Thursday, June 18, 2009
last post.....
I don't see it as possible to have year end get together where we can get everybody there. And with a 10 player team, even missing a couple makes a big difference. So I will just make my closing speech/comments in blog form.
I'm gonna go back to the draft first. I downplayed it in my house, around Vicki and Jerald, but I was pumped about the draft we had. Here is what I expected, a 10-4 finish, in 2nd place behind the Braves. I didn't want to publicly predict 10-4, because that is pretty lofty, but I thought we had it in us. And we did better. (and I thought the Braves would mow everybody down with their two ace pitchers)
The reason I liked our draft, is because we got, what I thought, were 5 of the top 9 available kids in the draft. Of course coaches all have different opinions. But when it is draft time, coaches from all teams get together and rank the kids. And for what I thought were the top 9 available in the Roland-Story draft, we ended up with 5. That meant the other 4, were split between the other 4 R-S teams. I was shocked. Apparently the other coaches had different ideas. Doesn't mean I am right, but it worked for me. And as an aside, I don't rank kids just on baseball ability, it is also on personality, and how good looking their mom is.
As usual it was cold in the spring, and we didn't get as much practice as we coaches wanted, but the guys seemed to step up pretty well. We started off with a rough stretch of 3 games in 4 days, and managed to come out of that with a 2-1 record.
Beating the Braves 2-0 was probably my favorite regular season game of the year. Love those pitchers duels. Even tho we won, our win over the Pirates was my least favorite. We walked our way to an 11 run win. Not many exciting hits, and it wasn't a competitive game.
In the post season, I really liked our tie breaker win over the Braves. It was really exciting to see Mickey come on at the end of the year, and dominate out on the mound. Of course, the last game against the Royals was pretty special too. Cody showed you don't have to throw hard. You just need to throw strikes, and have good defense.
And to that, I obviously don't know everyone's stats, but we only walked the opponents 51 times all year in our 18 games. I'm sure nobody can touch that. As a comparison, we got walked or beaned 122 times. So our pitchers prevented 71 extra base runners that the opponents gave us.
And about 10 of our walks came in our sub 55 degree days or rain, which makes it really hard to throw strikes. Our pitchers did a great job. Seven guys took the hill for us, ranging from CJs 97 pitches to Jerald's 554. CJ's totals were also helped by his 4 pitch inning against the Twins. That was awesome.
With those walks, and some hits, we got on base a lot. The lowest on base percentage on the team was .396. That is pretty good. My favorite hit was Jerald's bomb at the Carousel. But it was nice to see everybody get their cracks in. Mickey really hit some hard shots, and Cody had the shortest ones, as he did a good job with bunting this year. Grant's slap hit, after the fake bunt, against the Cardinals to get us the win was another one of my favorites.
You got my favorite wins, here are a few more of my favorites
Best walk off win--Jerald's HR in Roland against the Royals, big comeback in the 7th inning
Weird win--we 10 runned the Twins, but they only struck out once. Grant and CJ pitched, they hit the ball, we fielded it. Perfect.
Best play--championship game---Dylan to Grant to Jerald to get the guy who had just hit a base hit, and got him sleeping at 1st
Key catches--Cody in LF against the Braves, and Will with 2 catches in CF against the Yankees in the semis (while the game was still in doubt)
I'd also like to give a little thought on each of the players, so here ya go
Will was the most improved player from day 1 to day last. He really worked on stopping this dipping, and he then started to hit the ball. He went 3 for 3 against the Yankees, and I really think he has the sweetest stroke on the team, when he does it right. He is also one of the best on the team for catching a ball coming at him, and that is why he did a good job at 1b and CF.
Spencer got drafted by us because he could catch, and he did a great job at that. When you don't give up passed ball, and you can keep runners from stealing, it is a great advantage for your pitchers. He also had a great attitude, and was free swinging at the bat, finishing 2nd on the team in number of base hits, and also had the 2nd fewest walks.
Cody also was drafted because he could catch. Turns out he could pitch too, retiring the last 12 batters he faced in the championship game. His good attitude and versatility earned him a spot on the all star team. It was neat to see him grinning the entire last inning of that championship game--he knew he had it in the bag.
Matt was my mystery man this year. First time in the NSCLL at age 12. He was a little raw on baseball knowledge, but certainly had the physical ability. Not quite all star material this year, but if he sticks with it, I think his ability will really help him in the future. I'm not sure if he had more hits or words this year, it was about the same-around 10. I was really happy with how he was able to give us some innings on the mound.
Jerald breathes baseball, and it shows. I really like his focus and the desire to do the right thing on the field. He was often our coach on the field. He had a good year with the bat, and really carried us through the early and middle parts of the season with his pitching.
Dylan was another mystery man to me. I didn't know him, but he was drafted on the recommendation of Kent and Paul. Hands down, he did the best job on the team of backing up the throws from the catcher to the pitcher. That is one of the little things that 99% of the time does nothing for you. But that 1% can be a game saver. It showed he had his head in the game, and that is important to me. He didn't always have the best time at the plate, but he had no quit, and was up there taking his hacks. I like that too.
CJ quietly went about his business and did a very good job with his batting. He did his part by having a high on base percentage, allowing the sluggers behind him to knock him in. CJ is not flashy, but was solid with his defense, and always was solid with his teammates. He was always one of the first to provide support, if somebody had a bad at bat or play. In that regard, he was the rock of the team.
Zach is always Mr. Keepin' It Real. My favorite Zach story is before our 2nd Royals game. I was in our pregame meeting, trying to get everybody a little ramped up for baseball to go get those guys. I made some brilliant baseball point, and Zach says, "Wow, that is a really big garage door over there." For about 2 seconds I was mad, and then it just struck me as really funny, and it just got everybody loosened up as we had fun with that. It is a good reminder that LL baseball is not life or death, sometimes it is just to be out and having a good time with your buddies.
Mickey was King Carousel. He just dominated on the Story City pitching mound for some reason. Preseason I thought he could give me some good innings, but he really came on at the end with his pitching, and did it with very few walks (which in case you haven't noticed, drive me crazy). His bat got going too. I'm not going to pretend Mick is the greatest pitcher of all time, but the combination of above average speed and above average control is a recipe for success. He also warmed my heart, because I caught him at home practicing on a couple different occasions. (with the exception of time he was doing it with a Cubs hat on)
Grant is a great kid to have on the team for his versatility. Two years ago when I had him, he played every position for me. Don't know if he did this year, but he can pitch and play catcher, and does a super job on grounders and fly balls. You can play him anywhere. He also has a high on base percentage. I started the year with him at lead off, but he really seemed to have success hitting in between guys about twice his size. He really came thru at SS, with his catches when we were trying to put the Cardinals away in our opening round playoff game. He also really likes baseball, which gets him brownie points with me.
I also want to thank my coaching staff. They are quick to help with field maintenance and prep, and had a good relationship with the kids. Kent played a big role in the batting improvement of the guys. Paul got "stuck" in the dugout for the whole game, but fortunately that didn't drive him looney.
Also thanks to all of you that did concessions, or kept book, or umpired. It takes a lot of help to make a team go, and I was very happy with the volunteer spirit of our parent group. I do have to throw special kudos to Brad Waline. He did the plate for us for a couple games, bases on a couple more, and if not umpiring, he was keeping book or counting pitches. I do appreciate it.
I probably forgot something, if so, I'll add it in later. But in closing, this was a very special year. We had a great group of kids. Every one of them is very likable, and were an asset to the team. I can think of a play for every one of them, that was key to us getting a win--where they stepped up at crunch time, and made the play. And the key thing, they didn't drive me nuts. I had my occasional "I want to throttle him" for about 5 seconds, but considering they are 11 and 12 year old boys, that is pretty good.
We really only got to celebrate our success for about 5 minutes. So a virtual toast of root beer to the NSCLL Brewers
So thanks again for your support, and maybe we'll do it again in the future.
I'm gonna go back to the draft first. I downplayed it in my house, around Vicki and Jerald, but I was pumped about the draft we had. Here is what I expected, a 10-4 finish, in 2nd place behind the Braves. I didn't want to publicly predict 10-4, because that is pretty lofty, but I thought we had it in us. And we did better. (and I thought the Braves would mow everybody down with their two ace pitchers)
The reason I liked our draft, is because we got, what I thought, were 5 of the top 9 available kids in the draft. Of course coaches all have different opinions. But when it is draft time, coaches from all teams get together and rank the kids. And for what I thought were the top 9 available in the Roland-Story draft, we ended up with 5. That meant the other 4, were split between the other 4 R-S teams. I was shocked. Apparently the other coaches had different ideas. Doesn't mean I am right, but it worked for me. And as an aside, I don't rank kids just on baseball ability, it is also on personality, and how good looking their mom is.
As usual it was cold in the spring, and we didn't get as much practice as we coaches wanted, but the guys seemed to step up pretty well. We started off with a rough stretch of 3 games in 4 days, and managed to come out of that with a 2-1 record.
Beating the Braves 2-0 was probably my favorite regular season game of the year. Love those pitchers duels. Even tho we won, our win over the Pirates was my least favorite. We walked our way to an 11 run win. Not many exciting hits, and it wasn't a competitive game.
In the post season, I really liked our tie breaker win over the Braves. It was really exciting to see Mickey come on at the end of the year, and dominate out on the mound. Of course, the last game against the Royals was pretty special too. Cody showed you don't have to throw hard. You just need to throw strikes, and have good defense.
And to that, I obviously don't know everyone's stats, but we only walked the opponents 51 times all year in our 18 games. I'm sure nobody can touch that. As a comparison, we got walked or beaned 122 times. So our pitchers prevented 71 extra base runners that the opponents gave us.
And about 10 of our walks came in our sub 55 degree days or rain, which makes it really hard to throw strikes. Our pitchers did a great job. Seven guys took the hill for us, ranging from CJs 97 pitches to Jerald's 554. CJ's totals were also helped by his 4 pitch inning against the Twins. That was awesome.
With those walks, and some hits, we got on base a lot. The lowest on base percentage on the team was .396. That is pretty good. My favorite hit was Jerald's bomb at the Carousel. But it was nice to see everybody get their cracks in. Mickey really hit some hard shots, and Cody had the shortest ones, as he did a good job with bunting this year. Grant's slap hit, after the fake bunt, against the Cardinals to get us the win was another one of my favorites.
You got my favorite wins, here are a few more of my favorites
Best walk off win--Jerald's HR in Roland against the Royals, big comeback in the 7th inning
Weird win--we 10 runned the Twins, but they only struck out once. Grant and CJ pitched, they hit the ball, we fielded it. Perfect.
Best play--championship game---Dylan to Grant to Jerald to get the guy who had just hit a base hit, and got him sleeping at 1st
Key catches--Cody in LF against the Braves, and Will with 2 catches in CF against the Yankees in the semis (while the game was still in doubt)
I'd also like to give a little thought on each of the players, so here ya go
Will was the most improved player from day 1 to day last. He really worked on stopping this dipping, and he then started to hit the ball. He went 3 for 3 against the Yankees, and I really think he has the sweetest stroke on the team, when he does it right. He is also one of the best on the team for catching a ball coming at him, and that is why he did a good job at 1b and CF.
Spencer got drafted by us because he could catch, and he did a great job at that. When you don't give up passed ball, and you can keep runners from stealing, it is a great advantage for your pitchers. He also had a great attitude, and was free swinging at the bat, finishing 2nd on the team in number of base hits, and also had the 2nd fewest walks.
Cody also was drafted because he could catch. Turns out he could pitch too, retiring the last 12 batters he faced in the championship game. His good attitude and versatility earned him a spot on the all star team. It was neat to see him grinning the entire last inning of that championship game--he knew he had it in the bag.
Matt was my mystery man this year. First time in the NSCLL at age 12. He was a little raw on baseball knowledge, but certainly had the physical ability. Not quite all star material this year, but if he sticks with it, I think his ability will really help him in the future. I'm not sure if he had more hits or words this year, it was about the same-around 10. I was really happy with how he was able to give us some innings on the mound.
Jerald breathes baseball, and it shows. I really like his focus and the desire to do the right thing on the field. He was often our coach on the field. He had a good year with the bat, and really carried us through the early and middle parts of the season with his pitching.
Dylan was another mystery man to me. I didn't know him, but he was drafted on the recommendation of Kent and Paul. Hands down, he did the best job on the team of backing up the throws from the catcher to the pitcher. That is one of the little things that 99% of the time does nothing for you. But that 1% can be a game saver. It showed he had his head in the game, and that is important to me. He didn't always have the best time at the plate, but he had no quit, and was up there taking his hacks. I like that too.
CJ quietly went about his business and did a very good job with his batting. He did his part by having a high on base percentage, allowing the sluggers behind him to knock him in. CJ is not flashy, but was solid with his defense, and always was solid with his teammates. He was always one of the first to provide support, if somebody had a bad at bat or play. In that regard, he was the rock of the team.
Zach is always Mr. Keepin' It Real. My favorite Zach story is before our 2nd Royals game. I was in our pregame meeting, trying to get everybody a little ramped up for baseball to go get those guys. I made some brilliant baseball point, and Zach says, "Wow, that is a really big garage door over there." For about 2 seconds I was mad, and then it just struck me as really funny, and it just got everybody loosened up as we had fun with that. It is a good reminder that LL baseball is not life or death, sometimes it is just to be out and having a good time with your buddies.
Mickey was King Carousel. He just dominated on the Story City pitching mound for some reason. Preseason I thought he could give me some good innings, but he really came on at the end with his pitching, and did it with very few walks (which in case you haven't noticed, drive me crazy). His bat got going too. I'm not going to pretend Mick is the greatest pitcher of all time, but the combination of above average speed and above average control is a recipe for success. He also warmed my heart, because I caught him at home practicing on a couple different occasions. (with the exception of time he was doing it with a Cubs hat on)
Grant is a great kid to have on the team for his versatility. Two years ago when I had him, he played every position for me. Don't know if he did this year, but he can pitch and play catcher, and does a super job on grounders and fly balls. You can play him anywhere. He also has a high on base percentage. I started the year with him at lead off, but he really seemed to have success hitting in between guys about twice his size. He really came thru at SS, with his catches when we were trying to put the Cardinals away in our opening round playoff game. He also really likes baseball, which gets him brownie points with me.
I also want to thank my coaching staff. They are quick to help with field maintenance and prep, and had a good relationship with the kids. Kent played a big role in the batting improvement of the guys. Paul got "stuck" in the dugout for the whole game, but fortunately that didn't drive him looney.
Also thanks to all of you that did concessions, or kept book, or umpired. It takes a lot of help to make a team go, and I was very happy with the volunteer spirit of our parent group. I do have to throw special kudos to Brad Waline. He did the plate for us for a couple games, bases on a couple more, and if not umpiring, he was keeping book or counting pitches. I do appreciate it.
I probably forgot something, if so, I'll add it in later. But in closing, this was a very special year. We had a great group of kids. Every one of them is very likable, and were an asset to the team. I can think of a play for every one of them, that was key to us getting a win--where they stepped up at crunch time, and made the play. And the key thing, they didn't drive me nuts. I had my occasional "I want to throttle him" for about 5 seconds, but considering they are 11 and 12 year old boys, that is pretty good.
We really only got to celebrate our success for about 5 minutes. So a virtual toast of root beer to the NSCLL Brewers
So thanks again for your support, and maybe we'll do it again in the future.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
And just like that, it is done
Great game by the guys tonite. I'm proud of the effort, and I am happy it was a team effort. See this space in a day or two for my year end commentary, I am going to just keep it to tonite's game for now.
Ed got us started out, and gave up a couple hits, but then pitched himself out of trouble. But he started the 2nd with 2 walks to the 7 and 8 hitter. My tolerance for walks is not very high, especially when we had 4 experienced pitchers ready to go. So I brought the hook. I like that he didn't get mad or pouty, and just accepted his new role in the outfield.
Cody doesn't throw hard, but he throws strikes. So I thought we should give that a whirl. And Cody gave up a couple hits, but our defense bailed us out, as well as a Royal interfering with CJ making a play. Cody then gave up a hit on his first batter in the third, and we did not allow a base runner for the remainder of the game. The next 12 batters (and last 12) were retired in order. Awesome! Cody proved you don't have to throw it fast to get outs. You need to throw strikes, and have your defense help you out.
Well they did get one base hit in there, but thanks to a well executed play we got the out. A Royal hit it out to Schmidtty in LF, who did his job, promptly fielded the ball, and got it to his cutoff man Grant. Grant saw the runner had overrun first, so he quickly whipped it to Jerald, who applied the butter on the toast for the 7-6-3 putout. That was the most excited I was all year. Just awesome job by those 3 guys.
Again the defense did well. Our pitchers only had 7 strikeouts, meaning 11 times we got outs in the field. There were a lot of dribblers to the pitcher, so that worked out well.
On the offensive side, Jerald got our first run on a weird mental breakdown by the Royals. Jerald had a hard hit ball, then through the wickets of the CF, then Jer advanced to 3rd on a wild throw, and then he jogged home when the Royals decided the ball was poison, and decided to just stand and look at it instead of fielding it. Then Grnat, CJ and Will all punched runs across. Everybody got out at least once tonite, but CJ, Jerald, Grant, and Mickey all got on at least twice, via one method or another. Of the 15 times they got us out, we struck out 11 times tonite. Our hitting wasn't as good as I was expecting it to be, but we got the hits when we needed them.
And just like that, it is done. It's been a good run. And like I said before, come back in a day or two, I want to make some commentary on the guys. I don't think we will have a year end party. I'd really like to only have it if we could have everyone there, and with summer and all that, that is going to be about impossible. So maybe we can come up with something, but it is not looking good.
So again, great job everybody, I am just pleased as punch with this team!
Ed got us started out, and gave up a couple hits, but then pitched himself out of trouble. But he started the 2nd with 2 walks to the 7 and 8 hitter. My tolerance for walks is not very high, especially when we had 4 experienced pitchers ready to go. So I brought the hook. I like that he didn't get mad or pouty, and just accepted his new role in the outfield.
Cody doesn't throw hard, but he throws strikes. So I thought we should give that a whirl. And Cody gave up a couple hits, but our defense bailed us out, as well as a Royal interfering with CJ making a play. Cody then gave up a hit on his first batter in the third, and we did not allow a base runner for the remainder of the game. The next 12 batters (and last 12) were retired in order. Awesome! Cody proved you don't have to throw it fast to get outs. You need to throw strikes, and have your defense help you out.
Well they did get one base hit in there, but thanks to a well executed play we got the out. A Royal hit it out to Schmidtty in LF, who did his job, promptly fielded the ball, and got it to his cutoff man Grant. Grant saw the runner had overrun first, so he quickly whipped it to Jerald, who applied the butter on the toast for the 7-6-3 putout. That was the most excited I was all year. Just awesome job by those 3 guys.
Again the defense did well. Our pitchers only had 7 strikeouts, meaning 11 times we got outs in the field. There were a lot of dribblers to the pitcher, so that worked out well.
On the offensive side, Jerald got our first run on a weird mental breakdown by the Royals. Jerald had a hard hit ball, then through the wickets of the CF, then Jer advanced to 3rd on a wild throw, and then he jogged home when the Royals decided the ball was poison, and decided to just stand and look at it instead of fielding it. Then Grnat, CJ and Will all punched runs across. Everybody got out at least once tonite, but CJ, Jerald, Grant, and Mickey all got on at least twice, via one method or another. Of the 15 times they got us out, we struck out 11 times tonite. Our hitting wasn't as good as I was expecting it to be, but we got the hits when we needed them.
And just like that, it is done. It's been a good run. And like I said before, come back in a day or two, I want to make some commentary on the guys. I don't think we will have a year end party. I'd really like to only have it if we could have everyone there, and with summer and all that, that is going to be about impossible. So maybe we can come up with something, but it is not looking good.
So again, great job everybody, I am just pleased as punch with this team!
game is still a go
Paul squeegeed the water off the field this morning. We have still taken some showers--but I still have confidence! If you don't hear anything, assume it is a go!
Monday, June 15, 2009
On to the championship
Well that game ended kinda weird. But it was a nice way to win and go home early.
Kudos: #1 to the team as a whole. This was truly a team win. Everybody played some part in adding to the victory. #2, if I have to pick a player, I'm going with Will. He had two very important catches in CF, and also went 3-3 batting. #3 our pitching with Ed and Mickey. Again another game with no walks. No freebies for the Yankees. The Yanks had 4 baserunners all night. Two surrendered hits by Ed, and two by Mickey.
One of the hits was the bomb hit by Andrew. That was on me. The Yankees had a runner on 2nd, Andrew had a 3-0 count. I should have hollered to Mick to throw a ball, and kinda unintentionally/intentionally walk him. I was talking to about it to Kent when the bomb went off. Oh well, such is life. But Mick buckled down and got the next batter to ground out. We then immediately responded in the bottom of the inning with 2 more runs, basically negating the home run.
Other things, I liked: Grant had a super play at 3rd on a grounder, and Jer was able to tippy toe touch at first to get the out.
On the batting side, all of us coaches were impressed with how our batters stayed in the box with Andrew pitching. He throws really hard, but we didn't see a single case of a batter bailing out. Our guys hung in there, and made him throw strikes. Which often didn't happen, because we walked 12 times tonite. Half of them were by two guys. Both Zach and Jerald each walked 3 times in their 3 plate appearances.
Also with 1.000 on base percentage tonite was Grant with 2 walks and a single, and Dylan with the same thing. Maybe Dylan's was an error, but we are going to give him a base hit because it hit the bag, and bounced away funny.
So we get game 3 with the Royals. It will be at 6:30 at the Carousel. Bring along another shirt for your son, as win or lose, I will be taking their shirts from them. And win or lose, it has been a good run this year. The boys seem to be having as much fun as they have had all year, so that is good.
Seeya Tuesday!
Kudos: #1 to the team as a whole. This was truly a team win. Everybody played some part in adding to the victory. #2, if I have to pick a player, I'm going with Will. He had two very important catches in CF, and also went 3-3 batting. #3 our pitching with Ed and Mickey. Again another game with no walks. No freebies for the Yankees. The Yanks had 4 baserunners all night. Two surrendered hits by Ed, and two by Mickey.
One of the hits was the bomb hit by Andrew. That was on me. The Yankees had a runner on 2nd, Andrew had a 3-0 count. I should have hollered to Mick to throw a ball, and kinda unintentionally/intentionally walk him. I was talking to about it to Kent when the bomb went off. Oh well, such is life. But Mick buckled down and got the next batter to ground out. We then immediately responded in the bottom of the inning with 2 more runs, basically negating the home run.
Other things, I liked: Grant had a super play at 3rd on a grounder, and Jer was able to tippy toe touch at first to get the out.
On the batting side, all of us coaches were impressed with how our batters stayed in the box with Andrew pitching. He throws really hard, but we didn't see a single case of a batter bailing out. Our guys hung in there, and made him throw strikes. Which often didn't happen, because we walked 12 times tonite. Half of them were by two guys. Both Zach and Jerald each walked 3 times in their 3 plate appearances.
Also with 1.000 on base percentage tonite was Grant with 2 walks and a single, and Dylan with the same thing. Maybe Dylan's was an error, but we are going to give him a base hit because it hit the bag, and bounced away funny.
So we get game 3 with the Royals. It will be at 6:30 at the Carousel. Bring along another shirt for your son, as win or lose, I will be taking their shirts from them. And win or lose, it has been a good run this year. The boys seem to be having as much fun as they have had all year, so that is good.
Seeya Tuesday!
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Good win today (and yesterday)
Nice short game today. Seems that way when you only play 4 innings. First off, I am very happy with our bats today. (and when I say today, I also mean yesterday--ie: the game as a whole). We put the ball in play 21 times, and only struck out 5 times. (also had one walk). That is some pretty good hitting. And a lot of the hitting was by guys that have struggled at times this year.
Mickey with 2 singles and reached on an error (the error was a really hard hit ball, but right thru the wickets, so I have to give an error to F4). Ed had 2 singles, and put the ball in play another time. Will reached on two fielders choices, and also had a single. I am really proud of how those guys have been hitting the ball here lately.
Our pitching was pretty decent, especially considering the conditions on Friday. CJ did well in relief, giving up a walk, then striking out the next 2 batters. Today Jerald came out guns a blazin, then added to my grey hair in the 5th and 6th. The Cards got runners on 1st and 3rd in the 5th, and Jer pitched out of it, and then he had the bases loaded with no outs in the 6th, and pitched out of it. Wowser, the kid is gonna kill me. Will saved Jer's bacon in the 5th with his nice catch in CF.
We have the Yankees on Monday. They beat the Rangers 8-5 tonite. We will play at the Carousel at 8PM after the Minors Championship. Then if we can win that game, we would play the Royals in the tournament championship at 6:30PM at the Carousel on Tuesday.
No practice Sunday. Seeya Monday!
Mickey with 2 singles and reached on an error (the error was a really hard hit ball, but right thru the wickets, so I have to give an error to F4). Ed had 2 singles, and put the ball in play another time. Will reached on two fielders choices, and also had a single. I am really proud of how those guys have been hitting the ball here lately.
Our pitching was pretty decent, especially considering the conditions on Friday. CJ did well in relief, giving up a walk, then striking out the next 2 batters. Today Jerald came out guns a blazin, then added to my grey hair in the 5th and 6th. The Cards got runners on 1st and 3rd in the 5th, and Jer pitched out of it, and then he had the bases loaded with no outs in the 6th, and pitched out of it. Wowser, the kid is gonna kill me. Will saved Jer's bacon in the 5th with his nice catch in CF.
We have the Yankees on Monday. They beat the Rangers 8-5 tonite. We will play at the Carousel at 8PM after the Minors Championship. Then if we can win that game, we would play the Royals in the tournament championship at 6:30PM at the Carousel on Tuesday.
No practice Sunday. Seeya Monday!
Friday, June 12, 2009
1PM Carousel
Tis official. 1PM Carousel 4 innings to go!
Two of the 4 scheduled games tonite got played. Royals beat the Mets 6-0 and Orioles beat the Pirates something like 16-7. Rangers/Yankees never started.
Two of the 4 scheduled games tonite got played. Royals beat the Mets 6-0 and Orioles beat the Pirates something like 16-7. Rangers/Yankees never started.
4:30 PM Still a go
I am heading the Carousel, and for now, we are still a go. Field is still fine. Sorry for the uncertainty, but at least it isn't a basketball tournament, and we have to drive through a blizzard, right?
For now, game on
For now, game on. If the rain stays light, we will still play, the field is pretty dry and can take a good amount of rain. Also, we may wait for it to push through, and play at 8PM--a possibility. So stay tuned, and for now, plan on a game at 6PM at the Carousel.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Cardinals Friday
We will be playing the Cardinals on Friday at 6PM at the Carousel. We had to come from behind to beat them by 1 in our only meeting, so we will have to be focused and prepared. This is no gimme.
From here out, please have an alternate shirt for post game for your son. If we lose any of the next two games, (and the third no matter what if we make it that far) I need to get the jerseys back from the guys. I would be more than happy to wash them, than to try and chase them down. So I will be taking their shirts on our last game, so unless you want them topless post game, please bring another shirt from here out.
And also, it has been awhile, but I am owed some pushups. I have a black under armour type shirt, a helmet, and some batting gloves.
From here out, please have an alternate shirt for post game for your son. If we lose any of the next two games, (and the third no matter what if we make it that far) I need to get the jerseys back from the guys. I would be more than happy to wash them, than to try and chase them down. So I will be taking their shirts on our last game, so unless you want them topless post game, please bring another shirt from here out.
And also, it has been awhile, but I am owed some pushups. I have a black under armour type shirt, a helmet, and some batting gloves.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Another nailbiter
That was our 6th 1 run game of the year. We also had a 3 run win in extra innings. We also had a 2-0 win. In all of those, we are 7-1, so that is nice.
Where do I start? First how evenly matched we are with the Braves. We both sent 26 batters to the plate. We struck out 7 times, we struck them out 10 times, so advantage us. We walked them once, they walked/hit us three times, so advantage us. They committed 2 errors, we committed 4. Advantage them. We each had 3 base hits, so a push there.
Now for what we did well. First is the great job of pitching by Mickey. He threw 67 pitches in 5 innings work, with just the one walk and 9 strikeouts. He owns the Story City mound. He also had a great defensive play on their first batter while he was playing third to throw out the fastest guy on the field in Taylor Hill of the Braves.
Great job by Grant catching those popups in the 6th. Those were fairly easy, but Grant is not stupid, and I'm sure he knew the importance of catching them, and he did his job with a lot of pressure on. Will also had a nice catch in CF in the 4th, to close out an inning. If he didn't catch it, they would have scored a run.
I also want to mention the good job Spencer did behind the dish. He did a good job of not letting the ball get by him. Jerald scored 3 runs tonite, and every run of his was on a passed ball/wild pitch.
Lastly, a good job by Ed for his 1 inning of pitching work to open the game. My plan all along was to pitch him against the top of their order. He did a good job, though got busted for sleeping on the job, as Brandon McCoy swiped home on him. Ed won't do that again. One mistake is fine.
Offensively, we had a reasonably good night. The Braves fielded the ball well. They got 11 outs in the field. I really want to tout the back to back at bats by Jerald and Spencer in the 6th inning. Between the two, they made Hill throw them in the neighborhood of 15-18 pitches. Jerald ended up getting a double after about fouling off about 6 pitches. Spencer struck out, but it was after about 9 or so pitches. I have no problem with that. Fortunately Jerald was a good enough mood tonite that I could get away with calling him Buckner. (Google "Bill Buckner error" if you don't know what that means)
So the game was being played for the choice of whether to play local, or go to Ankeny. Our coaching staff chose to play local. The kids were leaning Ankeny. Ankeny is fun, getting to play different people, and on grass infields and all that. But the odds are somewhat stacked against North Story teams. So we are playing on Friday night at 6PM in Story City. Please, Please, Please let me know if your son is going to be gone this weekend. Zach is gone on Saturday if we win Friday, and we are not allowed pool players, so I need bodies!
On another note, the All Star selections were announced, and Jerald is our 12 rep, and Spencer is our 11 rep. Spencer is actually a league age 11, because it is based on what your age is on April 30, and at that time, Spence was an 11.
I am also the 12 year old Manager, and I am allowed some number of at large picks, and I have chosen to take Mickey and Cody as well. For the remaining 11s, it will be up to the 11 coaching staff if they want any of our players for at large picks.
If anybody is interested in running the concession stand on Friday, let me know. Thanks to Kate Hartzler for pulling double duty tonite, on the A's game, and our game.
Where do I start? First how evenly matched we are with the Braves. We both sent 26 batters to the plate. We struck out 7 times, we struck them out 10 times, so advantage us. We walked them once, they walked/hit us three times, so advantage us. They committed 2 errors, we committed 4. Advantage them. We each had 3 base hits, so a push there.
Now for what we did well. First is the great job of pitching by Mickey. He threw 67 pitches in 5 innings work, with just the one walk and 9 strikeouts. He owns the Story City mound. He also had a great defensive play on their first batter while he was playing third to throw out the fastest guy on the field in Taylor Hill of the Braves.
Great job by Grant catching those popups in the 6th. Those were fairly easy, but Grant is not stupid, and I'm sure he knew the importance of catching them, and he did his job with a lot of pressure on. Will also had a nice catch in CF in the 4th, to close out an inning. If he didn't catch it, they would have scored a run.
I also want to mention the good job Spencer did behind the dish. He did a good job of not letting the ball get by him. Jerald scored 3 runs tonite, and every run of his was on a passed ball/wild pitch.
Lastly, a good job by Ed for his 1 inning of pitching work to open the game. My plan all along was to pitch him against the top of their order. He did a good job, though got busted for sleeping on the job, as Brandon McCoy swiped home on him. Ed won't do that again. One mistake is fine.
Offensively, we had a reasonably good night. The Braves fielded the ball well. They got 11 outs in the field. I really want to tout the back to back at bats by Jerald and Spencer in the 6th inning. Between the two, they made Hill throw them in the neighborhood of 15-18 pitches. Jerald ended up getting a double after about fouling off about 6 pitches. Spencer struck out, but it was after about 9 or so pitches. I have no problem with that. Fortunately Jerald was a good enough mood tonite that I could get away with calling him Buckner. (Google "Bill Buckner error" if you don't know what that means)
So the game was being played for the choice of whether to play local, or go to Ankeny. Our coaching staff chose to play local. The kids were leaning Ankeny. Ankeny is fun, getting to play different people, and on grass infields and all that. But the odds are somewhat stacked against North Story teams. So we are playing on Friday night at 6PM in Story City. Please, Please, Please let me know if your son is going to be gone this weekend. Zach is gone on Saturday if we win Friday, and we are not allowed pool players, so I need bodies!
On another note, the All Star selections were announced, and Jerald is our 12 rep, and Spencer is our 11 rep. Spencer is actually a league age 11, because it is based on what your age is on April 30, and at that time, Spence was an 11.
I am also the 12 year old Manager, and I am allowed some number of at large picks, and I have chosen to take Mickey and Cody as well. For the remaining 11s, it will be up to the 11 coaching staff if they want any of our players for at large picks.
If anybody is interested in running the concession stand on Friday, let me know. Thanks to Kate Hartzler for pulling double duty tonite, on the A's game, and our game.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Practice Sunday, Game Monday
We will have practice on Sunday from 1 to 2:30 at RMS.
We will be playing the Braves on Monday at 8PM at the Carousel.
We will be playing the Braves on Monday at 8PM at the Carousel.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Not so fast my friend!
As Lee Corso would say. Braves lost last night to the Cubs. Braves play a doubleheader on Thursday. If they win both, we play here on Friday the 12th. If they lose both, we are going to Ankeny at 2PM on Saturday the 13th. If they split, it either goes to a coin flip, or we may just have a one game playoff, and if so, it will be next Monday at 8PM.
Also, practice tonight at 6PM.
Also, practice tonight at 6PM.
Monday, June 1, 2009
One of those nights
One of those nights at the ball yard. As Paul said during the post game huddle, we've had favorable things happen before, and they didn't happen tonite.
There are some things that I did find a bit bothersome. And they bit us. A lot of it revolves around a lack of practice. We have not had situational practice for awhile, and we had a couple cases of not knowing what to do with the ball when hit to them.
Something you may be unaware of. In the beginning of the year, I encouraged the boys to play catch with their buddies, and if not that, watch some baseball on tv, or investigate the MLB, and in particular the Brewers on the internet. Two games ago in the pregame huddle I offered the starting pitching position to anybody on the team who could name a MLB Brewers pitcher (I exempted Jerald cause I know he likes the Brewers). Nobody could name one. That irked me a little. (Mickey at least came up with a Brewers pitcher from last year)
On the batting side, our attempts to walk our way to victory also got us. Now, I am not complaining about the umpiring, but the zone tonite did not work in our favor. I have no doubt our pitchers have surrendered the fewest walks in the league. And I would say our batters currently have a reasonable view of the strike zone. But a huge strike zone works against us, because our pitchers lose the advantage of their ability to hit the zone, while the other teams give up walks. We only walked twice tonite.
But I am not going to fault our kids for some of the strikes they took. Ya chalk it up to one of those nights. Our first 7 strikeouts were all looking. We are not that bad of a batting team. Our guys do that occasionally, but the first 7 is definitely an anomaly.
We did have some good things tonite. Ed had a nice catch of a line drive at 3rd. CJ made a nice catch in CF. Cody, Mickey, and Spencer all had nice base hits.
But credit to the Orioles too. They hit the snot out of the ball, and their catcher and shortstop each had very good defensive nights. They made the plays, we didn't.
And just like that, the regular season is done. With the loss, and unless the Braves totally collapse, we are not going to win the regular season, so we will be playing in the local year end tournament. And I like that too. So pretty much plan on playing Friday night, May 12 in SC or Roland.
Now, you will be seeing a little change in how the Brewers are operated. It has nothing to do with our loss tonite, it would be the same thing had we won 20-0. With our next loss, we are done with the season. I don't particularly want that, as I enjoy this team, and I enjoy playing baseball. So during the regular season I like to move guys around a little bit.
But the team will now become a bit more of a meritocracy. The guys will be playing where the coaches feel they can best help the team continue to keep playing. And one of the places for that to earn some merit is the practices we will be having. If I can confirm field space, it will be on Wednesday night in Roland. Not a done deal yet, but stay tuned to this space and your email for details.
And a bad night on the baseball field still beats a good night of soccer.
There are some things that I did find a bit bothersome. And they bit us. A lot of it revolves around a lack of practice. We have not had situational practice for awhile, and we had a couple cases of not knowing what to do with the ball when hit to them.
Something you may be unaware of. In the beginning of the year, I encouraged the boys to play catch with their buddies, and if not that, watch some baseball on tv, or investigate the MLB, and in particular the Brewers on the internet. Two games ago in the pregame huddle I offered the starting pitching position to anybody on the team who could name a MLB Brewers pitcher (I exempted Jerald cause I know he likes the Brewers). Nobody could name one. That irked me a little. (Mickey at least came up with a Brewers pitcher from last year)
On the batting side, our attempts to walk our way to victory also got us. Now, I am not complaining about the umpiring, but the zone tonite did not work in our favor. I have no doubt our pitchers have surrendered the fewest walks in the league. And I would say our batters currently have a reasonable view of the strike zone. But a huge strike zone works against us, because our pitchers lose the advantage of their ability to hit the zone, while the other teams give up walks. We only walked twice tonite.
But I am not going to fault our kids for some of the strikes they took. Ya chalk it up to one of those nights. Our first 7 strikeouts were all looking. We are not that bad of a batting team. Our guys do that occasionally, but the first 7 is definitely an anomaly.
We did have some good things tonite. Ed had a nice catch of a line drive at 3rd. CJ made a nice catch in CF. Cody, Mickey, and Spencer all had nice base hits.
But credit to the Orioles too. They hit the snot out of the ball, and their catcher and shortstop each had very good defensive nights. They made the plays, we didn't.
And just like that, the regular season is done. With the loss, and unless the Braves totally collapse, we are not going to win the regular season, so we will be playing in the local year end tournament. And I like that too. So pretty much plan on playing Friday night, May 12 in SC or Roland.
Now, you will be seeing a little change in how the Brewers are operated. It has nothing to do with our loss tonite, it would be the same thing had we won 20-0. With our next loss, we are done with the season. I don't particularly want that, as I enjoy this team, and I enjoy playing baseball. So during the regular season I like to move guys around a little bit.
But the team will now become a bit more of a meritocracy. The guys will be playing where the coaches feel they can best help the team continue to keep playing. And one of the places for that to earn some merit is the practices we will be having. If I can confirm field space, it will be on Wednesday night in Roland. Not a done deal yet, but stay tuned to this space and your email for details.
And a bad night on the baseball field still beats a good night of soccer.
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