News and Announcements
The ’70s Steelers ….. ’85 Bears ..… Michael Jordan ….. The Great Wall of China ….. Dudley Moore and Eddie Murphy ……….. and now the 2009 RWLL Giants ….. all of these are the “BEST DEFENSES” I have ever seen. And last night the Giants made 16 PUT OUTS!!! Say what??? With the only run allowed on an errant throw these guys really came to play … and we could tell from warm-up this team was going to be tough to score on … or even allow a base runner .
Offensively the stars of the game were Colin, Blake, CameronA and NickO … these guys went 12-12 collectively! NickO had another timely double scoring Blake (who also had a double) two times during the game … and even NickG joined the party with a HUGE triple!!! Austin consistently produces game after game and came through again (2-3, RBI, Run) … Tyler hit the ball HARD but found a Diamondbacks glove instead of the blacktop at Kaseberg School ...
Defensively, to be honest I’m not sure if that was Tyler, CameronA, Anthony and NickG playing the field or if it was Ozzie Smith, Brooks Robinson, Willie Mays and Lou Gehrig making the gold glove plays. The DB’s hit the ball hard all game … but check this stat out … these are the number of batters we faced over the 6 innings: 3, 5, 3, 3, 4, 5.
Tonight, we didn’t have a Game Ball to give out …. no, instead we decided on a GOLD GLOVE recipient. Should it be CF Anthony’s long ball catch and later perfect assist to 2B for the outs? CameronA solid throws from 3B and 2B scoring the put outs to 1st? 2B Colin’s pickle rundown and game ending 4-3? 1B NickG double play pop out catch and doubling up the runner? P Blake 1-3? Austin??
Ummmmm … I feel like I’m forgetting somebody … OH YEAH, that would be Mr. TYLER HILL and his FIVE put outs from all over the field … SS, 3B and even 1B. This guy was a ball MAGNET … as a matter of fact, I thought for sure a foul ball was going to come his way when he sat out the 3rd inning! Great job Tyler!!
This was not the same A’s team we faced last week … I probably should of looked closer to see if their older brothers were playing for them because they sure did bring their “A” game making 10 plays all over the field. But the Giants down a few runs in the 6th inning decided to put on a hitting display with SIX Straight Hits and ZERO Outs while scoring the winning run in the final inning.
OFFENSE:
Jimmy, Josh & Tyler batted an impressive 8-8 and totaled over 50% of our offense … and that my friend is how to get it done! Anthony did not disappoint going 2-3 and scoring the game winning run … and the seven others reached base by hit or fielders choice.
DEFENSE:
2B Blake started off the game in Giants fashion recording a solid 4-3 out and a fly out all in the 1st inning. 3B Tyler had a nice pop out catch ….. and I’m all about momentum stoppers and none was bigger than RF Jimmy Jet’s HUMONGOUS catch in the outfield, are you kidding me?? ... 2B Colin made a couple of routine 4-3 plays and 3B Cameron A showed his stuff by tossing two of them across the diamond to record the outs at 1st. 1B Nick G again showed his glove at the bag catching everything and even making his own unassisted out. In the end the Giant’s made 11 put outs and 2 errors.
GAME BALL WINNER:
These guys all make plays and hit the ball so well that making this decision is always tough … should it be NickO and his timely hit knocking 2 RBI’s with one swing? Jimmy or Tyler’s awesome fielding and batting 1.000? Or Josh’s hitting display and game winning hit? After some thought we just had to give it to 3B Cameron A and his awesome clinic at 3rd base beating out the runners to 1st every time … I mean, to focus, position, field, know, throw and make the play is a tough thing to do under pressure ... but I don’t think Cam A knows what that is … so shhhh, don’t tell him, but you can pat him on the back and tell him GREAT JOB because those plays were fun to watch!!
Wind ... Rust ... and the Easter Bunny.
What do all the above have in common? They all played a part in the 21 strike outs both teams displayed ... and we were responsible for TWELVE of them. Dang Wabbit caused us Twouble!!!
Blake, Colin and Austin must of been carrying a rabbits foot ... they went 7-7 as a group. Nick G and Cameron A blasted a couple of doubles ... with the rest of the team sharing 6 hits.
Where this team shined today was on Defense. When the Cubs hit the ball the fielders were possessed ... to the tune of 9 put outs and 2 errors. What was impressive were all the plays to 1st base. As a matter of fact, ALL the assisted outs were to the first bag. It started with 2B DP Dave and P Blake making the throws to 1st ... and continued during the game with P Josh and P Fish making the throw outs to 1st ... 2B Blake made a nice pop out catch. But finally, it was the left side of the infield who didn't want to be outshined ... SS Tyler fielded a nice grounder with a monster throw to 1st ... and 3B Cameron A made the play of the day hurling the ball across the diamond to 1st for the out. In the end EIGHT different players made put outs!
So who was over there at 1st catching all these darts??? That would be our Game Ball Winner ... Mr. Nick Gori ... aka "The Vacuum". The "Vac" sucked up anything that came his way making assisted play after play ... after play ... without an error! Throw in his 1st inning double and another hit in the 6th, scoring both times, and no doubt this kid deserves the Game Ball.
Good News, Bad News ... and Even Better News ---
The Good ... Improvement. If the kids aren't going to bring coach food, this is the next best thing that I like to see: Hits up, strikeouts down. Offensively, we had 25 hits and reached base on errors/fielders choice an additional 6 times. Throw in two innings of 5-runs max and that's rock-n-roll baby ... as a matter of fact, if you look at those two innings we had 16 HITS, 10 RUNS and ONE out (a strikeout no less). Dang ...
So who was responsible for this madness? Joshua, Austin and Nick G had two hits and scored twice ... Tyler also had two hits and crossed the plate three times ... Nick O had three hits and key RBI's ... Colin, Jimmy, Cameron A, and DP had two hits ... and Anthony and Blake fought their way on base as well.
The Bad ... 6 errors in 5 innings. Not the Giants baseball we have been accustomed too but there were some great plays we witnessed ... Tyler's catch at SS and play at 3rd, DP's play at 2nd, Anthony's backup from CF to 2nd getting the out, Cameron A's and Nick's play at 3rd with strong throws across the diamond ... but none were better than Blake's amazing chase down of the ball from pitcher towards 1st and the underhand toss to 1B Anthony just beating the runner.
Even Better ... this game we turned to offense instead of defense for Game Ball (which is okay, since chicks dig the long ball) and one person absolutely stood out over the rest. He was batting 7th in the lineup the day before the game ... but then he did something very smart by helping defend the Coaches during a battle at Bounce U ... so yep, he earned himself extra playing time AND leading off for the team ... so what happens on game day? Well, Mr. Cameron "Fishy" Fisher steps in and hits 4-4 ... with three singles and a power alley double ... scores 3 times (almost all 4) ... hits 3 RBIs (LEADING OFF) ... and and and, well what else more can you say? Except Pizza Stained Game Ball honors baby! Lesson learned here? .... Always listen to and help coach and good things happen!
Wow …. I think I need a cold one …. cold juice box of course! Forget nail biter, more like defibrillator! With just enough offense and some great defensive stops we were able to pull this close one out.
Offensively we had to scratch, bite, crawl, and whatever it took ... but in the end it was veterans Blake and Tyler leading the team in hits 3-3. Cameron A flexed his muscles taking one deep down the left field line for a Driple (not mispelled, you can figure it out!)
The D-Backs sprayed the ball all over the field giving everyone chances to make defensive plays … and the Giants came through by getting 13 put outs! Fisher’s solid play at Pitcher throwing outs to 1st and 3rd .. (and even one that he used his legs to beat the runner) …Tyler’s line drive snag at 1st early in the game like a frog catching a bug in mid-air (booyah!) ... but none was bigger than Anthony’s pop fly catch in CF ... big Dback hit, but even BIGGER CATCH taking away their momentum and sending it our way.
However, today we decided the game ball goes to a pivotal moment in the game .... it was a two-out situation with the game tied 2-2 in the 4th inning and runners at 2nd and 3rd ... our man Mr. Nick O’Brien steps up to the plate and takes the count full (to be dramatic of course) ... he takes a practice swing ... stares down the pitcher ... and with his last chance final 6th pitch he takes a monster hack and the ball jumps off the bat screaming up the middle for a 2 RBI knock ... BANG! Pressure? Nah, not for this kid ... excellent job Nick.
And how fitting we received our Train Pins tonight ... let’s keep this one ROLLING!!
Seasons
Sponsors
