Beat Down in Brockton

If we are the Defenders of New Hampshire, then I guess you could say that for the last two nights we have gone on an offensive into enemy territory. Our advances were pushed back both nights and we limped back to our base of operations via coach bus. Game 1 in Brockton was a heartbreaking 4-3 loss. Our pitching and defense epitomized "bend but don't break" and our offense was able to do just enough to keep us in the game. The game was knotted at three in the bottom of the 9th and the Brockton fans were being whipped into a frenzy by the scenes of inspirational movie moments being shown on the jumbotron. It was actually very well done by whoever spliced all of the scenes and lines together. Although they used scenes from about 20 different movies, the lines all fit together into one gigantic inspirational speech. The Rox must have enjoyed it as well because after 3 short plate appearances (base hit, base hit, base hit) the game was over. One interesting side note for the Defenders....tonight featured the first plate appearance of our very own Roy Hobbs, also known as Rob Riley. Hobbs was played by Robert Redford in "The Natural" and was this great ball player who started as a pitcher but an injury forced him convert to hitting and he flat out dominated the game. Well, Riley is our Hobbs. He is primarily a left handed pitcher but can also play the outfield. Since a two-way player in pro ball is basically unheard of, I gave him the nickname "Roy Hobbs". Our Roy actually got his first pro hit in his second at-bat. It wasn't quite the light tower shot of his namesake, but a hit is a hit.

In game two Brockton caught us off guard and defeated us using the "divide and conquer" method of battle tactics. They divided us by routing both our offensive and pitching efforts. We scored 5 early and the game had all the makings of a win. Then in the top of the 6th, they exploded for 9 runs and we could only manage one run after the second inning. The final score, THEM 15 US 6. The biggest news out of game two was that our organization made a change and relieved our general manager of his duties. Former Red Sox GM Dan Duquette has taken over as president and general manager. The personnel moves made by the organization early on have made one thing very clear - everyone's job is on the line and they want people in place that are going to get the job done, whether it be as a player or a member of team management. The good news is that Duquette has 14 years experience at the game's highest levels, it can never be a bad thing to have a guy like him running the show.

In amateur baseball news, the St. Mark's Spartans (aka the evil empire!) have won yet another Delaware state baseball title. Let me see if I can list all of these 85, 88, 94, 97, 99, 03, 04, 05, 07 and 09. It is a true dynasty and one that I will always feel very much connected to no matter how far I may stray from the hill top guard rail. A large majority of my early baseball memories have to do with St. Mark's baseball. In fact, I think it safe to say that it was that program that truly laid the groundwork for my approach to the game of baseball. Just like Ray Kinsella in "Field of Dreams", instead of mother goose, I was put to bed by stories about Simmons, Lynch, Wallace, Nichols, Mench and August. In fact there is one player, Mark Zych, who will probably never read this and he will also probably never know that HE is responsible for the relentless hustle which has become a trademark of my game. You see, Mark Zych was not nearly the best player on the 1994 team but what I remember about him was that anywhere he went, he ran there. I was too young to understand it then but I now realize that it takes NO talent to hustle and you can ALWAYS control your effort. I remember watching games on the hill as a youngster waiting for the day when I would play the games that shaped the tradition of the program. I remember the 88 title game, not very well, but I remember being there. I remember 94 when a pitcher, Brad Silcox, made a miraculous catch in left field to save the quarterfinal game against some downstate team (the head coach pulled off one of the gutsiest moves I have ever heard of in that game, intentionally walking a batter with the bases loaded - yes, you read that right). That was the year of arguably the best Spartan team ever, with 3 draft picks (August, Nichols, Borkowski) and a future big leaguer, Kevin Mench. I recall the 97 team because it was dad's last year at the helm and they sent him out a winner. I recall Smitty's first in 99 and I know all to well the heartbreak associated with the 01 and 02 seasons when, in my biased opinion, two of the most physically talented Spartan teams in recent history failed to raise a banner. I remember being proud to see my brother pile on his teammates in 03 and I also remember the pain associated with thinking about him watching the 04 title game from outside the gates of Frawley after an umpire ejected him in the semi's. The 2009 season belongs to a group of Spartan players who probably have little idea how they fit into the larger history of that program but one thing is for certain, anyone who has worn that green and gold has been able to achieve great things because of all those that came before and I am so proud to have made a contribution, no matter how minuscule, to that legacy. The names have changed and there are dugouts and a fence around the outfield now but the story is the same, St. Mark's, State Champs!!

Finally, I have noticed that my following has increased to 12 members. I also have received various words of encouragement from several readers and for that I want to thank you all. I never really knew if anyone was going to read this thing but I have been thinking, "if people are reading, why not give them some say in what is posted?" Therefore, if anyone ever has anything that they would specifically like to hear about in the form of my blogging, please feel free to attach a comment with your query and I will respond to it in my next posting. I only ask you to remember one thing that I'm sure was mentioned to you by a teacher at some point, "there are NO such thing as bad questions".