Game 7 Recap

“Well, a wiser fellow than myself once said, sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes the bear well, he eats you.”

There are many points at which a game can be lost, but one play sticks out from last night:

Bottom of the third inning, two outs, one run in for the Mustangs. Soft grounder to Nathan on the mound. He fields, and lobs it over to Jackson at first. The ball falls short, and the runner is safe. Instead of walking in to hit, we’re stuck out there, and six more runs come in. Both are two of our more experienced players. Nathan could have thrown it better; Jackson could have caught it. Oh well. Such is life in U9 baseball.

After that it was a see-saw game; in the end, we lost on a walk-off single with one out. We went toe-to-toe with one of the better teams in the league for six innings and came up one run short. There is no reason to hang our heads. Tense games like that make me appreciate the easier games for what they are.

What I liked:

• Watching our hitters stay alive with two strikes
• The way we made contact with the ball at the plate
• We stood perfectly in the batter’s box
• The tag-ups by Tre’Vaughn and Nathan in the 2^nd
• Our pitching was solid. Nathan gave us 2.3 solid, got tired, and battled to the end. Jackson is just beginning to find himself as a pitcher. Tre’Vaughn was old reliable.
• Kellen caught the whole game and did an excellent job. He is turning into a great catcher.
• We had several force plays work well, including a force at the plate.
• We slid well into the plate. Textbook work.

What we need to work on:

• Not getting upset when we do not get a hit
• Picking each other up
• Ball routing when it gets into the infield
• Trying to throw out runners stealing
• Shutting up (coaches). They shut down one inning as we were barking instructions.
• Asserting my position in discussions concerning rules

What I could have done without:

• The mosquitoes
• The long drive
• This next one has a disclaimer.  I think the game was called in a fair and impartial manner.  That being said, it seemed like the ump was part of their team. He spent much of the time between innings over at their bench. I know it is not his fault that he knows the coaches on a first name basis, but I thought he could have eliminated many questions about his calls had he acted more like an ump during the game.  Even the kids noticed.  All that said, please act in a sportsmanlike manner and don’t question the umpire’s calls.  It’s hard work, and he is the authority during the game. 

We have a week off, and then return next week with two games. Have a Happy Fourth!  The dude abides. 

Game 6 Recap

This was the second of three games in four days, and so far, we are faring well. We were down five kids on 14 hours notice, so I had Dax bring three kids from his North Central Little League team. We were playing a team that was 1-5.

Cole started the game on the mound for us and gave up five in the top of the first. We got eight back (with two homers in a row) in the bottom as we batted around. Cole pitched a scoreless second, and we exploded for 13 runs in the bottom of the second to make it 21-5. Jackson pitched the third and gave up one; we answered with two. That’s 23-6. At that point, it was time to shake things up a bit and put different kids in different positions. Sam was tighter than the previous day and gave up four runs. No biggie. We scored 7 more with another outburst that included a long shot by Tre’Vaughn.

Caleb came in to pitch and the inning ended in the wildest of fashions. There were three runs in and men on first and second with no outs. A long fly ball was hit between Tre’Vaughn and Sean (one of our subs). They collided as Sean caught the ball. As the opposing coaches began shouting for the runners to return to their base of origin, I noticed we had a shot for a double play. Sean threw from his back into the cut-off man, who threw it to second to double off the runner. Then the kids threw it to first for a triple play. I was so wrapped up in the play that I had to ask the ump if I had in fact seen a triple play. He answered incredulously “Yes, a triple play.” I still didn’t believe it, so I asked him again.

I have to take you all back to a practice in mid April. We were working on defense, and I explained to the kids that I would spring for ice cream if they turned a double play. They tried to negotiate pizza for a triple play, and as I hesitated, Mr. Alles agreed to buy pizza for a triple play. I joked with him about switching bets, as his promise was like betting the field in the Kentucky Derby.

As I celebrated with the kids, I was slow to realize Tre’Vaughn’s knee was hurt from the collision with Sean. We carried him in and iced the knee. I hope it’s OK.

In the end, we won 31-13. I appreciated the break from a tight game.

What I liked:

• The offensive barrage. Everybody smacked the ball around.
• The triple play.
• Playing in the sun on a perfect day with the nice breeze.
• The collective aplomb of our pitchers, both seasoned and new.
• The way the new kids fit in.
• Dax’s coaching at third base
• Watching the ball sail long and deep off of our bats.