batteh blog-o-rama

GSHAS managed a measure of revenge against Ten Guys Named Roy with a 17-4 mercy win. Clearly the bats were in fine form- we scored 8 in the 1st and kept pouring it on. There were multiple hits up and down the lineup- Todd, Matt, Chris D., Jesse- OK, pretty much everyone. We hit like we had somewhere to go after the game (Todd did). The gloves were great too- Matt was a fielding machine at 3B and started a nice 5-4-3 twin killing and everyone else made the routine plays. Thanks to our super subs Brian, Ron, and Ed- much appreciated!! Great work this week- enjoy the off week and we’ll come back ready for the stretch run the week after the 4th.

As best I can remember, there were no positive points this week (with all the runners at 3rd, I think we cashed every time). Please leave additions/edits via the comments. Todd is up after our next game so be sure to hang around after the game for some beverages.

Todd (5.5)
John B. (4)
Jesse (4)
Ron (3.5)
Charlie (3.5) [+1 for getting thrown out at 3B (good job delaying until run scored, though)]
Jon L. (2)
Chaz (2)
Ben W. (2)
Tony (1.5) [-0.5 for 5-4-3 DP]
Chris W. (1.5)
Matt (0.5) [-0.5 for 5-4-3 DP]
Chris D. (0.5)
Dan W. (0)

Now, for this week’s poll.

Great effort in a 15-1 mercy win over O-Team. We brought the bats and the gloves today. Matt made several nice plays at 3B, Meghan shined around second base picking up ground balls and making a nice tag on an OF assist from Chris, and Liz made a great scoop on my low throw at first. Everyone hit today- Liz smacked three line drives, Meghan picked up the carbon nanotubes for the first time and had several nice liners, and Dani and Alicia chipped in with several hits each as did Ron, Matt, Chris, etc. Great job!!

Sadly, this was Dani and Alicia’s last game with BGBG as they are moving to warmer climes. Fittingly, Alicia caught the last out of the game as she managed to pick up the ball in the dark night sky. Good luck and we’ll miss you. We hope to get you back up for the Rose in September. Here is a link to the photos from the outing on Sunday plus this evening’s photos:

BGBG 2007 Photo Gallery

It was a tough night in a 14-7 loss to Ten Guys Named Roy- just one of those nights when nothing seems to go your way. We had one bad inning- giving up 9 runs where they hit lots of balls just in front of us and then hit one long ball. Overall our defense was quite solid- Chaz and Tony made great over the shoulder catches in shallow OF, Chaz made a few nice pickups at 3B (and even had to fight a ball from the other field to make a play- I’m waiting for the official ASA rule on a ball in play), and Chris W. made a nice throw from the OF to hold a runner at 3B. In a nice surprise, Nate came back to see the fellas. When we started short, he hopped right in, jeans and tennis shoes and all, and called a fine game at catcher. Just like the old days, the pants were filthy and no one hustles like Nate!! Thanks for coming back and agreeing to play- you’ll always have a spot on the GSHAS!! Our bats started slow but picked up in the later innings- the two Chris’s hit some screaming liners late, Jesse got robbed of a double that hit the LF line (bad Napoleon), Danny had several hit and got robbed by the first baseman, and Todd picked up several hits in the leadoff role. We get another chance against those guys next week so sharpen your nanotubes!!

There were not too many points assessed this week so please leave additions/edits via the comments. Danny delivered some excellent beverages this week- thanks!! Todd is up next week so be sure to hang around after the game for some beverages.

Todd (5.5)
John B. (4)
Jesse (4) [+2 for K (got screwed by the ump)]
Ron (3.5)
Charlie (2.5) [+1 for wild throw (self assessed)]
Jon L. (2)
Chaz (2)
Ben W. (2)
Tony (2) [+1 for wild throw that caused Jesse to bloody himself]
Chris W. (1.5)
Matt (1)
Chris D. (0.5) [+1 for ball over head (self assessed)]
Dan W. (0) [-5 for beverages]

Now, for this week’s poll.

Excellent effort tonight in a tight 6-1 victory over St. Marys!! The bats went a little cold this evening and the game was close throughout- 1-1 and then 3-1 going into the top of the 7th. But our bats woke up and we got a couple of insurance runs. Chris D. had a huge blast in the first that took the LF toppling over the fence, Charlie had a nice triple down the 1B line, and Alicia finally got one over the LF’s head. Overall our defense was solid all night- Jon L. made a nice play in the first on a hard hit ball, the OF ran everything down, and Charlie made some big pitches to strand runners on base. Great effort!! The second game of the DH was not so exciting- our guess is that the other team didn’t get the word about the makeup game and forfeit. So, we got to enjoy our beverages a bit earlier.

For those that may not know, next week is Dani and Alicia’s last game before they move south. So, we thought we’d have a get-together on Sunday afternoon. We threw out lots of ideas (Charlie wants dancing and karaoke) so please vote in the poll as to which outing sounds best (feel free to comment if you want to add anything). We’ll then confirm via email.

Nice effort in a DH split this week- we took a tough 8-6 loss to Fenders and then beat Cubs AC Rec Sports 11-5. We started well against Fenders with Jesse hitting a mammoth HR but Fenders decided to appeal Jesse not running the bases (as is customary on Thurs. night)- a total bush league play in my opinion. They got a few runs in the first before we really got our gloves working. The game was nip and tuck throughout- we had a 6-4 lead before giving up 4 runs in the bottom of the 6th. Jesse hit another huge blast and completed his HR trot officially. In the second game, we took control from the start and executed on both offense and defense. Jesse hit another HR as did Chris W. and Chris D. Todd, Tony, Chaz, Ben and Danny all had line drive hits. Tony had a sweet, though unnecessary slide at home. In both games the defense was solid- Chris W. made a great diving catch, Jon L. made a sweet diving stop on a blast down the 3B line, Jesse and Charlie executed the 3-1 play several times, Ben dove to stop a ball from going out of play, and I seem to remember Todd making a tremendous catch too. The umpire’s strike zone was a bit wacky, especially against Todd and Matt C who was called out on a horrible strike (even worse than the previous two “strikes”). Way to hang in there after a frustrating game against Fenders and take care of business in the second game.

There were lots of points assessed this week and I had a hard time keeping track so please leave additions/edits via the comments. Ben delivered some excellent beverages this week- thanks!! Looks like Dan is up for next week with Todd the following week (and I’m not far behind with a great 3 point effort this week).

Dan W. (5) [+1 for not scoring from 3B on ground ball, no assessment for injuring finger diving back to the bag]
Todd (5.5) [+2 for K (though the called strikes were bad)]
John B. (4) [+2 for two bad throws to first, +1 for grounding into DP]
Ron (3.5)
Jon L. (2) [-0.5 for diving stop down 3B line and force out at 2B]
Chaz (2)
Ben W. (2) [-5 for beverages]
Jesse (2) [-1 for 2 HRs, +1 for throw to third (gotta try and offset the blasts)]
Charlie (1.5) [+1 for walk]
Chris W. (1.5) [-0.5 for HR, +1 for letting ball get past, -0.5 for diving catch]
Tony (1) [+1 for 2 wicked ground ball hops (self assessed)]
Matt (1) [+1 for failing to score run from 3rd, no assessment for ridiculous K]
Chris D. (-0.5) [-0.5 for HR]

Now, for this week’s poll. Be sure to check out the video polls from the previous two blog posts.

In a battle of undefeated teams, BGBG emerged victorious in a thrilling extra inning win over Cubs AC RecSports 10-9. Excellent job all around!! Cubs started hot with 5 runs in the first but we answered right back. Alicia drilled a ball deep over the LFs head for a triple and Matt blasted a ball deep to center. Brian did a great job keeping Cubs off balance and we took an 8-5 lead. The gloves were solid- Jon L. made some great plays at 3B including a ball drilled down the line and noticing a runner leaving early on a tag and calling for an appeal, Brian was a fielding machine up the middle and started two 1-6-3 DPs, and the OF ran down everything including a nice running catch by Alicia down the RF line. Cubs chipped away at the lead and scratched a run across in the top of the 7th to tie the game at 8. We couldn’t push a run across in the bottom half so we played one extra inning. Cubs got a run in the top of the 8th with a couple of hits though we executed a nice run down between second and third. In the bottom of the 8th, Jon L. blasted a ball deep to left for a double, Meghan then came through with a big hit putting runners on first and third with one out. Following a hit to tie the game, Alicia hit a ball down the third base line where the woman made a nice play to get a force at third. She threw across to try to complete the DP letting the winning run get to third. Ron then came through with a huge hit driving a hard grounder right down the 3B line untouched. Clutch!! Great game by everyone with both the bats and the gloves!!

Here is this week’s poll. First, take a look at this awesome baseball video below (go Braves) and then answer (as always, feel free to comment). Why don’t our managers argue like that? Also, check out last week’s post for another fun video poll.

Great work in a DH sweep- 15-3 over O-Team and 11-4 over BRATT!! The bats started slow in the first game but got hot and stayed that way through the second. Jon L. worked the middle and the lines, Meghan and Liz hit line drives, and Alicia crushed the ball over the OF’s heads. The gloves were solid too- Alicia threw a runner out trying to stretch a single into a double, Liz had some nice pickups at 1B including a backhand flip to Charlie covering, Jon L. made a nice backhand stop on a sharply-hit ball to 3B, and Meghan made several nice stops at 2B. There were definitely some strange plays this week- Ron got beaned running to first on a ground ball to the third baseman (who was playing some random position about 30 feet from the 3B bag) but the ball deflected harmlessly off his pipes, Meghan nearly got her feet taken out from under her both running to third on a force out (the guy was so far from the bag that he had to run and dive for it to get the out) and then the next inning on defense on a put out at 2B, and after a triple the SS took the throw from RF, ran partially into the IF, and then winged it to 3B thinking Charlie was his third baseman as the run scored from third (luckily the ball didn’t hit anyone). Great work this week!!

Here is this week’s poll. First, take a look at the video below and then answer (as always, feel free to comment).

BGBG continued its good work with a 13-1 mercy win over BRATT. The bats were on as everyone contributed 1-10: Jon L. worked both lines, Alicia kept crushing the ball over the OF’s heads. The gloves were solid too- Brian kept them off balance all night including making a great play on a hard hit up the middle, Megan had a nice play at 2B, and we turned a TRIPLE PLAY- 6-5-4-3. Wow- first time I’ve ever seen a triple play in softball. Nice work!!

Here is this week’s poll. As always, feel free to comment.

GSHAS bounced back with a solid 12-4 win over Triple Play. This week we came to hit and the second half of our lineup really rallied us early and kept us going late- Todd, Chaz, Tony, Charlie and Ben all had multiple hits and used all the gaps. We did a great job of stringing hits together, being aggressive on the bases (Chaz and Todd both took extra bases), and keeping innings alive with 2 outs hits. Their OF helped us out a bit as they could not catch Jesse’s sky-high fly ball and Chris’s semi-high one. The gloves were pretty solid too- Tony made the play of the year by ranging deep behind 2B and into short RF to catch a little blooper from a big hitter, Jesse made a nice putout at first and nearly turned a 3U-2 DP, Jon L. and Chaz made all the plays at 3B, and Todd made a great throw from RC to get a putout at 2B (despite the umpire’s call, he was OUT). Excellent work this week!!

Not only did we win, but we also managed to get lots of points too. A quick bit of housekeeping from last week: per the poll results, a team point was assessed to everyone who played last week for our “hitting” and I’ve changed the point totals accordingly (please check last week’s post to make sure I assessed correctly). Thanks to Chris for bringing the fine beverages this week!! Thanks to a 3 point explosion this week, Ben will be bringing beverages for our next game. As always, feel free to comment, clarify, correct, volunteer others for points, etc.

Ben W. (7) [+1 for missing OF ball, +2 for K]
Dan W. (4) [+1 for getting in Chris W.’s way after he called a routine fly ball]
Todd (3.5)
Ron (3.5)
Jon L. (2.5)
Chaz (2)
Jesse (2) [+1 for failing to score runner from 3rd with less than two out (tough luck, hit the ball too hard]
Chris W. (1.5)
John B. (1)
Charlie (0.5)
Tony (0) [+1 for ground ball, -0.5 for great catch]
Chris D. (0) [-5 for beverages]

Now, for this week’s poll. If you feel that multiple entries deserve votes, feel free to vote multiple times (you’ll have to vote from a different computer each time).

GSHAS dropped a close 5-2 game this evening against Fenders. Just one of those nights when the bats just couldn’t get going. Besides Jesse’s monster HR, we just couldn’t string enough hits together to win. The defense was solid- Chaz started off the game with a nifty snag on a hard liner, Jesse caught tons of line drives (high, low, to the side) as the Fenders guys kept testing him, Chaz and Ben made all the plays at 2B and 3B, and Todd ran down a ball in deep RC. Charlie managed to pitch out of some jams and did a great job stranding runners- they just got a few more key hits than us. Thanks to our super subs Ed and Darl for playing on short notice!!

Again, very few points earned this week. See this week’s poll for an important scoring question (and note that if the votes go in a particular way, we enjoy beverages next week). As always, feel free to comment, clarify, correct, volunteer others for points, etc.

Chris D. (5) [+1 for errant throw that drilled Darl in the shin, +1 team point]
Ron (3.5)
Dan W. (3)
Ben W. (4) [+1 team point]
Todd (3.5) [+1 team point]
Jon L. (2.5)
Chaz (2) [+1 team point]
Chris W. (1.5) [+1 team point]
John B. (1) [+1 team point]
Jesse (1) [-0.5 for HR, +1 for foul out to catcher (gotta offset those HRs), +1 team point]
Charlie (0.5) [+1 team point]
Tony (-0.5)

BGBG broke in the new unis with a nice 12-7 win over the Narcoleptic Puppies. We started off a little slow but really picked it up in the later innings where both the offense and defense really clicked. The Puppies got some hits, including some deep blasts, but we limited the damage and made solid plays. There were tons of hits up and down the lineup- Ron scorched some balls into the gap, Matt hit his normal LF line drives, and Charlie and Amy really kept us going. Plus we hit into lots of bad luck. Alicia and Matt were both victimized by nice OF catches and Dani was robbed by the second baseman. The gloves were solid with Meghan making tons of putouts at 2B. Some other highlights of the evening were Matt nearly making a catch in deep RF and going over/through the fence (got room?), Ron making a juggling catch while falling down on the LF line, and Jon L. sitting down and missing the bench (too bad we don’t assess points for co-rec). Great start!!

New this year- polls!! Here is this week’s offering.

Great start to the season with a 12-0 mercy win over Triple Play!! Matt started us off with a hit leading off the first and we just kept rolling. Hits were abundant up and down the lineup- liners from Jon L, Chris D., Todd, Tony, and Charlie. The hitting was capped off by Jesse’s HR down the LF line. Nice job on several two out rallies. The defense was just as impressive as the offense- Chaz and Jon L. made some nice plays on hard shots at 3B, Tony and Chaz turned a 6L-3 DP, and Charlie was masterful in shutting down some good hitters. Great effort. Let’s keep it up next week against Fenders/Roundtree.

There were very few points earned this week and several folks moved into negative territory (great for winning but bad for drinking). In fact, the one defensive assessment was admittedly weak- I think Jon L. was just trying to make the Wu brothers feel better. As it stands now, no beverages next week (too bad we mercied them before the Wus came up again). Thanks to Chris W. for the delicious beverages this week!!

Ron (3.5)
Chris D. (3)
Dan W. (3) [+2 for K]
Ben W. (3) [+2 for K]
Todd (2.5)
Jon L. (2.5) [+1 for ground ball (Tony’s fault?)]
Chaz (1) [-0.5 for 6-3 DP]
Chris W. (0.5) [-5 for delicious beverages]
John B. (0)
Jesse (-0.5) [-0.5 for HR]
Tony (-0.5) [-0.5 for 6-3 DP]
Charlie (-0.5) [-0.5 for CG shutout]

As always, feel free to comment, including suggestions for how we can assess more points or upcoming poll topics. Now for this week’s poll.

After a rigorous off-season training regimen (independently administered) and a few random practices thrown in when the weather allowed, the softball season officially starts next week. As usual, we’ll carry over the Kangaroo Court points from last year. In case you forgot, they are shown below:

Chris W. (5.5)
Ron (3.5)
Chris D. (3)
Todd (2.5)
Jon L. (1.5)
Chaz (1.5)
Dan W. (1)
Ben W. (1)
John B. (0)
Jesse (0)
Tony (0)
Charlie (0)

Chris W. is up first and will be providing beverages after next week’s game.

I’ve recently added the ability to conduct polls on the site. So, we’ll have to think of some unique ways to combine polling with the points system and overall softball fun (and I don’t want to hear from you ISR people that my polls are not statistically significant). I’m open for any ideas you might have on the polling or any additions, modifications, etc. to the points system- feel free to leave a comment.

Here is the first poll of the year inspired by last night’s practice.

Excellent work at the GSHAS post-season gathering at Leopold Brothers!! In start contrast to last season’s gathering, we had a great turnout (thanks!!) on what was a pretty incredible sports evening. First we watched the Tigers eliminate the A’s on Magglio’s walk-off HR to advance to the World Series. Then we watched UM pound PSU. As we were enjoying fine beverages, we also broke out the championship trophy that Charlie brought on his bike- about 2ft. tall with a big eagle on top (I’m convinced that some middle schooler is missing their spelling bee trophy and it found its way onto our softball one)!! Besides passing it around like the Stanley Cup, we also convinced Chaz to take the trophy up to the bar to order a drink (or he at least played along with us). Some hilarity also ensued with Todd eating something but I missed the details? In addition to the trophy, the championship T-shirts were handed out (there are a few extra- who didn’t get one besides Chris W.?). While the UF loss to Auburn put a bit of a damper on the evening, morale was high. Though we discussed all taking the trophy for a day, Todd agreed to take the trophy home. Check out the photo gallery from the event and, as always, feel free to comment here or on flickr:
GSHAS Photo Gallery

Congrats on a great season- the Carbon Nanotubes are in hibernation now but I can’t wait to get after it again next spring!!

Excellent work in a tie and win over Team TBA this evening!! And thanks to Beers beating Roundtree (mercying them after getting mercied in the first game- see Beers are good for you), we are the league champions with our 8-1-1 record. Congrats GSHAS!! Our bats definitely started cold in the first game as we fell behind early. Chaz sparked us with a triple over the RF’s head as we fought back to take a 6-5 lead. They then had a big inning including a HR and another deep ball to go up 10-9. We scratched a run home in the bottom of the 6th to tie it at 10 though we left a runner at third. After shutting them down 1-2-3 in the top of the 7th, Chaz led off with a walk and Matt stroked a 2-strike pitch up the middle. After a sac fly, we had runners on first and third with one out but couldn’t plate that final run. The second game wasn’t much of a contest as we took an early lead on a towering HR by Jesse in the 1st and kept pouring it on for a 16-0 mercy win. Ben pitched well all night and even recorded a K. Our gloves were pretty solid all night long with Tony making an awesome turn on a DP along with a diving catch of a line drive, Ron making several sliding catches, Chris W. catching two pop ups at catcher, Ben snagging several hard grounders up the middle, Todd nearly robbing the HR, and Chaz charging a slow grounder at 3B and gunning to first for the out. Plus, it was great to see Tony back out there after taking that wicked ground ball to the throat last week- he was his usual stellar self and even managed an inning at SS including leaping to catch a hard liner. After a slow start, our bats heated up- Chaz started us off with a 3B and kept up his hot hitting the rest of the night, Matt C. is the new “Machine” with line drive hits everywhere, Jesse hit BBs to complement his HR, Chris D. had several hits including a near-miss HR in the first game, Ben hit a triple over the RF’s head, and Chris W. and Ron had several line drive hits. Todd showed why speed kills after getting caught between 1B and 2B, getting in a rundown, and forcing a wild throw which allowed him to advance to second and Matt to score. Wow!! Great effort tonight and all season long!! First time we’ve ever won the fall league so congrats!!

Despite the excellent play, there were plenty of points to assess. Here are the final points for this year and we’ll carry them over again- as always feel free to comment. Despite his absence, Charlie provided the fine post-game, celebratory beverages that we enjoyed. Thanks for the beverages in absentia!!

Chris W. (5.5) [+2 for K, +1 for not driving in runner from 3B with less than 2 outs- you’re up first next year!!]
Ron (3.5)
Chris D. (3) [+1 for dropping fly]
Todd (2.5)
Jon L. (1.5)
Chaz (1.5)
Dan W. (1)
Ben W. (1) [+1 for walk, +1 for HR, -0.5 for K, -0.5 for shutout]
John B. (0) [-0.5 for 6-4-3 DP]
Jesse (0) [-0.5 for HR]
Tony (0) [+1 for not driving in runner from 3B with less than 2 outs, +1 for getting thrown out at 2B trying to tag, -0.5 for 6-4-3 DP]
Charlie (0) [-5 for beverages]

As is our custom, plan on getting together for our end-of-year celebration. I’m thinking of next Saturday 10/14. I think that is the weekend of the Penn State game at 8PM so we could perhaps meet at Leopold Bros at 7PM and catch that game along with some baseball playoffs. Sound good? Drop a comment if you can make it (of course, the invite extends to our players, signficant others, and stellar fans).

Finally, to satisfy your fix now that softball is over, be sure to check out this post and join in on the ongoing baseball conversation throughout the playoffs.

Looking for things to do now that fantasy baseball is over (whohoo- I finished ahead of the three teams that did nothing all year long)? Want to vent about the 2006 MLB season and the ongoing playoffs? Here is your chance- just chime in via the comments and we’ll have an ongoing baseball thread that continues throughout the rest of the season. Richie beat me to the punch this morning:

I hate f-ing Derek Jeter. I don’t really even know why. I don’t really care that the Yankees beat the Tigers yesterday, other than I don’t want the Yankees to win. But I really hate Jeter, and I hate his 5-for-5, and I hate all the press he’s getting for it. I always thought of Jeter and Kobe in the same terms. I sort of feel redeemed about how I felt about Kobe. Maybe Jeter isn’t a rapist, but I still don’t like him. I feel like I’m the only person on the planet who doesn’t. I think he just seems smug about everything. I’ve always thought he’s a bit overrated offensively too. I like A-Rod, and it seems I’m the only person who likes A-Rod. Oh well.

Great job in a DH sweep of Beers this evening!! We fought back after being down 7-0 in the first to win 12-10 with Jesse’s walk-off HR in the bottom of the 7th. Jesse was huge with 3 HRs in the first game (including the game winner) and our bats were solid up and down the lineup. Matt and Chaz were line drive hitting machines, Chris D. was zinging line drives all over the field (including nearly decapitating the 3rd baseman) and hit a ball over the RC’s head, and Jon L. kept up his hot hitting. I really liked the way that guy pitched, nice and flat and slow though it was annoying the way he mimiced going into the stretch position and looking in for a sign (hee hee). We hit him hard. In the first inning they managed to find holes with mostly fairly soft hits past the IF and in front of the OF. But our defense stiffened and was excellent the rest of the game- Jon L. got a big force at home and also turned a DP by catching a foul fly and then getting the runner at second trying to tag (???), Todd made several excellent catches including a sliding catch after running in about a mile (and nearly another great catch on a deep fly), and Chris W. made several awesome running grabs. We chipped away at the lead all game and then brought the hammer in the bottom of the 7th with Jesse’s HR. The downside- Tony took a wicked ground ball off the Adam’s apple and had to leave the game (and what a tough guy- after the ball hit him he went after it and got the force at 2B though the ump blew the call). Tony- hope you are doing well. That was scary last night so please update us on your status.

The second game was not quite as close- a mercy 23-3 win. We jumped on them early and often. After his performance in the first game, Jesse didn’t get much to hit but still hit another HR and mixed in some lined shots with his intentional walks. The two Chris did a great job protecting Jesse and drove in a ton of runs with hard hits. Chaz put Matt’s new orange bat to good use with several hits. All and all a great effort all around. Apparently a few guys on the other team decided they were too good to shake hands with everyone- whatever. Thanks to our fans- Dani and Alicia and Anne and the kids. Appreciate you guys coming out on a chilly night and looking out for Tony after he came out.

Here are this week’s points- as always feel free to comment. Thanks to Ben for bringing fine beverages this week- nice work!! Looks like Charlie is up for next week, our last of the fall season. Though Charlie won’t make the game, I could bring beverages for him (Charlie, let me know).

Charlie (5) [+1 for walk, +1 for ground ball, -1 for 2Ks]
Ron (3.5)
Todd (2.5) [+1 for OF bobble, -0.5 for awesome sliding catch]
Chris D. (2)
Chris W. (2.5) [+1 for not running out fly ball that dropped]
Jon L. (1.5) [+1 for throw, -0.5 for F5-3 DP]
Chaz (1.5) [+1 for ground ball]
Dan W. (1)
John B. (0.5)
Jesse (0.5) [-2 for 4 HRs]
Ben W. (0) [-5 for fine beverages]
Tony (-1.5) [-0.5 for being tough as nails]

Great job in a DH sweep over Sampier Vac last night. We nearly shut them out in the first game 7-1 (Charlie nearly received the bonus point for a shutout but served up a fat pitch with 2 outs and a runner on 3B). Both teams hit more in the second game with a final score of roughly 15-7. That team sure had did some interesting baserunning. Our gloves were outstanding all night- the left side of the field dealt with some tough sun early, Matt C. made several nice running catches in RF, the IF had tons of putouts including 7 straight ground balls to start the first game (and if I wouldn’t have thrown the ball crazily probalby would have turned some DPs), Todd made a great throw home to Chris D who fired to 3B to catch a runner in no-mans land, and Tony made a nice throw to first to catch another wayward runner (and managed to play both games with an injured ankle after a runner tried to break up a DP in the first). The bats were solid too- Matt C. broke in his new orange Demarini with several hits, Jon L.’s ridiculous hitting streak finally ended but not before a few hits before and after, Chaz had several hits (including a very confusing fly ball double), Chris D. really hit the ball hard and finally got some balls to drop, and Jesse hit some screaming balls in the second game including a deep fly out to LF that would have been far gone without a stiff wind. Thanks to Jon L. and Chris D. who played injured (and to those who ran for them on the bases) and for our intrepid fans who braved the cold and wind to cheer us on!!

Here are this week’s points assessements- as always, feel free to comment. We enjoyed some fine postgame refreshments courtesy of me and will also enjoy some next week from Ben. So, be sure to stick around after the game!!

Ben W. (5)
Charlie (4)
Ron (3.5)
Jesse (2.5) [+1 for losing track of the number of outs]
Todd (2) [-0.5 for OF throw resulting in out at 3B]
Chris D. (2)
Chris W. (1.5)
Dan W. (1)
Jon L. (1) [+1 for failing to score runner from 3B with 1 out, almost another point for nearly backing into Chaz’s car]
John B. (0.5) [+1 for misplayed ground ball, -0.5 for 6L-3 DP, -5 for beverages]
Chaz (0.5)
Tony (-1) [-0.5 for great throw to get runner heading back to 1B]

BGBG had a great run in the 39th Jeremy Rose Tournament. We played very well all tournament and made it to the semifinals. We finished 2-1 on Saturday with wins over Tom’s Team and Legal Eagles and a loss to Grand Falloon. We were solid with the bats and the gloves. Jon L. continued his hot hitting, Chris W. and Ron were spraying line drives all over the field, and Kathy burned some OFers who were creeping in. Alicia and Liz were smoking balls but hit into some very bad luck. The gloves were solid too as both the OF and IF kept making plays. Thanks to Shanti and Megan who filled in for us at the last minute and to Jon L. who made it happen. To make matters worse, Shanti took a hard throw off the elbow while running the bases- thanks for playing and I hope you are doing well!! Also thanks to Chaz who subbed for us at the last minute, even while missing a substantial part of the LSU-Auburn and MI-ND games!!

Our first game on Sunday was a win against the Youngbloods, 6-5. Despite everyone’s best efforts, we were down to 4 women on Sunday so we played the first game with only 9 in the field and took an automatic out. But, we fought hard and escaped with a win. Our OF of Ron, Todd, and Alicia was tremendous. Overall our gloves really kept us in the game as did some timely hitting. Our second game was a rematch against Legal Eagles. We picked up Kelly so that we were back at full strength. The game was nip and tuck all the way through. We were up a couple of runs but they game back in the bottom of the 6th to take a 6-4 lead. We mounted a comeback in the top of the 7th but were thwarted by some excellent defense on a great hit by Liz. It was a great effort and our OF was again tremendous. Todd and Ron both had great throws from the OF resulting in assists and Jon L. with an ailing shoulder kept making play after play at 3B. Jon L. again showed why BGBG is the toughest team around- in the bottom of the 6th he took a nasty spike that nearly ripped his toenail off. He toughed out the last 2 outs and then was scheduled to lead off the next inning. After taking a few minutes to tap his, now bleeding toe, he stepped right up and continued his hot hitting with a base hit to RF. In a move probably never seen before, Charlie relieved Jon on the bases (Jon- hope your toe is doing better). Also it was nice to have support from the police presence as Chris W., who was working a day shift, stopped by to support us (and surely frighten the other teams). In the final game, Grand Falloon really took it to Legal Eagles on their way to a championship repeat. Our two losses came to the two teams in the finals- great work!!

Again, thanks to everyone who played, both our regular BGBGers and our super subs!! Hope everyone enjoyed the Jeremy Rose again. Make sure to set aside Sept. 29-30, 2007 for next year’s Jeremy Rose!!

Great effort in a DH split against Roundtree!! We won the first game 14-7 and then had it handed to us in the second game. We came out strong in the first game with the bats and the gloves. They hit lots of balls hard but our OF was superb- Chris D., Chris W., Ron, and Todd were tracking everything down. The IF was solid too with Jon L., Chaz, and Tony making lots of plays. Charlie did a nice job of keeping some very good hitters off balance and induced some lazy OF flies for easy outs. The bats were stellar- Jon L. (Automatic) was 9-9, Ron had a ton of hits as did Matt C. and Chris D. An excellent win against the best team in the league.

In the second game baseball karma caught up with us. They started catching our hits and all the line drives they hit in the first game started going over the fence, in the gaps, past our IF, through our IF, over our IF- an impressive hitting barrage in the second game. Unfortunately our defense had some lapses, but hopefully we got our bad game out of our system. To top it off, there were some really questionable umpiring calls (off the bag? illegal pitches?) and Chris D. pulled his quad (lay off the juice, won’t ya). There were some highlights- Ron nearly made a spectacular catch deep in the LF corner, Chris D. made a nice sliding catch, Tony caught a screaming line drive and turned it into a DP, and Jon L. made some very nice plays on hard hit balls, including starting a 5-4-3 DP. Jon L. (Machine) kept up his ridiculous hitting, and overall we had decent hitting up and down the lineup. Good effort!!

Here is this week’s point update. Honestly, it was a bit hard to keep track last night as the points were coming fast and furious. I’ve included the ones that I can remember. Please chime in via the comments regarding the ones I’ve missed or gotten wrong. Based on my stellar performance, I’ll be bringing beverages next week so plan to stick around after the games.

John B. (5) [+2 for K, +1 for misplayed ground ball, +1 for wild throw- I’m buying!!]
Ben W. (5) [+1 for not scoring runner from third with less than two outs, +2 for OF misplays]
Charlie (4) [+2 for HRs and walks]
Ron (3.5)
Todd (2.5) [+1 for throw, +1 (tentative, see comment) for getting thrown out at home]
Chris D. (2) [+1 for wild throw, no assessment for pulled hamstring]
Chris W. (1.5)
Jesse (1.5)
Dan W. (1)
Chaz (0.5) [-0.5 for 5-4-3 DP]
Todd (2.5) [+1 for throw, +1 (tentative) for getting thrown out at home]
Jon L. (0) [-1 for sick hitting streak, -0.5 for 5-4-3 DP]
Tony (-0.5) [+1 for fielding error, -0.5 for 6-3 DP]