The Veins Are A-Bulgin'

So this was a couple of nights ago:

My 12U is playing only second game of season, rainout and a dumb coach (from another town) put me behind. Playing a semi-local team. To put in perspective, they mercied us as an 11U squad last summer.

Anyway, we go down 2-0, come back to tie, go up 4-2. In the 5th, my youngest player is on the mound and with 2 outs and bases juiced, we make an error or two on the same batted ball and now it's 6-4 before you know it.

We come back with some good base-running including a steal of home to tie it up. get out of trouble in the field a couple of times. Get the winning run to 3B in the bottom of the 7th, but the bottom of my order comes up pretty small. Happens.

We give up the go-ahead run top 8. OK, now we need to score 2. With top of my order coming up I feel pretty good.

Leadoff hitter grounds out for 1st out. My #2 goes the other way with a double. #3 hitter (aka OSSS) is up. Fouls off 2 pitches, but he's on it. Pitch 3 comes in, well outside and high - so much so that the opposing catcher has to lunge up and out to grab it to keep it from going to fence and the ump calls STRIKE 3!!!

"WHAT! ARE YOU KIDDING ME BLUE! HE HAD TO JUMP TO CATCH THAT BALL. NOT A STRIKE. YOU ARE UNBELIEVABLE! YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! I HAVE NEVER SEEN THAT IN MY LIFE. YOU ARE TERRIBLE!"

My clean-up grounds out for out 3. Game over, we lose 7-6 in extras. So as I walk in to shake hands with the other team (who deserved it) I did something I have never done:

"THAT WAS SOME CALL BLUE! YOU OUGHTA BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF! HORSE-SHIT, THAT IS WHAT THAT CALL WAS! YOU ARE UNBELIEVABLE!"

The head ump who was doing the bases tried to give me an explanation, to which I responded "the fact that you two have to explain the call means it was wrong. The only two people who think that was a strike are you two!"

SoulSlam was livid. And I never argue balls and strikes, part of the game. I was still angry when I woke up Tuesday.

Saturday Doings

Lot's of baseball this morning;

10U Squad - went 1-1 in a tourney way up in upper Bergen. Mercied the host team, then lost a 5-1 decision to another team. They play again tomorrow in pool play in the AM, then depending on how they do they play later on in the day.

12U Squad - finally got our first game in...won it 11-8. Other than the bottom of the 7th, we looked like killers out there. We let them have 5 runs to catch up a bit before we sealed the deal. A win is a win though.

Now we are going to some local parties...the sun is out, thought I forgot what it looked like.

ADIOS.

When Your Alpha is an Omega

If you follow me regular-like (I know you all do) you know the weather has been less than stellar around the North Jersey area.

We have so much rain, that even when it's not raining we can't use the fields. Like today. Though to be fair a light mist is falling.

So I'm 5 days in to a summer season with my 12U team and I haven't played yet. And unless the team I'm scheduled (actually rescheduled) to play tonight can move to their field, I'll be behind the 8-ball.

PONDEROUS.

New Link

I have a new link on the side there for Joe Petruccio's MyMetsJournal.

Very cool Joe. Awesome job.

Summer Monsoons

So as not to disappoint after the wettest spring ever...summer has begun even worse. So far we have had local tornado warnings, flash floods, violent thunderstorms, etc. Two days in by my count.

Summer baseball is in half-swing. The 10U team is 3-0 already and making the plays. The 12U team is 0-0 since we have been rained out and on Tuesday night, bumped from the field in another town because the opposing coach is a zip, a nada, a zero.

SoulSlam hisself has a couple of days of work. Need it, townsfolk, 'cause it's hard being SoulSlam.

BOOM.

Good For You Sir

You don't stand in the way of a father, a son and the opportunity of a lifetime.

Read it here.

Good for you Mr. Roth.

Ummm, Embarrassed?

John Wall can play hoops no doubt.

John Wall cannot throw a baseball at all.