3/23/25 GGP

 What an amazing day.  It is not hyperbole that it was a perfect day for a game.  We also had 24 players show up, which makes it even better, no running around covering positions, though we did have to remind a few that you can't sit out every inning...

The only issue I had with the day was the breakdown of the 2 squads, for lack of a better word, they were uneven.  The home team was without gaps, it was one big hitter after another.  The general rule has always been that you shouldn't have Powell and Mitch on the same team.  

Well, Mitch led off and Powell was 2nd.  That was what we were facing. Then it got worse.

Satch started for the visitors and Nick W for the homers.  The score wasn't terrible at the beginning of the game, though I don't think we ever held the lead.  The difference in the game seemed to be Tim Presley who put on a clinic at 3rd base, to the tune of 8-9 put outs.  He was everywhere, doing everything.  It was awesome.  Nick threw well and kept us in check, then handed it over to John McG for one inning, who put up a 4-pitch dazzler and then on to Sonny who shut us down completely.  His knuckleball in particular, was super funky.

After 6 innings of facing crusher after crusher I handed the ball off to Dave for an inning and then Sean, who took it the rest of the way.  Sean faced the same conundrum as I had, how can you celebrate getting an out, when the next hitter up is another potential double.  

The score started to get lopsided by the 8th inning, which I think was when we lost track of how many runs had actually been scored.  There was a bases loaded rally with 2 outs that seemed to go on forever.  John McG tattooed a ball.

New guy Ben came in to close the door and threw well, he has a sneaky fastball and a good curve.  

Final of game- 13(?)-3, homers.

Since we had extra time and players, we did a one inning exhibition and we managed to win that 4-1, so a little respect, though most of our team went home, so we only had about 6 players left.

Highlights:

* Everyone on the home team

* New Guy Alex and New Guy Ben were raking all day.

* Greg waited on a changeup and hammered it down the line

* Kenball almost had an amazing sliding catch in left field

* We did get an out at home, on a sliding play, thrown in from right field.  That was a bright spot.

* Alejandro had a big fly as well

* Great to see Stoner out

* Two line drives, one to me and one to Tim, that nearly took our gloves off

* Adam made some life saving plays at 1st base

* Someone almost hit the right fielder in the other game on the fly.

* Tim had an inning that he was responsible for every put out, great day!

* Sean ripped a couple of balls, but we couldn't consistently pick him up.

* Mike N did a great job blocking the dish in the latter part of the game

* Ana had a nice hit and scored a run

* Let's remember this team, so we can stop it if it happens again: Mitch, Powell, Alex, Ana, McG, Greg, Alejandro, Nick W, Sonny, Ben, Don, Rick

* Sorry to relate the news that skateboarding has claimed another victim from the MBC, get well soon Tony Rojas!

3/9/25- GGP

It's been a while since I got a chance to play.  Various family things, weekend sports commitments, rain, it all happens.  So it felt great to have a chance to play ball.  What wasn't great was trying to find a fucking parking space.  I arrived early and drove around for 25 minutes, watching the team every time I drove by.  Finally I gave up on anything close and went to the no man's land of Lincoln and 12th. There is always a spot, but the walk sucks.

We were at full bars plus extras for the day, the final may have been 12-12.  Sean started for the visitors and Nick W for the homers, but Nick didn't last too long, something in his shoulder went awry and he brought Mitch in immediately.  Mitch did great, and so did Sean, working 7 strong.  Both pitchers did a good job of controlling the game, and most of the hits were singles.  Dave came in to relieve Mitch, he also threw well, working on his knuckler, and then Satch got the last 3 innings.  Erasto took the last 2 innings from Sean, and got the 2-inning save, aided by the most deceptive release point in the game.

It seemed like everyone was getting hits, and not too many cheap ones.  The new guy Alex, who lives at 7th Ave and saw us from his front window, was killing the ball all day, to the tune of triple, double, single.  He scored 2 or 3 of the runs we managed to get.

Sean, McG, Lynch, Erasto, Alex, all were hammering the ball, it seemed like the homers managed to escape mostly unscathed, but there were a lot of runners every inning.

The crowd actually applauded a few times, more interaction than we have seen in a long time at GGP.  Probably helped by the aforementioned big bats. The game was close, by the time I came in we were only down one run, 5-4.  Well, I coughed up an extra run, and we never could get our come back to materialize, and the final was 6-4, Visitors.

Highlights:

* Beautiful day, full rosters, great game

* Thanks to Greg, McG for catching

* We had a lot of interest in the game, when it rains it pours

* Marcos made several great catches in left, blinded in the sun

* I K'd McG on one of the nastiest knuckleballs I have every thrown

* I owe both my hits to the Tree Trunk, one off the end that only works if your bat is 35" and one on the hands if your bat is thicker at the hands than most barrels.

* Johnny Bartlett and Rick Kvoriak were out, what is it 2004 all over again?

* We tried to play it safe and not test the arm of Gabe from left, and still had the guy thrown out trying to go back to 3rd.

* We had Mike N dead to rights at home, but I was the cutoff and couldn't get the ball out of my glove.

* Heads up play from Dave to get the lead runner at 3rd, in a 6-4-3 situation.  It was the right play.

Late Edition: Footage of The Catch

For those following, Charlie made a fantastic diving catch to rob JT of a sure-fire hit at the Fourth of July Doubleheader.  

As JT and I both hail from a time before computers, it took 7 months but we finally figured out how technology works for transferring large files and I was able to collect the much vaunted footage.  

Enjoy, and great catch kid!  You make your old man proud.

1/12/25 GGP

 I talk about it a lot but it really is true that the most amazing games we have tend to be smack dab in the middle of winter.  It was glorious outside, 66 degrees, hot in the sun, and we had about 27 people show up to play.  They all came out of the woodwork, other than Don, who must have known that we were overstaffed, and was absent from his usual late arrival.  

Sean started for the homers and I started for the visitors.  I felt good, the sun was hot at times, and it had been a minute since I had pitched.  Note, I said I felt good, but I sure wasn't pitching good.  I think that every person on the home team had at least a single off of me.  I don't know how the score stayed as low as it did, because I was getting teed off on.  Gabe counted his first and second career hits off of me, and everyone else just added to their pile.  I guess it was the day, as Sean also was giving up some hits, and the game was really evenly matched.  So much so, that the score was either tied or with a one run differential all the way to the extra inning that we had to play. 

I started to bear down a little more as I warmed up, and with the help of some stellar defense from infield and outfield, I was able to stymie the attack.  I bowed out after 5 innings, with the score knotted at 4-4.  Mitch came in and did a great job of pitching the remainder of the game.  I sat out at least 3 innings, which probably also helped my team's defense.  Sean stayed in a bit longer, and then handed the game to HR, who looked like he has been working on his curveball and his form, both looked excellent.  Greg came in for the final inning and well, tough luck.

We played through 9 innings and were left with a tie ball game 6-6, so into extra innings we went.  We were able to score 2 runs on the mighty wallop of Stoner, who smoked a ball into the gap and eventually also came around to score. The homers seemed to deflate a bit in the bottom of the 10th, and were quickly extinguished.

Final score: 8-6, visitors.

Highlights:

* Thanks to everyone that came out

* Nice hitting Gabe!

* Powell accounted for several of our runs

* In honor of the Man of Steal, Mitch completed a perfect Ricky run: single, take 3rd on play at first, score.

* Johnny Bartlett came out, this looks to be the beginning of the next chapter of Johnny's baseball career, and I am here for it!

* Javier made several important catches in the outfield, he didn't look confident doing it, but he did it

* Play of the game may have been Zach's diving grab in left field, amazing!

* I knew I was in for it, when lead off batter Tony lined my first pitch down the right field line for a easy hit

* Gabe's throws from SS rival those of Shawon Dunston, and its little unnerving not knowing if the 1st baseman is going to catch the ball, or if it is going to take your head off

* Greg almost took off my foot with a solid comebacker, I got my shoe and my glove out of the way....

* Lynch made a snare on a line drive that would have taken his head off if he hadn't caught it, instead, a much needed double play

* Gaspar was smoking the ball

* Stoner treated us all to the patented Stoner Slide Catch.

* I will have to go back into the archives to find the last time I struck out Lattig.

* Anna had a nice hit that turned into a double and eventually a run scored.

* I got into a pitch Sean left up in my first at bat and hit it to the right center gap, and rounding 1st I saw HR fumble it and thought, What the hell.  I made it to 2nd just ahead of the throw, and I had to slide which is never good but miraculously, was safe.  With each play afterwards, there was a bobble or a issue that made my running advancement decision murky.  But, I eventually scored our team's first run.

* Thanks to Greg, McG, Gaspar, Mike N for catching duties

* Two of the strangest ground balls, Lynch had one at third base that went from big hopper to worm burner, and one to Powell that never lost contact with the grass after impact.

* Apologies to Mike N, who I tagged with a 1-2 fastball in the rear parts

* Muchas gracias a Erasto, Santos, y Javier por un gran partido y a Carlos por venir a pasar el rato.

* After years of no contact, we had SF Park Rangers check permits TWICE in one day! Obviously it's part of the new mayor's promise to crack down on....illegal recreation? A bit of a buzz kill to see a guy with belt full of beat-down equipment walking over to you unsolicited on a Sunday afternoon, but, hey, that is why we pay for permits.

* Apologies if I missed any big plays, there were so many people to catch up with, the game became the background for a while.