Ball Five: Girl Power
May. 26th, 2006 01:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penfieldSome softball games have personality, where players' attitudes and emotions take on a sort of synergistic quality; there are angry games, sad games, sweaty games and drunk games. Then there are other games with no personality, where it feels like you are playing in a vat of mashed potatoes; affect is flat, morale is low and even the most routine actions feel fragmented and awkward, like a blind date.
Last night's game was all of those things. It had everything:
* We were playing on Thursday, a change from our usual Wednesday, and the schedule anomaly wreaked havoc with our regular roster, including many of our best players. We were forced to go with only 9 fielders, leaving three outfielders to cover a patch of territory roughly the size of Nebraska. (I usually play with my green team on Thursdays, but I promised the Blue Team Manager that I would play with them if my presence was needed, which it apparently was. I feel kind of bad about that, especially since my Green Team regularly has problems fielding a team even when I do show up. But Blue contacted me first, and organizational communication and preparation go a long way with me.)
* Thursday is also the most popular day for softball on the mall, and teams were squeezing their games onto the grass wherever they could. One opportunistic team actually set up camp in our outfield, leaving those three outfielders to combat not just the setting sun and the huge outfield gaps, but also the intruding team's players and the nagging worry of being struck in the head by a flying ball.
* The weather gave us our first real taste of summer heat -- an appetizer, if you will -- as the temperature climbed into the upper 70s with 80 percent humidity as late as 6 p.m. We were probably fortunate to avoid a thunderstorm, but that did not save us from getting wet; I soaked through my cap and t-shirt and played most of the game with an athletic undershirt on; with my shaved head I looked like a German club dancer from the future.
* The team we were playing was, at first blush, a team of loud, arrogant, trash-talking assholes. Several of them appeared to have mild pitutiary disorders and one charming individual actually verbally harassed an elderly passerby. Playing uncomfortably, we spent the first few innings fuming and flailing at the plate, with predictably minimal results.
* We finally took a 6-3 lead in the top of the fourth, but promptly gave 7 runs right back in the bottom of the inning through a demoralizing series of goofs, gaffes and gopherballs. Big innings like this are common in softball, as errors tend to accumulate with more baserunners. Likewise, errors tend to accelerate as the fielders begin to tire and their focus drifts toward post-game libations.
* Aside from that, though, our defense played pretty well. We held them scoreless in four of seven innings, and even wrapped the bottom of the 5th in crisp three-up, three-down fashion. They were starting to get quieter, perhaps because their jaw muscles were worn out. We were getting more drunk, thanks to a supply of frothy beverages on the sideline.
* Then we promptly threw up another zero in the top of the sixth, and they responded with another two runs in the bottom to go up 12-8. (Yes, I'm aware I just used the phrases "threw up a doughnut" and "runs in the bottom." I'm writing this quickly; give me a break.)
* We finally responded in the top of the last inning, with six runs. The key moment was a 2-RBI triple by T., our petite (in size only) second base-woman, who launched a fly ball clear over the head of the centerfielder, whose "Aw, shit" was audible from our bench. As I have alluded in the past, female players can be hard to come by and are sometimes plucked off the street; the prevailing strategy is to assume that they are not softball players and cannot hit for shit, and therefore the infield and outfield can be brought in close to the plate. It is therefore thoroughly satisfying when a girl muscles up and takes them deep, like the athletic equivalent of Margaret Thatcher in 1979.
* As we were racking up the runs in the last inning, the sun was stubbornly setting on our game. I was worried that by the time the other team got their last ups, it would be too dark to continue and we would have to revert to the score at the end of the sixth.
* We kept playing, though, and they came up to bat with us on top 14-12. With one out and a runner on second, one of their big hitters golfed a tailing fly ball into right field, where C., another of our lady players, was patrolling. For most teams, this is an easy hit and an easy run. But C. drifted under the ball and stuck her glove out, and the ball landed safely in her glove. I'm not sure how well she even saw the ball against the dusky sky, and C. actually seemed more surprised than anybody to have caught it. We quickly retired their next batter and left the field victorious, for the most satisfying win in a while.
Thursday, May 25
Blue Team (3-1)
WIN, 14-12
BATTING: 2-5, 1 triple, 1 HR, 3 runs, 4 RBI
PITCHING: N/A
FIELDING: 7 innings, 2 errors
First At-Bat: Sharp ground ball to the left side of the infield; I didn't see the play but the shortstop must have bobbled it because I made it to first base without a throw. Call it an error.
Second At-Bat: Soft liner to center, caught
Third At-Bat: Smoked shot past the third baseman for what would be a double in most cases. I didn't see how the defense handled it, but I did make it all the way around the bases so I'll give myself a cheap home run.
Fourth At-Bat: Hard line-out, right at the left-centerfielder. Probably the best ball I hit all night.
Fifth At-Bat: Triple, over the head of the right-centerfielder.
As for the two errors, one was clearly my fault: I dropped an easy out at first base, a blunder that I don't think led to any runs. The other was a play in the first inning where I was accused of coming off the base stretching for a throw. It's possible that I was off the base -- it's hard to tell when they are so flat -- but I thought it was a weaselly call for a beer league softball game. Especially since, if I had been on the base, I almost certainly would have tripped the runner. In hindsight that would have been much better.
Season-to-Date:
BATTING: 21 AB, 11 hits (.524 AVG) 3 doubles, 1 triple, 3 HR (1.190 SLG) 11 runs, 13 RBI
PITCHING: 14 innings, 48 runs (24.00 RA, per 7 innings; 30.86 RA, per 9)
FIELDING: 32 innings, 2 errors
Last night's game was all of those things. It had everything:
* We were playing on Thursday, a change from our usual Wednesday, and the schedule anomaly wreaked havoc with our regular roster, including many of our best players. We were forced to go with only 9 fielders, leaving three outfielders to cover a patch of territory roughly the size of Nebraska. (I usually play with my green team on Thursdays, but I promised the Blue Team Manager that I would play with them if my presence was needed, which it apparently was. I feel kind of bad about that, especially since my Green Team regularly has problems fielding a team even when I do show up. But Blue contacted me first, and organizational communication and preparation go a long way with me.)
* Thursday is also the most popular day for softball on the mall, and teams were squeezing their games onto the grass wherever they could. One opportunistic team actually set up camp in our outfield, leaving those three outfielders to combat not just the setting sun and the huge outfield gaps, but also the intruding team's players and the nagging worry of being struck in the head by a flying ball.
* The weather gave us our first real taste of summer heat -- an appetizer, if you will -- as the temperature climbed into the upper 70s with 80 percent humidity as late as 6 p.m. We were probably fortunate to avoid a thunderstorm, but that did not save us from getting wet; I soaked through my cap and t-shirt and played most of the game with an athletic undershirt on; with my shaved head I looked like a German club dancer from the future.
* The team we were playing was, at first blush, a team of loud, arrogant, trash-talking assholes. Several of them appeared to have mild pitutiary disorders and one charming individual actually verbally harassed an elderly passerby. Playing uncomfortably, we spent the first few innings fuming and flailing at the plate, with predictably minimal results.
* We finally took a 6-3 lead in the top of the fourth, but promptly gave 7 runs right back in the bottom of the inning through a demoralizing series of goofs, gaffes and gopherballs. Big innings like this are common in softball, as errors tend to accumulate with more baserunners. Likewise, errors tend to accelerate as the fielders begin to tire and their focus drifts toward post-game libations.
* Aside from that, though, our defense played pretty well. We held them scoreless in four of seven innings, and even wrapped the bottom of the 5th in crisp three-up, three-down fashion. They were starting to get quieter, perhaps because their jaw muscles were worn out. We were getting more drunk, thanks to a supply of frothy beverages on the sideline.
* Then we promptly threw up another zero in the top of the sixth, and they responded with another two runs in the bottom to go up 12-8. (Yes, I'm aware I just used the phrases "threw up a doughnut" and "runs in the bottom." I'm writing this quickly; give me a break.)
* We finally responded in the top of the last inning, with six runs. The key moment was a 2-RBI triple by T., our petite (in size only) second base-woman, who launched a fly ball clear over the head of the centerfielder, whose "Aw, shit" was audible from our bench. As I have alluded in the past, female players can be hard to come by and are sometimes plucked off the street; the prevailing strategy is to assume that they are not softball players and cannot hit for shit, and therefore the infield and outfield can be brought in close to the plate. It is therefore thoroughly satisfying when a girl muscles up and takes them deep, like the athletic equivalent of Margaret Thatcher in 1979.
* As we were racking up the runs in the last inning, the sun was stubbornly setting on our game. I was worried that by the time the other team got their last ups, it would be too dark to continue and we would have to revert to the score at the end of the sixth.
* We kept playing, though, and they came up to bat with us on top 14-12. With one out and a runner on second, one of their big hitters golfed a tailing fly ball into right field, where C., another of our lady players, was patrolling. For most teams, this is an easy hit and an easy run. But C. drifted under the ball and stuck her glove out, and the ball landed safely in her glove. I'm not sure how well she even saw the ball against the dusky sky, and C. actually seemed more surprised than anybody to have caught it. We quickly retired their next batter and left the field victorious, for the most satisfying win in a while.
Thursday, May 25
Blue Team (3-1)
WIN, 14-12
BATTING: 2-5, 1 triple, 1 HR, 3 runs, 4 RBI
PITCHING: N/A
FIELDING: 7 innings, 2 errors
First At-Bat: Sharp ground ball to the left side of the infield; I didn't see the play but the shortstop must have bobbled it because I made it to first base without a throw. Call it an error.
Second At-Bat: Soft liner to center, caught
Third At-Bat: Smoked shot past the third baseman for what would be a double in most cases. I didn't see how the defense handled it, but I did make it all the way around the bases so I'll give myself a cheap home run.
Fourth At-Bat: Hard line-out, right at the left-centerfielder. Probably the best ball I hit all night.
Fifth At-Bat: Triple, over the head of the right-centerfielder.
As for the two errors, one was clearly my fault: I dropped an easy out at first base, a blunder that I don't think led to any runs. The other was a play in the first inning where I was accused of coming off the base stretching for a throw. It's possible that I was off the base -- it's hard to tell when they are so flat -- but I thought it was a weaselly call for a beer league softball game. Especially since, if I had been on the base, I almost certainly would have tripped the runner. In hindsight that would have been much better.
Season-to-Date:
BATTING: 21 AB, 11 hits (.524 AVG) 3 doubles, 1 triple, 3 HR (1.190 SLG) 11 runs, 13 RBI
PITCHING: 14 innings, 48 runs (24.00 RA, per 7 innings; 30.86 RA, per 9)
FIELDING: 32 innings, 2 errors
