If you’re there, and you’re listening, let me know please. 

Today we had a PONY league baseball game with our team that will be going to Cooperstown.  We were in a tournament, and it was tough to find players to fill out the team, as we are picking up some players from New England.  So a couple of the kids were not quite as strong as we might have hoped, although all really good kids and definitely gamers. 

We lost big, but it’s always fun to play, and fun to play when the boys have a great game.  As they did not give up the runs that made the game a drubbing, I had no trouble with it.  Funny how that is.  Tom hit a monster line drive home run into the outfield of the other game (there was a walkway between as well) on the first pitch of his second at-bat.  I have it on video.  Mark pitched beautifully in the first two innings and almost hit one out himself.  If he hadn’t checked his swing, it was gone.  It was deep, near the fence, in right.  Also have that one on video.  It was swell. 

Tom at catcher also threw a kid out trying to steal second, a bullet that was on the money.  The kid who was thrown out, as well as the umpire, both congratulated him afterwards.  You can imagine what happened with the parents in the stands on our side.  Pretty darn cool. 

Kindergarten teachers are more important than you might think. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/28/business/economy/28leo nhardt.html?_r=1&hpw

We got hammered in the final All Star game for the District Championship.  Young Mark’s pitches were hanging and he gave up 4 homers… in the first inning.  He got lit up like a stick of dynamite in a Sergio Leone picture, like a Michael Jordan cigar after a championship, like a divorced Dad on Christmas Eve.  Very tough, but that kid impresses the hell out of me.  He didn’t hang his head.  He just moved on.  He has the best baseball head I’ve ever seen.  Ever. 

At the end of the game, our guys were relaxed and enjoying themselves.  The other team seemed nervous and unhappy.   Go figure. 

We move on to our Cooperstown team.  We wish a fond farewell to our SMLL All Star brethren. 

The game slipped away.  We lost 7 to 4.  It was 5 to 4 going into the 6th.  Very tough loss.  We play again tomorrow, for the championship, again.  Same two teams.  Woof. 

The game is tonight, folks. 

We play for the District 25 championship on Tuesday.   We’re excited. 

It’s not good when a kid (and his Dad) talks smack about your team, especially when your team beat his team earlier.  Ain’t nobody from our team talking down his team.  It’s particularly tough when that kid talks smack about another pitcher on his own team who actually out-pitched him.  Especially when his team had been up 9 to 1, needed three outs, and then lost 10 to 9.   And smack talker gave up the first 5 of those runs.   

As two friends said, independently of one another, ‘Wait a minute, he gave up 5 runs on 11 pitches???  You couldn’t do that if you TRIED!’ 

We were hoping to face our Santa Monica counterparts in the next round.  We beat Culver Marina 12 to 8, after having been up 12 to 2.  Our guys got a little complacent.  But we held it together and gutted out the win.  Then we finished practice last night and went over to Bad News Bears ballpark to watch Santa Monica West play Ladera.  When we got there, SM was up 4 to 1 in the 5th.  Bottom 5, they started hitting.  Went up 9 to 1.  But their ace pitcher had run out of pitches.  The top of the 6th, their guys got hit and hit hard.  Two home runs later, they were down 10 to 9.  They couldn’t put a run or two together in the bottom of the 6th.  So we will face Ladera on Saturday. 

It’s getting exciting, isn’t it? 

I was particularly sad to hear that Larry King was giving up his talk show.  I had hoped to be invited on when SWEETSMOKE came out, so that I could say to him:  ”Larry.  I’m surprised you’d have me on, since my kid struck out your kid in All Stars.”

All right, that was incredibly scary, but very fun. 

We won. 
 
Against a very good team. 
 
Went up 6 to 1 with Tom pitching, but the inning where we scored all our runs, the third, his arm went cold after throwing brilliantly for the first two.  Gave up three to make it 6 to 4, and asked to come out. 
 
We pushed it back up to 8 to 4. 
 
Mark went in and threw too many fastballs, which are not his game.  His catcher was calling for them and Mark wasn’t shaking him off.  Gave up three runs in his two innings, so it was 8 to 7.  He was getting hit very very hard. 
 
Tight game, but we weren’t nervous.  Oh no.  Eh?  What? 
 
Top of the sixth, we squeak a run home, sacrifice grounder by Lowell with the bases loaded.  Two outs now, men on 2nd and 3rd, up comes Sean McHugh.  Gets deep in the hole, 1 and 2 count, slams a triple down the first base line, scores two.  Tom comes up.  He creams an inside fastball out over dead center field fence, line drive that goes forever, and we’re up 13 to 7. 
 
Feel safe yet?  Sean comes in to relieve Mark and walks a kid and gives up a home run.  13 to 9.  Pulls it together and gets the last guy and we win it.  Very exciting game. 
 
We play next Tuesday night at 5:30 against Culver Marina.  Stay tuned.