Heavy Metal Softball

At the end of each league season, some recognition is always given to those individuals who contributed to the team in some way. The following categories -- most real, some intended for a few laughs -- are mostly from the offensive part of softball; some are just plain offensive! (Have a little sense of humor, guys! Don't get defensive. Get it -- defensive! Oh, never mind....)  So, for what it's worth, here we go:

Tulare City League, Thursday Night, summer 2009
4-6 record:  No team award; MVP selected solely by offensive/defensive points 

Offensive Categories --

Most Plate Appearances:  Mike Lujan (42)

Most At-Bats:  Mike Lujan (41)

Most Runs:  Wes Avery (22)

Most Singles:  Mike Lujan (19)

Most Doubles:  Wes Avery (6)

Most Triples:  Joaquin Perez, Steve Stafford (tie, 3)

Most Home Runs:  Joaquin Perez (3)

Most RBIs:  Joaquin Perez (22)

Most Walks:  Vern Amaro, Gene Hitt (tie, 4)

Most Sacrifices:  Brian Hollingshead, Joaquin Perez (tie, 2)

Highest On-Base Percentage:  Wes Avery (.641)

Highest Slugging Percentage:  Joaquin Perez (1.031)

Highest Batting Average:  Wes Avery (.641)

Most Hits:  Wes Avery (25)

Most Single-Game Points:  Joaquin Perez, Steve Stafford (tie, 25)

Most Offensive Points:  Wes Avery (117)

Defensive Categories -- (Sorry, but no defensive stats were kept this league)

All of which leads to, if the above stats were used primarily in making our choice...

Most Valuable Player (Tulare City League, Thursday Night Men's, summer 2009):  Wes Avery (117 offensive/defensive points)

Most Non-Appearances (regular members):  Paul Lawrence (10) (Once again, Where In The World Is...Paul Lawrence! is a new Thursday evening sports segment showing primarily at Prosperity Sports Park!  Just kidding, of course, buddy!  Lencho Martinez was a close second (8), while Brian Hollingshead and Steve Stafford both took a distant third (3).  Some others also were considered, even though their physical bodies actually made it to the games!)

Perfect Attendance (regular members):  Vern Amaro, Rich Avery, Wes Avery, Lee Garcia, and Mike Lujan (All 10 games; gold stars to everyone!)

Most Memorable Performance:  In our ninth game of the league season, we played a team that goes by the name Blue Barracudas -- unfortunately for our opponent, it was our own Joaquin Perez who was the big fish that night!  On this night, Joaquin went 3 for 4, with 2 singles, 1 home run (grand slam), 6 RBIs, plus scoring 2 runs himself.  His individual offensive output was 25 points, bringing his league total up to 98 points, pretty much assuring him of joining the 100 Point Plus Club for the second time in his Heavy Metal stint.  Like I've been saying all season, buddy, you now own the fifth spot in the lineup!      

Greatest Increase in Batting Average from Last League (spring 2009; minimum 5 games):  Wes Avery (+.200, from .441 to .641) (Frank Fletcher came in second with a +.036 increase)

Biggest "Plunge" in Batting Average from Last League (spring 2009; minimum 5 games):  Lee Garcia (-.307, from .621 to .314) (Vern Amaro came in second with a smaller -.141 decrease; Steve Stafford was third with a -.107 decrease.)

Best Player Quote:  "So, who's not going to be here tonight?."  (attributed to several players -- just making 10 players every game proved to be a big headache for everyone this league....)  

Best Acting Performance by a Player/Manager:  Drum roll, please...Vern Amaro!!! (13th time in a row!  A thirteen-peat!  Incredible!  Can this person run the career table!  This is for impersonating, once again, the second baseman -- and spokesperson -- of a pretty darn-good softball team!  By the way, were there any other eligible candidates on the team?)

100 Points Plus Club:  Vern Amaro (1994 T.C.L. 130 pts./1999 T.C.L. 109 pts./2001 T.C.L. 103 pts./2002 T.C.L. 140 pts./2003 T.C.L. 106 pts./2004 T.C.L. 110 pts./2005 T.C.L. 103 pts.); Rich Avery (2000 T.C.L. 129 pts./2004 V.C.L. 102 pts.); Wes Avery (2005 T.C.L. 129 pts./2009 T.C.L. 117 pts.); Matt Beltran (1999 T.C.L. 104 pts.); Gordon Caudle (2000 T.C.L. 120 pts.); Kurt Chambers (2004 T.C.L. 100 pts.); Frank Fletcher (1994 T.C.L. 115 pts./1999 T.C.L. 169 pts.*/2000 T.C.L. 134 pts./2002 T.C.L. 146 pts./2003 T.C.L. 113 pts./2004 T.C.L. 111 pts./2004 V.C.L. 112 pts./2005 T.C.L. 134 pts./2005 V.C.L. 109 pts./2006 V.C.L. 111 pts./2007 V.C.L. 105 pts./2008 V.C.L. 102 pts.); Gene Hitt (1994 T.C.L. 108 pts./2000 T.C.L. 138 pts./2002 T.C.L. 121 pts./2005 T.C.L. 100 pts./2005 V.C.L. 106 pts.); Mike Lujan (2005 V.C.L. 101 pts./2006 V.C.L. 113 pts.); Joaquin Perez (2009 T.C.L. 112 pts./2009 T.C.L. 103 pts.); Rene Regalado (1999 T.C.L. 109 pts./2000 T.C.L. 120 pts.); John Souza (1994 T.C.L. 122 pts.); Steve Stafford (2006 V.C.L. 106 pts./2007 V.C.L. 100 pts./2008 V.C.L. 103 pts.); Art Tabacco (2005 V.C.L. 116 pts.); Nelson Vieira (2002 T.C.L. 114 pts./2004 T.C.L. 112 pts./2006 T.C.L. 114 pts.) 

*[record for highest league total] 

Heavy Metal Softball rocks!  And I'm not joking here.  You've been a great bunch of guys to play side-by-side with, men! All kidding aside, I was really proud of our efforts, most especially the consistent team attitude displayed. I tip my cap off to all of you, as I know some of you come to play despite conflicting personal schedules, various aches and pains, balancing family and friends, and putting up with my managerial decisions. And so, in the meantime...keep rockin', guys -- and stay healthy for our next campaign!

First, as always, I want to thank all of the players who represented Heavy Metal Softball this weekend for their effort, help, and cooperation in making our sixth tournament of the year a somewhat successful effort -- in the sense that we were very competitive against some roughly comparable teams.  Here are some final tournament statistics for those who actually visit our website and are truly interested in such things.  I would like to state here again that unlike previous seasons a couple of years ago -- when I published an extensive summary of each tournament regardless of the outcome -- I will only do so if we achieve playoff status or have a winning record, with just a bare-bones tournament rundown for those events of little distinction.  So, without further adieu, I present some facts from this particular contest:

Slugfest Super 7 Series, Tournament #5 Summary --

Tournament Record:  0-3 (Another sad chapter!)
                                1st game:  Lost 9-12 vs. Deadweight
                                2nd game:  Lost 8-17 vs. Loose Cannons
                                3rd game:  Lost 7-12 vs. Roadkill  

Team Statistics (alphabetically):

Donny Aguiar -- 3 for 7; .429 BA; 15 points. 
Vern Amaro -- 5 for 9; .556 BA; 7 points.
Rich Avery -- 3 for 8; .375 BA; 14 points.
Wes Avery -- 2 for 10; .200 BA; 5 points.
Lucio Cobos -- 3 for 9; .333 BA; 15 points.
Lee Garcia -- 5 for 8; .625 BA; 12 points.
Gene Hitt -- 4 for 8; .500 BA; 15 points.
Brian Hollingshead -- 4 for 8; .500 BA; 17 points.
Johnny Lopez -- 4 for 9; .444 BA; 5 points.
Mike Lujan -- 2 for 10; .200 BA; 2 points.
Robert Matthews -- 3 for 7; .429 BA; 17 points.
Joaquin Perez -- 4 for 7; .571 BA; 12 points. 

Team Batting Average:  .416 (42 for 101; we averaged 8.0 runs/game for the whole tournament.  We need to definitely improve our team batting average, as this current one won't win games, much less tournaments....)

Tournament MVP:  Brian Hollingshead (17 points -- Sizzlin' Stick award!)

Manager's Award:  I would like to take this time now to recognize a few other players who shined just as brightly this weekend with their contributions to the team:  Vern Amaro, Lee Garcia, Robert Matthews, and Joaquin Perez. Their stats above speak for themselves, but their consistency throughout the tournament is what I noticed most and appreciated greatly -- here's a "hats-off" to all four of you!  

2009 Season Statistics (alphabetically; all players):

Donny Aguiar -- 28 for 52; .538 BA; 103 points (5 tournaments)
Vern Amaro -- 26 for 61; .426 BA; 72 points (6 tournaments)
Rich Avery -- 18 for 65; .277 BA; 75 points (6 tournaments)
Wes Avery -- 34 for 73; .466 BA; 110 points (6 tournaments)
Lucio Cobos -- 28 for 51; .549 BA; 97 points (5 tournaments)
Frank Fletcher -- 6 for 10; .600 BA; 20 points (1 tournament)
Lee Garcia -- 24 for 52; .462 BA; 64 points (5 tournaments)
Gene Hitt -- 9 for 25; .360 BA; 34 points (3 tournaments)
Brian Hollingshead -- 18 for 46; .391 BA; 50 points (5 tournaments)
Paul Lawrence -- 7 for 26; .269 BA; 36 points (3 tournaments)
Johnny Lopez -- 4 for 9; .444 BA; 5 points (1 tournament)
Mike Lujan -- 32 for 74; .432 BA; 93 points (6 tournaments)
Lencho Martinez -- 3 for 8; .375 BA; 13 points (1 tournament)
Robert Matthews -- 3 for 7; .429 BA; 17 points (1 tournament)
Steve McElmoyl -- 4 for 6; .667 BA; 10 points (1 tournament)
Joaquin Perez -- 6 for 16; .375 BA; 15 points (2 tournaments)
John Rodriguez -- 4 for 12; .333 BA; 12 points (1 tournament)
Devin Stafford -- 1 for 10; .100 BA; 10 points (1 tournament)
Steve Stafford -- 26 for 46; .565 BA; 122 points (4 tournaments)
Mike Vanaalst -- 16 for 33; .485 BA; 86 points (3 tournaments) 

Year-End Award Progress:  Steve McElmoyl still leads the race for the Batting Champions: Metal Men perpetual award bat, based on his one-tournament batting average of .667 -- but Frank Fletcher has made his move during this 2009 tournament tour with his own one-tournament batting average of .600 (Steve Stafford is third with a four-tournament batting average of .565). Please remember -- just in case everyone forgets -- a player must have played in a minimum of 5 tournaments to earn this recognition, which is something to think about when I ask everyone next time if they want to play some more ball in an upcoming tournament....

And, once again, that's all, folks!!!

First, as always, I want to thank all of the players who represented Heavy Metal Softball this weekend for their effort, help, and cooperation in making our fifth tournament of the year a somewhat successful effort -- in the sense that we were very competitive against some roughly comparable teams.  Here are some final tournament statistics for those who actually visit our website and are truly interested in such things.  I would like to state here again that unlike previous seasons a couple of years ago -- when I published an extensive summary of each tournament regardless of the outcome -- I will only do so if we achieve playoff status or have a winning record, with just a bare-bones tournament rundown for those events of little distinction.  So, without further adieu, I present some facts from this particular contest:

Killer Bees Softball Tournament Summary --

Tournament Record:  1-2 (second game a tough loss!)
                                1st game:  Lost 2-11 vs. Bad Boys
                                2nd game:  Lost 5-6 vs. It's All Good
                                3rd game:  Won 16-9 vs. Warriors  

Team Statistics (alphabetically):

Donny Aguiar -- 7 for 11; .636 BA; 15 points. 
Vern Amaro -- 3 for 7; .429 BA; 11 points.
Rich Avery -- 1 for 9; .111 BA; 5 points.
Wes Avery -- 3 for 10; .300 BA; 13 points.
Frank Fletcher -- 6 for 10; .600 BA; 20 points.
Lee Garcia -- 3 for 8; .375 BA; 10 points.
Gene Hitt -- 3 for 8; .375 BA; 11 points.
Brian Hollingshead -- 4 for 7; .571 BA; 13 points.
Mike Lujan -- 4 for 10; .400 BA; 16 points.
Steve McElmoyl -- 4 for 6; .667 BA; 10 points.
Joaquin Perez -- 2 for 9; .222 BA; 3 points. 

Team Batting Average:  .421 (40 for 95; we averaged 7.7 runs/game for the whole tournament.  We need to definitely improve our team batting average, as this current one won't win games, much less tournaments....)

Tournament MVP:  Frank Fletcher (20 points -- Sizzlin' Stick award!)

Manager's Award:  I would like to take this time now to recognize a few other players who shined just as brightly this weekend with their contributions to the team:  Donny Aguiar, Brian Hollingshead, and Steve McElmoyl. Their stats above speak for themselves, but their consistency throughout the tournament is what I noticed most and appreciated greatly -- here's a "hats-off" to all three of you!  

2009 Season Statistics (alphabetically; all players):

Donny Aguiar -- 25 for 45; .556 BA; 88 points (4 tournaments)
Vern Amaro -- 21 for 52; .404 BA; 65 points (5 tournaments)
Rich Avery -- 15 for 57; .263 BA; 61 points (5 tournaments)
Wes Avery -- 32 for 63; .508 BA; 105 points (5 tournaments)
Lucio Cobos -- 25 for 42; .595 BA; 82 points (4 tournaments)
Frank Fletcher -- 6 for 10; .600 BA; 20 points (1 tournament)
Lee Garcia -- 19 for 44; .432 BA; 52 points (4 tournaments)
Gene Hitt -- 5 for 17; .294 BA; 19 points (2 tournaments)
Brian Hollingshead -- 14 for 38; .368 BA; 33 points (4 tournaments)
Paul Lawrence -- 7 for 26; .269 BA; 36 points (3 tournaments)
Mike Lujan -- 30 for 64; .469 BA; 91 points (5 tournaments)
Lencho Martinez -- 3 for 8; .375 BA; 13 points (1 tournament)
Steve McElmoyl -- 4 for 6; .667 BA; 10 points (1 tournament)
Joaquin Perez -- 2 for 9; .222 BA; 3 points (1 tournament)
John Rodriguez -- 4 for 12; .333 BA; 12 points (1 tournament)
Devin Stafford -- 1 for 10; .100 BA; 10 points (1 tournament)
Steve Stafford -- 26 for 46; .565 BA; 122 points (4 tournaments)
Mike Vanaalst -- 16 for 33; .485 BA; 86 points (3 tournaments) 

Year-End Award Progress:  Steve McElmoyl now leads the race for the Batting Champions: Metal Men perpetual award bat, based on his one-tournament batting average of .667 -- but Frank Fletcher has made his move during this 2009 tournament tour with his own one-tournament batting average of .600 (Lucio "Bubba" Cobos is third with a four-tournament batting average of .595). Please remember -- just in case everyone forgets -- a player must have played in a minimum of 5 tournaments to earn this recognition, which is something to think about when I ask everyone next time if they want to play some more ball in an upcoming tournament....

And, once again, that's all, folks!!!

Our Team's Highest Award Couldn't Have Gone To A More Deserving Guy!!!

After the Tulare Spring 2009 league campaign, Steve Stafford made it a repeat to the upper echelon of Heavy Metal elite by capturing his third league MVP award. In the near future, he will be presented with the coveted Heavy Metal Softball league MVP Circle of Honor plaque by team manager, Vern Amaro. MVP! MVP! MVP! -- you deserve it, my friend!     

Finally, here are the results, in short summary, of the MVP balloting that took place recently in which most of you participated. A special thanks to everyone who voted by replying to my repeated e-mail messages (remember, tournament MVPs will still be selected using our time-honored offensive points system). Fourteen Heavy Metal Softball regular members were eligible to vote this time, having participated in the Tulare City, Thursday Men's, spring 2009 league. In order of highest cumulative point total, with adjoining number of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place votes, here is this league's MVP and the rest of the worthy contenders:

League MVP: Steve Stafford (29 total points -- 5 first place votes, 1 second place vote, 1 third place vote. Great offensive effort!)

1st Runner-Up: Joaquin Perez (28 total points -- 5 first place votes, 1 second place vote. Your effort is always really appreciated!)

2nd Runner-Up: Lencho Martinez (13 total points -- 1 first place vote, 2 second place votes, 2 third place votes. Good job, buddy!)

3rd Runner-Up: Brian Hollingshead (9 total points -- 1 first place vote, 1 second place vote, 1 third place vote. Take a bow!)

4th Runner-Up: Mike Lujan (8 total points -- 2 second place votes, 2 third place votes.  Somebody loves you!)

5th Runner-Up: Lee Garcia (7 total points -- 1 second place vote, 4 third place votes. Somebody, I know, we can count on!)

6th Runner-Up: Donny Aguiar (6 total points -- 2 second place votes. Always showing how consistent batters do it!)

7th Runner-Up: Lucio Cobos (4 total points -- 1 second place vote, 1 third place vote.  Make room for the youth movement!)

8th Runner-Up: Wes Avery (3 total points -- 1 second place vote.  Good league effort!)

9th Runner-Up: Frank Fletcher (1 total point -- 1 third place vote.  Always in consideration!)

In the interest of integrity and not wanting to violate any trust, I kept meticulous records of all the oral and online ballots that I received from the 12 regular members who decided to vote. As it turned out, this was as close an MVP race as we've ever had. Lucio Cobos and Lencho Martinez were asked to vote, but for reasons of their own -- whether technical or philosophical -- both did not choose to do so this time around. Once again, let these words be of warning: Rule #1 -- If a player decides not to participate in the balloting to determine our league MVP, he will remain unqualified to receive this honor, despite perhaps receiving the most cumulative points (the honor will be bestowed upon the next eligible player in line). This rule has been instituted to enforce fairness with the outcome of the voting -- in other words, as you give, so shall you receive. Two other rules also affect a player's MVP eligibility: Rule #2 -- At least half the games of a league/tournament must be played; and Rule #3 -- The agreed-upon league/tournament participation fee must be paid. I'm sure everyone can see the need for such rules. I, myself, voted for who I thought were three deserving men. Because I am the ballot collector and, also, because the results could possibly hinge upon my final selections, I always believe it is wise to make clear my own personal choices for MVP, hopefully without offending any of my other close friends on the team, who already know that only three choices can be given. My votes, in order, were: Joaquin Perez (1st place vote); Donny Aguiar (2nd place vote); and Lencho Martinez (3rd place vote). I will not give any specific reasons for my choices (none of us have to), but I will say that I really appreciated these men for the contributions they made during this league. In all actuality, everyone on this team is deemed valuable, both on and off the field. I hope all of you will understand this personal feeling of mine, and why I have such a difficult time revealing my selections. But I feel I must. No other selections from specific team members will be revealed unless one of you is curious and wants to inquire, in which case, I'll gladly let you know. And, once again, a sincere thanks to all of you.

And that's another league MVP wrap for now, folks....