Sunshine + 10 Players = 9 Innings

It was a fine day on the asphalt. If you weren't there, you should be kicking yourself. Well, not really - we had ten players and really didn't need you. The outfield was crowded enough.

Anyway, we played 9 innings. Actually we played eight and a half, because the Visitors' comeback effort fizzled out at the last moment. The Home team scored five early runs (three of which came on an Andy Evans triple that at least two outfielders could have caught) and then their bats wilted in the heat.

The Visitors chipped away the rest of the game (including Kurt Mosser's first home run of the season) but it all ended with the bases loaded in the ninth.

JD, Kurt, Mark, Pete, Tim B. - 4 runs, 18 hits
Andy, Bob, Dewey, Hansoo, Matt - 5 runs, 16 hits

HR: Mosser (1)

Shoulda Been Mark's Day

He was on it. Both sides of the ball, I tell ya.

He was right there, pitch for pitch with Hansoo as the most dominant pitchers of this brisk opening day. He drove in the first run of the season to give his team a lead in the top of the 4th inning. Then in the bottom of the 5th he made a catch that seemed sure to clinch the game for his team:

With the bases loaded and two out, Greg on the mound, Matt waited out a lot of pitches, worked the count with two strikes. Then Matt got around on one and drove it deep to left field. Deep and way over Mark's head. Deep and way past the home run line!

Mark was having none of that.

On a dead run, with his back to the plate Mark made an amazing over the shoulder, lead-saving catch. The 1-0 lead was safe - for the moment.

But it wouldn't be enough. In the bottom of the 7th the home standers solved Peter's pitching and plated a pair. Matt took the mound in the top of the 8th to seal the 2-1 victory.

It shoulda been Mark's day, but it wasn't. It might still be his year.

Greg, Mark, Peter, Ryan - 1 run, 16 hits
Bob, Dewey, Hansoo, Matt - 2 runs, 16 hits

HR: none (grrrrrr!)

We Don't Need no Stinkin' Groundhog!

The Wiffle and Ale Club knows what time it is: spring training time. Super Sunday became Wiffle Sunday as 6 stalwarts took to the asphalt at E.D. Smith for six innings of bat-and-ball play.

And there's no surer sign of spring than Kevin giving up hits. Once the season rolls around, he won't be having any of that $#!+. But today he gave up ... one. He, like everyone else, was just getting the old body limbered up for the long march to October.

There were a couple of triples, a double, and everything else was a single. Hansoo made a spectacular catch of a sinking liner off Peter's bat. Earlier, Peter made an impressive catch of a liner off Matt's bat. Everyone got in two innings on the mound; Adrian pitched into some hard luck.

On this gridiron, the Broncos (Dewey, Hansoo, Matt) bested the Panthers (Adrian, Kevin, Peter) by the very football score of 6 to 0. I'm not a betting man, but that might be a winning parlay for today's other big game.

Hitting is Hard

Connecting a thin plastic bat with a thrown wiffle ball is hard to do. So is driving. Especially in Oakwood.

This week's edition of the Oakwood Register has a front page story about an 8-year-old child on an bike struck by a car. I know nothing of this incident other than what is in this story.  The story indicates that the child, taken to Children's Hospital, will make a full recovery. I'm sure the driver of this vehicle feels terrible. But this article, and the Police official quoted, seem to place all fault for this incident on the child.

That simply can't be how we govern ourselves in 2015 in Oakwood. It can't. I do not want to live in a place that is that unconcerned about the safety of people out in the community.

Driving in Oakwood is hard, people.  Look at this diagram:

Intersection of Forrer and Shafor

Picture yourself driving the car that is the yellow oval. Stopped at a stop sign, waiting to proceed. The red arrows are potential directions another car could be coming from.  The green arrows are potential directions that a person on a bike or a person on foot may be coming from.  Remember that a lot of runners in Oakwood run in the street against traffic. Pushing strollers, no less!

Drivers HAVE TO LOOK at every one of these possible conflicts and YIELD to all of them! Remember, the driver is the one at the controls of the two tons of steel that could kill someone.

Not the 8 year old child.

Slow down. Pay attention. Wait.

Eric, JD, Matt, Pete - 3 runs, 12 hits
Andy, Bob, Kurt, Tim L. - 3 runs, 16 hits

HR: none.

Final Score: Eight-to-Nothing to See Here

Just your standard, run of the mill blowout game today.  8-0 was your final as eight wifflers, including Chris Anderson (!) played in some heat at Nance Bradds.

Many teachers were going in and out of Smith School, heralding the end of Summer. This made Peter sad.

Stats are up to date.

The Tag Up Game

Goodness!! Is this really the first blog post since my day as Commissioner?? Time to get off my duff.

Today was an ideal game to break in a rookie. Everyone, meet Dewey Darden. 

Dewey, everyone.

Today's action featured 7 wifflers, a lot of hits, some good pitching, and a lot chatter from the rookie. A LOT.

Everyone drove in at least 1 run, and everyone got some hits. But MOST MOST significantly, the TAG UP RULE WAS USED!!!!!

TWICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

First by Andy "Gamer" Evans who called his own tag up from the batters box for the third of his 4 rbi.

Second by Peter "Warming up to it" Berwald who had the TAG called for him by Matt "Heads Up" Lindsay.

So once for each team, and these guys saved an AB and each got an RBI.

But speaking of Matt... let me tell you why Andy won't be sending Matt a birthday card this Yom Kippur.

Andy hit a homer today - an impressive screaming liner over Dewey's head. He also hit a majestic, soaring shot to straightaway center field that carried seemingly forever. It was in the air so long, that Matt had time to run under it and catch it one handed, on a dead run, back to the plate. Think Willy Mays. Think Renaldo Nehemiah. Seriously. It was stupefying. He was no more than 15 feet from the gate.

It was the greatest catch in Wiffle history. And it came on the same day as the greatest wiffle picture ever. Wow.

Adrian, Andy, Hansoo -6
Dewey, JD, Matt, Peter -8

HR - Evans (5)

Just One Thing

Even while the Commish re-connects with his roots, The Wiffle and Ale League "plays" on

Through the miracle that is Facebook, the Commish rallied the wifflers from New England and five of 'em showed up on Saturday to play. But when one wakes up on the east coast, one cannot do the game-day duties required of a Commissioner.  And so we have this:

How sweet it is!

Stats was deputized to pull this game together and he took no time to park his hybrid in the Commissioner's spot. This car is not as cool as a Subaru. Lack of a cool car is the only thing preventing Stats' election as the next commissioner.

Stats has chairs, chalk and a long stick to draw the lines, a bat, and a scoresheet. What Stats lacked was (wiffle) balls.  Lack of balls is the one thing preventing Stats from being the next commissioner.

Stats chalked the strikezone and homeplate:

But, as you can see, he can't even draw a proper plate. That's the one thing keeping Stats from being the next commissioner.

Then Stats chalked the lines:

Third Base "line"

Double and Triple "lines"

But it turns out that Stats draws terrible lines. That's the one thing that stands between Stats and being the next commissioner.

Then, he placed the mound - a little back from the normal position - to juice the offense. And he drew the Mosser Line:

Oh, Good Grief!

These lines also sucked and the mound move was ineffective. Then, Stats picked the teams, and it turns out the only thing he is worse at than drawing lines, is picking teams. This is really the one thing that will ensure Matt will never be the next commissioner.

Andy hit for the cycle in a losing cause and everyone BUT Stats pitched effectively as the home boyz bested the visitorz 4-to-1. There were a lot of balls put in play, but a great many of them resulted in outs due to very good fielding.

Andy, Matt - 1 run, 10 hits
JD, Kurt, Mark - 4 runs, 14 hits

HR: Evans