I Wish Oranges Stayed In Florida and SoCal

My therapist finally said I can write about Team Gold's loss last week, 33-28 to Team Orange. She said if I can refrain from crying when I think about it for ten minutes, I am on the road to recovery and can take pen in hand.

It really wasn't that bad. It was a tight fun game for six innings. Team Orange's largest lead was 4-0 in the middle of the first and ours was three runs a couple of times. It was going to go down to the wire, and we had to feel good because we were the home team.

Even when they took their fifth lead of the game at 22-20 after seven complete and added five in the top of the eighth, Team Gold had no quit. We rallied for seven to tie it up on the strength of seven hits and a walk by the top nine in our lineup, combined with a clutch two out tying RBI single by Joy Dardin to knot it up 27-27 going into the ninth.

But our defense the last four innings finally did us in, as we gave up 21 runs in the last four innings. Including six in the open ninth, and we could only muster one in response.

It was disappointing to end the season just like that. Team Gold had great chemistry, and many players said it was the most fun team they have been on in the Creakers. We were in first place alone for eight weeks, and tied for first six others. That was a lot of fun. But the most fun was the chemistry part. In the end, injuries and absences caught up with us, just like most other good Creaker teams. But it's all good. At least that's what she said to me over and over again.

Gary Namanny and Rob Katzer made some fabulous catches in the middle outfield. I would not trade the top two in our lineup, Hugh Vasquez and Bob Fulgham for any team's duo. They were a collective 12-12 with a double each. Nammany behind them had a triple and four RBIs. Katzer and Curt Wade each also drove in four. Wade and my pick for rookie of the year Doug Carlson each went 4-5 as did Stan Bielecki, who popped a booming double up the middle. Steve Alvarez (a monster triple), Anthony Puccio, Dardin, Steve Bedrick, and I all had three hits. That meant that all but one Gold batter had three or more hits. Of particular note were Pooch and Bedrock, who came through in unexpected ways throughout the last two games. And even though Orange scored 33 runs, Bedrock stood tall in the adversity of missing our starting pitcher Tom Gonzales. Tip your cap to the Orange hitters, they hit when they needed to and then some and took advantage of every mistake we made in the field.

And now? I get to spend an extra day on the couch singing nursery rhymes to my therapist. She says I have an excellent voice.

The Gold Standard

In the bottom of the ninth inning, as we desperately clung onto our one run lead, and Navy got the tying and winning runs on base, Gerry Dasey, watching the unfolding drama after his game ended on Field three, called out to me. "Hef, are you nervous?"

And you know the thing was, I wasn't nervous at all. Not tense one bit.

Because, I had learned everything I needed to understand about the Gold team. We had no quit in us. Last game we scored eight in the ninth to win a game we should have lost.

This game we played without the left half of our outfield (Steve Mastonarde and Gary Namanny). Our starting pitcher (Tom Gonzales) was in the emergency room last Friday getting his leg stitched up after taking a line drive off the worst part of his shin. He was resting comfortably in the shade behind our dugout, he could barely stand up. The three of them finished the season hitting .765, .718, and .716, respectively. Not to mention that Namanny is probably the best outfielder in the league.

So what did we have?

Steve Bedrick, who we call Bedrock, was as solid as he has been all season. He pitched all nine innings - he fell over at one point and calmly went to the sidelines and stretched his legs and caught his breath and finished the game. He struck out three, two swinging. And he went 2-4, clutch hits each, and took a big walk in the second, our first five run inning.

Our shortstop Hugh Vasquez should have been next to Gonzales, having shooting pains in his hip. He went 5-5, and threw out a runner at the plate on a relay from Rob Katzer.

Anthony Puccio (Pooch) comes all the way from the Sierra foothills to play softball. He went 4-5, and made a great catch on a pop up behind the plate. Barely got above his head straight back.

Curt Wade started the season 11-11. He developed bone on bone athritis in his hip, and his great natural hitting had dropped off. He went 5-5 including lumbering around to third on a gapper. And made a great catch of a pop up at 2B in the second.

Mike Nichols, the mildest mannered person in all Creakerdom, quietly, of course, went 4-4 including a booming double. He or his proxy scored every time up.

The Batman Steve Alvarez, pressed into duty in right center as we had to take almost everyone out for an inning, made two great catches in the sixth inning to hold Navy to two runs after they started a promising rally. And went 4-5 with an RBI on each of his hits.

And speaking of have an inning, Stan Bielecki, all eight feet of him, made all three outs on defense at rover in the eighth. First he snared a line drive no one thought he would get, especially the runner on first, who froze and Stan fired a strike to me OVER his head for the double play. I guess it's easier to do that when you are looking down on everyone. The next batter obliged by hitting a line drive that no one under Stan's eight foot frame gets. And there was a lot of ball showing as it rattled around in his glove but he hung on. The top of the Navy lineup scored one run that inning.

And Joyful Joy Dardin, who had played about two innings in the outfield all season, took over in left, and she set the tone in the first inning with a running shoestring catch. She added a clutch two out bases loaded double to finsh off our second five spot in the third.

And if Gonzales or Bill Watson on Navy is not the Rookie of the Year, it has to be Doug Carlson, he of the Creaker Carlson pedigree. The book is out on him - they play really deep on him now. He stepped into the vacated cleanup spot in our lineup and calmly went 5-5 with a triple and a double and four RBIs.

And Steady Eddies Bob Fulgham and Katzer did their usual, going 3-3 with a walk and a sac (three RBIs), and 4-5 with four RBIs, respectively. And Katzer gave us our weekly hilarity moment as he fell down going from first to second while running for someone else (Get up Rob, GET UP ROB!) while the opposition fell all over themselves trying to get off a throw to second to nail him, can you say Keystone Kops?

And me? I stopped being tense in about the fourth inning. We had already proven what we are made of. Don't get me wrong, Gerry, I would have loved the tee shirts, but somehow the pride of coming up strong in the face of adversity outshines a tee shirt.

Oh yeah, the game, we led 4-0, they led 5-4, we led 9-5, then 14-5, then 14-13, then 15-13, then they led 18-15, then 20-16, then 20-19, then 22-19, then we led 24-22, then 24-23, then we lost 25-24. Does it really matter?

Just watch out in the playoffs. We have grit.

Cardinal Sees Red, Diablos Win 25-18

After a slow start in the field and at bat, the Diablos woke up on both sides of the ball, to take a third straight victory over the WC Cardinal 25-18.

The Diablos gave themselves the potential for the Curse of the First by tallying five off of "Highball (Mike) Howard". The first few hitters couldn't seem to make solid contact off of him - Jim Krochka even struck out. But we managed a couple of thirty foot dribblers that few senior pitchers, especially an octagenarian would get, and a pop up that fell in sandwiched around a shot on the right field line by Ed Hendrickson and a couple other line drives to net five.

The Cardinal, who have a good lineup, kept up with us - although we gifted them a few extra base runners that scored. They took leads of 11-10 in the third inning, 13-12 in the fourth, and 14-12 after five. But the defense kicked in in the middle innings to keep it within reach. Clay LeChe in right center made a nice running catch in the fourth and Don Devencenzi netted a hot smash at 3B to get a force at second in the same inning. In the next inning, Bobby Vitro made probably the play of the day on a smash to his right and then the easy putout to hold the opponents to a single run.

Later, Brian Goldufsky started two double plays - to keep them scoreless in the sixth, and ultimately he took it himself to the bag at 2B and fired to first to end the game on a high note! Bang, bang!

LeChe was the recipient of the Game ball as he went 4-4 with a double and four RBIs, including the clutch two out two run double in the sixth that proved to be the Game Winner as it put us ahead to stay. 

Everybody got into the action in the 6th through the 8th as we poured on 13 runs to put the game away. Highlights included a solo blast by Krochka to start off the sixth, back to back doubles by Greg Lagomarsino and LeChe to finish the inning, a clutch two run double by Mike Daley in the seventh, and another back to back set of two baggers by Krotchka and Mark Childress to kick off the five run eighth.

LeChe and Childress were 4-4, Krotchka, Lagomarsino, Bob Carver, Devencenzi, Jeff Kravin, and Daley were all 3-4. Thirteen players had at least one RBI, and every player (or their proxy) scored a run.

Not a bad way to kick off August.

And I Thought It Was Greek Comedy, ND Gold Walks Off Green, 25-24

Clay Kallam is a great writer, literally a professional, and he went to college!

But he got this one wrong. This was not Greek Tragedy. It was the highest form of Greek Comedy.

When I was an English major (I did not finish that degree) I took a class in Satire, and there was a famous Greek Comedy titled the Birds by Aristophanes. My professor was the absolutely typical of the genre - buttoned down, probably patches on the elbows of his jacket. Monotone.

Well, in the final class of the quarter, he shows up in a giant Bird costume. Think Sesame Street's Big Bird, only slightly phallic. I didn't pay much attention in class up to that point, but that got all of our collective attention. What a hoot it was. He was running around on the stage, prancing, preening and cracking us all up.

And today, it appeared that Gold players were running around in Bird costumes, as though their arms were appendages that just couldn't catch a ball or throw a ball and their birdbrains kept having mental lapses, time after time.

And yet.

This team has no give up. We hung in there even when we had the middle and bottom of the lineup up facing a seven run deficit in the bottom of the ninth.

And a funny thing happened. The birdbrains got transferred into the other team. Poor Green - they never had a chance after that. I started it with a forty foot popup between the pitcher, shortstop and third baseman - you know in ND senior softball no one is getting that. Curt Wade got a hit, after a ground out, Stan Bielecki, Anthony Puccio, and Steve Bedrick all got on. I can't remember which were clean and which were senior moments, but they turned it over to the top of the order with the bases loaded and four runs in. Hugh Vasquez smartly drew a bases loaded RBI walk, and up strode Bob Fulgham. He was 4-4 up to that point. He hit a routine grounder to third and (not mentioning any names) probably the best fielding third baseman in all of Creakerland fields it, and gets ready to start a game ending double play, and...falls down. He just never does that. He can't even get up to beat Steve Mastronarde, pinch running at second, to third base to get even one out. The Greek Gods were with us.

After that, it was a Gary Namanny single and a Rob Katzer line drive to left center and speedie Doug Carlson ran home from second with the winning run.

So Clay, it may have seemed a Greek Tragedy to you, but in the other dugout is seemed much more like High Comedy.

There wasn't much defense in this game for us. I dug one out of the dirt in the first to hold the strong top of the Green lineup to two runs. Pooch snagged a smashed one-hopper at second base and got an easy out at first in the fourth - immediately following the previous batter smashing one off his glove. How he calmly hung in there on the second one, I will never know. Later, pitcher Tom Gonzales got a swinging strikeout in the seventh to keep that inning from getting out of hand. Or wing. Or beak.

The top five in our lineup hit .913: Fulgham, Katzer, 5-5 (5 RBIs), Vasquez 4-4+BB, Namanny 3-5, Gonzales 4-4 (4 RBIs).

The middle, not bad either, Carlson 2-3+SF, Mastronarde 2-4, Kravin 2-3+BB, Steve Alvarez 4-4 (including the only real extra base hits, two doubles), Curt Wade 3-4.

And the bottom held up their end of the bargain, remember they got the hits that turned over the lineup in the ninth. Collectively, Joy Dardin, Bielecki, Pooch, and Bedrock were 7-15 with five RBIs.

A true team game, whether it was the botched birdbrained earlybird comedy of errors or the tremendous back to the wall rally to win it.

Gold may or may not go all the way, but just for today at least, we are back in first place!

Tragedy? I think not!

The Gold Rush Fell Short, 31-27 to Light Blue

The good news is hope is not lost despite losing three in a row as Team Gold fell to the relentless Light Blue team, 31-27.

All is not lost because after playing listless softball for two games and six innings (as we fell behind 26-7), the Gold Rush finally let loose and we almost, almost came all the way back. We outscored Lt. Blue 20-5 in the last two and a half innings, making it a game. If we can channel that energy into the last two games and win out, we can still reclaim first place.

It must be said that two of our players played out of their mind today. It was the emergence of what is likely to be a long and great career for Joy Dardin. She was 4-4 with a double and five RBIs, and played all over the infield and even an inning in  left field and one on the mound - she can play everywhere well.

She was tied with Doug Carlson for today's team lead in RBIs. Doug is a lock for Creaker Rookie of the Year (I say that and I am sure there are other candidates, but Doug is hitting a cool .731 with almost a 1.000 slugging percentage). Doug was 5-5 with a double and a grand slam home run to produce those five RBIs. The Slam came in the five run ninth inning folowing our ten run eighth as we were beginning to believe - it came with two outs and brought us to what ultimately and unfortunately was the final four run deficit. But for that one moment, we truly thought we could make a miraculous comeback.

Others with good games:

Gary Namanny, 4-4 with a home run and four RBIs despite pulling a hamstring. Hugh Vasquez and Tom Gonzales, 4-5. Steve Mastronarde, 2-2 with a walk, on a quest to never make an out again (OK, he did get a Sac Fly but that doesn't count as an official at bat, now does it). Anthony Puccio and Rob Katzer, three hits each. Mike Nichols blasted a gapper up the middle to the fence and didn't stop running until he had a triple. Everyone else had at least a hit and all but two scored a run.

The last two weeks should be fun.

The Commander Is Happy, the Commander Rests

Well, you know that if I go 3-3 with a limping double and an RBI every time up, I am going to go straight home to do stats. I have not been hitting on Wednesdays, and I was due. It just felt good to contribute to the more or less easy win over the 

hapless Lasers, as we scored 23 runs in six innings and came away with the 23-17 win despite the Lasers making a comeback in the last couple of innings.

I was by far not the best player on the field. We started out the gate on fire. Dan Roach, who had the mini-cycle in backward order (3B, 2B, 1B) sauntered around the bases to save energy in the heat on his lead off gapper and stopped at third. Ed Hendrickson followed wth another triple (thanks to Bob Carver's running), Jim Krochka with a double, and then singles by Mark Childress and Tom Caldwell set up Jimbo Wilcox to clean it up with a two run double. Six batters, five runs.

And to prove there is no such thing as the curse of the first, the bottom of the order scored two in the second, and the top produced four more in the third, highighted by a Krochka two run bomb.

Some fine Diablo defense kept the Lasers pretty much off the board in the meantime. Caldwell made a nice running catch in LF in the first. In the second, Krochka picked a ball at SS just off the ground cleanly, and threw out a wayward runner for an inning ending double play. Roach made the first of two highlight catches to keep the L's scoreless in the third. The second one ended the game after the bad guys threatened in the last flip flop inning.

So it was 13-4 after four, and we tacked on five in the fifth on RBI hits by Caldwell, Wilcox (a second two run double) and a two run single by Brian Goldufsky. And in the sixth, the lefties Carver and Hobbling Heffe hit doubles around a walk to Don Devencenzi and singles by Willie Hollis and Mike Daley to set up the bases loaded no out at bat by the sometimes Superman, Howard Davis. He planted a line shot into left center to clear the bases, and we had our last five and prompted the no doubt flip flop as that made it 23-11. For that and pitching five innings in the heat, Superman got the game ball. And the Commander rested, and all was good.

We gave up some questionable plays to the bottom of the Lasers order as they desperately tried to come back in the now top of the seventh, but after scoring six to just start getting us nervous, Roach ran down that last sinking liner in RC and the game was over.

We hit .769 as a team! We didn't even have four at bats apiece, yet all but two had multiple hit games.

3-3: Roach (2B, 3B), Hendrickson (3B), Caldwell, Wilcox (2 2B, Team High 5 RBI), Kravin (2B, 3 RBI)

2-2+BB: Childress, Devencenzi

2-3: Krochka (2B, HR, 3 RBI), Goldufsky, Carver (2 2B), Daley, Davis (3B, 4 RBI)

Quite impressive. The rock keeps rolling along! Or is it the roll keeps rocking along? And all that Jazz.

Hurry Home, Jim!

There were calls of "Jim (Krochka) who", especially when Tom Caldwell, batting in Jim's third spot, did his best imitation and blasted a shot between the left fielders to make it 3-0 in the first.

And as you will see, we blasted the curse of the first out of the water, and poured it on late, but I am going to start with our defense. Because, after all - a wise man said defense wins championships, and who am I to argue with that?

In the first with the wind blasting out to left, Clay Leche tentatively came in on a hard liner, and it kept rising and rising until he had to leap to corral the ball. Dan Roach (who started the game with a triple), made an even better catch in right center for the third out to keep PH Blue off the board.

In the second, Mark Childress, filling in at SS, went back on a ball like he was patrolling his usual LC position and made an over the shoulder grab for out number two. Pitcher Ed Hendrickson followed that with a swinging strike out to end the inning, and just for good measure got another one to open the third. And Mike Daley closed the inning by grabbing an errant throw in the dirt at first, and deftly tagged out the batter-runner, who had fallen down but was getting back up, before he could reach the bag.

Of course, in that frame we gave up eight runs and our 13-0 lead was cut to 13-8. In the fourth, Brian Goldufsky made a great backhanded grab in the rover-shortstop hole and wheeled to fire to Bobby Vitro who just managed to get to the second base bag on time, and had to reach high in the air to hang on to the throw. Ok, maybe not that high, because like a few of us, Bobby is a little height challenged. Great grab though! He topped that the next inning by snagging a one hop smash like it was routine and got the easy out at first. Roach followed that up with an even better running catch than he had in the first for the third out.

I don't have any written highlights in the sixth and seventh, but I do remember in one of those innings we took the wind out of their sails by turning a Goldufsky to Vitro to Kravin double play.

The offensive explosion begins with our leadoff hitter Roach. He set the tone for the game with a gapper that he turned into a triple when the outfielders were a little slow getting the ball into the infield. He hit a three run bomb in the fourth, and in between and beyond he added a single and double for the cycle. Dan the man!

And it ends with our dead pull hitter Bill Hoffman, known for lacing line drives to left. When he came up in the ninth, when we already had plated six runs, he saw the middle wide open, and drove a line drive between the fielders like the ball was in a fast corvette, and courtesy runner Childress scampered around the bases like he was on fire, and Hoffman had another three run homer.

We had jumped out to that 13-0 lead, but PHB kept coming back at us, and by the sixth (we were only playing seven) the lead was down to only 18-16. Thoughts of our last game walkoff loss were creeping into our heads. We needed to make a statement in the open inning. And we did. Hits by Roach, Hendrickson, Caldwell, a walk to Childress, a run scoring forceout by Clay LeChe, and another hit from Goldufsky started to push us further ahead. But it was Jimbo Wilcox' three run blast, fresh off the disabled list that took away PHB's hope, and when Hoffman followed up with his, it was really over. PHB managed to score one in the last frame, but once again they were left with the feeling, "Who are these guys?" as they walked to the handshake line.

The top of the order - Roach, Hendrickson, and Caldwell (5 RBIs): 12-12, two doubles, two homers, and a triple. Behind them: Childress, 3-3 plus a walk (three doubles (!), LeChe in his Diablo debut, 3-4 with an RBI in each at bat. Behind them, Goldufsky, Wilcox and Hoffman 3-4 each with a home run. After that, everyone had one or two hits, all but two players in the lineup scored a run, and all but three drove in a run.

Not a bad day at the office. Final score 27-17.

And Jim, your spot is still safe. Thank you for giving us multiple performances to try to match.

Tale of Two Games, ND and TC

I know this is supposed to be about Creaker games, and not about one person, but an extraordinary (and very frustrating) thing happened to me this week.

I should have paid attention to those Kalshi ads. I could have cleaned up.

Because what are the chances of losing two games in two adult senior softball leagues on back to back days by identical scores or 27-26, both on walk off hits.

I should have placed a bet. Because that is what happened. The TC Diablos blew a five run lead in the ninth yesterday (see Ed Brice's writeup), and today ND Gold blew an eight run lead in the ninth and both games were lost by that score, 27-26.

It must be the manager.

Or not. But if it makes me part of history, so be it. Where is that Guinness Book anyway?

Yesterday, the Diablos took a lead of 19-8 in the top of the fifth, and after allowing a catchup inning in the sixth to knot it at 21, did the right thing - the bottom of the order wrapped around to the top and produced five runs capped by Jim Krochka's third long ball of the day. It was only not his third HR because the fifth run scored ahead of him. He had hit three run homers in the third and fifth innings. Altogether he was 4-4 with a triple two HRs and nine RBIs. Have a day, Jim.

But we didn't score in the top of the ninth - another thing in common with ND Gold's game today - and we just couldn't get the other side out in the bottom half.

Kudos to Sandy Zimmerman for his walkoff grand slam, and for Steve Sloat running for him in his first game back from illness - he hasn't lost a step.

Plenty of TC Diablos had good games, Dan Roach, Ed Hendrickson, Mark Childress, and Greg Lagomarsino all joined Jim at 4-4, and Tom Caldwell was 3-4 with a long HR as well. Childress made what has become a weekly highlight reel catch in left center in the eighth temporarily keeping the Diablos in front - a tumbling, lunging, diving over the shoulder catch with multiple runners on base for the third out. Game saver, or so we thought.

In today's game, ND Gold took an 18-12 lead into the sixth but as we do, didn't add on and then poor defense allowed Gray to catch up. But we did what was necessary (we thought), and highlighted by a triple and a double by Tom Gonzales scored three in the seventh, and five in the eighth. We thought 26-18 was a a safe lead, although the way things have been going with this team, I had my doubts. Especially when ND Gold could not find home in the ninth.

And then we couldn't find the ball on defense in the bottom of the ninth. We squandered that eight run lead, and lost another walkoff to the same Gray team that produced the nickname Walkoff Willie (Hollis) earlier in the season when they beat us in similar fashion. Hollis did not get the penultimate hit this time but he was part of the nine run barrage that hit us upside the head.

The Holiday break couldn't come at a better or worse time. Better because we can rest up and we remain in first place, be it by a thread, thanks to Navy losing. Worse, because now we have that bad taste in our mouths. Maybe a few cold ones and some good barbecue and fireworks will help.

Gonzales had a game, going 5-5 with two doubles and the triple. Bob Fulgham and Rob Katzer joined him with five hits. Gary Namanny was 3-4 plus a sac and hit a booming HR and had eight RBIs. Hugh Vazquez and Steve Mastronarde contributed four hits apiece, and Namanny, Curt Wade, Jeff Kravin, Mike Nichols and Joy Dardin all knocked out three.

Steve Bedrock got a swinging strikeout. Kravin and Stan Bielecki made some nice plays on the infield, and Vasquez, Fulgham, and Kravin turned a nifty double play in the eighth to temporarily hold Gray at bay.

ND Gold Squeezes the Orange, 21-11

Due to players out of town for tournaments, Orange had trouble fielding a team, and the Gold took advanage in drubbing them 21-11. 

It was a hollow revenge game for Gold after taking our worst loss of the season last time we played each other. Orange requested shortening the game to seven innings even though they did rally late to get to double digits.

Gold built a 21-5 lead in the first five innings with the long ball. Hugh Vasquez set the tone with a solo home run leading off the game. Three batters later Rob Katzer hit another gapper that rolled between the outfielders for a two run homer to finish off the scoring in the first at three so we didn't give ourselves the curse of the first.

In the second the bottom of the order put up five and it was off to the races. Singles by Jeff Kravin, Doug Carlson, Mike Nichols, Anthony Puccio, and Steve Bedrick set the table for Joy Dardin, in her inaugural at bat after sitting our six weeks or so with a broken wrist, who crushed a ball to the left field fence that was only not a home run because the fifth run scored in front of her.

In the mean time, Bedrick in his second start held Orange to just four runs in his three innings, helped out by three good catches in left field by Steve Mastronarde and one in right by Nichols.

In the third it was more of the same. Gary Namanny ht a three run bomb after Vasquez and Bob Fulgham singled. After a single and an out, Tom Gonzales sent a blast, his first of two, into the far reaches of turf. In the fourth, Carlson got into the act with a three run job, and in the fifth, Gonzales' second bomb produced runs 3-4-5 that inning.

After failing to score for the first time in the top of the sixth, Gold reverted to form and tried to give Orange hope by allowing five runs with some suspect defense in the bottom half. But pitcher Gonzales saved the day on a shot up the middle that he cut off and fired to rover Fulgham at second who whipped it to first for a double play to end the rally.

In the seventh, Gold was held scoreless but Kravin dug one ball out of the dirt (turf?) and caught a pop up to squelch any hope for an Orange comeback.

Katzer (HR), Gonzales (2 HR), and Carlson (HR) were 3-3. Vasquez (HR) and Fulgham were 3-4. Namanny, Steve Alvarez, Kravin, Nichols, and Bedrick were 2-3, and Dardin had the triple. Everyone had at least one hit. Curt Wade had a double but came up lame reinjuring his groin and we hope he will come back healthy next week.

Another Day, Another Walk Off, ND Gold over Purple 11-10

Gold tried something radical today, to try to avoid our usual get a lead, give up a lead, and hopefully get it back by the end of the game.

We swapped our starting pitcher Tom Gonzales and our middle innings pitcher Steve Bedrick. It was going really well, we held the fearsome top of the Pirple lineup in the first to one run and we scored the max five runs in the first and third. Bedrock was dealing and throwing strikes. It was going oh so well. And then, sure enough we stopped hitting, and they scored six runs in the fifth and sixth, and they tied it up 10-10. So the more things change the more they remain the same.

But it's ok we had the top of the lineup in the bottom of the sixth (well, 2-3-4). We would score five again and they would cry uncle. Then BOOM, as great as they have been all season, 1-2-3 and out.

It came down to the seventh and final and open inning (shortened ahead of time because of the heat). They had their top and we had our middle. They got a couple on but Gonzales induced a couple of easy outs, and we at least had a tie.

Gonzales started the bottom half with a single, and we put in all world sprinter Gary Namanny to run for him. Batman Steve Alvarez finished a perfect day at the plate (3-3) with a single to right center, and Namanny was off to the races. Purple got it in quickly so he stopped at third. Curt Wade came up and played the hero with a slicing off field line drive to left field and we had our fourth one run and second walk off win, 11-10.

On defense, Gonzales had one strikeout looking and made a nice play on a comebacker and a shoestring catch on a little pop up that never got over six feet tall in front of the mound. Hugh Vasquez was a vacuum cleaner at SS, he must have had 10 putouts.

The heat really took it out of the hitters on both teams. We didn't even make it through the lineup three times. Alvarez and Wade had three hits, Vasquez, Namanny (2B and 3B, our only extra base hits), Gonzales, and Steve Mastronarde were 2-2, and yours truly had one and a walk in two trips to the plate (undoubtably Howard Davis was afraid to throw me a strike).

One thing about Gold, we will give you an entertaining close game more often than not!

Diablos Tease Cardinal Again, 22-17

The TC Diablos took a page out of the notebook of this author's Creaker team, and pulled out a convincing 22-17 victory. Get an early lead (12-4), put them on the ropes (17-8 after seven), then give it all back at once (17-17), but in the end rally to put them away (five run eighth).

Of course it helps to have hitters like Jim Krochka in your lineup. All he did was hit two home runs and a triple in a 4-4 day at the plate. His first hit, a mere single, put us ahead in the first after Ed Hendrickson and our defense shut down the Cardinal in the first without a run. His second hit, a two run homer, made it 11-4 in the third. His third hit was a triple leading off a three run sixth, and his last hit was a three run bomb that came in the eighth when they had tied us at 17. Game over.

The defense played great. The weekly highlight reel featured Mark Childress making a tumbling catch in left center in the first that preserved the no run start to the game. Unfortunately, the note taker failed to get any other highlights, but I seem to remember Bill Hoffman making a nice grab on a hot shot liner to third base. And I think we turned one double play.

But it was the hitting this game. The middle bottom of the order, Jeff Kravin, Jeff Mertens, Howard Davis, and Bill Hoffman were a combined 9-10. You know what I say, if the middle bottom of the order hits, we win!

And the top did their usual, Krochka with his near cycle and six RBIs, Mark Childress playing set up following him with three hits, Tom Caldwell 3-4 with a double, Brian Goldufsky 3-4 with a triple and five RBIs, and Greg Lagomarsino 2-3 with a double.

And in the middle of all that, in his Diablo TC debut, Alan Vargo smashed a two run bomb to right in his very first at bat to finish the five run first inning. Earning him the Game Ball.

Another great day at the office for the Diablos, winners of five of the last six, and six of eight.

Diablos Clipped 23-18

In a game we started amazingly well, the Diablos ultimately succumbed to the dreaded Clippers, 23-18.

It's hard to write about this type of loss, because we had the opposition on the ropes - early on, and then late in the game. But we let it slip away.

We started with some fabulous defense. In the first Mark Childress made a diving catch on a sinking line drive headed to the gap. Brian Goldufsky followed that up with two putouts, one of which was quite athletic to shut down the powerful top of the Clipper lineup. In the second, it was more of the same. This time it was Mike Daley making a one out running catch in right field with runner on first and second. The runner on first tagged up but the lead runner took off. There was a lot of confusion but Goldufsky made sure he was heard and we easily doubled off the errant runner going from second. Inning over.

In the third, Jim Krotchka made a fabulous backhaded stab in the 5-6 hole and whirled to throw a strike to first to get the Hall of Famer Gary Tryhorn. And Childress followed that with another running catch. Finally in the fifth, Tom Caldwell got in on the action in left field on a deep fly for the first out. That was just a prelude to a grounder to first baseman Greg Lagomarsino, who perfected a 3-11-3 double play by hustlng back to first to catch Goldufsky's relay.

In the meantime, we built a 10-0 lead after three. Dan Roach led us off with a triple to the right center gap. After Ed Hendrickson brought him home with a sacrifice fly, with two outs, Caldwell hit a two run blast and Lagomarsino and Don Devencenzi sandwiched a single by Goldufsky to produce the rest of our five runs. In the second the bottom half produced two runs and in the third Krochka's two run bomb highlighted a three run add on inning.

In the fourth, the Clippers showed why they are nearly undefeated the last couple of years as they put up eight to close the gap, and added six more in the next two innings to take their first lead at 14-12. Give us credit, though, there is no quit, and the middle and bottom of the order, Bob Vitro, Jeff Mertens, Heffe, Bill Hoffman, Willie Hollis, and Steve Shapiro all singled and when leadoff hitter Roach stroked a two run single we had our own five to re-take the lead at 17-14.

We shut them down in the seventh, and added one in our half on a Lagomarsino double, but then the offense and defense kind of went to sleep - and they poured on nine runs in the last two innings to win going away.

However, we proved to them and to ourselves that we will not be a pushover to the Clippers or anyone else, and we will put them away one of these times.

Mertens led the way with a 4-4 day. Clocking in with three hits were Hendrickson, Krotchka, Caldwell, Lagomarsino, Devencenzi, Hoffman, Hollis, and Shapiro. Everyione else had at least one knock and all but two (or their proxy) scored a run.

Diablos Turn Cardinal Red With Envy, Prevail 20-15

Ed Hendrickson pitched a hell of a game, limiting the Cardinal to 15 runs and when we answered their five in the first inning with our own five, you just had a feeling that we were going to win in the end. We have come to expect the Big Guy will shut the opponent down when it counts, and that he did as they only scored another ten the rest of the game.

But - I may have acted in haste in giving him the game ball. It really belonged to Brian Goldusky. All he did was go 3-4, with a three run homer, a two run triple that would have been a homer had not the fifth run been on first, a two run single and even an RBI ground out. That's right EIGHT of our 20 RBIs belonged to Brian. Good move by the coach to move him to third with leadoff hitter Dan Roach returning from vacation.

Mark Childress did his best, well, Mark Childress imitation with two fabulous catches. The one in the first only temporarily stopped the Cardinal five run opening outburst. Depending on who you talk to, his stumble, er tumble afterwards was either a fine ballet like move or as someone stated, "Zero style points".

But the one in the late innings (was it the ninth?), when the Cardinal still had hopes for a comeback, shut down a rally right when it started and sent them to defeat after a few more outs. He also nearly made a leaping catch on one of the few Cardinal blasts over our outfielders' heads.

The infield highlights came all in the scoreless top of the fifth. Jeff Mertens grabbed a shot to his right and falling down shoveled it over to first where the first baseman likewise crawled in the dirt to ensure the out. Then after a hit, shortstop Jim Krochka made a nice back handed stop in the 5-6 hole and whirled to throw to Goldufsky waiting at second base. And then third baseman Bill Hoffman knocked down a hot shot at the hot corner and calmly tossed to second to close out the inning.

Roach lead all hitters with a perfect 4-4. Hendrickson, Goldufsky, Krochka, Childress, Tom Caldwell, and Bob Vitro all were 3-4. Everyone else had one or two hits.

That's four wins in a row if you count the forfeit earlier in the day (and we do). And five of six, the only blemish being the one run loss to Gold when we had the game in our grasp in the ninth. Pretty damn good, and we are jelling as a team. The defense has been great and we have enough great hitters and the rest are all good enough such that there are no easy outs in the lineup. Good combination. If we play like this next week, we will give the Clippers everything they can handle and hopefully more. Bring 'em on!

Gold Ends First Half Winning Another Close One, 16-13 Over Green

Typical Gold win. Get a big lead, give it up, and hold off the opponent with some clutch defense.

We pecked away at Terry Karp's team early, scoring 2, 4, 5, 3, and 3 runs, while good defense held Green to three in the first five frames. Stan Bielecki was a defensive star in the early innings - turning a grounder to third, step on the bag and throw home double play with the bases loaded to hold Green to one run in the second. On the play, catcher Anthony Puccio (Pooch) scooped up a low throw. And Bielecki made a great stop in the next frame on a hard grounder playing rover, and flipped to Hugh Vasquez, who ranged a long way to cover second to get the force.

In the fourth, Steve Bedrick, who threw nothing but strikes in the middle innings, got a strikeout looking. And we turned a short to rover to first double play to hold them scoreless.

Somewhere in there the first baseman ranged far into foul territory to catch a pop fly. No one could believe how far he ran. Steve Alvarez made a couple of nice catches - one a mile high pop up playing second, which is always tough, and one on a long ball to right field.

A 15-3 lead is safe right? Not in Creaker ball. We were outscored 10-1 in the next three innngs, and Green got their hopes up, closing to 16-13. And Gold failed to score the last two times up. We were holding on to the hopes of having the home team last ups advantage. But in the eighth, with some of the best Green hitters coming up, Gary Namanny corralled a liner to center and fired to second to double up Karp (who was not sure whether the ball would be caught) with the bases loaded, effectively ending the rally. It was a close play, the throw only beat him by inches but umpire Steve Goulet made an honest call, exhibiting the best Creaker sportsmanship. No one argued. We went quietly in the last two innings, but starter and closer Tom Gonzales induced some easy outs in the ninth and we did not have to perform any bottom of the ninth heroics.

Steve Mastronarde had a quiet 4-4 day to take over the team batting average lead. Bob Fulgham came back from two weeks in Croatia and must have received some good batting tips there as he went 3-3 with two doubles and a walk. Rob Katzer matched that 3-3 plus a sac fly and led the team with three RBIs. Alvarez and Jeff Kravin also added three hits and everyone in the lineup had at least one.

First place remains Gold territory, which is pretty impressive considering we are fourth in run differential, third in runs scored, and tied for fourth in runs allowed. It's called team chemistry - we relentlessly harass each other to keep it loose.

Practice Makes Not Quite Perfect, Diablos over Lasers 19-7

So, OK, we weren't perfect on defense two weeks in a row. We didn't have to be, because, after all, it was the Lasers, and they were shorthanded to boot.

Instead we did it with our bats, hitting .788 as a team! I can't remember a team average that high in a game. Everyone, all sixteen in the lineup, had at least one hit, and most only batted twice. Brian started us off with a bomb, and Jim K matched him in the third with a two run blast. Jim K, Greg, the two Bobs, Don, Heffe, and Willie were all 2-2. Howard, power hitter extraordinaire, had the only triple, aided by a proxy runner after he split the outfielders.

On defense, we weren't at our sharpest as we built an insurmountable 19-2 lead after five innings. In the sixth, we had a combination of bad hops and fluke hits and a few bobbles, and gave up five but it was way too late for the Lasers as we flip flopped early and shut them out in the seventh. The game was shortened as one of the double headers in the new schedule.

However, Mark, who has been aching all season to make an incredible play in left center field, made not one (early on that could have made it a game as it was the third out and I believe bases were loaded), not two, but three great running catches. For this and everything he contributed (2-3 himself), he got the game ball.

A winning streak! Two in a row and three of four and we should have won the other one. The Diablos are coming for you, TriCity. Starting with Team Gray at Rudgear next week.

Gold Backs in to First Place, Tying Light Blue 25 Apiece

I won't kiss Gerry Dasey. I won't, I won't, I won't.

Maybe if my sister were in town, I would kiss her, because that is what you do when you tie a game.

But I won't kiss Gerry, the Light Blue manager, no matter how long I have known him. I won't, I won't...I won't.

We've all heard of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Well, today Gold gave it up to Light Blue, but they were polite enough to stop tied up in the open ninth inning, and when we didn't respond, it ended in a 25-25 tie. So we snatched a tie from the jaws of victory.

We had leads of 12-2 after three, and after giving up an eight run fourth, we built a 25-18 lead into the ninth. And then blew that. Everything Lt. B hit found a hole and every time we touched the ball we bobbled it.

There are two ways to look at the game. If you are Lt. Blue, down so much of the game, a tie is a win. If you are Gold, not so much. Maybe there is a third - if you play as badly as we did, we are lucky to have gotten away with a tie.

There weren't many defensive plays of note. Tom Gonzales got a strikeout looking in the second. The outfielders made some good running catches, especially Steve Mastronarde and Gary Namanny. That's about it.

The Maestro (Mastronarde - we have too many Steves) had a mini-cycle, going 5-5. That's a single, double, and a triple. Gonzales duplicated the feat.

Namanny hit a three run bomb in the second, but that was it for the power hitters. The Batman (Steve #2, Alvarez) had a double, and Jeff Mertens had two. His last was a bases loaded, bases clearer to give us a five run seventh.

Doug Carlson went 4-5. Bedrock (Steve #3, Bedrick) and Pooch Puccio stayed hot and were a combined 7-8 at the bottom of the order, which usually is a sign of a win. Not today.

We played sloppy enough to lose but by tying, we backed right into first place alone, as Navy was upset by Gray up the road. I've never been as disappointed going into first place before.

A Perfect Game in Senior Softball? Yes It's Possible, Diablos Gives the Blues to the PH Blues, 20-5

A bunch of over 70 men. Many can't run, many can't bend over. But the Diablos played about as complete a game as is possible today, dominating the Pleasant Hill Blues, 20-5 with outstanding defense and clutch and powerful hitting. And it wasn't that close as we gave up our last two trips to the plate on a flip flop.

And the amazing thing was that no one can remember a single error. And we tried. Not a one.

My Creaker team is pretty good, and we had a game like this a few weeks ago. But when I put out the email that I thought we played errorless ball, I immediately received three or four replies, like uh thanks but did you forget that one I missed in the third inning?

But no one could remember a single one today after the game. Ed tried to throw one away on a force play at second, but Brian bailed him out reaching down to grab the low throw. There were many highlight plays, Don became Brooks Robinson in the first couple of innings on a few plays and started a 5-4-3 double play. Howard followed him up late, grabbing a hot shot and getting the force at second.

Brian turned a double play, stepping on second and firing to first in the second inning. In the seventh, the shorter first baseman snared a hard line drive and easily doubled off the errant runner who unwisely took off. Those were three of the four double plays we turned. A fifth was stolen from us on a bad call on the back end.

And each of the outfielders made tough catches, Tom, Mark, Jimbo, and Don including a Tom shoestring catch in the eighth for the third out that kept the Blues out of a big inning.

Speaking of Howard, he got one strikeout looking. Not to be outdone, Ed repeated the feat in the ninth inning on a borderline flat pitch.

And then there was the hitting. Ed started the home run barrage in the first (with Don as his running proxy) as he slammed a laser down the left field line right by the fielder onto the other diamond. No one knew at the time, it was the second batter of the game and it was already over. We curse the Curse of the First! Jimbo had not one but two home runs for four RBIs. His second came right after a rocket by Tom onto field two - Welcome (back?). Back to back. Jim K would have had another but the fifth run in the fifth inning scored from second on his blast in the gap.

Jimbo and Don were perfect 3-3, and Brian, Ed, Jim K, Tom, Greg, the Godfather, Bob C, Willie and Howard all went 2-3. 

It's a start.

Another Creaker Squeaker: ND Gold over Cardinal Red 21-20

Full disclosure: The Gold manager (that's me) bites his nails.

Well, this season, this team has me biting down to the first knuckle.

Yes, we are 7-2, but every week, it seems to come down to the last AB, the last breath. We won, 21-20, with the tying run on third and the speedy Darrell Hoh on second with the winning run and powerful Rob Dousa at the plate. Rob had already planted one almost all the way to Heather Field Five earlier in the game.

But Tom Gonzales pulled out his bag of magic tricks, and gave Dousa no chance. With first base open, he threw one about 16 feet high and a foot short, and then a ball about four feet high. The other team's coaches were grousing about intentional walks. Gonzales came in a little closer but a ball. Dousa turned his back, and Gonzales snuck in a strike on the front left corner on 3-0. Now Dousa had to hit, and the pitch came in high but not too high and probably a strike and Douza tomahawked a scorching grounder to SS Hugh Vasquez, who picked up the tough hop and fired a strike to first, game over.

This game we had the double curse of the first AND second. In the first inning, Gary Namanny hit a two run triple and eight of our first nine batters hit safely, and that gave us our first five. In the second the bottom of the lineup stood up tall, and after three straight hits and a sac fly turned it over to the top and five more hits turned in our next five. We were hitting on all cylinders, and through three it was 13-5. It was going to be a laugher, right?

Except.

We scored two runs in the next four innings (one on Rob Katzer's massive home solo home run) and Red closed it to 15-13. We started hitting again in the eighth - again the bottom of the lineup, Doug Carlson, Stan Bielecki, Steve Bedrick, Anthony Pucchio, and Jeff Mertens, and we had three more.

But Cardinal answered with five and there we were again, tied (18-18) going into the ninth open inning. Namanny got us on the board and into the lead with a big bomb to left. After a walk and a single, the clutch hit to follow was a two run double int a gap by Steve Mastronarde. He's still arguing over which is the Game Winning RBI.

Because as described above, three runs was not a comfortable lead. Red pushed across a couple of runs and that set up the final face off, but we persevered.

Defensive highlights: Gonzales cut off a throw from the outfield, and fooled Dousa into trying for second on a hit early in the game, and threw him out easily at 2B. The manager chased down a foul pop up almost at the first base dugout, and his momentum took him nearly crashing into the fence. Bielecki made a nifty step on second throw to first double play in the fifth to keep the opposition scoreless.

But the offense was clicking most if the game ouside the middle innings. Namanny hit for the cycle (4-5, 3 RBIs), Katzer went 5-5 (3 RBIs), Vasquez 4-5. Steve Alvarez, Curt Wade, Carlson, Kravin (3 RBIs), Bedrick, and Puccio all had three hits.

But I think I need therapy now.

Gold Walks Off at Rudgear, 17-16 over Gray

On another beautiful spring day at the field of dreams, Rudgear, Gold barely squeaked a walk off win over Team Gray 17-16.

The game was close early. Much improved Gray took a 3-0 lead in the first that we matched, the big hit being the first of two Steve Alvarez gapper doubles, this one for two runs. The bottom of our lineup (Joy Dardin, Steve Bedrick, and Anthony Puccio) set the table in the third for our first five run inning, and the top (Tom Gonzales, Bob Fulgham, Gary Namanny and again the Batman) cleaned up the bases. In the fifth we had a nearly identical rally, this time it was Dardin, Pooch, and Jeff Merten getting on, and Gonzales and Namanny clearing them with a two run double and a two run triple for our five. Namanny's shot in the left field corner was one of the deepest hits I have seen at Rudgear without going onto the berm, and it bounded away from the left fielder, and Gary was so excited he just kept running for the sixth run (that did not count).

We were just starting to get comfortable at 13-6, but Gray came roaring back to tie it in the sixth, and then shut us down for two innings. So it was tied going into and out of the eighth - Rob Katzer's two run double knotted it up to answer their pair.

They managed to push one across in the ninth, and after a groundout, Curt Wade got us going with a line drive double. Doug Carlson moved him to third and yours truly hit a line drive that the usually surehanded right fielder nearly ran down, and it was tied. Stan Bielecki got a hit to move Carlson to third with the winning run. Dardin followed with a chance to win the game and hit a line drive right at the RC fielder who was playing at the cones, but the runner on third could not score (I am begin generous here). Up stepped backup pitcher Steve Bedrick with two outs and he planted the ball between the two right fielders and when Bielecki beat the throw to second in an attempt for a force play, it was all over, and the fat lady sang.

Other than our pitcher Gonzales we didn't have many highlights defensively, but he ran to the third base line to catch a short pop up, snared a shot up the middle that he knocked down and got the lead runner at 2B, and ended an inning on a similar grounder this time to his back hand, and a toss to first. All while staying behind the screen until the ball was hit!

Gonzales, Namanny, Alvarez, and Dardin lead the way with three hits apiece. Every single hitter in the lineup had at least one hit. Another great team game.

The Devil Made the Diablos Route the Oaks, 25-19

Despite practically everyone moaning about the condition of the Pleasant Hill Park field, there was a lively TriCity game there today between the PH Diablos and the PH Oaks, that ended 25-19 in favor of the Diablos.

The Devils scored three in the first to avoid the Curse, and the Oaks answered with four to do likewise. But five of the lower six in the Diablos' order came through with singles in the second - Bob Carver, Don Devencenzi, Bobby Vitro, Steve Shapiro, and Bill Hoffman - and the top of the lineup (Dan Roach, Ed Hendrickson, and Jim Krochka) finished the job and we had our first five run inning. It set the tone for the rest of the game and the Oaks had to play catchup the rest of the way.

Krochka (5-5, double, 4 RBIs) and Bobby V (4-4) led the way, and Roach, Hendrickson, Mark Childress, Jim Wilcox, Greg Lagomarsino, Shapiro, and Hoffman contributed three knocks each. Devencenzi was 2-3 plus a sac fly, and had a booming double in the eighth that added on a couple runs to make it 24-12 and leave no doubt as to the outcome, despite the Oaks making a late run.

There were several defensive plays of note. Devencenzi made a nice stop at 3B and touched the base and threw home for a double play in the first with bases loaded and no one out that temporarily gave us hope we would hold them that inning. The next inning Howard Davis took over at the hot corner and stabbed a hot shot line drive. Wilcox and Childress and Jeff Mertens made some fine running catches in the middle innings. Lagomarsino started a line drive, throw to second double play when the runner on second lost his mind and took off for third. First baseman Jeff Kravin used his gut (literally) to chase down a pop up toward the dugout in the seventh, and SS Krochka followed suit on a pop up near the mound with a juggling catch. In the eighth, we turned a more normal Short to Rover to First double play with Bob Carver bending low to corral the low throw. Finally, on the penultimate play of the game, Vitro put the Oaks to bed by snaring a hot shot up the middle with a couple of runners on for an easy out at second to end the game.

This is the way the Diablos should play every week, everyone contributing and taking it to the opposition.