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Posted by Dan Wukmir at Aug 15, 2015 5:00PM PDT ( 0 Comments )
Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #18
 
Game: August 16, 2015

Buzzards pull away from Solons late, win 13-1

The first-place Buzzards swirled in to Rocklin for a warm 10 o'clock game against the second-place Solons. With temperatures expected to hit 105°, the Ol' Buzzards were thankful for a morning game. This was the fourth and final meeting of the two teams until the playoffs next month. The Solons won the first game 16-12 on opening day in March. The Buzzards have bested the Salons the two other times: 13-3 on May 31st and 11-5 on July 19th. The Buzzies expect to see the Solons in the NABA finals on September 20th, so the team wanted to continue to beat the Solons and not give them a hint of hope for the finals with the full squad batting. The over-watered field was a swampy mess in several large areas of the playing surface. Galoshes should have been issued by Rocklin Park & Rec for the outfielders.
 
The visiting Gold Country Buzzards sent the crafty righty, Rick 'Salmo' Salmeri #6, with a season record of 4-1 with one save, to the hill to battle the Solons. The Sacramento Solons went with their regular red-headed right-hander, John 'Gunner' Haggen #24 to open the game on the mound.
 
The Buzzards jumped on the scoreboard with a nice crooked number, four, to start the game. Taylor 'Welzy' Welz led-off with a full-count walk and stole second base before Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir sent the next pitch deep into the right-center-field gap for a run-scoring double. Dave 'Evy' Everingham followed with a low-liner to the left-center-field gap for back-to-back run-scoring doubles. Up next, Mark 'Thunder' Weathers drove a shot down the right-field line for a long single that scored Evy. Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray continued the batting parade with a sharp grounder through the left-side for a base hit and putting runners at first and second.
 
Tom ‘Tomahawk' Keatley, batting next, hit a twisting short pop-up behind the first baseman. The field umpire called the batter out due to the 'infield fly rule' before the ball landed fair near the foul line with Tomahawk on first. After a little fuss and an embarrassed umpire, Tomahawk returned to the dugout with Thunder at third and the Baron at second with one out. Next, Jim ‘Milli’ Milligan walked on a full-count to load the bases. Kelly ‘Cagey’ Garcia then stroked the next pitch to center-field for a sacrifice fly driving in Thunder from third leaving the score 4-0 entering the bottom-half of the first inning.
 
The Solons fought back by getting three of the first four batters on base, scoring a run and had runners at first and third with one out. Next, catcher Milli, gunned-down the runner trying to steal second, with the runner at third holding. Then, Salmo got ‘tough-out’ Gilberto to hit a come-backer to end the first inning with the score 4-1 Buzzards.

For the next four innings, the Buzzards and Solons threatened in each inning, but good defense prevented any runs. The Buzzies left five runners stranded, while the Solons had nine in those four frames. The Solons left a total of 14 runners on base during the seven-inning game. Both teams changed pitchers in the fourth inning. The Ol’ Buzzards brought out Gregg ‘Surf Dawg’ Novotny #1 to relieve Salmo, while the Solons countered with Tim ‘Slim’ Mosburger #3 on the bump.
 
The Gold Country gang came out of the fifth frame by putting out a Solons’ rally with a double play and came back to the dugout fired-up to put some distance between the teams in the scorebook. After one out, Fred ‘Freddie’ O’ Donoghue drilled a first-pitch single to left-field. Mike ‘Mickey’ Wilson ran for Freddie at first. Welzy followed with a base-on-balls. Wookie, after a quick two-strike count, slapped a liner to right-field to score Mickey from second. After the second-out pop-up to the first baseman nearly doubled-off Wookie, he stole second with two outs. Thunder then stepped into the batter’s box with that booming bat and slammed his patented line-drive single to right-center-field to knock in both runners. 

Batting next, the Baron walked on five pitches and Tomahawk followed with a line-drive single to center to load the bases for Mill Dog. Milli then sent the 2-1 pitch screaming down the third base line to score Thunder and the Baron from second base for an eight-run lead. Evy ran for Milli. Up next, Cagey blasted a single to center-field scoring Tomahawk. Next, Kevin ‘Flash’ Krantz ended the scoring with a lined shot to center to drive in Evy with the seventh run of the inning and an 11-1 score after six innings of play.
 
The Buzzards tacked on two more runs in the seventh dig facing the third Solon hurler, lefty Tom ‘Fonz’ Defazio #31. Mickey started the inning with a lead-off walk. Salmo hit a sharp grounder through the left-side hole for his second base knock of the game. With one out, Freddie launched a high-fly to center-field. The sun ball bounced off of the charging fielder’s glove for an error that scored Mickey. Welzy followed with a run-scoring single to center-field to drive in Salmo. With Buzzards on the corners and the Solons in a defensive shift, left-hitting Wookie sent a hard grounder up the middle. The shortstop was positioned behind the second base bag, so the bouncer went right to him for a fairly easy double play to end the scoring opportunities for the Buzzards in the seventh.

The Solons loaded the bases in the second-half of the inning, but failed to score against the third Buzzard pitcher of the game, Freddie. Leading by more than 10 runs after seven innings ended the game a little early and the final score of the two-hour and 45 minute match-up was Buzzards 13 and the Solons 1.
 
Buzzard pitching and defense combined for a formidable combination to defeat the Solons. Holding the Solons to one run, their lowest total of the season, was remarkable especially with the field conditions for the defense. Salmo pitched the first three frames and faced 15 Solons in throwing 66 pitches (34 strikes & 32 balls). Rick gave up one run on three hits and two walks for the win. Surf Dawg pitched the middle three innings and held the Solons to no runs on four hits with two walks and one strike-out. Gregg threw 45 pitches (22 strikes & 23 balls) in facing 14 batters. Freddie finished the game by facing six Solons and throwing 23 pitches (7 strikes & 16 balls). O’ Donoghue gave up no runs and no hits, but walked the bases loaded as he battled with tightness in his shoulder after the first pitch. Then Welzy, in a funny way, said to a struggling Freddie on the mound after a strike call, “hey, way to mix in a strike.” That’s just good Ol’ Buzzard humor on the baseball field.
 
The Buzzard offense saved the best for last. Six runs scored after two were out in the big sixth inning to put away the Solons. The 13 runs were scored on 15 hits with eight walks and two Solon errors. The hit club for the game included: the Baron, Cagey, Evy, Flash, Freddie, Milli-2, Salmo-2, Thunder-2, Tomahawk, Welzy, and Wookie-2. The runs were scored by: the Baron, Evy, Freddie, Mickey, Milli, Salmo, Thunder-2, Tomahawk, Welzy-2, and Wook-2. The ribbies were knocked in by: Cagey-2, Evy, Flash, Freddie, Milli-2, Thunder-3, Welzy, and Wookie-2. Of the eight walks, four scored and the others pushed runners forward with the relentless offense. The five feared sluggers that the Solons pitched around were: the Baron-2, Brooklyn, Mickey, Milli-2, and Welzy-2.
 
The defense was rock solid with no errors on a tough playing field with a bright sun and hot weather conditions. Of the 21 outs, there was only one double play and one strike out. There were three fly ball outs to the outfield. The first out of the game was a long blast to the swamps of right-field that was played well by the Baron for the out. Tomahawk danced in right-field to catch the warning track launch for the second out of the third frame with runners in scoring position. Cagey, playing left-field in the fourth, one handed a rocket shot for a nice put-out. The Solons stayed away from left-field while Brooklyn was patrolling the outfield in the middle innings.

The double play occurred in the fifth inning. With one on and no outs, a grounder deep to the left-side hole was fielded by Evy. With a great feed to Welzy at the bag and a quick turn and throw to Thunder at first for the 6-4-3 double out play, the pitcher’s best friend cleared the bases. Surf Dawg notched the K in the sixth inning with a bat flying strike-out of their pitcher, Big Slim.
 
There were five evil pop-ups hit by Solons during the game. None of the five were easy and all five were impressively caught. Welzy made a nice running catch into short right-field of the first pop-up to end the second dig with two runners on base and on the move. In the fourth with a runner in scoring position, Wookster caught a sky-higher in foul territory near third and Welzy ended the inning again with a nice catch in short right-field. With two on in the sixth, Thunder tracked a pop-up to the first base side fence and made a terrific grab at the fence of Gilberto’s high flyer. And the last one was hit to Welzy looking into the sun and playing shortstop for the first out of the last inning.
 
Thunder was busy as first base with nine put-outs, two unassisted. Welzy and his big flat feet were apparently not affected by the swampy conditions of the field. Taylor made six put-outs and had two assists at second and short. Evy had four solid assists as the shortstop for six innings. The Baron had one put-out in right-field and one smooth-looking assist playing third base, while Wookie had one assist and one put-out at third and one put-out at second base to end the game. Surf Dawg played third base before he pitched and Gregg handled the lone assist opportunity in the second inning as a 5-3 play with two runners on including one at third base.
 
Salmo, as the starting pitcher, had an assist on the come-backer to end the first inning. The catchers on this hot day also deserve special mention for hanging on the gear and then hanging in there for the team. Milli caught the first four frames and Salmo caught the final three digs of the victory over the Solons. The full-squad Buzzards are an excellent team and a scary opponent that showed-off its defensive and offensive capabilities to the second-place Solons. The Buzzards were able to hold down a determined Solon club, and put it to them in the end with a solid 13-1 win.
 
There are two more remaining regular season games: August 23rd vs. the Yankees at 10 am at James Field; and August 30th against the Astros at 2 pm at Playfields Park in Davis.
 
The Buzzards will have a first-round bye, so the championship game will be played on September 20th at Playfields Park. That game time is to be announced.
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Posted by Dan Wukmir at Aug 8, 2015 5:00PM PDT ( 0 Comments )
Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #17

Game: August 9, 2015

Cruising Buzzards still beat Astros, 16-6 

On a warm afternoon in Auburn with temps in the low 90’s, the circling Buzzards (13-3) landed at James Field for a supposed slaughter of the last place Astros (1-15). The Lastros did beat the Yankees 12-8, two games ago, on July 19th in one of their three face-offs so far this season. The Astros are managed by the former League Commissioner, Barry 'No more ponytail' Spiller.

The team has good hitters and fielders, but it is short on reliable pitching and could use a younger catcher than the 67-year old JT Tijan, the father-in-law of Rob Segura. The Astros lose their best players annually, so Barry does a great job of seeding other teams, and a crummy job of improving the Astros.

 The highway traffic going west starting in Roseville and going past Rocklin to Loomis was backed-up and crawling down I-80 due to the end of Reno's Hot August Nights. There were lots of cool ol' 50's and 60's cars on the road or on trailers heading home from the party week. Going east to Auburn for the game was a breeze, but west, well not so good.
 
On the mound for the visiting Astros was the tough righty, Roy 'Dutchman' Van Kempen #10. The Ol' Buzzards sent the new guy, picked-up from the Pony Leagues last month, right-hander Fred 'Freddie' O' Donoghue #32 to the hill to make quick work of the Astros. The drought is having an effect on the infield grass, as several spots of worn and crispy grass are showing.
 
The Buzzards put runs on the scoreboard first, but it was in the second inning. The two-out rally began with a frozen rope to left-field by Freddie. Up next, Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray sliced one through the middle for a single putting runners at first and second. Dave 'Evy' Everingham followed with a base-on-balls to load 'em up for Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir. Before the second pitch, Dutchman separated his hands while in the set position on the mound for a balk, which moved-up each Buzzie 90-feet. Freddie strolled across home from third for the first run of the game. On the 2-2 pitch, lefty-swinging Wookie was hit on the left knee by the pitch to reload the bases, but the inning ended on a long fly-out to center-field for a 1-zip Buzzard lead.
 
The Astros battled for four runs in the third inning to go on top. The Stros banged out four singles and a double on some solid, but mostly timid hits, to surprise the Ol' Buzzards and take a 4-1 lead.
 
The Buzzards bounced back and matched the four runs in the last half of the third inning. Kevin 'Flash' Krantz led-off with a smoking flare toward the line in right-field for a single. Batting next, Rick 'Salmo' Salmeri returned from his three-game hiatus to get nailed across the back with a fastball after Flash stole second. Salmo gets a courtesy runner when he is pitching or catching, and in this case – both, so Tom 'Tomahawk' Keatley was the last batted out and subbed at first. With Kelly 'Cagey' Garcia at the plate, Flash and Tomahawk moved into scoring position before Cagey cracked a liner into left-center-field for a double to drive in both runners. The sliding double included a nifty avoidance tag move and an effective reach-out with the extendo-arm to grab second base. Cagey then stole third base before Barry 'Brooklyn' Forman walked on a full-count to put Buzzards on the corners.
 
The Astros’ pitcher was replaced by the long-time, right-handed soft-tosser, Ron 'Count to 3' Turner #13. Brooklyn stole second base on the first pitch to Jim 'Milli' Milligan, but apparently forgot that Cagey was at third, or he needs to start wearing glasses. On the next pitch, in the dirt but not far enough away from the catcher to run home from third, Brooklyn got a great jump at second and then went flying into third base to discover Cagey still on the bag. Soon to be 'Blue' Barry for the Burning Man Festival, Brooklyn was then tagged out returning to second base, and then proceeded to use 'blue' language in the dugout after the play.
 
Ironically, a couple of pitches later, Cagey did score on a wild pitch during Milli’s plate appearance. With two outs, Tomahawk then bagged an infield single to the left-side and took second on the bad throw. Freddie followed with a smash down the left-field line for a single to score Tomahawk from second and make the score 5-4 Buzzards after the third inning.

The Gold Country gang prospected for three more runs in the fourth to add some cushion to the score. After one out, Wookie swung out of his shoes at a 2-0 fastball(?) and launched the sphere well over 900 millimeters from home plate. It took the ball a couple of split-seconds to travel the 36 inches and almost made it to the infield grass, while the catcher scrambled for the ball and Wook ran for the bag. The oldest Buzzard beat the throw for an infield single to start the scoring rally. Up next, Taylor 'Welzy' Welz hit a blistering liner to center-field that put runners at first and second. Wook and Welzy both advanced into scoring position before Salmo went with an outside-pitch and slapped it into right-field to drive in both runners. Flash ran for the pitcher, Salmo, and took first base. Kevin stole second before the next batter, Cagey, pulled the 2-0 pitch to land on the left-field line for a run-scoring single. The score after four was 8-4 Buzzards.
 
The Astros played good defensive baseball and kept the game close. The Astros infield made some impressive plays with a 1-2-3 fifth inning of the Buzzards, and in the sixth a rare doubling-up of the fleet-footed Flash on a sharp infield grounder. The Stros tacked on two more runs in the sixth dig to tighten the score. A double and three singles led to the two runs to make the score 8-6 Buzzards after six full innings of play.
 
The Stros went quietly in the top of the seventh, as the fired-up Buzzards returned to the dugout from a nice double play and were determined to score more runs.
 
Salmo started off the inning with a chip shot to left-field for a base hit and a 3-for-3 game at the plate. Flash ran for Salmo. Cagey, up next, laced a lined single to left-center for his fourth hit of the game. Brooklyn followed with a cue shot single to the left-side hole to load the bases. Batting next, Milli scorched one past the third baseman for a single to score Flash. Flash then ran for Milli at first base. Up next, Tomahawk skipped a bouncer through the middle for a run-scoring single as Cagey crossed home plate.
 
After five consecutive hits to open the inning, Freddie continued the string with a hard grounder through the right-side for a hit to knock in Barry. After an out, Evy poked a fly ball to right-field. The running basket-catch failed as the ball bounced away and Flash scored again from third for the second time this inning. The score was 12-6 and the bases were full as Wookie came to the plate. Wook, so far at the plate, had been hit by a pitch on the knee, struck-out on a high one, and hit the ball almost a total of four feet during the frustrating at-bats. With a quick 0-2 count and after fouling off a third pitch, Wookie choked up on the bat handle and held the lumber back long enough to rake the next pitch deep into the right-center-field gap for a clear-the-bases long triple.
 
The score was now 15-6 with one out and Welzy coming up. The Astros changed pitchers to the right-handed hurler with the sling-shot motion, John 'Slinger' Schwefel #40. While the pitcher was warming-up, the Buzzards were planning their strategy to finish the game this inning with the team needing just one more run to end the contest with the 10-run mercy rule. The safety squeeze was discussed, as was a sacrifice fly versus the other options available. It was thought the Astros might play up to work against the bunt strategy or even walk the next two batters to load the bases for potential force-outs to extend the game. The one-out plan was for Welzy to swing-away for a sac fly, if he saw any pitches.
 
The first pitch to a salivating Welzy went into the dirt and scooted past the catcher. Wookie with a good jump ran for home. He scored the run as the throw came in and the pitcher's feet went flying as the hard slide sent Slinger tumbling on top of the safe-at-home Wook to end the game. Slinger then said to Wookie in a heap at the plate, “damn, I only got to throw one pitch”.
 
The final score of the seven-inning, two hour and 40 minute game, was Buzzards 16 and the Astros 6.
 
The two Buzzard pitchers did an excellent job of throwing strikes and getting ground balls. The first three frames were handled by Freddie as he faced 17 batters while throwing 56 pitches (37 strikes & 19 balls). O' Donoghue got the win and gave up four runs (two earned) on seven hits, two walks, and one hit batter with two strike-outs. Rick got back on the bump (last time was July 12th) for four rounds with the Astros. Salmo earned a rule-book save and threw 52 pitches (35 strikes & 17 balls) in facing 16 batters. Salmeri gave up two runs on five hits with no walks and two strike 'em outs.
 
The Buzzard offense scored in four of the seven innings, but struggled to put more early runs on the board. The Astros' defense made several excellent plays and had one double play to keep the game fairly close through the sixth inning with an 8 to 6 score. The 16 runs were knocked in by 22 hits, two walks and two Astro errors. The hit club for the game included: Baron-2, Brooklyn, Cagey-4, Evy, Flash, Freddie-3, Milli, Salmo-3, Tomahawk-2, Welzy-2, and Wookie-2. The always delicious ribbies were served up by: Cagey-3, Evy, Freddie-2, Milli, Salmo-2, Tomahawk, and Wook-3. The runs were scored by the hustling ol' birds: Brooklyn, Cagey-2, Evy, Flash, Freddie-2, Milli, Salmo-3, Tomahawk-2, Welzy, and Wookie-2. The eagle-eyed Buzzard walkers using the free passes to first base were: Brooklyn and Evy.


The Buzzard defense was solid and fabulous plays were made to frustrate a good hitting Astros team. There were two double plays and only one fly-out in the game. The double-out plays were in the fourth and seventh innings. In the fourth frame with one on and one out and infielders shifting positions, a grounder skipped to Welzy at short. Taylor fielded the bouncer and threw to Evy covering second base for the turn and the follow-on throw to Cagey at first to complete the play and end the inning.
 
In the seventh dig, it was one on and one out when the grounder was hit to Evy at shortstop. Evy fielded the roller and threw to Welzy at second for a quick turn and bullet-throw to Kelly at first to end the inning. Of the 21 put-outs in the game, there were four strike-outs and the one fly ball out. That was a high fly in the sun to Flash in center-field to end the fifth. Left-field was patrolled by Brooklyn and right-field by Tomahawk. There was one blast over Brooklyn's head in left-field, but the other 11 hits were in front of the outfielders or through the infield.
 
There were 14 ground ball outs with 12 assists including the two double plays. Cagey was busy at first base with seven put-outs, one unassisted at the bag. Welzy and Evy traded off at second and shortstop during the game. Dave had five assists and three put-outs, while Taylor had four put-outs and four assists. Wookie had one assist of a sizzling grounder in the third at third. The Baron also played third and had one put-out and one assist in back-to-back outs in the sixth. The first was an unassisted grounder with runners at first and second. Later with the bases loaded and two down, Pete fielded a high bouncer to his left and away from the bag. Too far from third to beat the runner, so the Baron turned and took the short throw home to nail the runner by a step and put an end to the two-run scoring rally by the Stros.
 
The battery included three different catchers during the game. Milli Vanilli with his vanilla baseball pants in honor of the infamous duo's recent announcement caught the first couple of innings. Milli Vanilli's remaining member recently announced a new album with the real voice of the original hit songs. That apparently was just too exciting for name-sake Milli to ignore and honored the occasion with white baseball pants.
 
Salmo caught the third inning, right before he took the mound in the fourth, to show his versatility and find a spot on the team after his month-long sabbatical from the squad. Freddie finished up behind the plate with three solid innings. Pitchers catching and catchers pitching in the same game is a fairly common Buzzard occurrence, but it is not seen on a lot of baseball fields. This game had it twice with Freddie as the starter and later catching, while Salmo caught an inning before pitching the last four.
 
The two evil pop-ups were both handled by excellent running catches in the tricky 'no-man's land' area between the infield and the outfield. In the first frame, Welzy ran a long way to short center-field to snag the third out on an excellent play with runners on the move. And Evy ran quite a way, fearlessly, toward center-field to snare a tough blooper for the first out in the fifth.
 
Good defense, a late explosive offense and solid pitching were the key ingredients in the 14th Buzzard victory of the season. The Buzzards did start the game on cruise-control and were apparently hoping for an easy victory. The Astros brought 15 players and they played a pretty good game considering their weaknesses. They did not hand the game to the Buzzards.


The season record is 14-3 with just three games remaining in the regular season. There will be just one more home game at James Field. Next week, the team is on the road at Rocklin to play the Solons at 10 o'clock at Tri City Park.
 
The team’s total stats are awesome. The individual statistics are close in some categories and the team has generally kicked butt, hence the fabulous stats. The team batting average is stratospheric at .447. The rest of the stats are available by Googling: Gold Country Buzzards, or going to: eteamz.com/gcbuzzards/
 
Buzzard Note #1: The three remaining games on the schedule are: Aug 16 at Tri City in Rocklin at 10 am vs. Solons; Aug 23 at James Field at 10 am vs. Yankees; and Aug 30 at Playfields Park in Davis at 2 pm vs. Astros. The only play-off game is scheduled for Sep 20.
 
Buzzard Note #2: The batting order was reversed for the game and the team may have a tough time reversing it again with the results from the Astros game. The new first three batters (Krantz, Salmeri and Garcia) got eight hits, scored six times and knocked in five runs. Buzzard Note #3: There was plenty of discussion after the game regarding the 2017 World Masters' Games in New Zealand. The Games are in Auckland from April 21-30, 2017. Many Buzzies and their wives or significant others are already planning on it, or talking about going on the fun team trip to Kiwi Land and beyond.
 
The Buzzards had a wonderful time at the Games in Sydney, Australia in 2009, and came back with a cool gold medal and lots of great memories and new friends from the tournament. Seriously, the Games' are huge regarding participation and events. In Sydney, there were over 25,000 participants in hundreds of competitive Olympic-sport events and games including baseball. The opening ceremonies and the parade of athletes took hours, but what a neat experience. More info to come, but you might consider leaving a spot on the calendar for late April 2017.
 
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Posted by Dan Wukmir at Aug 1, 2015 5:00PM PDT ( 0 Comments )

Gold Country Ol’ Buzzards Game Report #16

Game: August 2, 2015

Buzzards stomp Yankees, 16-3

An afternoon game in August in Davis could be a ‘hot time’ in the valley; instead it was a pleasant afternoon with temps in the low 90’s on the field. Off of the field, Buzzards were stuck in lousy traffic on Highway 80 as game time was approaching. The Yankees were present and watching the clock as 2 pm drew nearer and the Buzzards were short players. When a car with three Buzzies showed up from the Gold Country at 1:45 to a full parking lot due to a girls’ softball tournament, they were dropped off and hustled over to the field to get ready with minutes to spare before the game began with nine Buzzards.

Others showed up as the game was starting and were added to the bottom of the batting order. We never did hear what the highway problem was, but there were a lot of cars merging at the 80-50 connector heading west, which stacked up traffic and then everyone crawled across the Causeway toward Playfields Park.

The improving Yankees sent big righty, Jim ‘Big Mac’ McAdams #26 to the hill to start the game. The visiting Buzzards countered with the tough right-hander, Gregg ‘Surf Dawg’ Novotny #1. This was Surf Dawg’s 12th appearance on the mound this season.

The Buzzards wasted no time and put four on the scoreboard in the top of the first inning. After two outs, Kevin ‘Flash’ Krantz laced a liner to right-field for the first base hit. Flash stole second base before Mark ‘Thunder’ Weathers sliced a shot to left-center-field for a run-scoring single. Up next, Jim ‘Milli’ Milligan walked on four pitches to put Buzzards on first and second. Dan ‘Wookie’ Wukmir then ran for the catcher, Milli. Tom ‘Tomahawk’ Keatley then reached first and loaded the bases on a dropped infield pop-up. With the bases juiced, Barry ‘Brooklyn’ Forman hit a drive to right-field to score Thunder and Wookie. Mike ‘Mickey’ Wilson followed with a sharp single to center-field to plate Tomahawk with the fourth run.

The Yankees came back with one run in the bottom of the first with two hits and a sacrifice fly. The score after one inning was 4-1 Buzzards.

The Buzzards added four more runs in the second inning. Fred ‘Freddie’ O’ Donoghue started it off with a clean single to left on an 0-2 pitch. Batting next, Pete ‘Baron’ Von Zboray ended up at first on a force out. Welzy then laid down a nice bunt single to put two Buzzards on base. Wookie walked then Flash bounced into an E-5 to load the bases. Thunder, batting next, brought his booming bat to the game and used it for a blast to right-center-field to clear the bases with a long single. Up next, Milli again walked on four pitches before Tomahawk doubled to right-center to knock in Thunder from second. The score after two frames was 8-1 Buzzards.

The Gold Country gang dug up two more runs in the third. With one out, Surf Dawg singled to center on a 2-1 pitch. Freddie followed with a low liner into the right-center-field gap to put Buzzards on first and second. The Baron followed with an eight-pitch battle before sending a rocket shot to deep left-field for a run-scoring double and leaving Buzzards at second and third base. Welzy then hit a slow roller up the middle for an infield single that scored Freddie from third for a 10-1 score.

The no-mercy Buzzards piled on three more runs in the fourth dig. Thunder led-off with a screaming double that impressively hit the fence on the fly in right-center. Milli then bounced one through the left-side for a single that put runners at the corners. Flash ran for Milli. Up next, Tomahawk hammered the pitch to left-field for a single to score Thunder. Next, Brooklyn bounced into a fielder’s choice and left Buzzards on the corners. Mickey then singled home Flash on a flare to left. With one out, Brooklyn scored on a fielder’s choice by Surf Dawg to make the score 13-1 after four innings.

The Yanks added a run to the scoreboard in the fifth frame and left the bases loaded after two doubles, a single and a walk. Good Buzzard defense prevented a bigger scoring inning for the Yankees.

The Buzzards were not done scoring and added two more runs in the top half of the sixth. Milli started it with a line-drive single to left-center-field. Thunder ran for Milli at first. Tomahawk, apparently trying to impress a cute blond in the stands from Hawaii, was on-fire with the bat. After singling and doubling earlier in the game, Tomahawk tripled to the far reaches of center-field to bring home Flash. Batting next, Brooklyn sacrificed Tomahawk home for a 15-2 score after six innings of play.

The Ol’ Buzzards scored once more in the seventh inning and were aiming for a game ending 10-run mercy-rule win. With one out, Wookie walked and was forced out by Flash’s grounder. Thunder then proceeded to boom another double to deepest center-field to score Flash for his fifth RBI of the game for a 16-2 game.

The Yankees did not give up and scored one last run in the bottom of the seventh inning on a walk and two singles. The final score of the 2-hour and 35-minute, seven inning game, was Buzzards 16 and the damned Yankees 3.

Buzzard pitching held the Yankees to three runs on seven hits. Surf Dawg got the win and threw the first five innings while facing 21 Yanks and throwing 72 pitches (47 strikes & 25 balls). Gregg gave up two runs on five hits with one walk and four strike ‘em outs. Freddie took the mound without his usually elaborate preparation routine in the sixth and threw the last two frames. O’ Donoghue threw 31 pitches (20 strikes & 11 balls) to 11 Yankees. Fred gave up one run on two hits and two walks. It was another solid game for the Buzzard pitching corps.

The Gold Country offense showed up with their hot sticks. The 16 runs were a product of 25 hits, three Yankee errors and four walks. The hit club for the game included every Buzzard (in batting order): Welzy-3, Wookie, Flash-2, Thunder-4, Milli-3, Tomahawk-3, Brooklyn, Mickey-2, Surf Dawg-2, Freddie-3, and the Baron. The ribbies were cooked up by: Baron, Brooklyn-3, Mickey-2, Surf Dawg, Tomahawk-2, Thunder-5, and Welzy. The 16 runs were scored by: Baron, Brooklyn, Flash-3, Freddie, Milli-3, Surf Dawg, Tomahawk-2, Thunder-3, and Wookie. The four free passes to first base were given to two Buzzards in the game: Milli-2 and Wook-2.

The Yankees are improving and were hitting the ball pretty well, but the Buzzard defense is stiff and held the Yanks to just three runs. Of the 21 outs there were four strike-outs and no double plays.

There were two fly ball outs and both were sacrifice fly-outs. Brooklyn caught the first one for the second out of the first inning. Flash caught the other in the fifth inning in center-field.

There were five evil pop-ups handled by the Buzzard infield defense. Surf Dawg caught the initial pop-up hardly moving from the mound. The Baron made the last out of the fourth on a nice catch near third base. Freddie got the next two with a catch at second base to end the fifth and a snag from the bump as the pitcher in the sixth inning. Wookie made a fade away catch in short center-field to end the sixth dig covering second base.

Thunder was busy with nine put-outs and some interesting throws from the infield at first base. The Baron played third and had one put-out and two solid assists. Welzy played shortstop and had only two assists. Wookie had two put-outs and two assists playing second, while Freddie had one put-out at second base and one awesome looking assist, a slide to his left to snare the grounder before it got into right-field, and one put-out on the mound in the sixth. Milli caught the whole game and had one assist on a little nubber in front of the plate for the first out of the sixth inning, plus the four strike-outs (put-outs) in the books.

The Yankees are still a good bunch of guys and enjoy playing the game. In the fifth the Yanks had just added a run and the score was 13-2 with the bases loaded and an opportunity for more runs. The lead-off batter was scheduled, but rather than send one of their better hitters up to bat, they added to the bottom of the order with a very weak batter and the inning ended on a little pop-up.

Before the game the skipper was a little nervous as the clock was ticking closer to game time and only six orange jerseys were in sight until the car pool arrived at 1:45. Wook was changing line-ups as text messages and voice mails arrived from players in traffic. However, it worked out well and the Buzzies made the Yanks their 13th triumph of the season.

 The Buzzards are sitting in first place with four games to go and riding a nine-game winning streak to a 13-3 record. The next game on August 9th is at James Field at 2 pm versus the Astros.

Buzzard Note #1: Not to look ahead too far, but for calendar purposes, please plan for the team party with spouses or significant others (if you've got one, or two) for the afternoon on September 27th at Salmeri's place in Rescue.

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Posted by Dan Wukmir at Jul 25, 2015 5:00PM PDT ( 0 Comments )

Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #15

Game: July 26, 2015

Ol' Buzzards out gun young Colt .45s, 12-7

The last revenge match of the season was slated for the morning game in Davis between the Ol' Buzzards and the young .45s. The first place Buzzards (52+ division) were facing the first place Colt .45s (42+ division) in the second game of a two-game inter-division series. The .45s (11-3) had beaten the Buzzards (11-3) in mid-May in Auburn in a close 13-12 battle. The Buzzards were determined to avenge the earlier loss and keep the team's seven-game winning streak going, while the .45s had lost their last two games: Solons 8-1 and Dodgers 6-4.

The weather for the battle-royale was excellent with temperatures in the low 80's at game time in Playfields Park. The cloudless, high sky and bright sun would cause more than a few problems for both infielders and outfielders in the game.

The visiting Gold Country Buzzards sent their recent call-up from the Pony Leagues to the hill, the tough right-hander, Fred 'Freddie' O' Donoghue #32. This was Freddie's second game of the season and his 2015 pitching debut. The Colt .45s countered with their lanky and talented veteran southpaw, Dave 'Zippy' Poling #00. The anxious Buzzards jumped on the scoreboard first with a run in the top of the first inning. Taylor 'Welzy' Welz led off with a long, high and almost caught double to deep center-field. With one out, Welzy moved to third on a passed-ball and scored on a ground-out by Dave 'Evy' Everingham for an early 1-0 lead.

The Colt .45s stormed back to take the lead with three runs in the bottom half of the first. Four hits wrapped around two errors put the three runs on the board for a 3-1 score after one inning.

The Buzzards then added two more runs to tighten the score. Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray opened the second inning by getting on first base via an E-3. Up next, Tom 'Tomahawk' Keatley hammered the first-pitch deep into the left-center-field gap for a double and put both runners in scoring position. Batting next, Jim 'Milli' Milligan's bouncer knocked in Evy from third and Jim was safe on the misplay at first base. With two outs and runners on the corners, Barry 'Brooklyn' Forman laced a two-strike liner into right-field to get Tomahawk home and tie the score at 3-3.

In the bottom of the second, the Pistols scored a frustrating run. A full-count walk was followed by back-to-back balks that were called by a ticked-off field ump. The runner at third scored on a ground-out for a 4-3 game in favor of the Colt .45s.

The Buzzards bounced back with three runs of their own in the third to take back the lead. Welzy started it off with a swing and a miss at a two-strike Eephus pitch thrown by Zippy. After the game, the pitcher Dave, drank a beer with the Buzzards and said he tried to throw at least one high-arced, Eephus pitch, each game and usually for a surprise strike. In this case, Welzy's delayed big swing and miss helped distract the catcher as the ball scooted past him and rolled to the back-stop. Speedy Taylor then beat the throw to first base.

One out later, after Welzy stole second and moved to third on a ground-out, Evy walked to put runners at the corners. Up next, Mark 'Thunder' Weathers hit a tough bouncer that was misplayed by the second baseman for a welcoming error, while Welzy crossed the plate. Batting next, the Baron smashed a single to left-center to score Evy. With two outs and two on, Milli stroked a liner to left-field that scored Thunder and made the score 6-4 going into the bottom half of the third.

The Revolvers were a strong team and were determined to put some runs on the board in their half of the third. With two on and no outs, a slow grounder was hit to Evy at shortstop. Evy threw to Welzy covering second. Taylor fielded the throw and because of the slowly developing play knew there was no play at first base. So, as Welzy turned to throw to third base for a potential wide turn of the bag on the play, he was run into by the base runner. The runner was called out on the force play, and by-rule a double play should be called due to the runner bumping into the second baseman while in the act of throwing.

The NABA rule requires the runner to slide or get out of the way, no contact is necessary, for an automatic double play. The field umpire blew the call and did not declare a double play. Taylor, then quickly reminded the official without cuss words, that he should know the rule and call a double play. The young ump thought the comment was too personal and tossed Welzy from the game to the surprise of everyone. After the play and ejection, there were minor barbs and comments traded with the ump until the call was appealed to the crew chief and home plate umpire, Jimmy. The umpires held a long pow-wow, before announcing the play was ruled a double play, but the ejection of Welzy stood. Wow, what a blow to the team in the bottom of the third inning, but no runs scored. The score after three digs was 6-4 Buzzards.

The Buzzard scoring machine continued to crank out runs in each inning. In the fourth frame, Kevin 'Flash' Krantz opened the inning with a crisp line-drive single to center-field. Flash stole second base before Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir walked. A fielder's choice knocked Flash off of the base path, but two Buzzards were on base when Thunder stepped to the plate. The left swinging Thunder, then sliced a shot to left-center to score Wookie from second base for a 7-3 ball game.

The Colt .45s notched a run in their half of the fourth to make the score 7-4 Buzzards. Two hits and two walks were limited to one run by some good defensive plays by the Ol' Buzzards. The Gold Country gang tacked on another run in the fifth. Tomahawk led-off with a dinker into short center-field for a base hit. Two outs later, Tomahawk was standing on third when Barry 'Brooklyn' Forman walked to put Buzzards on the corners. Up next, Flash blooped the 1-1 pitch into short right-field to score Tomahawk for a clutch, two-out run-scoring single to keep the scoring pressure on the Colt .45s. The grizzled righty, Gregg 'Surf Dawg' Novotny #1 then took the mound in the fifth for the Buzzards and held the Guns to two runs in the next three innings.

In the sixth, the Buzzies scored again. This time with three runs to put some distance between the teams on the scoreboard. Wookie led-off with a single up the middle and advanced to second on a wild pitch. With one out, Thunder lined a screamer into right-center-field scoring Wook from second. The Baron followed with an infield error to get aboard. Batting next, Tomahawk walked on a full-count to load the bases. With two outs, Freddie's hard hit grounder ricocheted off of the third baseman's shoulder and into short left-field driving in Thunder and a hustling Baron to give the Buzzards 11 runs.

The feisty .45s scored two runs in the second half of the sixth inning to keep the Buzzards within reach. The Pistol's late game rally started off strong with two runs scored and the bases loaded with one out. The next batter smashed a 'no-see-um' liner heading toward left-field that Pete, playing third base, flagged down going to his left with the snag by his ankles for a huge out. The hot liner caught the other runners off of their bases and the Baron threw to second to complete the double play and end the inning with the Buzzards up 11 to 7 with time for one more inning.

The Buzzards continued their streak of scoring in every innings by knocking in one run in the top of the seventh. Flash started the inning with a perfect bunt single to continue the streak of lead-off hitters getting on base in every frame. After Flash stole second base, Wookie walked to put two on. Up next, Thunder used his booming bat for his third straight hit and lined the patented base knock to right-center-field to score Flash easily from second base for a 12-7 score.

The .45s ran out of ammunition and time in the bottom of the seventh and the Ol' Buzzards held on to win the tough three-hour and five-minute battle, 12-7. The Buzzards lost Welzy in the middle of the third inning with the score 6-4 and continued to impressively out-score the young .45s the rest of the game for the solid victory.

The available Buzzard pitchers had quite an assignment for the game. To keep the big bats of the Colt .45s offense quiet and get ground balls. The new guy, Freddie, pitched his ass off in his first appearance on a mound since August 2014. And sometimes it showed, that this was his first appearance in a long time. Milli did a great job behind the plate of guiding the pitchers through the line-up and the game. O' Donoghue completed the first four innings and faced 22 batters, while throwing 108 pitches (61 strikes & 47 balls). Fred gave up five runs (two earned) on six hits and four walks with three strike-outs. Surf Dawg finished the game with three strong innings. Gregg threw 45 pitches (27 strikes & 18 balls) in facing 16 batters. The .45s scored twice on six hits and two walks, while Novotny earned the save.

The Gold Country offense was sparkling as the lead-off batters got on base every inning and the Buzzards kept the scoring machine turned ON. The 12 runs were scored on 14 hits, five walks and three costly errors. The hit club for the game included: the Baron, Brooklyn, Flash-3, Freddie, Milli, Tomahawk-2, Thunder-3, Welzy, and Wook. The ribbies were knocked in by: the Baron, Brooklyn, Evy, Flash, Freddie-2, Milli-2, and Thunder-3. The always important 12 runs were scored by: the Baron-2, Evy, Flash, Tomahawk-2, Thunder-2, Welzy-2, and Wookie-2. The four eagle-eyed Buzzards getting five free passes to first base were: Brooklyn, Evy, Tomahawk, and Wook-2.

The defense was solid and made the key plays to shut-down scoring rallies. There were 21 outs and two double plays with three strike-outs in defeating the younger, quicker and bigger Colt .45s.

The game had just two fly ball outs. The first one was caught in left-field by Brooklyn and it ended a rough first frame with three runs scored and two on base. The second fly-out ended the second inning with a running catch by Flash looking into the sun.

The double plays came at great times and the team pulled them off to beat a fired-up .45s team. The double play in the third inning cost the Buzzards the use of Welzy for the remainder of the game. The Colt .45s' manager initially wanted to protest the double play ruling, but they were so excited that Welzy was gone from the game that they did not complain.

The second double play was the Baron's grab in the sixth inning to stop a big brewing rally. With two runs scored and the bases full with one down, the cat-like reflexes of the Ol' Baron allowed him to spear the low liner and make that crucial double-out play.

There were 10 ground ball outs with two unassisted at first base. Thunder had six put-outs and one assist playing first. Welzy participated in one put-out and one assist at second before his game demise in the middle of the third. Evy fielded two assists and one put-out at shortstop, while Wookie had three assists and one put-out playing third and second. The Baron took over at third in the third and had two put-outs and one assist in the game.

There were five evil infield pop-ups during the game. Four resulted in outs. Wookie caught one and Freddie had two at second base. In the fourth dig with the bases loaded and two outs, the clean-up hitter punched a high pop-up that got lost in the sun by Evy and landed on the dirt next to the outfield grass behind second base. Wook picked it up on the bounce and with no one covering second, threw to the Baron at third to narrowly get the runner and end the inning.

This was an excellent game in spite of Welzy nearly assaulting the infield umpire with rules and financial advice. Taylor cheered on the Buzzards from the nearby shaded area by the first base dugout, and discussed the call with the umpire, Shawn, after the game. Unless Taylor said something terrible to the ump after the game and they file an additional report, he will be allowed to play in the next game, after he settles the Buzzard fine.

This was the last inter-divisional game of this season. The Buzzards were 4-2 against the younger 42+ division, losing to the Rays and Colt .45s in May. However, beating them each later and sweeping the Miners and the Dodgers, plus winning all but one game in the 52+ division makes for a 12-3 record. The Buzzies have an eight-game win streak and five regular season games remaining.

It was a terrific win and another good day to be a Buzzard.

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Posted by Dan Wukmir at Jul 18, 2015 5:00PM PDT ( 0 Comments )

Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #14

Game: July 19, 2015

Buzzards claw Solons, 11-5

The third match of the four-game set with the Sacramento Solons took place on Sunday at James Field. With temps in the low 80's for the 10 o'clock game, the first-place Buzzards (10-3) faced the second-place Solons (6-7) on a fabulous day to play baseball.

The Solons, managed by a retired CHiPs officer, John Mason, did beat the Ol' Buzzards on opening day 16-12, and last Sunday, July 12th, they beat the Colt .45s, the first-place team in the 42+ division, 8-1. Having split the season series so far, this third contest could be a statement game for either team.

The starting hurler for the Solons was the tall right-hander, Tim 'Lanky' Mosburger #3. The Buzzards sent their tough righty, Gregg 'Surf Dawg' Novotny #1, to the mound for his 10th appearance and fourth start of the season with a 2-0 record and two saves. Surf Dawg wore his snazzy or Dr. Seuss-ish, orange and black horizontal-striped, socks for the first time. They were given to him by Dave Kelley and were almost a distraction for the batter.

The Solons started the game well with two on and no outs before a slick, 3-6-3, double play snuffed out the early rally. However, in the top of the second, the Solons put a run on the scoreboard with two singles, wrapped around an infield error for a 1-0 Solon lead.

The hustling Solons added two more runs in the third inning on a bunt single to loud mouth Bruce Maiman. And we heard it further when he stole second base and moved to third on a wild pitch. The next batter walked and then stole second to put both runners in scoring position with no outs. Two ground ball outs later, both runs had scored to make the score 3-zip, Solons.

The Buzzards matched the two runs in the bottom of third dig to tighten the score. Leading off was team newcomer, Fred 'Freddie' O'Donoghue. Freddie, while coaching his own Pony Leaguer, has not played ball since late last season with the Buzzards. On the first pitch, Freddie - making it look easy sent a flare into left-field for a single. Running at first base for the catcher, Freddie, was Barry 'Brooklyn' Forman. Brooklyn must have looked fast because the pitcher paid too much attention to him and threw a pick-off, down the line and deep into foul territory, allowing Barry to hustle to third base. At bat, Kevin 'Flash' Krantz then hit a slow roller to the third baseman. The fielder, Todd, threw home for a close play, but the throw was high and late as Brooklyn scored. On the play, Flash took first base, then immediately stole second before Taylor 'Welzy' Welz drove a 1-0 pitch into left-center-field for a single to score Flash. The score after three digs was 3-2, Solons.

In the fourth frame, the Solons got three hits, but no runs due to superb Buzzard defense in the top half of the inning. The Ol' Buzzards then batted 14 times in their half of the fourth to take the lead. With one out, Tom 'Tomahawk' Keatley started the rally with a bloop infield single that landed between the pitcher and first baseman. Hustle pays off as Tomahawk easily beat the play. Tomahawk then stole second base while Jim 'Milli' Milligan was at the plate. Milli hit a chopper in the hole between third and short. The third baseman fielded the ball and looked to throw back at second base to get Tomahawk, however, there was no play there and the third baseman had to eat the ball with everyone safe. Running at first base for Milli was Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray.

Up next, Brooklyn took a six-pitch walk to load the bases. Stepping up to the plate with one down and the bases juiced was the new guy, Freddie. Danny's dad took one pitch, this time, before lining a single into left-center-field with Tomahawk heading home with the tying run. Flash followed with a sharp single to left that scored the Baron with the lead run and left the bases full. Batting next, Welzy walked on five pitches to push in Brooklyn for a run. Then, Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir forced in the fourth run on a full-count walk. Dave 'Evy' Everingham then hit a sacrifice fly to left-field to easily score Flash from third. The score after four was a more comfortable 7-3, Buzzards.

The Gold Country gang dug up two more runs in the sixth inning to extend the lead. Red hot Freddie led-off the inning by banging a 2-0 pitch on a line into left-field for his third hit of the game. Flash then hit a screaming rising liner to left-field. The fielder, Bruce, jumped up and got some leather on the hot potato, but it tipped off of his glove putting Buzzards at second and third with no outs. Batting next, Mike 'Mickey' Wilson hit a sac fly to left-field to drive in Freddie. Surf Dawg then knocked in Flash with an infield ground-out to make the score 9-3 after six full innings of play.

The Solons scored a run in the top of the seventh on a walk and two base hits for a 9-4 score. The Buzzies added two more runs in the last half of the seventh inning to put the game out of reach with the limited time remaining.

After one out, Evy, an old Sac City player in the batter's box, was facing an older Sac City player on the mound in lefty Tom 'Not Fazed' DeFazio #31. On a 3-1 pitch, Evy got a low outside pitch and smashed it up the middle. The ball nailed DeFazio on the left knee and ricocheted on a line quickly into the fence by the third base dugout. Tom went down in a crumple as everyone rushed to the mound. Evy took first while looking over his shoulder. Amazingly, the ball hit Tom's padded knee,(from the batter's perspective) just to the left of the center of his left knee and missing the knee cap, as the ball literally took a left turn off of his knee before slamming into the fence. The force of the ball was a little scary, but DeFazio was not fazed after the incident and the game resumed after a few warm-up throws.

Batting next, Mark 'Thunder' Weathers smashed a high chopper past the second baseman for a nice single. With runners at the corners and two outs, Tomahawk, working on his chip shot all day while the British Open was on TV, bagged another one with a looper into right-field. This time it drove in Evy with the 10th run. Batting next, Milli timed the first pitch perfectly and sent the ball deep into the left-center-field gap for a double that scored Thunder. The Buzzards led 11-4 going into the eighth frame with about 15 minutes left in the game.

The Salons did score one unearned run after a hit and a walk, but the game ended before the Buzzards got a chance to bat again. The final score of the three-hour and five-minute, eight inning game was Buzzards 11 - Solons 5.

The Buzzard pitching was excellent. Surf Dawg got the win and went the first four innings while facing 21 Solons in throwing 67 pitches (41 strikes & 26 balls). Gregg gave up three runs (two earned) on seven hits with three walks and one strike-out. Everingham pitched the next three innings and faced 15 batters while throwing 48 pitches (32 strikes & 16 balls). Evy gave up one run on three hits with two walks and four impressive strike 'em outs. Welzy was the game's closer by finishing off the Solons in the eighth. Taylor threw 23 pitches (15 strikes & 8 balls) to six batters while giving up one unearned run on one hit and one walk with two strike-outs for the inning.

The Buzzard offense, once it got on track in the third, scored in three of the last four innings. The 11 runs were scored on 14 hits, five walks and two Solon errors. The hit club for the game included: Evy-2, Flash-2, Freddie-3, Milli-2, Tomahawk-3, Thunder, and Welzy. The ribbies were a team sport with nine different Buzzards knocking in runs: Evy, Flash-2, Freddie, Mickey, Milli, Surf Dawg, Tomahawk, Welzy-2, and Wookie. The always important runs were scored by: Brooklyn, Evy, Flash-3, Freddie-3, Milli, Thunder, and Tomahawk. Milli banged out the only extra base hit, a run-scoring double in the seventh. The five free passes to first base were issued to the eagle-eyed Buzzards: Baron, Brooklyn, Welzy-2, and Wook.

The defense was solid and made some sparkling plays to get big outs. There was only one double play in the game, and surprisingly it was the first two outs of the game. After the top two Solons got on base to start the game, DeFazio hit a hard grounder to Thunder's right at first base. Mark smoothly came up with the ball and fired to Evy covering second base. Evy returned the throw to first base to Thunder to complete a sweet double play and put a big damper on the Solon's first inning rally.

Of the 24 outs there were seven strike-outs and just two fly ball outs. Both fly-outs occurred in the second inning. Flash in center-field caught the first one by racing a long way before watching the ball settle into his glove for the second out. The third out of that inning was a routine fly ball to Tomahawk in right-field.

There were also three evil infield pop-ups that were adeptly handled for outs. Wookie got the first one at second base to end the fifth frame. In the seventh inning, Welzy caught the pop-up for out number two at shortstop, while Thunder followed by catching the third high pop-up near first base to end the inning.

There were 11 ground outs to keep the infield busy. Weathers had 10 put-outs at first with one assist on the double play ball. Welzy had three put-outs and three assists playing second and shortstop. Evy played short for five innings and had 1 put-out and four assists. Wookie had one put-out at second and one assist playing third base. The Baron and Surf Dawg also held down third base during the game. Freddie caught the first five frames and had two put-outs and one assist behind the plate. Not bad for the new guy. Milli caught the last three digs and ended up with five put-outs via the strike-outs.

The defensive play of the game, though, occurred in the middle of the fourth. After the Solons scored one run in the second and two in the third inning, they had one on and one out in the fourth with Gilberto coming to bat. Gil smashed a liner into center-field for a base hit, however, Flash charged hard and scooped up the ball and threw to second base to just nail the hard sliding runner.

The runner, retired attorney Max Luger, came over the bag on the break-it-up slide and spiked the covering Welzy in the ankle. That out was followed by a base hit, so the hustle play definitely saved vital runs at that time.

This was another good game played by the Gold Country Buzzards. There was no panic in the dugout when the Solons were looking strong and putting runs on the board early in the game. The Buzzards handled the pressure well and got on track to win the game. It was a nice surprise for many Buzzards to see Freddie and we hope to see more of him. Three for three with three runs and a RBI is a good first day back on the ball field.

The season is now officially 2/3rds over with six more regular season games and one playoff match. Thanks to Norm 'Coach' Tucker for keeping score while his throwing shoulder heals from surgery.

The next game is against the Colt .45s at 10 am at Playfields Park in Davis.

Buzzard Note #1: The all-star game was fun, but the good guys lost 12-11. The reps for the Buzzards on July 14 were: Mike threw five innings; Rick caught half the game then pitched an inning; Barry, Kevin and Tom played the outfield while Dan managed.

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