Baseball Coaches’ Game Outline

I know the five people who read my blog have been waiting a while for this, so I will end the suspense. Here is a link to my game outline. A brief overview…

There are three tabs (worksheets is the proper term). Field Outline is used for defense. Batting Order is used for assignment of Michigan and Florida delegates for the upcoming political convention in Denver (kidding). The third sheet is a roster.

Field Outline has color-coded the innings and different fonts for different spots. The table on the left is who plays where when. It has dropdown menus for each position, and feeds from the Roster sheet. The table on the right totals the innings by battery, infield, and outfield. It uses the COUNTIF function and Excel Named Ranges defined in the sheet. I did this because after filling out the lineup, I know who played where for the game. All players should have six innings, or less if one has to use subs. That part of the lineup is for coaches use only, since players already grumble enough about playing assignments.

Batting Order is the batting order. I made it big and posted this (along with the left table of field outline) so that players knew where they play. Now, there are fewer questions about who plays where.

Roster exists for one reason only: to keep a list of players available for a game. I update that first so the drop downs go from there. I also paste it in the Field Outline sheet so I can account for everybody.

Let me know what you think and feel free to recommend changes or additions.

It’s Tough to Stomach…

Governor Doyle just issued a statement about the recent GM plant closing. He blamed it all on GM and their business decisions and pledged to help the workers. Now, as an owner of a Saturn and a Honda, I’ll tell you I’m done with GM for the most part. So I agree GM is not without culpability. But the UAW and government also share some of the blame. Among the verbiage was “It’s tough to stomach.” I know the feeling, Governor Doyle.

It’s tough to stomach your lack of ethics in granting the Native American Gaming interests that elected you lucrative compacts that last forever. It’s tough to watch you break pledges about raising taxes. It hurts thinking about how bad we will be after you raid every possible dedicated fund to “balance” the budget. It’s fun knowing you have created a regulatory, tax, and economic climate that give young people and businesses more reasons to leave our state for greener pastures elsewhere. It’s tough to stomach the idea that you reject Voter ID legislation, concealed carry, and tax deductions for Health Saving Accounts. And it’s tough to think that in a moment of ignorance I voted for you in 1994 for Attorney General which launched your political career.