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Gold Country Ol’ Buzzards Game Report #9
June 7, 2009
Buzzards Pound Timber Wolves, 14-4
On a beautiful Sunday morning in Colfax the Timber Wolves ventured into the Buzzards’ lair for a game against the National Division leading Gold Country team. The game is a mismatch on paper with the 8-1 Buzzards taking on the first year 0-8 Timber Wolves. The Buzzards were hoping to feast on the T-Wolves, but they put up a good fight and held the Buzzards to scoring in only two innings, but it was enough for 14 runs in the seven inning game.
The pitching match-ups for the game were Barry “Lefty” Markham #3 for the T-Wolves and southpaw Dave “Keppy” Kephart #21 throwing for the Ol’ Buzzards. Keppy looked sharp again in going four innings. Ray “Bull Dog” Henry #7 pitched for the second time this season and threw a solid final three innings to secure the win.
The Buzzards started it off right away in the bottom of the first inning when Taylor “Welzy” Welz hit a two-strike double into right-center field. Dan “Wookie” Wukmir walked before Jim “Milli” Milligan hit a chopper past the pitcher for an infield single. With bases loaded Mark “Ronnie” Wronski hit a looper toward right field that was caught on a good play by the second baseman. The fielder then wheeled around and threw to the shortstop covering the bag to try and get a sliding Wookie getting back to the base. Wookie beat the throw and watched as the ball bounced away from the shortstop allowing Welzy to score from third base. Keppy then drove a two-strike double deep to left-center field scoring two runs. Mike “Bake” Baker followed with a run scoring, line drive double to deep center field, that the fielder made a good play just to get a glove on the ball. The Buzzards scored four to open the game.
In the second inning, the Timber Wolves got the first two runners on base – first and third. The next T-Wolf then hit a high looper into left field that Wookie at shortstop got a good jump on, and then ran with his back to the infield to make an outstanding over-the-shoulder catch with his glove and arm stretched out to snag the ball. Nice play and the runners held. Barry “Historian” Forman called it Wookie’s best catch ever. Keppy then struck-out the next two batters to end the inning and hold the T-Wolves to no runs.
The Timber Wolves scored twice in the third inning to tighten up the game. The T-Wolves were threatening a bigger inning with three singles and a throwing error resulting in two runs with two runners on and one out. The next batter, their all-star pitcher and good hitter, Barry Markham, then hit a liner toward the middle with the runners going that Wookie caught and then ran over to step on second base for an easy looking, inning ending double play. The score was 4-2 Buzzards going into the bottom of the third.
The Buzzards only scored in two innings during this game, but they did score 10 runs in the third to take a big lead. The inning started with a walk to Wookie. With one out and Wookie at second, Milli singled up the middle scoring the run. Ronnie got on via an infield error moving Woody, running for the catcher, Milli, to second base. Keppy followed with a flare down the left field line scoring two runs. The next batter, Bake, hit a shot over the center fielder’s head for a nice double scoring another run. Charles “CJ” Jackson returning from the Disabled List then hit a double to the fence in left field scoring Bake. With two outs Jim “Wags” Wagner beat out a grounder to third, putting two Buzzards on. Gregg “Surf Dawg” Novotny hit a 3-1 pitch on a line to left field to score run number six. Bull Dog next popped one up near first base that the first baseman misplayed putting two runners on and scoring a hustling Wags on the play. Barry “Buzzman” Forman hit a line drive to right field scoring Surf Dawg. Welzy followed with an infield hit loading the bases. Wookie then laced a liner to right scoring two more for a ten run inning. There were 15 at-bats in the inning resulting in the biggest Buzzard inning ever. Wow.
The Timber Wolves did not give up and they put runners on base in every inning except the first. The fourth, Keppy’s last inning, went quickly after a lead-off single and strike out. The next batter hit a sharp grounder to Welzy playing shortstop, that turned into a nice looking 6-4-3 double play, Welzy to Surf Dawg to Bake. Surf Dawg added special sound effects as he turned the play at second and grunted loudly from the pain in his throwing elbow as he released the ball toward first base. Tennis elbow!? After four innings Keppy turned the game over to Bull Dog. Dave faced 17 Timber Wolves giving up five hits and two runs (one earned), while walking none and striking out six. He threw 54 pitches, 41 for strikes and 13 balls.
Bull Dog Henry entered the game in the fifth inning. Southpaw Ray gave up two runs in the sixth, but shut down the T-Wolves in the fifth and seventh innings. Ray faced 14 Wolves in giving up two runs on three hits with a walk and strike-out. Bull Dog threw 60 pitches, 30 strikes and 30 balls. Ray showed off his quick pick-off move several times, but no one wandered too far from first base. Good job by both pitchers.
The T-Wolves changed pitchers in the fifth inning with Bret Courtney #6 holding down the Buzzards to no runs. Then super old timer, Phil Stokes #17 – age 72, came in to pitch the last inning. Phil had the fans cheering for him, but he probably is too old really to be playing with these young guys in their 50’s. Anyway, Phil got Welzy to pop up to third, Wookie to strike out after knocking the crap out of several foul balls, and Woody’s liner to the shortstop to end the game. The Ol’ Buzzards beat up the Timber Puppies 14-4.
The Buzzards got 14 hits but only scored in two innings. The victory was nice, but the big 10 run inning was helped by several Timber Wolf throwing errors. We will need to do better against a tougher opponent. 11 Buzzards got hits with Welzy, Milli, Keppy and Bake getting two hits each today. The infield defense had three errors and the outfield had one dandy dropped ball in left-center field in the last inning. With Keppy playing center and calling for the high fly ball, Barry was also calling for the ball and drifting over from left field. The ball and the players all got to the same spot at the same time. Kephart and Forman collided and the ball dropped to the ground after hitting Kep’s glove. The play was scored an E-7 ‘cause Barry knows better than to be a ball hog near a center fielder. We may need to issue hearing aids to the old guys playing in the outfield.
A nice win on a gorgeous day on the baseball field is always good. Our next opponent will not be so easy. The team went to the nearby Colfax Ball Park after the game to celebrate the win and rehash the game.
Buzzard Note #1: Ray Henry will be hosting a team and family party at his house in Eden Valley, Colfax after the double-header this Sunday, June 14. Since we have a long day of baseball with the two games against the Free Agents, he will supply the food and drinks (appetizers, burgers, hot dogs, beer & soft drinks). Just bring your swim suit or shorts and sandals to relax and enjoy.
Buzzard Note #2: Jim Wagner will be hosting the next team and family pool party on June 28 at his new place in Auburn. Wags will be preparing his famous ribs and providing soft and hard drinks (beer & margaritas) after the game. We just need to bring some appetizers, side dishes and dessert. The plan is to bring something according to the following list: A – J bring an appetizer or chips + dip or salsa; K – V bring a salad or side dish; W’s bring dessert. There is flexibility, so if you have a specialty dish you want to bring instead, go for it, just let Wags know. Be careful with those Barry brownies. Wags or Wook will be checking to see who is planning to come. Thanks
Buzzard Note #3: All Star voting will be June 28 via ballots. The Buzzards are likely to get four or five spots on the team. The National vs. American Division All Star Game is scheduled for Wednesday evening, July 8.
Buzzard Note #4: The annual radio game is looking like July 26 against the Dragons in Auburn. KAHI 950 AM will broadcast the game live from James Field in Auburn. We will also try to get the Auburn Journal to come out and do a story with photos for the local newspaper. Last year worked out well with a nice article with photos in the paper and video on their web site. Our radio broadcast will follow the Oakland A’s at New York Yankees game on KAHI. Advertising time for your business, family or pleasure is available. We will need bios on every player for the radio announcer to use during the game. The game will be recorded by the radio station and available on CD afterwards. More info to come. David Kelley is our front man for this special event.
Buzzard Note #5: The Buzzards want to recognize that Woody is getting older in June. Congrats on making it to 52 on June 10th.
Buzzard Note #6: After this upcoming double-header against the Free Agents (6-3), the regular season is half over. There are 22 games in the 2009 NABA season.
Gold Country Ol’ Buzzards Game Report #8
May 31, 2009
Reds Zap Buzzards In Extra Innings, 10-7
The Reds came to the Buzzards’ home turf in Colfax on Sunday morning to take on the National Division leading and undefeated Gold Country team. After a 3½ hour 10 inning game, the Reds went down the hill with a determined win. The Buzzards had a nice early lead, 6-1, after five innings. Then watched it dwindle away as they stopped scoring runs to counteract the flurry of hits and runs by this good hittin’ Red machine.
The Ol’ Buzzards have not tasted defeat since June 8, 2008, that’s right, eight days short of a whole year. That’s a pretty good record, but it really doesn’t make it feel any better after seeing that game slip right through our fingers. Anyway, it was a well fought game that started with the Buzzards jumping on the Reds’ top pitcher and former Dragon, Danny Harvey #0, at the start of the game.
In the bottom of the first, Taylor “Welzy” Welz started it off with a flare to center field on the second pitch. He then stole second base on the next pitch. Dan “Wookie” Wukmir hit the next pitch to right field for a run scoring single. Good start, four pitches and one run already. Harvey then hit Bob “Woody” Wooden with a 2-1 fastball to put two runners on. With one out, Gary “Stoney” Stonebrook hit a line drive in the right center field gap scoring Wookie from second and moving Woody to third. Steve “Cookie” Cook running for the pitcher, Stoney, then got the coaching signal to draw a throw stealing second so Woody could score. Well, the Reds didn’t exactly cooperate on the play that scored Woody and they did get Cookie in a run down for the second out. Three runs scored is usually considered a good start, but it seemed like we let Harvey off the hook too easy. That was the last multi-run inning the Buzzards had today.
Starting on the mound for the Ol’ Buzzards was Dave “Keppy” Kephart. The ol’ southpaw was throwing well and holding down the Reds’ batters with good speed and control. The first Reds’ hit was leading off the fifth inning. Dave hasn’t pitched much this season and was scheduled to pitch only the first five innings. He looked sharp in holding the Reds to one run on three hits with one walk, six strikeouts and one wild pitch. Keppy threw 65 pitches to 18 batters, 42 for strikes & 23 balls.
The Buzzards scored one run in the second inning to take a 4-0 lead. Mark “Ronnie” Wronski led off the inning with a nice stroke to left field on the second pitch after an awkward looking swing on the first pitch. Two outs later Cookie delivered with a sharp single to right field. Welzy batting next drove in Ronnie when he pulled a 3-1 pitch down the line in left.
The Buzzards scored next in the fourth. Keppy started the inning with a single to right-center field. Woody running for the pitcher, then stole second base and advanced to third when the throw got away from the covering second baseman. Ronnie followed with a liner to left scoring Woody. The score after four was 5-0 Buzzards.
The Reds scored a run in the top of the fifth with two singles, a walk and a fielder’s choice ground ball to second with the runner scoring from third base. In the bottom half of the inning the Buzzards scored again. Pete “Baron” Von Zboray started it off with a single to right field. After a fielder’s choice, Welzy stole second base before Wookie walked on four pitches. Wookie, with a big lead at first base, drew a throw from the pitcher. Welzy alertly took off for third base on the throw. The throw from the first baseman to third was a little wide and the third baseman went down trying to catch it, allowing Taylor to score run number six and Wookie moving to second. Woody followed with a full count walk, but the next two batters flew out, ending another promising inning. The Buzzards scored six runs in the first five innings and would score only once more in the next five innings. Ouch!
The Reds changed pitchers in the sixth and Mike “Lefty” Rippenkroeger #20 took the mound and gave up no hits in his one inning. Robert “Ponytail” Stormont #30 pitched the remaining four innings of the game very effectively for the Reds. Sidewinder Ponytail Rob gave up only one run on six hits with four strikeouts and no walks. The Buzzards had 15 hits and threatened in nearly every inning, but those crafty pitchers clipped our wings with key outs like the double play in the seventh.
Stoney came in to pitch in the sixth inning. The Reds scored one unearned run in the bottom of the inning on an infield error, a walk and a single. The seventh inning went 1-2-3. The eighth inning started with the first two Reds hitting shots to left field giving Barry “Brooklyn” Forman fits. Good hustle and a couple of sliding stops of all four hits in the inning kept Brooklyn busy and put a big grass stain on his gray baseball pants. The Reds hit the ball well and sent eight batters to the plate and scored three runs to make the score 6-5.
The Buzzards bounced back and scored one in the bottom half of the inning. With one out Woody smacked a double to left and then stole third base before Stoney got a nice two-out hit to center field for a two run lead. We still liked our chances at this point - to hold the bottom of their batting order and go for early beers.
The Reds’ line-up had 14 batters. The ninth inning started with the ninth batter. One infield error and three hits later with seven batters going to the plate, the game is now tied going into the bottom of the ninth. That inning started promisingly when Ronnie hit the ninth pitch of his at-bat to deep left-center field that looked to be a gapper. Running a very long way, the center fielder, Mike Rippenkroeger #20, dove and made an amazing catch, only a lefty could make from that angle, to snatch the ball a couple of inches from hitting the ground. Another ouch! But a terrific play. Next, Jim “Wags” Wagner hustled his way on base with a grounder to third. Gregg “Surf Dawg” Novotny hit a flare for a single to right field to put two runners on. Cookie followed by fouling off five pitches before striking out on a nasty pitch from Ponytail. The inning ended with Pete at the plate, when a good pick-off move by the long, gray, but surprisingly quick Ponytail, nailed Wags diving back to second base. After nine innings the score was 7-7. With just a couple of minutes at most to spare in the three hour time limit, we went to extra innings.
The 10th inning started with a fabulous catch in right field by the Baron on a deep drive with a wicked hook. The next two batters got on base with goofy hits. The first one hit Stoney off his back foot on a sharp grounder up the middle that then ricocheted in another direction toward right field. The next one barely made it to right field, but two runners were now on base. After a fielder’s choice and error on the same play that scored a run, the Reds’ catcher, Gilbert Banueios #35, with his Pittsburgh Pirates batting helmet, hit one over Brooklyn’s head in deep left field for a two run double and a three run lead.
With the Buzzards needing to score three runs, the Baron started it off with a line drive to left field. After an out, Wookie hit a liner to right field after fouling off several pitches during the eight pitch at-bat. However, the Buzzards stranded the runners when Ponytail Stormont got the next two batters without any runs scoring. Ouch and bummer. Game over, the Reds 10 and the Buzzards 7. The Reds are giddy and the Buzzards feel like poo-poo.
It was a great run to be undefeated for nearly a year and you know we will be facing everyone’s A Team with added adrenalin now as we go through the rest of the season. Bring it on! The Buzzards learned some lessons today and one was to keep the foot on the accelerator for the whole game against tough opponents. Still, the Ol’ Buzzards lead the National Division by three games with a 7-1 record. We will see these Reds (7-1) again.
The Buzzard offense was lively with 15 hits, but the hits were not strung together to score runs. There were nine Buzzards to get hits with six players in the multi hit group including Baron, Cookie, Ronnie, Stoney, Welzy and Wookie. There was only one extra base hit, Woody’s double in the eighth. There were runners in every inning except the third.
There were 10 Reds that struck-out, leaving 20 defensive outs for the team. There were three errors recorded, so only four of the 10 runs were earned. Stoney pitched 5 innings giving up 11 hits with one walk and one hit batsman and four strike outs. He faced 31 batters throwing 55 strikes and 27 balls. Four of the 20 outs were fly balls to the outfield – Woody in deep center in the seventh inning, Barry with a running catch in left and a better circus catch of his hat flying off to end the seventh inning, Welzy snagged one playing center in the ninth, and Baron’s terrific catch in deep right field in the tenth inning. The infield got plenty of opportunities with 17 ground balls and executing on 14 of them. Baron’s catch may have been the Play of the Day, but the sweet double play in the second with Wookie to Cookie to Bake is worth mentioning. Bake also scooped and jumped to catch some of the throws today to make the plays at first.
Buzzard Note #1: Wags will be hosting the first team party of the season at his new place in Auburn on June 28th. The date was changed due to the Dad’s Day conflict on the 21st. After the home game against the Patriots, the Buzzards and their families are invited to gather for a BBQ and swim party. Jim wants to show-off his excellent BBQ ribs that will go along with the side dishes and drinks we bring. More info to come, but mark your calendars.
Buzzard Note #2: The team web site is www.eteamz.com/gcbuzzards/index.cfm
Buzzard Note #3: Next game is Sunday at Colfax High, 10 am against the Timber Wolves.
Gold Country Ol’ Buzzards Game Report #6
May 17, 2009
Buzzards Battle Dragons To Tough Victory, 6 to 5
The Gold Country Buzzards faced a tough Dragon team on their home turf at Lembi Field in Folsom on the first 100+ degree day for 2009. The Ol’ Buzzards built a shady dugout and gathered icy drinks for the two game battle with the green clad Dragons. The Dragons were 4-1 and looking to knock the Buzzards off this season’s five game winning streak. The starting pitchers for the crucial first game were Steve “Sidewinder” Shaw #19 for the Dragons and Gary “Stoney” Stonebrook #13 for the Buzzards.
The Buzzards opened the game by scoring in the first inning starting with a two-out walk to Bob “Woody” Wooden. After Woody stole second base, Jim “Milli” Milligan, the official Buzzard RBI machine, hit a solid single to center field scoring Woody.
The Dragons fought back and scored three runs in the bottom half of the inning to take an early 3-1 lead. After two quick outs, the dreaded and contagious baseball affliction of ‘slippery hands’ hit the Buzzards. The third Dragon batter Mark “Weatherman” Weathers #47, singled to right center field and then advanced to third base on a ‘slippery hands’ pick-off throw from Stoney to first that rolled down the fence line. The clean-up batter then struck out on a ball that was blocked by the catcher Milli and rolled out in front of home plate. It looked to be an easy throw to first to end the inning, but the runner was in the way of an easy throw forcing Milli to lob it over the runner’s head. Well, old ‘slippery hands’ helped the ball pop out of Milli’s hand as he was throwing and the ball went backwards – which is actually hard to do. With the reprieve the next two Dragons got base hits to score the three unearned runs. The ‘slippery hands’ affliction caused all four throwing errors during this game.
Ol’ Sidewinder Shaw was sharp for the Dragons and held the Buzzards to four hits in the next five innings. The Buzzards scored another run in the fourth inning on a one-out base hit by Ray “Bull Dog” Henry. Steve “Cookie” Cook got the bunt signal from coach Gregg “Surf Dawg” Novotny and proceeded to lay down a nice sacrifice bunt putting Bull Dog at second base. Pete “Baron” Von Zboray came through in the clutch with a two-out single to score a racing Bull Dog for a key run making the score 3-2 Dragons.
The Dragons increased their lead in the bottom of the sixth with two runs. That inning started with three consecutive deep doubles over the heads of the outfielders. With hustle and strong throws by Barry “Brooklyn” Forman in left field and Taylor “Welzy” Welz in center, they prevented the runners from advancing to third on the hits. One reminder though – quit showing off your arms and hit the cut-off man. The next Dragon benefited from a ‘slippery hands’ throw from third and now there were two runners on with no outs and two runs had scored. With a big inning brewing for the Dragons, Stoney shut down the next two batters on six wicked pitches for two strike outs. The next batter walked after fouling off four pitches to load the bases. Stoney got the next batter on a swinging strike with a full count to end the inning. Gary struck out 14 batters today, but none bigger than that one. The Buzzards dodged a big Dragon inning, but were now behind 5-2 going into the seventh inning.
Time was now also a factor and it appeared we were only going to play eight innings in the allotted three hours. The pressure to break through and score more runs was now set at maximum. With one out in the seventh, Charles “CJ” Jackson battled long and hard with Sidewinder Steve which resulted in a walk. CJ advanced to third after a pick-off throw by the Dragon all-star catcher, Mark Parsons #32, went down the right field line. As CJ was turning on the jets and about to round second base, he pulled a thigh muscle and then gimped into third. CJ being the tough Ol’ Buzzard stayed in the game for now. With two outs Dan “Wookie” Wukmir struck out on a curve ball that also fooled the catcher and the ball rolled to the back stop. Wookie hustling down to first base beat the throw allowing CJ to score. Woody then hit a line drive double that hit the third base bag but did not roll far enough away to score a run. With two runners in scoring position, Mighty Milli came to bat. Jim came through ‘big time’ with a single to left-center field scoring both runners and tying the game at 5-5.
Entering the bottom of the seventh inning, Stoney had already thrown 114 pitches and it felt like 114 degrees, even though it was only 100 at this point in the day. Gary took control of the inning by striking out the first batter and getting the next two Dragons to hit pop-ups back to him.
In the eighth inning and final inning and with one out, pinch-hitter Buzzman Barry laced a hard single to right field. The Dragons then changed pitchers and brought in lefty Mark Weathers #47 to face The Baron. Pete hit a looper off his fists to right field putting two runners on. Mark ‘Ronnie” Wronski battled the Weatherman and walked on a full count to load the bases. CJ, with one bad wheel, hit the second pitch just deep enough to left field for a sacrifice fly scoring a hustling Forman from third base for a 6-5 lead.
With time running out the Dragons had one more chance to take this game. The first batter, Weathers, who had gotten on base all three previous times, hit a screaming line drive to right field that was still gaining altitude when Jim “Wags” Wagner, playing out of position for the injured CJ, ran over reached up and snagged the ball in the tip of his glove, saving at least a double. The next Dragon singled to right-center. To make it more exciting, Stoney then hit the next batter on a ‘slippery hands’ pitch that got away. Gary shouted “look out” to Mark Parsons as the pitch left his hand, but it was too late as the fastball nailed #32 in the arm. With two runners on, Stoney was able to use that rubber arm of his and strike out the next two Dragon batters to end the game. Wow, what a close and exciting game punctuated with a final strike out. In a gutsy performance by Stoney, the Buzzards had prevailed against the Dragons 6-5.
Gary threw 143 pitches in the Lembi Field oven, 86 for strikes and 47 balls. He faced 37 Dragons, striking out a season high 14 (8 swinging & 6 looking) with 8 hits, 1 walk and 1 hit batter in giving up 2 earned runs. A fine pitching performance and just what the Buzzards needed for this hard fought victory. Great job, Stoney.
The Buzzard’s hittin’ sticks did not work too well against the crafty Dragon pitching. Nine Buzzards got hits with only two getting multiple hits, Milli and the Baron. Getting key ribbies today were Milli with three, and Baron and CJ with one each. CJ’s game winning RBI was huge, but it also ended his day when he tweaked his injured thigh on the swing.
The Buzzard defense battled the feisty Dragons and the ‘slippery hands’ affliction all day. Stoney pretty much controlled this game and he was responsible for 13 outs via strike out, two ground outs (1-3) and three pop-ups back at him. There were two fly ball outs to the outfield, Welzy in the fourth inning and Wags’ outstanding catch in the eighth. The other four outs were a 6-4 (Wookie to Cookie) to end the first, a double play soft line drive to Wookie at short with the runner going and the throw to Woody at first base to complete the double play, and a pop-up to Wookie to end the fourth inning.
The come from behind victory showed Buzzard determination in the face of a good Dragon team in the heat that felt like we were playing fire breathing Dragons. The next game against these same Dragons starts in 45 minutes.
Gold Country Ol’ Buzzards Game Report #7
May 17, 2009
Buzzards Tame Dragons In The Heat, Win 12-6
The Gold Country Buzzards with 45 minutes to eat, cool down and rest were now ready for round two in the Lembi Field oven. The Dragons were the visiting team for the second game of the double header in Folsom. Pitching for the Buzzards was Bob “Woody” Wooden #22 and starting for the Dragons was Rick “Big Arms” Biegacki #46.
The determined Dragons opened the game by hitting the ball hard and scoring twice. The Ol’ Buzzards bounced back with one run in their half of the first inning. Taylor “Welzy” Welz started it off with a sharp liner to center field. Welzy stole second base and advanced to third when the throw got past the covering shortstop. Woody knocked in the run on a sacrifice fly to the center fielder.
In the second inning Mark “Ronnie” Wronski singled up the middle with two outs. After Jim “Wags” Wagner walked, Barry “Brooklyn” Forman hit a rocket shot to center that the fielder was able to get a glove on but not hold on as two runs scored for a 3-2 Buzzard lead. The Buzzards built on their lead in the third by scoring two more runs with hits by Welzy, Dan “Wookie” Wukmir, a walk to Woody plus two throwing errors by the catcher trying to nail Wookie and then Woody stealing second base.
Even though Woody was pitching well – striking out five consecutive Dragons at one point – the Dragons were not going to go down easy. In the top of the fourth inning, the Dragons showed their teeth and stormed back into the game by scoring four runs and taking back the lead 6-5 with eight batters coming to the plate.
The Buzzards tied the game after scoring one run in their half of the fourth. With one out Ray “Bull Dog” Henry singled to left. Ronnie followed with a smash through the left side of the infield for his second hit of the game. With two outs, Brooklyn went opposite field with a double down the left field line scoring Bull Dog from second. Ronnie coming from first base got the coaching signal to round third and score, but he was thrown out at home by a series of good relay throws. However, the score was now 6-6 after four innings.
Because the second game of a NABA double header only goes seven innings, it was now really a three inning game to determine the winner. Woody by now had thrown 88 pitches in the sweltering heat with no breeze in sight and the heat was taking its toll on the teams. A wobbly Wookie came out at shortstop replaced by Welzy in the fifth and the DH, Brooklyn, took Taylor’s place in center field. With CJ out due to the injury in the first game, Milli hung in there and caught both games but lost ten pounds of water weight in the process. The Buzzards were short handed forcing Steve “Cookie” Cook and Ronnie to play all of both games in the infield, plus iron men Stoney and Woody played two complete games, one pitching and the other at first base. Good job by those tough ol’ birds.
Going into the fifth inning it was imperative for the Buzzards to tame the Dragons and then score some more. After a 1-2-3 top of the fifth, the Buzzards had their own big inning with nine batters and scoring four of them. Cookie started it off with a walk, but was thrown out stealing second base on a close play. The persistent Buzzards then rattled off six consecutive singles by Baron, Welzy, Wookie, Woody, Milli and Stoney for a 10-6 lead with two innings to go. Ribbies were knocked in by Wookie, Woody and two by our RBI machine, Milli. After Stoney’s hit the Dragons changed pitchers and brought in Mark Parsons #32, who got the next two outs to end the inning, but the damage had been done.
The Dragons did not go down easy with hits in each of the last two innings, but excellent pitching and good defense held them to zero runs. The Buzzards scored two more runs in the sixth to score in every inning of the game. Wags started the inning with a full count walk. Brooklyn followed with a rope to right field sending Wags to third, but Barry got nailed trying to advance to second on the throw to third base. A good play and throw by their third baseman got a sliding Forman at second. The Baron then walked putting two runners on base. Welzy followed with a blast into the left-center field gap driving in both runners with a double to end the scoring at 12-6.
Woody pitched a terrific game during the hottest part of the day. The high on Sunday was 103 degrees. Bob looked sharp in facing 31 Dragons and throwing 109 pitches (73 strikes & 36 balls) in giving up three earned runs on seven hits and two walks with eight strikeouts.
The Buzzard offense came through with 15 productive hits in scoring 12 runs. The multi hit group included Wookie, Ronnie and Brooklyn with two hits each and Welzy with an awesome four hit game. Knocking in the runs were Welzy, Wookie, Woody, Milli and Brooklyn.
The defense did not wilt in the heat. With eight strikeouts (5 swinging & 3 looking) there were 13 outs by the fielders. Only one fly ball out was recorded in the game (Baron with a nice running catch in right field in the sixth), Woody fielded a pop-up in the first and a come-backer in the fourth, six outs by the shortstop (3 each for Wookie and Welzy), two hot shots at Ronnie playing third base, one bouncer to Stoney at first and a high pop-up to Cookie at second to end the game and a long day on the baseball field.
The hot and tired Ol’ Buzzards came from behind in both games today. With the hard earned victories, the Gold Country Ol’ Buzzards are 7-0 and a nice start to the 2009 season.
Buzzard Note #1: No games this Memorial Day weekend. See ya on May 31. The schedule shows a home game against the Reds.
Buzzard Note #2: Wags will host a team and family party at his new place in Auburn on June 21 after the game. BBQ ribs, cool drinks and swimming are on the Buzzard menu. More info to come.
Buzzard Note #3: The annual radio game is looking like July 26 against the Dragons in Auburn. KAHI will broadcast the game live from Lee Field. Advertising time is available for your business or pleasure. More info to come.
Buzzard Note #4: Mighty Milli continues to knock in key runs and now has 16 ribbies in the seven games. The other team leaders in stats so far are: Woody-14 runs, Wookie-11 singles, Milli-7 doubles, Woody-6 walks, Welzy-9 steals, Ronnie-.500 batting average (10 for 20), Milli-.714 slugging percentage, and Ronnie-.524 on base percentage. Complete stats are available on the Buzzards’ web site.
Buzzard Note #5: During the month of May, we witnessed one Buzzard get older. Congrats to David “mMumbles” Kelley for turning 52. Now only 20 more years to go at PG&E.
Gold Country Buzzards Game Report #5
April 26, 2009
Buzzards Pound T-Wolves 16 – 0
It was an ideal Sunday afternoon to be playing baseball. The temperature was in the mid-70’s and the Antelope High School JV field was in excellent shape and ready to host a game between the visiting Gold Country Ol’ Buzzards and the newest team in the league, the Timber Wolves. The winless T-Wolves record indicated they were easy prey for the Buzzards. However, the T-Wolves were sending an all-star pitcher, the crafty veteran southpaw, Barry Markman #3, to the mound to face Bob “Woody” Wooden # 22 throwing for the Buzzards and starting his first game of the season.
The Buzzards started strong and put seven runs on the board in the top of the first inning. Taylor “Welzy” Welz started it off with a double to left. Dan “Wookie” Wukmir bounced one to the left side that the third baseman bobbled putting runners at first and third. Woody singled to left driving in Welzy for the first run. Jim “Milli” Milligan hit a high fly into the sun in left field that dropped scoring Wookie. Dave “Keppy” Kephart got on base next with an infield throwing error that also scored Woody. Gary “Stoney” Stonebrook followed with a double to right field scoring the fourth run. The next two batters, Ray “Bull Dog” Henry and Mark “Ronnie” Wronski, got on base via infield errors with Keppy and Stoney scoring. With one out Charles “CJ” Jackson loaded the bases on a ground ball bobbled by the shortstop. With two outs Wookie fouling off several pitches, walked on eight pitches to force in the seventh run of the first inning. There were 13 batters in the first inning, already messing up the score keeper’s book.
With the good offensive start, the Buzzards then proceeded to shut down the Timber Wolves. Woody pitched five solid innings of shutout baseball before making way for Keppy and Bull Dog in the sixth and seventh innings to finish off the T-Wolves. Woody faced 17 batters, striking out two in looking sharp and not giving up a hit until the fifth inning. Woody threw 63 pitches (43 strikes & 20 balls) in five shutout innings giving up two hits with no walks and one hit batsman – by the way, the biggest guy on the other team, who expressed his displeasure when it happened in the first inning.
The Buzzards scored once more in the third inning, but the T-Wolves pitcher, Barry Markman, did a good job of keeping the Buzzard batters off balance through the fifth inning, once he got some defense from his infield. Ronnie started the third by hitting a high fly ball to right field that was lost in the sun by the fielder for a two base error. It appeared he would score easy when Pete “Baron” Von Zboray hit a screamer deep in the left-center field gap, but the center fielder ran it down and made a nice catch for an out. With two outs, Barry “Brooklyn” Forman hit a first pitch line drive to center scoring Ronnie. The Buzzards had the bases loaded in the fourth before Bull Dog hit a shot up the middle that knocked the pitcher down, but Markman recovered to glove the ball and make the throw to first to end the inning.
The Buzzards feasted on T-Wolf pitching in the sixth for five more runs. Brett Courtney #6 started the inning by walking Wookie on five pitches. Milli hit a 2-0 pitch to deep left-center for a double. Keppy singled to left scoring Wookie from third. Bull Dog walked with two outs loading the bases for Ronnie. On the first pitch, Mark hit a double to the left-center field gap clearing the bases and knocking in three runs. After changing pitchers to lefty Phil Stokes #17, the oldest pitcher in the league at 72 years old, the Baron slammed a double to left scoring Ronnie from second for the fifth run of the inning.
In the seventh and last inning of the game, The Buzzards showed no mercy by scoring three more on two pitchers. Ol’ timer Phil started the inning on the mound. Welzy got on after the third baseman threw wildly to first. Wookie hit a line drive to right field to put two runners on. Milli then doubled to left scoring Welz. Keppy followed with a single to right scoring Wookie from third. Bull Dog knocked in the last run with a two out hit to center field for a 16-0 lead.
Keppy pitched the sixth inning and struck-out the side. The third batter hit an opposite field double to right field, but the other three batters struck out for a quick inning. Keppy threw 18 pitches, 12 for strikes and 6 balls, in one inning of play. Bull Dog pitched the final inning for his first of the season for the Buzzards. Ray faced four Timber Wolves in striking out two and walking one while throwing 15 pitches (8 strikes & 7 balls). Bull Dog got the last batter to strike out swinging to have a nice ending to the game.
The pitching was dominant against the T-Wolves. Woody gave a solid five innings with Keppy and Bull Dog making it look easy in this shut out. The defense looked good in making all the plays today. Of the 21 outs, 7 were strike outs leaving only 14 for the defense. There were five infield pop ups, two to Welzy playing shortstop, two to Ronnie playing third and one to Keppy at first base. There was only one fly ball out in the game. It was to end the first inning on a long fly ball to Brooklyn patrolling left field. The six ground ball outs were handled smoothly. Welzy at short had one 6-3 to start the second inning, Ronnie at third had three chances and made them all. Mark had some action in three consecutive innings (2, 3 & 4) with two 5-3’s and one unassisted out at the third base bag. There was only one double play in the game. In the fifth inning with two runners on, Wookie snagged a liner at second base followed by a quick throw to first to nail the runner to end the scoring threat and the inning.
The Buzzards scored 16 runs on 18 hits with four walks and two strike outs. Several Ol’ Buzzards got multiple hits today: Keppy, Ronnie, Stoney and Wookie got two hits, while Milli got three. Ronnie also knocked in three ribbies today. Doubles were hit by Milli (2), Baron, Ronnie, Stoney and Welzy. Excellent job today by the Buzzards.
Buzzard Note #1: It appears the rain will postpone the next game against the undefeated Valley Cats. The forecast for Sunday is more rain. Next week is Mother’s Day, so no games will be played until May 17th.
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