YSA: Hounds Walk Over Bloomberg

The Tailor is now 4-1 with a team-leading 6.59 ERA

Sam had another big day at the plate with 3 RBIs

A-Town bustin it all the way

Mike's W-L % as manager is 100%

C-Rod makes the play

In the midst of a historic heatwave gripping the city, it was time once again for the Hounds to take the field. The opponents were our old friends the Bloomberg Bombers. Their roster seemed to have been almost completely turned over though, and there was none of the old testiness of other encounters. We came into the game facing plenty of adversity...a loss in our last official game, the game after that up in the air, an almost month long layoff, Cap suspended, questionable rulings by league officials, and to top it off, almost half of our roster unavailable for this game. Luckily we were blessed to be able to get original Hound Amy and new recruit Libby to fill in and help us round out our lineup. MikePa took command of the troops in Cap's absence.

Iain took the mound in the top of the 1st, and he battled out of a bit of trouble to get through the inning scoreless. Then, our offense struck in the bottom of the 1st on RBIs from C-Rod, Mike(2) and Sam. Staked with an early lead, Iain was masterful and in full control of the strike zone the whole game, and if Bloomberg did score, it was due to some questionable D. He also hit a solo home run. Bloomberg would get through the 2nd with no damage, but then in the 3rd we exploded for 6 runs, and it seemed like we were on our way. Iain locked it down, and Bloomberg was only able to muster some insignificant runs. They were ready to say goodnight by the time the 7th rolled around and we gently rocked them to bed. Final Score: Hounds 12, Bloomberg Bombers 4. 

Mano held it down at 3rd for Cap admirably

Amy made her return to the Hounds

MikePa played at a speed Bloomberg was not ready for

This was an important win, and the bottom line is the result, but we need to step up our game for our next match up against perpetual contenders Citywolves. After the 3rd inning, we played pretty much even up with Bloomberg, as there was a bit of playing down to the competition on our part. In the end, I think it's beneficial in a way to have not let it get to mercy rule, as we got a couple extra innings of reps, but let's not make a habit out of this, because a storm is coming. A win in our next game clinches a playoff spot, but it will be a hard win to get. Citywolves would love nothing more than to put a damper on our playoff hopes.

On a side note, a big thanks to Amy & Libby for filling in for us on such short notice and helping us get this win. There is no way we could have done it without you.

All-Star Baseball Cards

An Update on the Stumble Inn Game

Regarding our game against Stumble Inn that descended into madness, here is the latest:

• The league has ruled that the game will be continued ONLY if the result has any bearing on the playoff standings. Right now, that is very much looking like the case.
• I chatted with the umpire of the game, Mike, at the All-Star game. Unfortunately, his recollection of events does not fully coincide with reality. For starters, he did not remember that a run had already scored when I came across the plate. Also, he ruled that my run does not count because I acted with "malicious intent" when I collided with Stumble's guy. I can live with that ruling, but it stinks that he did not give us that run that scored before. So, bottom line, according to the ump's report, the score is 10-10 with runners on 2nd & 3rd with no outs. I of course will fight to the end to make sure that run gets credited to us, and I also hope that Mike's recollection was off and the actual report he handed in to the league the day of the incident more accurately reflects the scoreline.
• I have been suspended for our remaining two regular season games as well as being ejected for the Stumble game. Mike intimated to me at the ASG that Stumble's guy is also ejected and suspended, but I did not ask how long he was suspended for. I am a big believer in picking and choosing your battles, and I won't press on that issue when there are other things that are more important.

C-Rod & Justin Represent the Hounds at the ASG

Over at DeWitt Clinton Park, it was time for the annual Yorkville All-Star Game. Cindy "C-Rod" Rodriguez and Justin "Kaiser" Hoyt were sent to represent the Hounds.
Unfortunately, victory was not to be for the Hounds team, but a fun time was had by all, and the Hounds distinguished themselves with some solid play in the field. C-Rod had one at-bat and took a walk, while Justin went 1 for 2 with a run scored. Well played, Hounds!

YSA: Hounds Involved in a Wild One; Benches Clear

A quick turnaround meant we played our next game in Central Park only 3 days after our last. We were looking to get back on the winning track, knowing that we can't afford too many more losses if we want to make it to the 2nd season. The opponents were the team from Stumble Inn, who were barely able to beat a short-handed Hounds squad last season. We were looking to avenge that loss, but more so trying to finish the season strong. 

As the road team, we came to bat first, and we were able to put 3 on the board on a 2 RBI double from MIke and an RBI single from Sam. Our starting pitcher was Margaret, and she was as usual, solid and in command of the strike zone. We gave up 4 in the bottom of the 1st, and that first inning was a harbinger of the wild game that was to come. It was a back and forth affair, we seized the lead in the 3rd at 8-3, only to have Stumble come back in the bottom of the frame and close it to 8-6. We can't talk about our offense today without talking about MikePa and Sam. The 4-5 hitters dominated Stumble's pitcher, MikePa going 4-4 with a walk, 3 RBIs and 4 runs scored, and Sam going 4-4 with a SAC and an astonishing and team season-high 6 RBIs. Teresa also did work, going 3-4 with an RBI. Margaret continued to deal and had 2 RBIs of her own, but Stumble grabbed the lead back in the 5th and were now up 10-9. MikePa was clutch and again manufactured a run for us to tie it in the 6th, stretching what would have been a single for some people into a triple and then scoring on Sam's clutch, 2-out RBI single. The game was tied and was now played on a razor's edge. Tensions were high as both managers had been warned in the middle of the game relating to an incident in which Stumble attempted the hidden ball trick after time had been called by the ump.

We held Stumble scoreless for the rest of the game, but they held us scoreless as well, so it was on to extra innings. We started out the top of the 8th in tremendous fashion, 3 singles in a row from Andy, Cap, and Wink plus a walk to MikePa meant we were back up again 11-10 and threatening to have a huge inning. Now Sam was up and just as he was every other at bat, he was clutch and hit a sac fly to fairly deep right. Cap was on third and tagged up, barreling home to score easily. For some inexplicable reason, Stumble's pitcher/manager ran over from the mound to the 3rd base line about 5 feet up from home plate, completely blocking Cap's path to home even though there was no play at the plate whatsoever. Cap did what any other hard nosed ball player would do– braced for impact, and there was a collision. Stumble's pitcher came out on the wrong side of the collision and fell to the dirt in a heap. Cap scored, Wink to 3rd and Mike to 2nd. But as Stumble's pitcher got up, he complained bitterly about being knocked over. As the umpire was explaining to him that he was obstructing in the base line and that Cap did nothing wrong, he took a cheap shot and punched Cap. Cap responded by punching back, and all hell broke loose. Benches cleared, and mayhem ensued. Being that Stumble's guys outweighed the Hounds guys by an average of about 75 pounds, the Hounds were wise to not let the brawl escalate. Cooler heads prevailed and no further punches were thrown, although a couple Hounds fell victim to some MMA grapple moves. Unfortunately, the umpire saw no option but to call the game right there, and so we now await a ruling from the league office. Final Score: Hounds 12, Stumble Inn 10. (to be continued?)

Hounds I am really disappointed in myself for not having been the bigger person and just turning the other cheek to that first punch. That would have been the right thing to do. I let my instincts get the best of me, and I can't use the fact that everything happened so quickly as an excuse. Worse still is the possibility that this could affect our playoff hopes. I wanted more than anything to lead this group into the playoffs and to know that my actions may be responsible for us missing out is tough to swallow. I am the leader of this team and I am supposed to set the example. I see no other option but to suspend myself for the next game on 7/1 pending the league's verdict, which may be harsher for me. I accept whatever penalty they give me but I hope they will not punish the rest of the team for this. I have laid out our case to the league by email and we await their response. I apologize to you all for my lack of self-control.

YSA: Hounds Fall

Coming off a three game winning streak, the Hounds went over to North Meadow for a rare Friday game. The weekend was upon us and we could not have asked for better weather to play softball in. The opponents were the crew from Chico's Bail Bonds, who put a pretty nice whipping on us when we faced them last summer. As the road team, we came up to bat first and got on the board on RBIs from Angel and C-Rod. However, we gave it right back and then some as we let Chico's score 4 in the bottom of the 1st off our starting pitcher Iain. They got some well hit balls off of him, but we also helped them a lot by misplaying balls and giving them extra outs. MikePa manufactured another run for us by scoring from 2nd on Wink's 5-3 putout in the top of the 3rd. But Chico's came right back and put up another 4 spot in the bottom of the frame. From there, our offense was non-existent, as Chico's pitcher retired the last 13 Hounds in a row. Margaret came on and pitched a couple of scoreless innings, but with our bats not working at all, we stood no chance of coming back. Final Score: Hounds 3, Chico's 8. 

 This loss is one of those you just can't analyze too much because we were so thoroughly beaten. Chico's seems to have our number, but we must look to the fact that they scored most of their runs on our defensive miscues as hope that if we play better D, we can get a different result against these guys.