Call to the Bullpen

Well it's Thursday, and the last game of the 7 game home stand. I was supposed to have the night off to go have a few adult beverages at our favorite watering hole, Arooga's. And as a bonus, it was a free glass night, with our new favorite beer, Leinenkugel's. (The Summer Shandy rocks!) It didn't quite work out that way. I got a call earlier in the day from Knute, saying Doug, who was scheduled to work, hurt his knee and was unavailable. Could I make it in? I was really looking forward to a night off after 3 late nights in a row and the threat of rain again. But, Semper Fi, so I made the trip to City Island. It was dry as I left the office parking lot, but did not look at all promising. As I headed down Front St., the roads were wet like it had been raining but had stopped. However, I couldn't help but think the skies could open up at any second, and I would get very,very wet. When I arrived, Izzy was just coming in also, and he said"What the heck are you doing here?" I explained I was here due to Doug's injury and we both lamented the fact that it was going to be a long evening and we were destined to get wet. Frank was already there and was bringing back the hitting cage as we turned the corner. We unloaded it and headed up the field to get going. We dove right in and got things ready quickly. I t was a good thing, too, because as soon as we were finished it started. The tarp was still rolled out, so we quickly put it on and covered the bullpens as a light, but steady rain started to fall. We've had nights that it was lot worse, so we figured maybe we'd just wait it out. Then the radar watch began, and the debating about whether to wait it out or postpone the game. We'd already lost a game with Erie earlier in the season, with a double-header scheduled for late June. I'm sure the management wheels were already turning trying to figure out how we could get this one in to avoid another double-header. I didn't look like it was going to stop any time soon, so we headed back to our cubby to stay dry, check some TV and shoot the bull. As the time passed, we made regular visits to the other dugout to check on the weather status. Things didn't improve much, and finally around 8:40 they called it. We put the sandbags on the tarp and tied up some loose ends and that was that. What a way to end a home stand. It certainly has been an unusual year for weather, with all the rain delays and rain outs. I can only remember 1 year that was close to this one, 1997, I think. I trained most of the month of May, and was not real nice for the rest of the summer. But I guess 2 out of 14 isn't too bad an average. Other than that, not too much too report, except for an outstanding Spot Dog. I had my usual 'Grounder' but on a pretzel roll this time. I've gotten to know the people at the Spot stand pretty well and they agreed to make me a "special", since there weren't any long lines. Most excellent. Next home stand starts Monday, a pretty quick turnaround. But its the weekend and that will give me some time to get a little extra sleep and get some things done around the house. Maybe the boys will win a few down in Bowie. I"ll check in again after Monday's game. Later...

Izzy's metaphor...

Wednesday night, game 6 of the home stand. A couple of late nights in a row wear me down pretty quick. I'm not as durable as I was when I started 14 years ago, I guess. Old age, relatively speaking of course, will do that to you I guess. Sucks. As I arrived on the field, i saw the ever-present (or so it seems) tarp was still rolled out on the field. Gonna be another one of those nights. In attendance, Alan, Izzy, Ryan and myself, as well as our fearless leader. We got a quick start to pre-game and finished in good time. No issues, even with all the previous days' moisture. As for the title of this entry, it goes to one of the pre-game festivities this evening. It was Bike Night. A group of local mostly Harley riders were in attendance, and paraded around the warning track before the start of the game. As they were making their way around the outfield track, one of the Senator players came out of the dugout with a bicycle and headed out to catch the biker group. At that point, Izzy stated " This is kind of like the Senators and the rest of the Eastern League this year. Motorcycles out front leading the pack, and the Sens on a bicycle trying to catch them." Very interesting. As for the game, the boys jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the 1st. I thought, hey, maybe we'll get a W tonight. That optimism was short-lived, however, as Erie put up 3 in the top of the 2nd. They stretched it to 5-2 in the next few innings. At drag time, the interns were once again cued up, with 'Jump on it' the selection again this evening. The dance went well. i wish I could say as much for the drag. They got confused as they resumed dragging, and missed huge sections of the infield. I tried to pick up as much as I could but there just wasn't enough time. So back to the drawing board, more practice and philosophical discussions. After the drag and a Spot Dog, I headed out back to check on the post-game supplies and found that Izzy had already gotten things squared away. I parked the vehicles by the gate and headed up to the boardwalk to watch the rest of the game from various areas. Since we had already sat in the bar stools in right field I went over to left field this time. Not bad at all. I also sat in the left field "cheap seats" for half an inning, also not bad at all. In the meantime the boys had scratched out a few more runs making it 5-4. I had joked earlier, that they would tie it up in the bottom of the 9th again and force extra innings again. No way that I really wanted that though. While I was sitting in left field, The boys strung together a couple of hits and managed to tie the score, the go-ahead hit coming from an unlikely source, Michael Martinez. He's been struggling all year, below the Mendoza line. So it must have felt good to get a clutch hit. Baby steps. I started back to the right field side, thinking it might be a good time for the Viking Rally Horn. Someone must have read my mind, as it went off, just as I passed behind the batters eye. It must have done the trick, because in the bottom of the 9th, the boys got a runner to 2nd and an error by the Erie 2nd baseman got the winning run home. It was a nice walk-off win. No post-game festivities tonight except for the...... wait for it...... tarp pull. looks like a good chance for more rain tomorrow night, but I am off, so maybe I'll stay dry. Until next time, most likely Monday night, see ya.

What a Difference a Day Makes..

It's a cliche, I know, but its true. We were expecting less pleasant weather for Tuesday's game, but not this much less. When I pulled into the parking lot on City Island, a misty rain was falling and it wasn't cool, it was cold. In perspective, Monday's game time temp. was 81 degrees. Game time temp on Tuesday was 51 degrees. That's 30 degrees lower for the non-math majors. Combined with the mist, it was ugly, totally unlike Monday. That's why my trunk is always full of jackets, sweatshirts, extra shirts, socks, gloves, etc... I'm more prepared now than I ever was as a Boy Scout. The field had gotten a big drink Sunday night with the storm that moved through, so even with the nice weather on Monday, the rain during the day on Tuesday made things a little moist, so pre-game was pretty much keeping things dry. Surprisingly, we started on time, with no incidents. We huddled into the cubby for what we anticipated would be a long evening. Turns out, we were right. The game plodded along at a snail's pace with not much excitement, until about the 6th inning, when manager Stearns took exception with a 3rd strike call on a check swing to Freddie Bynum. From our vantage point in the cubby, we can probably tell as well as anyone in the ballpark if a batter goes around or checks his swing. Stearnsy had a legitimate point, saying that the home plate umpire couldn't see it from his end. He should have asked for help, but didn't, which, with a runner on third and a 3-1 game, was a killer. He had a right to be upset. Unfortunately he got a little carried away, and got tossed. He continued on and got a little personal, and with not many people in the park, you could hear everything that was said. He finally made his way off the field and the game continued on, with the mist and wind picking up a little, making the evening even more enjoyable. In the bottom of the 9th, the Senators mounted a little rally, and tied the score at 3, with the winning run stranded at 3rd base. In the 10th, Zech Zinicola, the Sens most reliable closer, pitched pretty well, but threw a few bad pitches that Erie jumped on and plated 3 runs to make it 6-3. Luke Montz made a nifty save on a throw to the plate that actually saved a run, and looked like it would get them out of the inning, but the Seawolves cashed in, getting the clutch hits. The Sens went quietly in the bottom of the 10th, so it was time to clean up the mess. The mound and plate, once we cleaned up the chunks and debris, were generally in pretty good shape. I don't know why for sure, but on rainy nights there seems to be less damage than on dry nights. My theory is that the clay that we use in the batters' boxes and on the mounds just doesn't dry up and break apart, it stays wet and just packs down. There are the usual holes in the foot plant areas, but nothing near what they are on dry nights. So once we got done, it was back on with the tarp. Yay... Maybe, just maybe, we'll get through a homestand with no tarp pull. Looks like more rain tomorrow, really looking forward to that. Until then, later...

An artsy-fartsy Monday

Monday, Memorial Day in the 'burg. That means Artsfest on Front St., clogged traffic in town, and wading through a gazillion people to get to the ballpark. Which actually is kind of different since most years the boys are out of town for the Memorial Day holiday. I can't remember the last time they were in for Memorial Day. We usually spend the holiday getting things done in the yard, watching the Linglestown parade, watching the NCAA men's lacrosse championship, and picnicking with the in-laws. I did do some grounds crew work at home and watched the parade (all 30 minutes!!!), before we loaded up and headed downtown. I ran into Knute's girlfriend Asheleigh (still not sure if I got the spelling right) at the parade. She works for Lower Paxton Parks & Rec. at the Friendship Community Center. They had a float in the parade, and she was handing out plastic leis. I didn't even recognize her at first.
So Mrs. Waadsworth and I finally arrived on City Island and headed over to the Riverfront to catch up with Alan and his girlfriend Sarah. We around Front St., had something to eat, (Camp Curtin Barbecue Station!!!!) and picked up a few trinkets. Afterward, we headed over to the Island, and took the girls on the grand tour of the boardwalk. In attendance, Alan, Frank, Izzy and myself, as well as Knute. Pre-game was a breeze, nobody was dressed funny, and the game started on time. Bowie's manger Brad Komminsk, was happy to see Frank and promptly busted his balls. The game moved along pretty uneventfully until about the 4th inning, when interns showed up for the big discussion regarding the 5th inning drag "skit" apparently Sunday' s crew didn't show as much enthusiasm as the brass was hoping for, so we were relieved of our duties. The "performance" for the evening was to be "Jump on it" Sorry, guess I really am getting old. Never heard of it. We went over the basics and at the end of the 5th, we headed to the infield. I made my way around the base paths and when I came back around 2nd base, they were killing it. Got a very good crowd reaction.So, maybe people will come to baseball games to see what the grounds crew does during the drag. Or, maybe not. The rest of the game went without anything of note. The boys lost, again, only 3-2. They were in it, but as usual, just couldn't get the clutch hit. They left way too many men on base, hit in to a bunch of double-plays with men in scoring position, that killed the inning. basic stuff. Afterwards, hey, our favorite thing, fireworks. Actually, once we got things finished up, we were done at a decent hour. Tuesday night's game looks to be a little on the wet side, so we did tarp after the game. We'll see what the day has in store for us. More tomorrow.

Super Saturday Night

Another baseball Saturday night, another strange sight. As I may have mentioned in previous posts, every time I think I've seen it all, some new and different pops up. I arrived on City Island Sat. evening and there directing traffic at the Walnut Street bridge was not my old buddy Chuck, but Batman. That caused a double-take, for sure. It didn't get any better as I made my way towards home plate to prep for pre-game. I saw Batgirl, Wonder Woman, Zorro, A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, Supergirl, and a Power Ranger. And a couple of guys in orange shirts. (the real super heroes). In attendance, Doug, Knute and myself. So, short-handed tonight. The pre-game routine went surprising smooth and relatively problem free. When I say relatively, the incident was a small chalker issue. As I was proceeding down the 1st base line, I waited too long to stop an redistribute the chalk in the hopper. As a result, I got a rapid, large drop of chalk all at once, creating a rather thick line. Actually we began referring to it as the chalk wall. Good for bunters tonight. Other than that, smooth as silk. We took up our usual positions in the cubby and the discussion for the evening was the impending "skit" that would take place during the drag. we found out that we would have 2 office staff employees joining us and would be performing "YMCA" at 2nd base in the middle of the drag. Wow! Something that's never been done before at a baseball game. ( Unless you don't count every major and minor league ballpark in the friggin' country) Well we griped and moaned about it, but we did it, and now everybody in Central PA will be wondering " What will that crazy grounds crew do next? I gotta be there to see it!" (Not really...) So we talked about it some more while we ate and came up with a few more ideas that might work and possibly even be fun. After that, Doug and I decided to take a stroll on the boardwalk. We thought that we would start from the left field side and check out the views the whole way around. They installed a set of stairs across from the visitors bullpen so access was easy. They view from the left field corner is commanding! I liked it a lot. We made our way around , stopping to talk to Irene, one of the SportService concession employees who took very good care of us when she worked at the 1st base grill. Alas, she's been shuffled around to different areas around the ballpark, so we've kind of lost track of her. It was good to talk to her, and she said she kind of liked being out there, where it was fairly busy, within view of the field so she could at least see some of the game from time to time. As we made our way around we paused to check out the views, all very good. We even sat for a second in the right field seats, very, very nice! The boys, in the meantime, has dug themselves into an 8-0 hole. They spent the rest of the game clawing back, making it 8-4 going into the 9th. We parked by fence in the new, as yet to be completed bullpen to watch the remainder of the game, and watched Leonard Davis launch one out over our heads to make it 8-6, but that's the closest they would come. We did get the snail's eye view of the scoreboard fireworks, though. Not bad. Afterwards, the were the usual post-game festivities, launch-a-ball and base race, so getting out at a decent hour was out of the question. We did finally get finished and camped out for a few minutes by the first-aid station to have an adult beverage and chit-chat. Bob Henley, a former Senators catcher from the championship years and is now a roving instructor, was there too. We listened to a few stories and caught up on all of the gossip and rumors, before packing it in for the night. I won't be back in until Monday night, so more then.

Let's hit the deck...

The boys were back in town tonight, riding a a 2-game win streak, looking to, dare I say it, make it 3 in a row. I made it to City Island with relatively little trouble considering it is a holiday weekend and Front St. is its usual logjam, due to the festivities on Memorial Day weekend. I t was a gorgeous night for a baseball game with a sizable crowd on hand, I assume, to check out the new deck or boardwalk I guess we're calling it. In attendance, Izzy, Alan, Doug and myself, as well as our fearless leader, Knute. (I was informed that I have been spelling it incorrectly in all of my previous entries, so I stand corrected, and offer my sincerest apologies...) We blew through pre-game without a hitch and settled in to the cubby for the game, cuing up, as usual, a hockey game on the TV (Red Wings/Blackhawks) as well as keep tabs via the Internet on the Hershey Bears/Providence Bruins game. We had a short visit from the Bowie Baysox manager, Brad Komminsk, wondering where Frank was. He had try and call his cell, so he could bust his chops for not being here. No luck, though, as usual, as Frank keeps a low profile. As the game went on, the main topic of discussion was the "in-game entertainment" that the grounds crew was asked to participate in during the 5th inning drag. No one was very enthusiastic about it , due to the fact that: A: We don't really have a lot of time between innings to do the actual drag B: The suggestions for our "antics" were lame and done to death in other ballparks, and C: We don't really feel like doing it. The way we we approached about doing it was ham-handed and disrespectful (I think). But we thought about it and threw some suggestions around and agreed to give it a shot. So, tomorrow night, we shall see. The boys actually jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the first and the game was cruising right along. After the drag, Dopug and I decided to get something to eat and go out to the boardwalk and hang out for a little while. It was pretty crowded, looks like its going to be a very popular place, and we did eventually find a place to sit at the bar stool/ drink rail area in right field. We really enjoyed the ambience and the view of the game was quite good. Alan joined us after a bit, and we ran into Jordan, one of our other part-time guys. Jordan only works Sundays for right now, but will probably get more appearances after school is out. The game was over fairly early, about 9:30, so got moving on post-game to get as much done as possible, because, it was Friday, and that means fireworks. I don't hate them as much as I used to, because the trash pick-up in the outfield has been minimized by better set-up by the fireworks crew and Tim's purchase of a lawn sweeper to pick up most of the debris that makes it onto the field. We did get to shoot some in-game fireworks as well, with Marvin Lawrence's 1st inning shot. I don't think all of the folks on the boardwalk were ready for them, though, and I think we scared the crap out of more than a few of them. Other than that, it was a fairly uneventful evening with the Sens picking up a win to make it a 3 game winning streak. I guess anything can happen now. Into double digits in the win column, a 3 game winning streak... Maybe we should start printing the playoff tickets now. Or maybe not. (and the Bears won 6-4, and the Blackhawks won 4-3 in OT)
More after Saturday's game.

Attack of the school kids...

After a break Tuesday evening, I was back in the house for Wednesday's game. Being a 10:30 start, I arrived at 9:30. I did not attend Tuesday's game by choice, since i was at the Giant Center to see the Hershey Bears whitewash the Wilkes-Barre Penguins in Game 7 of the East Division playoff round. It was indeed, possibly the best game they've played all year. But that really doesn't have anything to baseball. So, as I arrived on City Island, I was immediately greeted by a huge traffic jam in the parking lot, due to a large number of school buses. It was Education Day, with a huge number of students in attendance. I did finally make it to the back lot and onto the field. In attendance, Izzy, Ben and Cullen, as well as myself. I don't know if I mentioned before, but Ben and Cullen are the day guys who work for Newt. It was a beautiful morning and smooth sailing through pregame. By the time we were finished, it was obvious that a large crowd would be on hand. As we found out later on, the announced attendance was 6410. A technical sellout is 6303. Judging by the difficulty of moving around the concourse area and the concession lines, I'd say it was pretty close to accurate. Maybe not 6410, probably more like 6401. The kids really seemed to be having a great time yelling and screaming, creating a noise level that we don't normally hear in the evening. It's too bad the boys didn't give them much to cheer about. Another game, another loss. Stearns changed the lineup a little, I guess hoping a change of pace would shake some things loose. Luke Montz played 1st base, Matt Whitney played 3rd and Joel Guzman played right field. Not the usual. They didn't get blown out, but just couldn't get any clutch hits to score some runs. If this goes on much longer, I believe there will be some wholesale changes by June. Meaning a lot of the current crew will be gone. Don't know whether that will be good or bad, so we'll see. But I think they'll have to do something. I brought along a lot of the old memorabilia I have, programs, card set, ticket stubs, etc to show Jeff Bannister and reminisce a little. Unfortunately, he had to move on to his next assignment, so hopefully we'll run into him again this season. The cubby chatter was mostly about tools and equipment. We talked about things we needed and would like to have for the field. We definitely need a new infield machine and a new Gator. Both are on the long side of 10+ years old and well past their prime. They always seem to make it for 1 more game, but I think they're time is growing short. I stated that if I won the lottery Wed. night I would outfit the crew with brand new everything, a mower, infield machine, a couple of gators, a new chalker, whatever we wanted. Well it didn't happen, so its the old stuff again next homestand and I have to go to work tomorrow. We're not back in until Friday May 22nd and hopefully the boardwalk will be open. If the weather cooperates, it should be a great Memorial Day weekend. Talk to you then.

it's old home week

Well, Monday's game against the Altoona Curve was a little of the the same-old, same-old and a little change of pace. It looked like it might rain on our parade at times, but it was dry. In attendance, Frank, Alan, Ryan and myself. Pre-game was routine for a change, nothing out of the ordinary. As we settled in to watch the game, we had our, now pretty much routine, Stanley Cup hockey game on the TV, Pens-Caps,with most of us hoping the Pens could close it out tonight. Frank has all of a sudden become a huge Caps fan. Just to yank our chains, of course. The Caps did finally win it in overtime, although we never got to see it. Overtime happened during post-game, which by the way, was fairly early. We were done by 10:10 which is way early for us. The fast Monday nighter strikes again. of course, we lost 5-0 which tends to speed things up.We also had an in-depth discussion about lining the field. Sort of a little chalk-talk. The discussion covered technique, the chalker , and the chalk itself. Having lined the field for 13 of the 14 seasons I've worked there, I've picked up a few things and learned some tricks. I learned from 2 of the best, Tim Foreman and Bill Hamilton. It's like i told the guys, once you've used a piece of equipment for that period of time, you learn the little quirks and shortcuts. I've laid some perfect lines over the years, but I've also put down some really ugly ones, too. All it really takes is a steady pace, a decent eye and a lot of patience. When you get that perfectly straight line that's just the right thickness, it gives you a sense of accomplishment and pride for a simple thing of beauty. For the purist. Most people, including the umpires, don't really give a crap, as long as its reasonably straight. The catchers hate it if the batters boxes are too thick, since they have to breathe in all the excess chalk for 3 hours. Luke Montz routinely kicks away the catcher's box as soon as he steps in. He hates it. it used to piss me off, but now its like, whatever.
Now to the change of pace. We had few familiar faces from the past look in last night. Dean Treanor, who was the pitching coach here in 1997, is the pitching coach for Altoona. We chatted for a few minutes to catch up, asked where he had been. He'd been in Albuquerque(?) N.M. for the last 7 years. I remember seeing his name a few years ago, whole watching the Triple-A All-Star game that was held in the Isotopes new ballpark that year. He spoke well of his time here and winning a championship in '97. My most vivid memory of him is he night he got into a donnybrook with umpires and got tossed. He was usually a pretty mild-mannered guy, but whatever they did that night really set him off. I think that's the only time I ever saw a pitching coach get thrown out. Later on in the game, I went back to get my netbook and load up for post-game, and when I got back there was a guy in a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform sitting in the cubby. he looked familiar, and I said hello. I looked over at Newt and he whispered" That's Jeff Bannister" I thought he looked familiar! We got to talking about his time here in 1989 and 1990, who he played with back then, what the ballpark looked like and such. I told him I had a bunch of pictures from back then, and I would bring them in if he would be here. He said sure, so I'll have to dig them out. I have a lot of old pictures from the late '80's, when my kids were small, so that should be interesting. So that's all I got for this time. I'm going to the Hershey Bears game Tuesday evening, so I won't be back in until Wednesday for the 10:30 game. (yay! no work that day!) Hopefully, we'll have a Bears victory to celebrate and a few Senators wins.

One more time, with feeling...

Well we were back at it Thursday evening, this time with the weather cooperating for a change. We're playing a double-header again this evening trying to get the games in for this series. It was a 5:00 pm start for game 1 so I was unable to make pre-game again, arriving around 6. The crew tonight was Newt, Ben (Newt's day guy), Alan and myself. I t was nice to be able to wear just a shirt and shorts instead of that damn rain suit. Game 1 moved right along with Erie jumping out to a quick lead, but our guys rallying to tie the game at 5 in the bottom of the 6th. I t stayed that way through the 7th and went to the 8th. Erie jumped on our reliever and lit him up for 4 runs and we couldn't answer in the bottom half, so Game 1 went to the Seawolves. Game 2 started around 8:05 with in between prep going rather smoothly. We were all hoping for the same pace for Game 2 so we could get out at a decent hour. The cubby conversation was mostly about what video clips we could get them to play on the scoreboard. "Clark the goalie" was our first choice along with several other movies. I left the cubby shortly after the game started to get a Spot dog(outstanding!) and decided to head back towards the picnic area and tap out last night's blog entry. When I finished, I headed back to the cubby and found out that Alan and Newt were engaged in one of my favorite pastimes, movie line quoting. They had run through most of the good ones until I got back. I'll have to load up and get it rolling some other night. I noticed upon my return that the boys seemed to be tanking in the 2nd game as well, the score being 6-0. We all thought is might just be a reasonable night, time wise, which is good since Friday is still a workday. However, when the bottom of the 6th rolled around, the guys really started to get things rolling. They started stringing together some hits and started plating some runs. Erie made some horrible plays in the outfield, dropping a couple of balls that extended the inning, which otherwise would have been over. Before it was all said and done, the score was tied
and we were headed to the 7th. It was looking like extra innings again as the Seawolves went down relatively quietly. In the bottom of the 7th, Bill Rinehart started it off with a base hit and was replaced with a pinch runner, Michael Martinez. It was down to 2 outs when Matt Whitney stepped in. He drilled one towards the middle and it skipped off the 2nd baseman's glove and into shallow center field. Martinez was on his horse and Stearnsy waved him through. It was going to be close at the plate, but the throw was just off-line enough to let Martinez to sneak through and plate the winning run. The dugout emptied like the had just won the league championship. It must have been a great feeling for the guys, after going 2-for-April. They've now won 4 of their last 6, thereby doubling their win total for April in just the first week of May. I'd say that's showing some signs of life. They're out for a quick 3 games in Akron over the weekend and back in on Monday the 11th. It's another quick 3 gamer with another 10:30 start in the finale. I'll be there. Maybe the boardwalk will be open. Probably not, though,more likely for the Memorial Day weekend series. It's Mother's day weekend coming up, so I'll be able to get some awake face time with Mrs. Wadsworth since I haven't seen her too much this past week. Until then, treat your Mom nice and I'll be back around next week.

who's gettin' the wet?

Well, another night of baseball on City Island and..... it's raining. For the fourth big day in a row the rain's coming down in buckets. We're playing a double-header tonight, theoretically speaking , of course, to make upfor the rain out on Tuesday, the game we almost played. The 1st game started at 5, so since I work until 5:30, I didn't make it in for pregame. It was about the 2nd inning when I showed up in the cubby, rainsuit in hand. I bought my current rainsuit last year, I think I wore it once. I've already had it on 4 times this year. That's not good. it looked like it was going to start pouring any second when I got to the park, and it finally started about the 4th inning. It really picked before the 6th inning started, so we (Frank, Doug, Newt and myself) started filling buckets with Turface to prepare for the onslaught. Turns out, that was like preparing for a hurricane with sponges. The game was tied 0-0 in the top of the 6th. Erie (the team we finally started to play) was retired and we came to bat. The rain was coming down even heavier now. We did manage to get a guy on, and uke Montz stepped in. He drilled a pitch into the left field seats and put us up 2-0. After Erie got the 3rd out, we started out to spread Turface, but the umps called for the tarp instead. We put it on and sat back and watched some hockey on TV while it just poured. They halted the game at about 7:00 and we waited for an hour until they finally decided there wouldn't be any more baseball that night.
We did have a surprise visitor, though. When I arrived, Newt's girlfriend Ashleigh stopped by with their dog Buster. Buster is a minature daschund, still a puppy, and full of piss and vinegar. he made his rounds, visiting everyone, generally spreading himself around. He never did acheive his ultimate goal, which I believe was, to run out onto the field. That might have been very interesting. They didn't stay too long, due to the impending weather.
Oh, did I forget to mention, the Senators did win the first game, so that makes 3 out of their last 4. Definitely some signs of life. We're playing 2 again tomorrow night, starting at 5 again and the weather, finally is supposed to be dry, possibly even nice!. We'll see if they boys can pick up where they left off and maybe put another one in the win column. Should be interesting to see what kind of damage they did to the field. This will be the end of the homestand, though, so we'll have time to get things cleaned up for next homestand. we only have a 3 game set next time out, including a 10:30 am start on the 13th, which I will be attending, so that should be fun. I'll check in again after the double-header on Thursday.

Things you never thought you'd see....

Not having attended Saturday night's game, I guess I'll have to recap a bit. In short the boys won again, the first time they've won back-to-back games this year. Now, they've only won 4 games so far, so even though it's not really a huge accomplishment otherwise, in perspective, it really is. Showing some signs of life. They added a few new guys, who look like they can hit and field. And my guys tell me they played the game in under 3 hours, which is a notable accomplishment these days. Sunday started off rainy. I fully expected the game to be cancelled, as it rained steadily all morning, but not hearing anything to the contrary, I headed for City Island, resigned to wait around for a couple of hours, or play in the rain. Sure enough, the tarp had just come off as I arrived, even though it was still raining. We quickly prepped the field and then began the task of trying to dry things up enough to be playable. The drying agent we use, known as Turface, isn't cheap, about 7.50 a bag. We went through quite a few bags, so it was rather expensive to play yesterday. Taking into consideration the rather meager attendance and factoring in the wages paid to all of the ballpark employees, I' m guessing they didn't make a whole lot of money. I don't understand the logic, but hey, it's not my call. One we got the field prepped, the managers and umpires conferred, and....... we put the tarp back on. Mind you, it was raining the entire time. but after about an hour delay, we took the tarp back ( it was still raining....) we decided to start. In the top of the first, the R-Phils hit a few balls into the deep portion of left and left-center fields and the warning track was more than a little wet. So, of course, our guys fell and the got a couple of triples and a 3 run lead after 1. Our boys scratched back but just couldn't quite put it together. They had there moments, but leaving the bases loaded twice, once with no outs, doesn't help the cause any.
Speaking of moments, there were a couple of oddities yesterday.
I've never seen a 6 foot rooster with long hair and man-boobs. Saw it yesterday. All I can say is come to the ballpark and see for yourself. Its worth the price of admission. The 2nd moment was a hitting coach (coaching 1st base) getting into an argument with an umpire over a pick-off play and getting tossed before the start of the bottom of the 9th. It was Reading's hitting coach Frank Cacciatorre (who was our hitting coach a few years ago). I mean they were winning 8-4, so I'm not sure what he gained by it, but, knowing Frank, I'm sure he was right and was just making a point to the umpire crew to get it right. Things you don't see very often, but will if you hang around long enough. Ah well, didn't get out of there until about 6:40 pm, so I missed most of the Bears game. Looks like a lot more rain tomorrow, so that might make 2 Monday rainouts in a row. Something else that doesn't happen very often. Back again tomorrow

Back at it

Starting a homestand on a Friday? Not totally unheard of, but not the norm on City Island. After a week off, the boys are back in town after dreadful road trip. Ididn't listen to any of the games on radio, but after combing through news accounts and such, they showed some signs of life, but keep making a lot of errors and dumb mistakes and not really hitting a lick. But, hopefully, they'll start the big turnaround tonight. I heard on the news this morning, that it woulld be "rally cap night". When I arrived at the park, all of the staff had their caps on inside out. I tried it, didn't work for me, so I just took it off. It had pretty much threatened rain all day, so the tarp was off, but rolled out still when I showed up. The guys had about 90% of the pregame work done, so we wrapped things up and settled in for the game. Since it was Friday, the post-game fireworks were in place and we accepted that it was going to be a long evening. All hands were in attendance, myself, Doug, Alan, Frank and Izzy. But best of all, it was payday! All of those Saturdays and games from the first homestand were about to payoff! The topic of conversation in the cubby tonight was dirt. We discussed types of dirt, prep, how much water to use, how much drying agent to use when its wet, plus an in depth discussion of the types of rakes, and which were our favorites. I, personally, over the years have found that different types of rakes work better on different dirt conditions. In other words, a rake with longer teeth works better in wetter, deeper dirt. A rake with shorter teeth works better in dry, powdery dirt. Very cerebral stuff. And lo and behold, the boys played a pretty decent game and won for the first time in 13 trys! You'd never know it by looking at the line score, though. reading outhit us 11 to 8 and we made 3 errors, but we beat them 4-2 . On the surface, that screams bad baseball on both sides. But.hey, a W is a W. After the game, we had all of our favorites, Launch-a-ball, fireworks, and the tarp. Pulling the tarp sucks. its my least favorite thing. Actually, 'favorite' doesn't even belong. I hate it. But we saved the best for last. We got to take the grnd tour of the almost completed boardwalk. Its extremely cool! I predict its going to be a huge hit with the fans. The views are totally unlike anything the fans have seen on City Island up to this point. It will be a great place to socialize and catch a little baseball, plus a place for antsy kids to strech their legs. When the whole project is complete, its going to rival anything in minor league baseball.
I'm playing in a golf tournament on Saturday, so I won't be at the ballpark, but I'll check back in on Sunday.