The Bar is Higher!

The Steves, Kenji, Johnny G, and Alan - that's some serious pop and defensive prowess. Team Black Shirts showed up Tuesday with those major pieces missing, just 11 players with no rest in sight.

Granted Team Four was also missing a boatload of players (they had but 10), but Team BS put on a clinic of every player stepping up to fill the void. We came out on top 20-7 and Team Four Flip Flopped twice, so we scored those 20 runs in only seven innings.

It started with Marty Parenti, who threw a nine inning gem. He had as many Ks as the Warrior core has Rings. I don't think I have ever been on a slow pitch softball field when four strikeouts were recorded by my pitcher, or any pitcher. Team Four did not score after the third inning. And along the way, Marty fielded two smashes up the middle from behind the screen to turn hot shots into easy outs. Not to mention he had a two run double mixed in with his three hits and is leading the team with an .867 batting average so far this season.

There was actually a contest for defensive player of the game. At the hot corner, Mike Saindon grabbed hard hit ball after hard hit ball, and turned them all into outs and twice getting double plays out of them.

That's because he had the other defensive wizard playing rover, Helen Kostoff, who has made the pivot into an artform and whose arm has just gotten stronger and more accurate over time (probably from her obsession as a senior disk golf champion). Between the three of them and the others, the infield was extremely crisp in this game.

The outfielders were no slouches either. Brian Black, in particular, caught one ball that was directly in that impossible morning sun in left field.

On offense, Dan May was a perfect 5-5 with two doubles, and Brian was 4-5 but scored all five times he was up. Talk about table setters at the top of the lineup! David Peterson was right behind them and had four hits, and led the team with four RBIs. Coach Dave Rose was also perfect at 4-4 and a walk. Heffe, Marty, Jerry, and Sandy all had a trio of hits, and everyone in the lineup had at least two.

All in all a nearly perfect game on a beautiful day. The missing players will be welcomed back, but beware that the bar has been set higher! And I am not talking schnapps!