Gold Country Buzzards

Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #7

Game: June 8, 2014

Buzzards late comeback falls short, drop one to Dodgers, 9-7

It was a very hot Sunday afternoon in Citrus Heights as the Buzzards gathered at C-Bar-C Park to play the Dodgers. At game time it was near 103° with a warm north wind blowing out to left field. The wind made the day more tolerable as it felt cool on the sweat running down the face and arms. The 42+ Dodgers, playing an interleague game, came at full strength with 18 players in uniform including the manager, Vince Miles (looking like a black Tommy Lasorda), and were ready near game time.

Meanwhile the nine 52+ Buzzards were searching the horizon for wayward Pirates. With no time to spare and two batting line-ups ready for the umps, three of the four Auburn Pirates made it from their morning game in Galt to start the 2 pm Buzzard game. Hardy Pirates are always good to know.

Starting on the hill for the visiting Buzzards was the crafty righty, Rick 'Salmo' Salmeri #6. The Dodgers sent a hard-throwing righty, Jim 'Hothead' Rivera #55 to the mound to open the game.

The Buzzards got off to a good start and scored two runs in the opening inning. Taylor 'Welzy' Welz led-off with a double down the left-field line. A ground-out moved Welzy to third. After a sharp line-out to the shortstop for the second out, Tom 'Tomahawk' Keatley came through with a run-scoring single to center-field on a 1-2 pitch that drove in Welzy. Jim 'Milli' Milligan followed with a line drive to right-center-field for a base hit, putting runners on the corners. Up next, Barry 'Crush' Forman took a full-count walk to load the bases with two outs. Batting next, Dave 'mMumbles' Kelley took a strike while the field umpire called a balk. The runners moved up and Tomahawk cruised across the plate, while the ump and pitcher 'went at it' for a short time until Hothead was tossed.

The Dodgers brought in their shortstop, another hard-throwing young right-hander, Will 'Smokey' Redick #24, to warm up, and then get the game going after the long delay. A couple of pitches later, mMumbles hit a solid liner to left that appeared to be a hit off of the bat, but the ball caught the wind and sailed a little and was tracked down by the left fielder rushing in for a huge third out - ouch.

The Dodgers fought right back and scored three runs to take an early lead. The leadoff batter walked on a full-count and was followed by a single, wild pitch, strike-out, run-scoring single, steal, sacrifice fly-out and single before a hot liner to third was snagged by Gregg' Surf Dawg' Novotny at his shoe-tops to end the inning with the Buzzards down 3-2 to Dodger Blue.

The game stayed at 3-2 until the bottom of the fourth frame when the Dodgers tacked on another run with a leadoff three-bagger followed by a sac fly for a 4-2 Dodgers' lead. On the deep drive into the left-center gap to open the inning, Barry was running hard from left-field when he felt a pop in the knee cap area and was then unable to run or walk on the left leg. Barry hobbled off of the field to the dugout and would sit out the rest of this game with ice on the knee.

With the wilting heat and with lots of pitches thrown by Salmo, the Buzzards changed pitchers in the fifth inning and brought in Surf Dawg #1 to face the free swinging, blue-jerseyed Dodgers.

The Fightin' Buzzards were hitting, but not scoring. The eight hits, two walks and one hit batsman in the first six innings, frustratingly ended-up with just two runs and eight stranded runners and one caught stealing, which was clearly and by rule 8.05(c) a balk move.

The bad call later resulted in a between innings discussion with the skipper and the umps. The home plate blue, Donna, listened, while the bumble-head in the infield, Rob, insisted the pitcher could free-wheel from the plate on the mound, if they were 'reacting to the runner'. Well, there is no 'reacting to the runner' clause that could be found in the rule book, and that poor knowledge of the balk rule was highlighted in the umpire evaluations.

In the bottom of the sixth, the pesky Dodgers scored three more runs on three hits, two walks, a throwing error, stolen base and the third Dodgers sacrifice fly-out of the game for a 7-2 lead.

With time running short for the three-hour game, the Dodgers took their time and added two more runs to the scoreboard in the seventh. A one-out walk, then a strike-out, followed by an almost caught foul ball, but then followed by two flare hits for the two runs and a 9-2 score.

When the Ol' Buzzards came to bat in the top of the eighth dig, time was nearly expired, so this was the last inning of the game. Down by seven, the Gold Country gang then began the comeback. With one out, Dave 'Evy' Everingham showed his signature inside-out swing and singled to right-center. Up next, Salmo, batting for the first time, hit the first pitch up-the-middle for a single. Welzy then singled sharply to right-center loading the bases with one out. Batting next, Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir hit a high looper into right-center-field for a run-scoring single, knocking in Evy and re-loading the bases.

Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray then smashed a 2-2 pitch down the left-field line scoring Salmo and Welzy to make the score 9-5 with two runners on and still one out. Tomahawk, batting next, hit an 0-1 pitch, flare for a single into right-field to re-load the bases again. Milli knocked in the next run with a wild fielder's choice groundball play. The hard grounder was headed to the hole between second and first base, when the speedy second baseman gloved the ball deep in the hole and then turned pirouette-style to threw to second, but just wide of the bag. The shortstop caught the throw, but missed the bag, and may have gotten an 'in the area' call in the major leagues on the play, but in the NABA second base must be touched. Milli beat the throw to first on the attempted double play with everyone safe and a run scored. Still with one out, Surf Dawg, batting for the injured Barry, sent a sharp line-drive to center for a single to drive in the fifth run and tighten the score some more at 9 to 7.

With runners at first and second and one out, mMumbles came to the plate. A wild pitch moved up the runners into scoring position to add extra excitement. However, with a 3-1 count the pitcher, Shane 'Slo Mo' Harrigan #38 and their clean-up hitter, turned and threw to third base and got the tag-out call on a close play from the out of position infield ump. The runner, Tomahawk, dove back head-first to the back corner of the bag and looked safe, but the call sucked. The inning ended soon there-after with the final score: the stinky Dodgers 9 and the Buzzards 7.

There were several points that cost the Buzzards and made it easier for the Dodgers. The Buzzards had three players picked-off to shorten those innings (3rd, 5th and 8th), and one easy double play on a line drive to second base to unfortunately double-up the moving on-the-pitch runner in the seventh. The six steals helped keep the Dodgers out of double plays, the Buzzards' specialty. And three sacrifice fly-outs put three valuable runs across the plate for the efficient Dodgers. The Buzzards did out-hit the Dodgers 15 to 13. A couple of catches of foul balls and some of those Dodger runs don't score, and a key hit or two by the Buzzards make this a different outcome, but on June 8th the Dodgers prevailed in the heat.

The pitching was solid against this good hitting Dodger team. They took quite a few pitches and fouled several off before connecting for lots of balls hit in the air. Salmeri pitched the first four frames and faced 21 Dodgers in throwing 85 pitches (54 strikes & 31 balls). Rick threw 39 pitches in a long first inning. Salmo gave up four runs (three earned) on seven hits and two walks with three strike-outs. Novotny pitched the final three innings and faced 18 batters in throwing 66 pitches (37 strikes & 29 balls). Surf Dawg gave up five runs (three earned) on six hits with three walks and two strike-outs.

The Fightin' Buzzards banged out 15 hits to go along with three walks and a hit-batsman for an offense that produced seven runs. The hit club for the game included: Baron (2), Burner, Evy, Milli, Salmo, Surf Dawg, Tomahawk (3), Welzy (3), and Wookie (2). The six ribbies were courtesy of: the Baron (2), Milli, Surf Dawg, Tomahawk, and Wook. The vital scored runs were by: the Baron, Evy, Salmo, Tomahawk, Welzy (2), and Wookie. Milli took the bruise on the back with a fastball for the team in the third inning to get first base. The 'eagle-eyed' Buzzards obtaining a free pass to first base were: Crush, Mickey, and Milli. Welzy started the game with a double, but that was the only extra base hit for the Buzzards.

The Buzzard defense played well, but did not get many good bounces or umpiring calls. There were only three groundball put-outs in this game and three infield assists, when normally the Ol' Buzzards have assists in the teens. There were lots of fly-ball outs and base hits to keep the outfield squad of Mike 'Mickey' Wilson, Paul 'General' Lee, Crush, mMumbles and Tomahawk busy and panting between pitches on this especially hot day. For the 21 defensive put-outs, there were eight fly-ball outs, four high infield pop-ups, one infield line drive out, three infield put-outs and five strike-outs. Milli made a fabulous, clutch catch of a high pop-up near home plate and made it look easy to end the seventh inning.

A nice comeback in the last inning showed that the Buzzards do not give up, even on a sweltering day, when calling it quits would have been the easy thing to do. Excellent fortitude to go with those ol' baseball skills made for a close game. The Ol' Buzzards were a base hit away from tying that game and sending the Dodgers to panic and tears. This time next year, Dodger meat is on the menu.

Buzzard Note #1: The Reds have forfeited next week's game. They said they can't field a team due to Father's Day. Didn't realize that Father's Day was a Mexican holiday and will prevent the Reds from sending a team to far away, Auburn. Enjoy the day, but not on the field on Sunday afternoon.

Buzzard Note #2: Thanks to Paul Lee for hosting the after game dinner at Felipe's without attending. The Buzzards and wives always love to flock over to Felipe's for excellent food and cold drinks at special Buzzard prices.

Buzzard Note #3: The Radio Game is coming up on June 29th. A request for Bios will be sent separately. Last year's player bio's can be updated.

Buzzard Note #4: The next game will be on June 22nd at C-Bar-C Park again. This game will be a 10 am game against the top 42+ team, the A's.

Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #6

Game: June 1, 2014

Ol' Buzzards come-back to top Red Sox, 8-6

On a nice June 1st afternoon, the Gold Country Buzzards hosted the Red Sox in their only meeting of the year. The league's inter-divisional schedule matched the 42+ Red Sox with the 52+ Buzzards for James Field at 2 pm. The Ol' Buzzards always look forward to playing the younger teams and usually do well. That extra competitive spirit kicks-in and appears to spark-up the Fightin' Buzzards.

The game time temps were in the mid-80s and there was a gentle breeze for perfect weather in Auburn for a baseball game. The starting pitcher for the visiting Red Sox was the wily veteran and hard-throwing right-hander, Louie 'Hammer' Hernandez #56. On the hill for the Buzzards and starting for the first time this season was the crafty righty, Rick 'Salmo' Salmeri #6.

The Red Sox got on the score board first with two runs in the top of the second inning. After two were out, a couple of 'seeing-eye' groundball singles found infield holes. The two runners scored on a blast to the fence in left-field. The long double was by the number nine batter in the order for an early 2-0 lead.

The Red Sox had good sticks throughout their line-up. After the Buzzards went seven up and six down in the first two innings, the Red Sox put two more runs on the score board in the third dig. A leadoff, short looping single into left-field by the bottom of their order was followed by two hard hit shots into left for base hits that scored one run. A sacrifice fly-out scored the second run before the Buzzards snuffed out the rally with two high infield pop-up outs.

Entering the bottom half of the third frame, the Buzzards found themselves down four to nothing to a good and clearly younger team. The Sox pitcher, Louie, was effectively dealing a variety of pitches and some with good heat, when Dave 'mMumbles' Kelley stepped to the plate to leadoff the third inning. mMumbles slapped a 2-1 pitch through the right-side for a single and put Louie in the stretch position for the rest of the inning. Barry 'Crush' Forman ran for 'limited lung capacity' Kelley.

After a strike-out, Mike 'Mickey' Wilson took a seven-pitch walk to put runners at first and second. After another strike-out, Louie's fourth in three innings, Taylor 'Welzy' Welz belted a first-pitch double to left that drove in Barry from second for the first run.

With runners at second and third and two outs, Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir sent a 1-1 pitch on a line into center-field for a big two-run single to score Mickey and Welzy. Next, Dave 'Evy' Everingham crushed an 0-1 pitch to the deep right-field corner for a triple to easily score a confused Wookie from first base.

On the play, the ball landed deep and near the right-field foul line and there was a slightly delayed call by the umps. The Red Sox second baseman, yelled 'foul ball' to Wook as he ran past him near second base. Usual baseball infield courtesies in the league do not include this level of deception, however, the oldest Buzzard believed the devilish opponent and stopped near the bag and turned-around, before the Buzzard dugout exploded with screaming advice to get moving. Wookie also rounded third base hesitantly because it took so long to get there, but the ball was still deep in relays as he took-off for home to tie the game at 4-4.

With the clean-up hitter, Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray at the plate, a wild pitch scored Evy from third to take a 5-4 lead. The Baron then smacked a 2-1 pitch into left-field for a hit and was thereby robbed of the ribbie by the wild pitch. A great Buzzard inning with three excellent two-out base hits to score runs.

The Fightin' Buzzards scored another run in the fifth frame to take a 6-4 lead. After a strike-out, Mickey hit a screamer into deep left-field for a nice double. After advancing to third on a ground-out to first base, Wilson easily scored on Welzy's double down the left-field line. Wook walked before Evy hit a long fly to right to end the inning on a nice running catch by the Red Sox right-fielder, whose real name is Eric Sex, #55. They called him 'Sexy'. It sounded strange on the field during the game.

Buzzard pitching combined with solid defense was doing an outstanding job of defusing the Red Sox' rallies. Of the 11 in their batting order, 10 impressively got base hits (two batters got two hits & a 12th batter was added mid-game). The Red Sox out hit the Buzzards 12 to 11 in the game. The Sox had runners on bases in every inning, except the fifth when Salmo struck-out the side on 14-pitches.

In the top of the sixth with one out and runners on second and first, Salmo was replaced on the mound by Welzy #26. On the first pitch, the clean-up hitter smashed a grounder toward third, Gregg 'Surf Dawg' Novotny showed off his cat-like reflexes and scooped the ball, then took several steps to third base before stepping on the bag for the force and making an excellent throw to the Baron at first for a 'wow' double play to end the inning.

The Gold Country gang of 12 then scored two more runs in the seventh to increase the lead to four. mMumbles led-off for the second time with a solid single, this time to left field. Tom 'Tomahawk' Keatley then ran for Kelley. Batting next, Norm 'Burner' Tucker walked on seven-pitches, as Louie began to labor on the mound. Mickey then loaded the bases with a six-pitch free pass to first. After a strike-out, Welzy singled to right-center to send Tomahawk home.

The Red Sox then changed pitchers and brought in righty, Shane 'Slinger' Frieldt #33. Batting next, Wookie hit a slow bouncer to first base to score Burner from third and made the score 8-4 Buzzies after seven innings.

The Red Sox fought back with a run in the eighth inning to tighten the score. A lead-off single, then a wild pitch and walk were followed by two smooth infield plays by Wookie at second and Evy at shortstop to get the tough outs, but a run scored on a fielder's choice for an 8-5 score.

The pesky Sox went down fighting and battled for more runs in the ninth. The number three hitter led-off with a full-count blast to the left-field fence for a double. The clean-up hitter got his first hit of the game with a long single down the left-field line to drive in a run. The next batter hit a sharp grounder up-the-middle that appeared off-the-bat to be a base hit. Instead, Evy was positioned nearby to quickly snag the hot grounder near second base. An easy couple of steps to the bag and a strong throw to Pete at first base was a huge, rally killing double play that cleared the bases with two outs.

Up next, Mr. Sex swaggered to the plate and got his only hit of the game with a shot up the middle. The next batter hit a grounder to Evy and that ended the game on a flip to Wookie covering second base.

The nine-inning contest was a three-hour and five minute affair with the final score: Buzzards 8 and the Red Sox 6. Both teams played well, but the Buzzards played a little bit better and came back from an early four-run deficit to prevail. A fabulous win by the Ol' Buzzards. It made the cold beer after the game taste even better.

The Buzzard pitching was solid and did a great job of stifling the high-octane, quick-bats offense of the Red Sox. Salmeri started the game and lasted until one out in the sixth. In his first win of the season, Rick faced 26 batters and threw 81 pitches (51 strikes & 30 balls). Salmo gave up four runs on seven hits with two walks and four strike-outs. Salmo also struck-out the side swinging in the fifth inning. Welzy relieved Rick in the sixth and got the one-pitch double play grounder to Surf Dawg for the best inning-ending play of the season. Taylor finished the game with the save and faced 16 batters while throwing 56 pitches (35 strikes & 21 balls) in 3 2/3rds innings. Welzy gave up two runs on five hits with two walks. Terrific pitching, good defense and timely offense won this game.

The Fightin' Buzzards offense effectively banged out 8 runs on 11 hits and 7 walks. The hit club for the game was limited to six players and included: Baron, Evy, Mickey, mMumbles (3), Welzy (3), and Wook (2). The seven ribbies were knocked in by: Evy, Welzy (3) and Wook (3). The always important runs were scored in the books by: Evy, Burner, Mickey (2), mMumbles (2), Welzy and Wookie. Forman and Keatley ran for Kelley in his three-hit game. The seven 'eagle-eyed' Buzzards getting on-base via walks included: Burner, Evy, Mickey (2), Milli, Salmo, and Wookie. Interestingly, just three Buzzards had multiple hits and those three got eight of the total 11 hits or about 75% of the offense.

The hot sticks were swung by mMumbles with three hits and two runs scored, Welzy with three hits (one double), one run scored and three RBIs, and Wookie with two hits, one run, and three ribbies. The four extra-base hits were a beautiful thing to watch. Welzy had doubles in the third and fifth innings scoring and knocking in runs. Mickey's double in the fifth led to a run and was followed by Welzy's double. And not to be forgotten was Evy's huge two-out long triple in the third that tied the game at 4-4.

The Buzzard defense was solid as usual. The only error occurred ironically on the first play of the game as a throw from the shortstop popped-out of the Baron's mitt. After that play, there were no more errors and a bunch of good plays to consistently dampen any thought of a big Red Sox rally. The two double plays came at opportune times and really helped the cause. Surf Dawg's huge play at third to end the sixth, and Evy's smooth looking double play in the ninth showed those young whipper-snappers that the Ol' Buzzards still got it. Both of the plays were key and shut-down the Red Sox and were the defensive plays of the game.

Surf Dawg also speared a scorcher down the third base line to end the seventh. With two on and two outs, Gregg back-handed the flame ball and then attempted to tag the runner. The runner, trying to avoid a tag (it was close), went out of the base path and was declared out by the infield ump. There were three of those dangerous high pop-ups and all were handled easily by the infield. Welzy's and Evy's catches in the third inning and the Baron's nice catch in foul territory in the fourth frame hurt the Sox' rally chances.

There was only one fly-ball out, Barry's catch of a sacrifice fly in the third. The outfield chased a few too many deep drives for base hits, while the rest of the outs were made in the infield. The tough Buzzard infield had 15 assists and the Baron had 13 putouts at first base for a solid game. This was another nice win and a great start to the season, 6-0. The last Buzzard loss was on July 28, 2013 against the Astros at James Field. That's 12 victories in a row since then. No jinx, just the facts.

It's good to be a Buzzard.

Buzzard Note #1: The Radio Game is coming up later this month. At James Field on June 29th the game against the Miners will be broadcast live on KAHI 950AM and on the internet at kahi.com. We will follow the A's game on the station. This is an event for the wives, family and girl friends to be invited. The game will be from 2 to 5 with the bbq ribs and fixings to be served soon thereafter in the picnic area. The Gold Country bbq with the Miners will be similar to last year's good time. The cost is to be determined and will be based on how many sponsors the team can get to cover the costs for the game and bbq. More details to come and mark your calendars at home.

Buzzard Note #2: It was interesting having all of those college age players and coaches watching the ol' guys play as they got ready for their later game. Several complimentary remarks were made and over-heard. The Summer Collegiate Baseball - Auburn Wildcats beat the Sacramento M's 17-5 in the later game. Mike's son Andrew plays on the Wildcats again this year.

Buzzard Note #3: This Sunday's game is at 2 pm against the 42+ Dodgers at C-Bar-C Park in Citrus Heights. The plan is to go to Felipe's' after the game.

Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #5

Game: May 18, 2014

Young Phillies lose in clash with Ol' Buzzards, 11-5

On a breezy evening in Davis, the Ol' Buzzards were up against a younger team, the Phillies, as they enter the inter-divisional play portion of the schedule. For the next six games, the Gold Country gang will face teams from the 42+ division of Sacramento NABA. So, after a Mothers' Day break and before the Memorial Day weekend break, the only 6 pm game on the schedule started at Playfields Park.

On the mound for the visiting Buzzards was the hard-throwing righty, Gregg 'Surf Dawg' Novotny #1, riding a four-game winning streak. The Phillies countered with lanky right-hander, Scott 'Potty Mouth' Fanning #12.

The Buzzards wasted no time and jumped on the scoreboard first with a crooked number to put the younger Phillies on notice for a tough game. Taylor 'Welzy' Welz started it off with a drop-in single near the line in short left-field. On the next pitch Welzy stole second base. Batting next, Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir with a 1-2 count hit a high chopper to second base. The hustlin' Wook forced the second baseman to rush his throw, which short-hopped the first baseman and scooted through the legs and rolled to the fence, for an error and allowed Welzy to score from second on the play. Wookie moved to second on a ground-out. Up next, Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray scalded a 2-1 pitch down the third base line to score Wook for an early two-run lead.

The Phillies fought back in the bottom of the first inning with a run. A lead-off hit, followed by a walk and two wild pitches, led to the Phillies' first run.

The Ol' Buzzards came back with two more runs in the second inning to keep the pressure on the Phillies. With one out, Norm 'Burner' Tucker hit a bouncer wide of first base. The first baseman fielded the ball well away from the bag, so a foot race to first base was on. As Burner went into fourth gear, a collision appeared eminent at first base as the pitcher also got into the picture to make it three guys racing to the same spot. Even though Burner does not shy away from contact, he smartly slid head-first into the bag beating the ball and avoiding stepped-on fingers for a hard-earned base hit.

Up next, Rick 'Salmo' Salmeri slapped the first pitch into left-field putting two runners on. Mike 'Mickey' Wilson walked to load the bases with one out. Batting next, Paul 'General' Lee hit a full swing bunt towards third that scored Burner with the 40-foot hit. Next, Welzy's grounder knocked in Salmo with a fielder's choice out at third base. Wookie followed with a short looper into no-man's-land on the left-side of the infield for a single to fill the bases. Dave 'Evy' Everingham then hit a smash to deep center-field for a long out to end the frame with a 4-1 score.

The Phillies got on the scoreboard again in the bottom half of the second dig with one run. A lead-off double was followed by a pop-out and strike-out. However, a former Buzzard Mike Hayworth, after fouling off three 1-2 pitches, ripped a liner into left-field to score the run. A runner then took Hayworth's place. Then right before play resumed, Diane, our excellent and cute score keeper, told the skipper that the replacement runner was not correct. However, the pitcher was on the mound and ready, so Wook did not protest and hoped it would not matter.

Two pitches later, the young black Phillie, Tyril Sherman, took a big swing and with grunting sound effects, launched a ball that he thought was going over the left-center-field fence. Just after the blast, the first base coach was yelling at Ty to run hard. Ty replied he didn't need to because the ball was going out. But, the soaring ball landed on the warning track and the two runners then picked up the pace. The lead runner, certain to score, then tripped half-way to home and had to retreat to third base on a close play.

So, on the long double, the wrong runner turned out to be the right runner after all. The Buzzard defense then held firmly and the score after two innings was 4-2.

The Ol' Buzzards added another run in the third dig. After an out, Jim 'Milli' Milligan lined a 2-2 pitch deep down the left-field line for a single. The young left-fielder quickly got to the ball and threw a laser to second base to prevent any thoughts of a double. Pete then ran for Milli. Barry 'Crush' Forman then took a full-count walk to put Buzzards at first and second. David 'mMumbles' Kelley, a good bunter, was up next with one out and only a two run lead. The bunt play was called and mMumbles executed it to perfection with good ball placement and running speed to make the fielder rush his throw. The throw was in the dirt and the ball skipped past the first baseman and allowed the Baron to score from second on the play to make the score 5-2.

The Phillies kept up the scoring with a run in a long third inning. After a line-out to Surf Dawg on the mound got the quick first out, the top of the order spot, Martinez, singled. The second out was a nice three-pitch strike-out with some really nasty pitches. The next batter was Butt-head Larson. During Butt-head's eight-pitch at-bat, he managed to drop the f-bomb nearly an equal amount of times. He got furious with Norm behind the plate when Burner referred to him as a 'pretty boy' for taking sooo long to get ready in the batter's box, then step-out and do it again.

Well, that might not have been the best thing to say under those circumstances. For the record and on advice from counsel, management strongly discourages saying funny or mean things (or both) about other players when they can hear it and are standing nearby with a baseball bat. That kind of behavior may lead to an injury and may not be covered in the small print of the insurance. Who would know what kind of injury that could lead to?

A short time later during that long at-bat, a pitched ball got loose and rolled behind Larson. The runner made a dash for second and strong-armed Burner wanted to nail the runner. However, big Butt-head was standing tall and legally holding his ground in the batter's box with the bat up, as Norm threw the ball from behind. A loud thump told the fans that Norm's hand came in sharp contact with the bat on the throw and the throw was not close to second base. Burner had to come out of the game and ice the thumb and hand injury. It swelled up quickly and did not look good initially.

Milli replaced Burner as the game came to a stop for quite a while to deal with the situation. As fate cruelly intervened, Butt-head then hit a rocket-shot to the deepest part of left-center for a biting triple that scored a run. Larson was then stranded at third base after one last strike-out by Surf Dawg ended the inning. The score after three digs was 5-3 Buzzards.

The Gold Country Buzz scored for the fourth consecutive inning by adding three runs to stretch out the lead. With one out, General Lee beat-out another infield hit to start the attack. After Welzy singled to left, Wookie chopped one to third. The slowly developing play got exciting on the rushed over-throw at first base that rolled down the fence and allowed Welzy to hustle from first to score. Wook rounded first and took second on the play. Batting next, Evy crushed a double to left-center that scored Wook. The Baron followed with great bat work by fouling off four pitches in a seven-pitch at-bat before smacking the ball sharply to center with a run-scoring single to drive in Evy and close-out the scoring in the fourth frame with the Buzzards leading 8-3.

The Phillies scored one in the fifth inning on a double, a wild pitch, then a grounder to the right- side to pull within four runs at 8-4. The scored stayed that way until the top of the eighth inning.

In the eighth, Milli led-off with a line-drive single to left-field. Pete then ran for Jim. A wild pitch and two outs later, the Baron was at second when Surf Dawg hit a flare to center for a single. Pete hustling with two outs got a good jump on the play. However, a strong throw made for a close play with the Baron safe, stand-up style, and bumping shoulders with the geared-up catcher blocking home plate without the ball. The Phillies whined about the play and a few more choice words were exchanged.

The Phillies never quit and scored one more run in their half of the eighth frame. An inning opening walk was followed by two infield errors to score the late unearned run.

Ol' Buzzards don't get young Phillie meat much anymore, as they liked it and tallied two more runs in the ninth. The General led-off with a five-pitch base on balls. With one out, Wookie shattered his bat with a loud crack as the ball and half of the birch bat went flying toward the left-side of the infield. The spinning bat provided cover for the trailing ball as Wookie reached first with an infield hit to put runners on the corners. Evy singled next with a looper to right-field to score Lee. With runners at first and second and one out, Wookie stole third base putting runners at the corners again. The Baron hit a long sacrifice fly ball to deep center-field and easily score Wook with the final run of the game.

The closer, Welzy, then mowed 'em down 1-2-3 in the books in the ninth inning for the fifth victory of the season. This was a good win over the 42+ Phillies. The final score of the nine inning, 3-hour game, was the Buzzards 11 and the Phillies 5.

Buzzard pitching was excellent again and held the Phillies to 10 hits and just two walks. Surf Dawg was on the hill for the first three innings and faced 16 batters while throwing 56 pitches (41 strikes & 15 balls). The Phillies got three runs on six hits with one walk while striking out three times. Salmo threw three innings and faced 12 Phillies with 35 pitches (23 strikes & 12 balls). Rick gave up one run on three hits with no walks and one pissed-off hit batter. Welzy closed it out with the last three innings. Taylor faced 13 batters and threw 40 pitches (29 strikes & 11 balls) in giving up one run on one hit and one walk with three K's.

The Fightin' Buzzard offense was solid in facing these younger arms and managed to bang out 17 hits to go with three walks. The Buzzards scored in the first four innings and the final two for the 11 runs. The hit club for the game included: Baron (2), Burner, Crush, Evy (2), General (2), Milli (2), Salmo (2), Surf Dawg, Welzy (2) and Wookie (2). The always key ribbies were driven in by: Baron (3), Evy (2), General, Surf Dawg and Welzy. The 11 important runs were scored by: Burner, Evy, General, Milli (2), Salmo, Welzy (2) and Wook (3). The free passes to first base were issued to eagle-eyed Buzzards: Crush, General and Mickey. Two Buzzards were sacrificed during the game: mMumbles' sac bunt in the third and the Baron's sac fly in the ninth.

The Ol' Buzzard defense was solid and backed up the excellent pitching with good glove work and throws. Surprisingly, all of the 27 outs of the game were made in the infield. No fly ball outs did not mean the outfield was bored. Half of the Phillies' 10 hits were for extra bases and hit deep. There was a little too much time spent on the warning track chasing balls. There were also four of those dangerous pop-ups that were handled nicely. In the first inning, Burner used his cat-like reflexes to snatch a high pop-up with a basket-catch near home plate for an impressive second out of the game. The other three pop-ups in the second, fourth and sixth innings were caught like a smooth pro by Welzy playing second base.

The put-outs were interesting with Pete at first base with nine as expected, while Welzy had eight to go with three assists. Burner had four put-outs before leaving the game in the third inning. Milli had three, Surf Dawg had two, and Evy had one put-out. An honorary put-out has been awarded to Kelley for noticing the runner miss first base on the way to his momentary double in the ninth. Good call.

The most exciting defensive moment came in the sixth inning. Salmo was on the mound and there were two outs with the bases empty when Butt-head came to the plate. With a 1-1 count, an inside fastball slipped and sailed toward the batter. Rick yelled, look out, but Butt-head stood his ground and ducked at the waist. The chest-high pitch glanced off the back of his shoulder and Larson then went f-word ballistic and made a move toward the pitcher's mound. The home plate ump jumped in front of Butt-head and led him toward first base. Salmo apparently wanted a piece of the much bigger and younger Butt-head at that point, and yelled as he approached Larson, who was still being escorted by the ump. The base ump then came charging over to get in front of Salmo and escorted him back to the mound.

Thankfully, this was not our radio game. The amount of f-bombs and other mean statements in this game by a couple of the Phillies would have broken the bleeper machine or resulted in lots of FCC fines, and probably a lifetime ban from radio.

It did feel good to beat the Phillies. The 5-0 record is a great way to start the season. More tough games to come after the Memorial Day weekend.

The next game is at home on June 1st at 2 pm at James Field against the Red Sox.

Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #4

Game: May 4, 2014

Buzzards prevail over Solons, 11-4

The month of May is already here and game number four of the season pitted the Gold Country Buzzards against the Sacramento Solons. The morning game at James Field required the Buzzards to flock-over early and get the field ready and warm-up in the cool low 60° temps. The Solons, managed by John Mason, continue to improve and recently added a top-notch catcher to go along with their solid pitching. The improved Solons showed up early and really wanted to beat the Buzzards.

The pitching match-ups for the game were the tough southpaw, Tom 'Fozzy' DeFazio #31, throwing hard and working fast for the visiting Solons, while the Buzzards sent the hard-throwing crafty right-hander, Gregg 'Surf Dawg' Novotny #1, to the mound.

The Solons went on the attack early and scored two runs in the top of the first inning. The game opened with a tough infield error on a speedy lead-off batter. One out later, back-to-back hits mixed with a throwing boo-boo scored two runs before another out was made. A terrific play on a hot come-backer by Surf Dawg got the second out, which mimicked the first out earlier in the inning. The inning ended on a fly-out to center field with a runner in scoring position.

The 'starting to feel it' Solons began the second inning with two stinging hits, putting runners at first and second. Next, a grounder up-the-middle was snagged right behind second base by Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir. A step on the bag and throw to Jim 'Milli' Milligan at first base, turned the timely play into a rally snuffing double play.

The pesky Solons still managed a two-strike, run-scoring sharp single to right to score a run in the inning. The sharp liner was fielded cleanly by Paul 'General' Lee playing short right-field, but the speedy runner just beat the strong throw to first base.

After a 1-2-3 Buzzard second inning, the score after two was Solons 3, Buzzards zip.

The sprinklers surprisingly, starting along the line in right field, came on between innings. It took over a 10-minute delay to find the field guy to turn off the auto-timer and resume the game. The delay and the water spray may have helped cooled off the Solons.

After a quiet top half of the third for the visitors, the Buzzard bats heated-up and then pounded out five runs to take the lead. The big inning started with a base-on-balls to Mike 'Mickey' Wilson. Up next, General Lee spanked a bouncer to third that was muffed, putting runners at second and first. Barry 'Crush' Forman followed with a hard-swinging flare hit to left(?) field to drive in a hustlin' Mickey with the first Buzzard run. Next, Tom 'Tomahawk' Keatley singled to short center to load the bases with no outs.

Batting next, Wookie hit a high chopper to short for a force-out at second that scored the General from third. The subsequent throw to first was late and wide of the bag and bounced to the dugout fence, allowing an alert Barry to score from second on the play and tie the score at 3-3. With one on and one out, Wookie stole second base before Dave 'Evy' Everingham singled to center putting Buzzards at the corners. Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray, with his family watching, then smoked a 1-0 pitch into deep left-field to score Wook and a racing Evy. Norm 'Burner' Tucker then followed with a five-pitch walk to put two runners on, but the inning ended quickly with two infield outs to make the score 5-3 Buzzards after three.

The Solons threatened in the fourth, but did not score. The Buzzards kept the pressure on by adding two more runs to the scoreboard in the bottom half of the fourth frame.

With one out, General Lee started it off with a base hit to left. After a passed-ball put the General at second, Crush slashed another hit to left-field to drive in the speeding General, who scored on a head-first slide in a close play at home plate. After two were out, Wook hit a bloop-single into no-man's-land on the right side of the infield to put runners on the corners. Batting next, Evy singled to right-center to knock in Crush with run number seven. The Baron then hit a screamer to left-center that loaded the bases with two outs. Up next, Burner's huge swing at the first pitch resulted in a nice breeze and a worm killer grounder to the pitcher's mound to end the dig with the score 7-3 Buzzards.

The Ol' Buzzards changed pitchers to start the sixth inning. The mix-'em-up right-hander, Rick 'Salmo' Salmeri #6, took the mound with a four-run lead. The Solons fought back, though, in the top of the sixth starting with a two-out double, that was hit way over the left fielder's head. Then a seven-pitch walk was followed by a single to center-field to score a run for the 7-4 score.

In the seventh dig, the 11-man Gold Country gang notched two more runs. Evy led-off with his third hit of the game, a single to left, and then stole second base before the Baron walked with a full-count. With one out and after a wild pitch moved the runners up, Milli roped one to left- field to score Evy. Salmo followed with a hard slap into left-field for a run-scoring single to plate a hustlin' Baron. With two outs, the General got on base for the fourth time with his third hit of the game, a rope into left-field to load the bases before the inning ended with the score Buzzards 9 and Solons 4.

The Buzzard defense continued to make nice plays behind the solid pitching to prevent a come-back attempt by the Solons during the game.

By the eighth inning, the Buzzies added to the score again with two more runs to put the game on ice. Surf Dawg started it off with a lead-off walk. Tomahawk followed with a knock to center-field putting two Buzzards on. Wookie then pulled a pitch sharply down the line that bounced off of the first baseman and into right-field to score a run. Later with one out and Tomahawk at third, the Baron launched a high-fly to deep left-field to score Tom with the last run of the game. The score after eight frames was 11-4 Buzzards.

The Solons attempted a rally in the ninth inning, but Salmo bore-down and struck-out the last two batters to end the 9-inning, 2¾ hour game with a final score of Buzzards 11 and Solons 4.

Buzzard pitching was excellent again against this good hitting team. Surf Dawg won his fourth game of the season. Gregg threw five innings and faced 22 Solons while throwing 68 pitches (43 strikes & 25 balls). Novotny gave up three runs (one earned) on five hits and only one walk with one strike-out. Salmo pitched the last four innings and finished the game for the Buzzards. Rick faced 17 Solons while throwing 69 pitches (41 strikes & 28 balls). The Solons got one run on three hits and two walks, while Salmeri struck out five. Fabulous pitching for the entire game held the swinging Solons in-check with just eight hits and three walks.

The Fightin' Buzzard offense produced 11 runs on 16 hits and five walks. The hit club for the game included: Baron (2), Crush (2), Evy (3), General (3), Milli, Salmo, Tomahawk (2) and Wookie (2). The ribbies were knocked in by: Evy, Crush (2), Milli, Salmo, Wook (2) and the Baron with 3 big ones. The all-important 11 runs were credited to: Baron, Crush (2), Evy (2), General (2), Mickey, Surf Dawg, Tomahawk and Wook. The five eagle-eyed Buzzards getting free passes to first base were: Baron, Burner, Mickey, Surf Dawg and Wookie.

Another good offensive effort against a tough and hard-throwing opponent. It's apparent, Ol' Buzzards still like hot ones across the plate.

The defense was a little shaky at the start, but the Buzzards woke up and played well once the feathers warmed-up by the second dig. There was only one double play pulled off (4-3, Wook-to-Milli) in the second, but there were several opportunities and one badly blown call by the ump at second base earlier. Pete made several amazing plays and stretches at first base to get 10 critical put-outs with that great vacuum-feature on his mitt. Milli, showing off his versatility, had nine put-outs at three different positions - first base, third base, and catcher during the game. Evy had only four assists, but every single grounder needed excellent glove work and a strong accurate throw to get the out. Wookie was busy at second with three put-outs and two assists.

Surf Dawg handled the mound defense well with three tough assists and one hot liner before moving to third base for another assist. That play needed a yoga-stretch that looked like a full-splits by the Baron on the throw to open the seventh. There was at least one micro-millimeter of distance to spare on the throw. What a catch!

There were four fly-ball outs; two in the fourth inning. The first out was a nice catch by Mickey in left-field with a runner on. And followed later by General Lee's catch in short right-field to end the inning with two runners going on the pitch. Tomahawk had two catches in center-field. A high-fly to end the first frame with a runner in scoring position, and an impressive running-sliding catch for the second out of the eighth to show-off for his wife, Sherri.

Another excellent Buzzard victory with no injuries. This one was a come-from-behind version. Good job, so far, with a 4-0 record in the early 2014 season.

Buzzard Note #1: No game on Mother's Day, next Sunday. The game on May 18th is a 6 pm start time at Playfields Park in Davis, the only evening game of the season. Drinks and snacks afterwards in the smoking section of the parking lot.

Buzzard Note #2: The 2014 Buzzard baseball schedule is attached. The Radio Game this year will be June 29th. If no more rain-outs, the play-offs will start on September 14th with the championship game the following Sunday on September 21st.

Buzzard Note #3: The Buzzard web site is not quite ready yet. Coming by Mother's Day.

Gold Country Ol' Buzzards Game Report #3

Game: April 27, 2014

Buzzards claw Astros, 7-3

Game three was meant to be, as the weather forecasters guessed wrong on the showers, and the Buzzards took-on the Astros on Sunday afternoon at C-Bar-C Park in Citrus Heights. The region could always use more rain, but it was nice to avoid another rain-out this season. By 2 o'clock the clouds were still heavy and dark, but the sun was breaking through and later the storm clouds passed along for an eventual nice afternoon with temps in the high 60's.

The Astros have improved as a team over the last couple of years and they did beat the Buzzards last year, and split the season series 1-1. With this year's new format for the 52+ division, the Ol' Buzzards will play the older Astros four times. Their manager and former long-time Sacramento NABA president, Barry Spiller, said his team was missing their catcher and a couple of his best players for this first meeting of the 2014 season.

The starting pitcher for the home team Astros was ol' timer Rankin 'Fireplug' Lyman #01. The small right-hander with the loud pitching sound effects. On the mound for the Gold Country Buzzards was Gregg 'Surf Dawg' Novotny #1, starting for the third time this season.

The visiting Buzzards struck first with two runs to open the game. With one out, Dan 'Wookie' Wukmir lined a 3-1 pitch to the opposite field in left for a single. After two were out, Wook stole second base and waited as Pete 'Baron' Von Zboray walked on a full-count to put two on with two down. Batting next, Norm 'Burner' Tucker knocked the first pitch into center-field to drive in Wookie with the first run. Jim 'Milli' Milligan followed with a blast near the left-field line for a run-scoring long single that plated the Baron from second base to take an early 2-0 lead. That #2 ended up being the only crooked number on the scoreboard for the rest of the game.

The Astros scored a run in the second inning to tighten the game. The lead-off batter, Roy 'Slugger' Van Kempon smashed a double over Buzzard left fielder, Barry 'Crush' Forman's head. Barry made a valiant attempt at a running, high over-the-shoulder catch, but that left arm needed the Inspector Gadget arm-extendo feature, as the ball glanced off of the tip of the glove and bounced toward the fence for a two-bagger. A flare to right then put runners at the corners. The next batter hit into a timely double-play (4-6-3) while the Astros' first run scored from third base on the double-outs play.

The Buzzards threatened in the second dig with back-to-back line drive singles to left field by Mike 'Mickey' Wilson and Paul 'General' Lee, but no more hits and no score.

In the third inning the Buzzies added a run. With one out, Dave 'Evy' Everingham singled and stole second before the Baron knocked him in with a sharp single to left-field. Pete then stole second base, but advanced no further than third before the dig ended with two infield outs.

The Buzzards scored another run in the fourth frame with a one-out infield hit by the surprisingly speedy Dave 'Mumbles' Kelley. Since Mumbles has only two - half lungs, he gets a runner. Barry ran for Dave and quickly stole second. Rick 'Salmo' Salmeri followed with a flare to short right-field for a base hit with Crush holding at second. Batting next, Mickey hit a potential double play grounder to short. The force-out at second was made but the throw to first was in the dirt and got past the first baseman, which allowed a hustlin' Barry to come all the way from second base to score on the play. Mickey then stole the second base bag before the inning ended. The score after four was 4-1 Buzzards.

The Gold Country gang continued to add single digits to the score book with a run in the fifth. Taylor 'Welzy' Welz led-off with a solid single to right-center. Welzy then quickly stole second. Up next, Wookie sharply lined a shot off of the pitcher, Fireplug Rankin. The ball bounced away and a hustlin' Wook beat the throw to first from the tough fire plug, Rankin, to put two Buzzards on.

One out later, Welzy and Wook moved to third and second on a double steal. With the infield now in, the Baron hit a hot shot that was back-handed by the shortstop. Welzy broke for home on the play, but the good snag by Terry Porter on his knee and throw home, put Welzy in a run-down. With lots of speed, a few dance steps and a little luck, Taylor beat the pickle and scored on the play for the only run of that inning.

The Astros fought back with a run in the bottom of the fifth inning. A lead-off walk and two hits drove in the run making the score, Buzzards 5 and Astros 2.

For the fourth consecutive inning, the Buzzards added a run to the scoreboard. The sixth began with a one-out infield single by the always hustling Mumbles. Barry ran for Dave and then stole second base on the next pitch and moved to third on the wild throw. Up next, Salmo grounded one to the right-side to score a cautious Crush from third.

The top of the seventh started well with an opening walk to General Lee. A fielder's choice ground-out put Surf Dawg on first. Welzy, up next, smashed a grounder up-the-middle that hit second base and gave the ball a hop as it skipped into center-field for a single putting runners at first and second. With Wookie up next, the infield shifted to the right with the shortstop playing near second base and leaving a big hole on the left side. On a nicely placed grounder through the hole and into left, Wook loaded the bases with his third hit of the game. With the bases full and one out, Evy hit the dreaded sharp grounder to the third baseman for an easy 5-3 double-play to end the inning abruptly.

The Buzzards added their last run in the top of the eighth for a 7-2 lead. The Baron started it off by crushing a 3-1 pitch into right-center field for a base hit. Up next, Burner got aboard on an error by the third baseman. Crush then followed with a blast to right on a 3-1 pitch to score Pete.

In the ninth with one out, the General (former Astro) hammered a liner down the left-field line for what appeared to be an easy two-bagger. Paul's former teammates hustled on the play and followed with good throws in an attempt to nail him at second. A close play developed forcing the General to slide head-first into the bag for the double. Welzy followed later with a hard hit liner to left-field for his third hit of the game. The line drive was hit too hard for the General to score from second putting Buzzards at the corners. Welzy then stole second base to move into scoring position before the inning ended.

As the Buzzard's hard-throwing closer, Welzy #26, came in to pitch the ninth inning and send the pesky Astros home. The Astros fought to the end and scored their final run with a one-out single, followed by a stolen base and an infield throwing error. The final score of the 9-inning, 2¾ hour game was Buzzards 7 and the Astros 3.

Buzzard pitching was superlative again. Surf Dawg pitched the first four inning and gave up one run on four hits and two walks with five strike-outs. Gregg threw 53 pitches (33 strikes & 20 balls) while facing 17 Astros. Salmo took the mound in the fifth and pitched through the eighth. Rick threw 82 pitches (50 strikes & 32 balls) in facing 20 batters. Salmo gave up one run on five hits and two walks with two strike 'em outs. Welzy finished up the game by facing 5 Astros and giving up one unearned run on one hit with no walks and one strike-out. Taylor threw 17 pitches (11 strikes & 6 balls) to put away the Astros.

The Buzzard offense was solid with 18 hits and two walks in scoring only seven runs. The hit club for the game included: Baron (2), Burner, Crush, Evy, General (2), Mickey, Milli, Mumbles (2), Salmo, Welzy (3), and Wookie (3). The always important RBI's were knocked in by: Baron, Burner, Crush, Milli, and Salmo. The eagle-eyed Buzzard walkers for the game were the Baron Von Zboray and General Lee. The Buzzard's only extra base hit, a double in the ninth, belonged to the General. Another good offensive performance by the Fightin' Buzzards.

The defense was solid with just one miscue late in the game. There were only three fly-ball outs in the game. Two catches in center by Paul, one in the fifth and a nice running snatch and slide on the knees for the first out of the ninth inning. Barry ended the seventh frame with a routine fly-out in left. The grounders ruled the game as 13 ground balls became 14 outs for the Astros.

The Baron had 13 put-outs at first base and the team had 13 assists to take care of business on Sunday. The one double play in the second inning was huge and shut-down an early Astros' rally. The smooth looking Welzy to Evy to Baron combination worked well again. While the line-drive out to Evy at short in the sixth was nice, it was not as impressive as the smash he handled in the seventh. The previous out to open the seventh inning was surprisingly the first 6-3 play of the game. The very next play was a one hop bullet at Evy. Dave leaned back as he fell to his knees and gloved the screamer with his backhand. Then quickly got up and threw the stunned runner out. The ESPN highlight tune was heard in the background for the fabulous play.

It was another strong defensive performance by the Buzzards. A good win for a 3-0 early season record. Next week is a home game at 10 am against the Solons at James Field. One of just two morning games in Auburn this season.