Spirits of the Game - Team BS Walks Off Gray 17-16

It was Halloween, but there were no Ghosts, Goblins or Ghouls. There was a bunny hopping along (and literally after Sandy Camp got hit on the bases by an errant throw). There were some long dreadlocks but in the end it was not deadlocked. And that is no BS.

In one of the closest games of the year, Team Black Shirts walked off on a Roger Gawne single to left that plated David Peterson for a 17-16 win over Team Gray..

The first third of the game was all BS. After a solo homer by Gray's amazing Kenji Kishimoto in the top half, Black Shirts scored three in the first and four in the third for a strong if not commanding 7-1 lead. Greg Mathers collected a swinging strikeout along the way, and David DeWitt was able to throw out the speedy Ron Schwab at second on a single, another of those now I've seen everything moments. The big blows were back to back triples by DeWitt and Darren Bobrosky in the third.

Our defense decided to take the fourth inning off and Gray woke up. They stormed back to take 12-7 and 14-11 leads in the fifth and sixth innings. Black turned to Black Magic and kept it close thanks to two double plays from Peterson to Helen Kostoff to heffe. We rallied for four in the seventh. Gray moved ahead once again in the top eighth, but on a sac fly we tied it, snd for the second game in a row, we entered the ninth even (16 all).

Starter and closer Mathers made sure Gray didn't score in the top of the ninth, and that made all the difference. Peterson and Steve Rousso singled, Coach Dave Rose moved Peterson along to third and Gawne made good with the line drive to left.

Other defensive highlights included Gawne going up high to snare a line drive at 3B in the eighth and Leo Kay making a pair of nice catches in right field in the seventh to keep Gray scoreless that inning.

DeWitt had the biggest game with a double and a triple and four RBIs among four hits. Right behind him was Kostoff with a perfect 3-3 after having bad luck finding the green grass on her liners the first couple of games. Brian Black and Gawne joined her with three hits.

Team BS swept the first four games, and I am sure there may be some grumblings but the scores entering the ninth the last three games were 16-16, 19-19 and 15-14. Close games are the most fun!

Black Shirts Overcome the Purple People Eaters, 23-19

Team BS set a record today.

Helen Kostoff (with my assist) poured a record number of her whiskey/schnapps/OJ/bacon shots in the postgame celebration. Unfortunately the Guinness record people weren't there to count officially but I think it may ahve been north of 12 and was spread out over I swear half the bleacher front row. Bottoms up!

We had much to celebrate, because we survived some bad defense and kept the Purple Whitenecks at bay for a final score of 23-19. The game was close throughout, and Purple just wouldn't go away, tying it at 19 to end the eighth. Art Miner was the hitting star as he went 4-4 with two triples, and one of those started off our four run ninth that put the game away.

Purple still was not done, but with the tying run at the plate we turned a slick 6-4-3 (Dave DeWitt to Kostoff to Heffe) double play to end it.

Curt Wade continued his hot hitting, also going 4-4 with a double. Heffe (the usual 3-3 Dinkers) and Frank Coppa (2-2 plus two BBs) rounded out the perfect at the plate. Brian Black and David Peterson were 3-4 in the BS cause.

Miner made a couple of noteworthy catches as did DeWitt in RC and Darren Bobrosky in left. Coppa dug one out at first in the first, and DeWitt lunged to catch a line drive at SS in the third. But 3B Dan May owned the fourth - first he leapt high for a line shot ticketed for left field, then on the next play he cut off a shot toward the 5-6 hole and flung it to Rover Kostoff to get the second out.

I heard that winter will start in earnest next week as it is supposed to get colder, but we will try to stay hot. That's no BS.

Black Turns Blue Blue, 19-15

I am going to start with an apology. This is to Gary Tryhorn. I am sorry for what I am about to write. My past history calls me out to report the facts and the things that stand out though.

If you live long enough, maybe it is true that you do see everything. Things that you thought you would never see. And today we saw Gary hit a pop foul ball with two and a half strikes and it goes down as a strikeout.

As we know, Gary is an all world player, literally in the National Softball Hall of Fame, and if he has ever done that before I am sure in the thousands of games he has played, he can count those on one hand. Gary, after all, has better bat control than anyone I for one have ever seen. So we did get to see history today.

There was a game too. It was a back and forth affair with five lead changes. Early on, Team BS was missing on offense and had a few problems on defense. But we persevered.

In the first, even though we started with two outs Darren Bobrosky came up and smashed a ball that turned out to be our only home run of the game.

We gave up the lead in the second, but in the third with two outs and no one on, we hammered eight straight hits (with only one extra base hit, a double by David DeWitt), and when the dust cleared we had our five for a 7-5 lead.

Blue answered with five the next inning and the seesaw was on. In the fifth, Curt Wade hit the first of two RBI doubles and eventually we scratched back to 10-10 in the sixth, but Blue jumped out with four more. Not to be outclassed, we answered with a five run seventh. Leo Kay started it with a double and later Brian Black matched that. In between Heffe had a two run single and DeWitt cleaned it up with another one.

Starter and Closer Greg Mathers came back in and pretty much shut the Blues down. In the open inning we added four, punctuated  by Wade's two run two bagger.

As it was a Creaker game, we had to have controversy and in the bottom of the ninth there was a play by pitcher Mathers where he came from behind or not from behind the screen and the punishment was or wasn't a warning or the batter was or was not awarded first base, and the play stood or didn't stand, to make the last out. There was an argument and a rule look up and in the end the argument fizzled out when everyone decided this was getting in the way of the post game beverages. Game over.

The play of the game came in the seventh with Black on the mound. There was a short popup up the first base line with the bases loaded, and Black lunged to get it. He got a glove on it and it bounded into foul territory. Catcher/manager Dave Rose hustled over for it and raced back to the plate to get the third out and preserve our one run lead at the time.

DeWitt made a couple of nice running catches in right center. We turned one double play - 2B Steve Rousso to Rover Gerry Dasey to heffe digging it out of the dirt. Mathers went deep in the 3-4 hole on a grounder and 2B Sandy Camp and 1B Dasey made good plays to keep Blue from getting much of a rally going in the open ninth.

On offense no one was perfect but Black, DeWitt, Art Miner, Mathers, Rousso, and Roger Gawne led the way with three hits.

Just another day in Paradise, world events be damned!