Let me get this out of the way before I even begin. As I logged into my account to write this post, I noticed that my last post was October 1st, 2010. That's just shy of one year ago. To my loyal (9) fans, I apologize. It's been a learning experience, though. Before I started this blog, I thought I was super interesting and that I'd have a plethora of stories to tell and experiences to share. Apparently, I had 10.
The reason I'm back today is because I can't contain my excitement(!). And Jay Solomon told me I had to write (see blog post named Erin for previous posts that were posted due to pressure and influence). Last night we won the B'nai Brith B1 Division Modified Pitch Softball Championship. For those of you not in the know, it's merely steps (86) below professional baseball. In all seriousness, though, it's a good league with some great baseball players. And we are not just champions, we are Back 2 Back Champions. See the post from last year after the championship to relive the magic!
The night was not short on drama. The series was a best 2 out of 3 and with the unstoppable rain on Monday (they were having trouble closing the roof on the field), we were forced to play games 1 and 2 in a doubleheader Tuesday night. Doubleheaders used to be exciting. Now they are painful.
Game 1 started off terribly for us (GreenGold Athletics). After the top of the 1st inning, we were down 7-0. We had some climbing to do. We chipped our way back and had the game tied by the time we hit the 3rd inning. Both teams were hitting well all game and in the last inning, we stepped up our attack until the umpires finally called the game due to time and runs. GreenGold were officially up 1-0 in the series. It was a real team effort. And by team effort, I mean me. I had a grand slam and 7 RBI in that game. Timely hitting from the top of the order to the bottom was the key to victory. And our cool as a cucumber pitcher Sammy Zahler was unbelievably solid and reliable as usual. After the game, Sammy said to the sideline reporter: "Get me back out there for game 2, I'm in a f*&kin' groove." Couldn't have said it better myself.
We dug ourselves a similar hole in game 2. In fact, in game 2 we played from behind the entire game. Everytime we'd chip away, they would throw a few more runs on the board. This game had it all. Zaldin hit another of his 3 homeruns on the night, Wally stole home, Greenspoon consistently hit the ball hard and found holes, Berger played through a fracture in his foot to make great plays at 3rd and short, Tenny hit a grandslam in the top of the 7th to take our 1st lead, Soly hit the ball hard and launched rockets from his post in right field, Grossman mashed a ball and showed patience at the plate, Matty came back from injury without losing a step to hit and run like the wind, Zach called a great game behind the plate and had a few timely hits and Sammy hit a homerun like The Natural. I think it's still waiting to land. Oh, and me? I hit another grand slam. No big deal.
But a special shout out goes Baum. The guy shows up to the 2nd game in the 5th inning in a suit (he's like Superman!). He puts on a show for the fans by undressing in front of them and then he looks like the Baum we know and love. Socks up to his knees, pants tucked into socks and shirt tucked into pants. He pitched the last 2 innings like Mariano Rivera. He didn't let up a run and was dominant. And he had a huge hit to go along with it. But the end needs more explaining.
There was a time limit on the game. The game had to end by 10:45pm. We scored 6 runs in our last at bats to take a 4-run lead, but it was 10:35pm. If the game goes beyond 10:45pm, it reverts back to the last inning's score (where we were losing). We made the strategic decision to get out as quickly as possible to try and get the other team out in their half of the inning before time was up. After a few sloppy outs, we hustled into the field. The other team was furious, but what were we to do? It was either continue hitting and lose, or play some strategy. The other team was so flustered by our strategy that they went 3-up and 3-down with some amazing catches from Wally and stellar pitching from Baum.
And that's that. We're back 2 back champions and even though we have some guys in pain today, we've got the fall and winter to nurse our wounds. Today we are champions and that makes the pain just a little more tolerable.
Next year we go for the 3-peat. Is it May yet?
