near the line. The first baseman went leaping (!) into foul ground, actually got off the ground and snagged it. Game over!

It was the second great leaping catch of the game, Charlie Pastor snared one destined for left field at SS in the fourth. The other great play was Gary Namanny slinging the ball to get a force out at second on a clean "single" to right center.

Team Four seems to thrive on catch up ball and this game was no different. In this one, we spotted them a 6-0 lead going into the bottom of the second. But we put up three, then four, and we had an 8-6 lead. The big blow was a two out smash down the left field line for a grand slam by Namanny. Never a better example of right man, right time!

From there it was a tightly pitched game, 8-6, 8-7, 8-8, 9-8, 9-9 and finally 10-9. Ray Aguilera and JP Preston for Four, and Muegge for Two were dealing. Aguilera even induced a swinging strike out. He had quite a game, also going 3-3.

A great game under perfect weather conditions. We can all dream about it when we are all sitting in the dark during the Great Wind Emergency tonight. 

Thee Olde Compleat Conehead Win

Sometimes it just clicks. Coneheads start hitting, making plays and it's over for the other team.

Monday it started out slow enough. We loaded the bases with one out, and Brandon hit a hard grounder. Unfortunately it was right to one of the middle infielders, who stepped on second, and threw to first and the rally was over.

But we held them to a single run over the first two innings and then the juggernaut bottom of the order came up in the third. Skip, Larry and Heffe went 8-8 plus a bases loaded walk in this game, once again proving the olde adage, "bottom of the order hits, we win." Three straight singles to start the third, and then Randy followed with a single, Sting with a double and a Lefty sac fly and another single, topped off by a Chauncey triple, and it was 7-1.

The Snorts responded but we won the inning 7-5. Importantly we kept adding on after that. In the fourth, Haze started it this time, followed by Skip and Larry singles, and a Heffe bases loaded walk. Another sac fly and run scoring singles by Sting and Lefty and we were in business again.

Again the Snorts responded, but this time we won the inning 4-3. Then in the fifth, Brandon got it going with a deep gap triple. Hits by Johnny, Mike, Skip, Larry, Heffe, and Randy added on five more. This time the Snorts had no answer and the game ended 16-9.

Besides the bottom of the order, Johnny was also 3-3 and Sting hit the ball hard four times. The only out he made was a screamer right at the SS.

The defense was mostly routine, but there were a couple of tough catches on pop ups to shallow left by Randy, and a snow cone catch running in by Brandon in left.

This leaves us in a six way tie for second place after four games. I have never seen that in any of my decades of softball. The league is wide open for the taking.

Milestone:
Larry        550 rbi (#4)

Take Down, Four 20-Five 15

Lee's team is pretty daunting  - Lee Namanny, Gary Tryhorn, James Little, Chip Sharpe, Paul Lisi, Tony Gorgone - just to name a few.

But yet another combination of great defense, pitching and timely hitting, and Four came away with another comeback win over Five, 20-15.

We started slow with only two runs over the first four innings, and Lee's Legends were up 7-2. We could have packed it in, again. Instead, we poured over 18 runs in the next four innings, and with no runs scored in the open inning, the game ended 20-15.

The biggest hit of the day was the new switch hitter Charlie Pastor, reverting to his natural rightie stance in the sixth, smashed a gapper to right center, and the three run homer broke a 7-7 tie, and put us up to stay.

Of special note, "JP" Preston pitched the middle three innings, and held Team Five to one run as we mounted the comeback. He even got two strike outs swinging!

Ray Aguilera was also very effective and if it weren't for a defensive lapse or five in the seventh, would have put up equally impressive numbers. As it was he shut down Five with a zero run ninth.

He was helped by a stellar play by Al Munoz. With no outs and two aboard, Munoz took a smash up the middle and made a rover unassisted to first double play look routine. Steve Sloat took credit though - he was supposed to be at rover in the ninth but deferred to Munoz. Whoever made the play, it took the final wind out of Five's sails, and a pop up to Aguilera later it was all she wrote.

Other defensive gems were turned in by Pastor at SS, when he ranged far to his left to grab a one hopper by one of the Five big boppers, and got a third out force at second. Bill Hoffman recovered from a bobble at second to toss out Little trying to sneak and streak home from third on the bobble. It ended the sixth.

Gary Namanny made his usual assortment of running catches in right center and Dan DeClerq and Tim Orr took turns making catches on long flies in deep left center.

DeClerq had a 4-4 day, and Munoz, Randy Crase, GNamanny, Pastor, Preston, and Ken Gurgone all had three knocks. All but one in the 15 player lineup had a hit and all but one had an RBI. Team effort at its best!