NM State Aggies vs UTEP Miners Volleyball 9-19-17

This regional rivalry event was the featured outing for my vacation, so I was looking forward to it.  Aggie Athletic Director, Mario Moccia, was on El Paso Sports Talk on the radio yesterday to promote the football game between the Aggies and Miners this weekend.  He made a point of promoting this volleyball match too, and that free tacos would be distributed there.  That last part seemed to pique the interest of the show’s audience.

Just as a bit of a sidebar, Director Moccia really made an honest plea for El Paso fans to come to the football game, all but saying “We need the money.”  He’d even gone to see UTEP’s game against Arizona last weekend as a “date night” with his wife.  Yeah, I don’t think an athletic director taking his wife to a rival school’s football game qualifies as a date either, unless she’s really into football.  He also talked about the “Stuff the Stadium” promotion against Troy last weekend.  I didn’t write the numbers down at the time, but I think this about right.  He’d said there were 15,000 at the game.  100 local businesses bought 7,500 tickets.  The university doesn’t jack with attendance figures as policy, they just count everyone who comes through the gate, though he wasn’t sure that the student fan count was correct at the game.  Wow, 100 businesses bought half the tickets for the game!  That’s some impressive community outreach and support.  Like I wrote elsewhere, they should build on that.

I went early to the volleyball game, expecting a good crowd.  There were already a good number of people there.  I might put the crowd at 2,000+ when the match started (and they stayed to the end).  [Edit: It was officially 1,200.]  It seemed like there were more students than usual too.  (I might have seen the soccer team there, returning the favor to volleyball team.)  I’m not sure there was much UTEP representation, but certainly they were drowned out if they were there.  Tickets for the game were $7, $2 more than usual for a single game.  “$7?  Are we paying UTEP to come here and lose?” said one fan in the ticket office.  I was okay with it for this particular match.  Like Mario more-or-less said, they need the money.

The game programs have been disappointing.  It’s just the rosters, no stats or even the team record.  No new posters either.  (I’m kind of hoping for nice Jordan and KC posters.  The player pictures are better this year than last year.)  There was a table where they may have been giving out free t-shirts in return for pledging not to rape anybody.  I wasn’t quite sure.  The university department head in charge of the program was introduced on court during the match.  The PA actually stumbled over the name of the department because it was so long.  My only comment here is that I’m currently reading Milo Yiannopoulos’ book, Dangerous, and enjoying it.  If university invited him to speak (UNM did), he might have something else to say.

One item on the table was a brochure for the Aggie Volleyball Sideout Club.  I’d heard about this and wondered about the details.  It takes in money from the fans just for the volleyball team.  For $75, you get a t-shirt.  (If it was that red camo Aggie shirt I’ve been wanting, I might be sending them a check right now.)  Starting at the $125 level, you get a pass to their social dinners.  I’ve seen pictures.  You get to sit down and eat with the girls.  Taking a cue from Aggie soccer fans, you could go around the tables and scream directly at the girls to play better.  Starting at $500, you get a signed volleyball.  That would look nice on the mantle.  At the top level, $5000, you get hugs and kisses from the girls.  Oh, I read that wrong (maybe some wishful thinking).  You get a championship pendent if they win and a hug from Coach Mike Jordan (or at least you should).  Tonight’s game had an honorary fan coach, who got to sit on the bench and then listen to the coach chew the girls out.  This fan might have been part of the club. 

I’m not dismissing this.  I hope the other teams have similar clubs.  Under other personal circumstances, I’d consider joining.  There’s quite a few different ways to contribute to Aggie athletics beyond buying single-game tickets.  It might be good if a comprehensive list, along with fan benefits, was produced and made available at all Aggie sporting events.            

 

I picked the $6 Kid’s Meal at the concessions.  It was cheaper than the $8 Pete’s Combo, and I wanted popcorn instead of chips.  I can’t figure out the pricing.  Hot dogs are $2 outside the Pan Am Center, and $5 at the Pan Am Center, where I think the grill actually is.  And I’m still convinced they’re leftovers from this weekend’s football game.  (Hey, when the buns are stale again this week, like they were at soccer on Sunday, I make assumptions.)  I question drink sizes and pricing too.  Most value meals at fast food places virtually give you the drink, since it’s the least expensive part of the meal, but here the soda and water are near premium items.  If the food was better and had more variety, you could charge more and have happier fans.  This happens with the Chihuahuas’ concessions.  People don’t like the prices, but do like the food.  I’ve heard UTEP partners with local restaurants for a great menu (okay, maybe it wouldn’t be a terrible place to take a date).  This is a glaring and fixable problem with Aggie athletics.  What a great opportunity to partner with some local food establishments (and then later have your menu called “racist,” like the ’88 Beer incident).                   

No radio call tonight, since it’s on Aggievision.  Adam Young’s Tuesday Coaches Show was even cancelled.  (I wonder if I missed him saying the show would be on another day this week.)  Out on court, the teams were practicing.  The UTEP girls were nearly all tall and lean, like the UCLA team.  I don’t know anything else about them.  There were some little girls from a local volleyball team out on court as ballgirls.  One of them was wearing a knee brace.  That just hurt to see on somebody that young.  Coach Jordan chatted amicably with a couple of fans in the section behind the bench.  Out on court, Coach Ben Wallis hit a dig up to the ceiling and got a round of applause from the girls.  Pistol Pete went by the press table and said “Hello” to the PA.  This was a different Pete than before, he looks good, though on Flex Cam later, he posed with a baby and the baby started crying.  Just after I sat down to eat, I was wondering if I’d hear my favorite Aggie PA tune Lean On, and there it was immediately.  I took that as a very good sign. 

UTEP only brought 13 players, while the Aggies have 20, though at least one couldn’t play, probably more.  Bridgette Lowes’ hand was still wrapped, but she was practicing.  Megan Hart looked like she was jumping well in practice.  Julianna Salonoa was all smiles, but didn’t play.  (I’m just itching for her to play and do well.  I may be waiting until next year.)  Jordan Abalos looked serious and unhappy.  Here’s one case, where I wish I could talk to a player and say something encouraging.  Up on the video board, there was an image advertising season tickets which showcased her . . . well . . . chest, but I don’t think that was bothering her.  (Out of the all the promotional pictures of Jordan the marketing department must have, they picked a headless one?)

Another message on the board promoted a Homecoming-ish rally downtown on October 20.  It’s going to be a free event and feature all the Aggie teams.  This is a nice idea (I’ll be at work though).  A group of students were settled next to the Miner bench, but I don’t think they were giving the team too much trouble (maybe they were from UTEP).  For the introductions, the lights went out and the team video played.  Some of the Miners were watching it.  I held my breath (as probably did the arena staff) and thankfully the lights came back up.  I guess they fixed that problem.

Photo from Las Cruces Sun-News

This picture came out after the match on Thursday.  My dad immediately noticed me in the upper right of the picture.  I took the picture to work and the security officer said, "Oh, I thought I saw you in that picture this morning."  That's very observant.  I just wish the picture featured me standing and cheering.  Great shot of Lia Mosher. 

Set 1

Two and a half pages in, let’s actually talk about the match.  Ari Sierra put in an ace at 3-1, Aggies.  Megan Hart started.  She had a good idea on an overpass, but hit it out, 4-2, but she came back on a messy point with a kill, 5-3.  6-5 KC Tohm was called for a foul.  The coach got on to ref and the fans joined in heckling like it was a baseball game.  KC came back with a tip kill at 7-5.  It’s always good to see the girls get a good play right after a bad one.  10-8 was a point with epic digging and was finished by Sasha-Lee Thomas with a hard kill. 

12-8 Briana Ainsworth served in an ace.  Her next two points were hard fought, but went to the Aggies.  Timeout.  The place erupted for a cheerleader t-shirt toss into a crowd.   Briana also got a soft little tip for a kill at 15-10.  16-11 Sasha buried a kill into two defenders.  17-12, Tatyana Battle laid out diving for a ball and just missed.  Ari piped up and yelled out encouragement to the team.  As I’ve mentioned before, she is their vocal leader.  17-15, the coach was about to blow after two balls in a row were hit out. 

Photo from Las Cruces Sun-News

21-17 timeout UTEP.  While Coach Wallis spoke to one of the girls individually, Coach Jordan stared at the players sitting on the bench for a minute while waiting for her.  That was more intimidating than when he actually starting yelling at them.  This guy is terrifying.  I don’t know if he should be coaching young women, maybe leading Marines over a hill under fire.  22-17 Jordan served an ace, which was part of a good run on her serve.  Her balls arced over the net and straight down to the floor.  It seemed like an unexpected trajectory from a standing serve and caused the defenders problems.  There were three set points for the Aggies before Lia Mosher finished it with a kill at 25-19.                                  

Set 2: Aggies 1, Miners 0

This game started well with an overpass kill by Brielle Sterns, 1-0 Aggies.  2-1 Ari and Tatyana made a couple of great digs, but it was a UTEP point.  The Miners followed up with a dump kill and an overpass kill and started to take the lead.  4-7 UTEP, Jordan missed on a kill.  I looked up at the scoreboard.  She had no kills to that point.  5-7 Sasha got a kill to break up a UTEP run.  6-10 UTEP, a ball dropped in the middle of the Aggie side of the court.  A knowledgeable fan behind me started yelling at the girls to cover the middle.  Was it an Aggie soccer fan?  (I was making a joke about this at the Sunday soccer match and here it was actually happening.) 

The Aggies managed to get back in with some great block kills from the Sasha and Brielle working together.  Sasha got a kill to tie it at 12 and the lead at 14-13 with Brielle on a block.  18-15 Jordan got her first kill on a tip.  19-16 Jordan hit one hard enough at a defender that the crowd actually gasped.  It wasn’t a kill, but the Miners didn’t get it back over.  I sense Jordan was taking out some frustration with that shot.  24-19 Briana saved a point on a Miner dump shot.  On set point, the crowd started doing the “Aggies!” chant that usually only comes up during basketball games.  25-19 Sasha and Brielle again on a block for the set.

Set 3: Aggies 2, Miners 0

And here it was, the moment we were all waiting for at halftime: free tacos.  They were rolled tacos, so I didn’t care, but the cheerleaders had no trouble handing them out to fans not so picky.  A remix of Herb Alpert’s Tequila played, while the PA riffed over it.  Director Moccia came in on the sidelines to supervise.  It was another great moment in Aggie athletics. 

1-2 UTEP, the Miners got in an ace, but in the middle of three net serves early in the set.  Sasha didn’t start.  6-7 UTEP, KC had a kill.  She just majestically flew through the air for it.  (They know they look cool out there, don’t they?)  7-9 UTEP, the Miners won an epic point.  It felt like it took a full minute to play out.  9-10 UTEP, Sasha got a kill to change the momentum.  Ari came up to serve and got four straight points to 14-13 Aggies.  Her serves were going right to the back line, but too close to let go. 

19-15 Tatyana took three swings on the point before getting the kill.  21-15 Sasha got her tenth kill.  21-16 Kaylee Neal had two fantastic digs that covered both ends of the court.  The crowd gave her the loudest cheer of the night.  Annoyingly, the Aggies didn’t win that point.  Sasha came up big with two more kills to finish at 12 for the night.  On the first match point, Jordan Pleasants came in to serve.  Jordan Abalos got her fourth kill to end it, 25-18 and 3-0 Aggies.

Like I said, I don’t know anything about UTEP’s team, but they played hard, occasionally showing some nerves (especially on serve).  They were just out-muscled, specifically by the Aggies’ Jamaican import, Sasha-Lee Thomas.  Once again, she took over a match, smacking unstoppable kills directly into the court like she was pounding nails.  She got in her big points in an absolutely demoralizing fashion against the Miners.  Not to mention, Sasha was putting up a wall at the net on defense.  Tatyana Battle put 9 kills and KC Tohms (I think) had 8.  With those three on, it was going to be hard to win against the Aggies. 

Of course the name missing from this list is the captain, Jordan Abalos.  She played the entire the match and probably had her usual double-digit digs and was enthusiastic by the end of the match.  She just didn’t get her usual double-digit kills.  Like I said, she looked unhappy before the match started.  Is she injured?  I’ve seen Jordan come up hurting from diving on the floor for digs, not jumping from spikes or blocks.  If she’s not right, the team has plenty of defensive players that could have cycled in for her for a few points.  Did the coach designate the other girls as the main attack options to see how they’d do?  If that wasn’t it, at least they did do a good job in Jordan’s offensive absence.  Jordan is awesome regardless.                   

I’d hoped Megan Hart would see significant time since she started, but I don’t think I saw her in after the first set.  I’ve seen her be good on offense on a bad leg.  She can jump now, so she should be even better.  I think Megan needs more playing time to be a force.  That time could be hard to find with freshmen Lia Mosher and Brielle Sterns doing so well on defense.  Pairing Brielle and Sasha on defense is working very well.  I get a sense that Coach Jordan is still trying to figure out what he has to work with on the team and who he can depend on.  I think the team got caught short-handed at the end of last season in perceived talent, though perhaps not actual talent.  I hope nobody gets sold short on a chance, because you never know when you’re going to need another option.        

When I got home, I got a little bonus volleyball on the Stadium Network.  It was another Mountain West game, this time between Nevada and San Jose St.  Unlike, Boise St.’s full gym (9-15-17), Nevada’s was just about empty for this match.  I think the Aggies could have taken either of these two teams from what I saw.  Hey, they’re playing that Lean On song there, too!  It was great to see such a well-attended match and passionate crowd at the Pan Am Center.  The Aggies really took care of business tonight, which is good to see before conference play.   

Baseball Journal September 16-17, 2017

9-16-17

Chihuahuas versus Redbirds, PCL Championship, Game 4.  The Chihuahuas had Double-A pitcher, Jacob Nix, making his Triple-A debut on the mound.  He got into some early trouble in the first two innings, but worked out of it both times.  In the bottom of the second, Nick Buss tried to score on a double from first, but was thrown out at the plate. 

The third was the definitive inning.  Rafael Ortega singled in a run.  The crowd started chanting, “We want a hit!”  Hunter Renfroe sacrificed in a run, then Buss hit a three-run homer, 5-0 Chihuahuas.  In the sixth, sloppy ball-handling led to a Redbirds’ run, 5-1, and they left a runner stranded on third.  Things got busy for me in the seventh.  In baseball, Nyx came out of the game with one on, and two outs.  He got a standing ovation.  Jason Jester finished off the inning. 

Simultaneously in the seventh, the Canelo/Triple G fight started.  Also, the NM State Aggies football game versus Troy was finishing.  I was a bit unhappy I wasn’t at the game, but it was tight enough to where it was too nerve-wracking for me to watch.  (I was surprised the game was on local TV, since it was a home game.  Congrats to Adam Young, who was doing the TV call.)  I was encouraged that the score was close at halftime.  As the game went on, the score got closer.  Troy ended up winning 27-24.  I heard a couple of fans at the soccer match the next day felt that the wrong play call was made on a 4 and 1 late, but I can’t say.  I was watching through my fingers.  I feel pretty good about this loss in that Troy put up like 50+ points on the Aggies in their last two meetings.  If the Aggies can beat the Miners next week, people will be a lot happier with the program.           

In the ninth, Eric Yardley came in and closed out the game.  Chihuahuas win 5-1.  “Game 5 tomorrow night!” exclaimed Tim Hagerty.  He spent some time trying to sell tickets for the game.  He reminded people how rare it is to have a possible championship-winning game at home.  Tim also apologized for his voice and blamed allergies.  He sounded fine.

  

9-17-17

Tim Hagerty’s voice had a sense of urgency and gravity in his voice to start tonight’s PCL Championship deciding game between the Chihuahuas and the Redbirds.  In the first, a fan made a play on a foul ball, “Even the fans are in championship form tonight,” he commented.  There were another 5,000+ in attendance.  I’m not sure why they couldn’t get a sellout for any of these games.  These games were on the weekend.  Their regular season promotions never went to more than a fraction of the crowd, so that doesn’t seem like the problem.  Did they raise prices for the playoffs?  In the bottom, the Chihuahuas had two on via walks, with no outs, but didn’t score.

“I don’t know who won the Cowboy’s game.  I’m not looking it up,” Tim said with some annoyance in the third.  I’m guessing he was looking at fan comments on his Twitter feed or something.  It was such an out-of-character and out-of-left field remark, I laughed.  I think Tim’s tension might have broken a bit too, which may have been a good thing.  In the bottom, with runners on first and third, Hunter Renfroe struck out to end the inning.  In the fifth, Tim was talking about the Hawaii Islanders being the last PCL team to win back-to-back PCL Championships.  I think he was saying that they had a wooden stadium, infested with termites, when Patrick Wisdom of the Redbirds suddenly hit a two-run homer.  The crowd boo’d.  Renfroe later threw out a runner at home to end the inning.  2-0 Redbirds.  Chase d’Arnaud (“Four Base Chase” as he’s called on El Paso Sports Talk radio) hit a solo home run in the bottom to bring the score to 2-1.

Top of the sixth, an attempted double play failed and a Redbird runner scored on a fielder’s choice, 3-1 Redbirds.  Bottom of the eighth, Renfroe doubled and the crowd roared.  Christian Villanueva got on by an infield hit.  Unfortunately, Buss lined out to the first baseman to end the inning.  Before the bottom of the ninth, I put my Chihuahuas’ shirt back on and deployed my hat in rally mode.  I’d only worn the shirt all weekend.  Why not again?  The inning started with a hit and the crowd cheered.  There was another hit.  We have a chance.  Unfortunately, the next three batters were a strikeout, a strikeout, and a flyball out.  3-1 Redbirds final.

Waaah!  It’s over!  It was a great season from an entertainment value.  The Chihuahuas had an engaging run over the last month and a half.  The MLB races haven’t been all that tight and the pups’ run just consumed my interest.  It’s been fun.  At least they lost to a really good team.  The Redbirds had a 91 win regular season.  They grinded it out over two full five-game series.  The Chihuahuas had plenty of chances to win this series thanks to their hitting.  They got batter after batter on base.  At some point, you might have to credit the Redbirds for just being able to get outs when they needed to. 

Tim was ever so pleasant in the post-game and thanked everyone involved with the team, especially the fans.  It’s so sad to hear him sign off.  It’s like a friend going away.  I’m wondering if I’m going to be able to get back into the MLB.  With so many of the playoff games on cable, it’s hard to get into it until the World Series.  I still have some teams to root for, though they’re not teams I get to see or hear much of.       

Baseball Journal September 14-15, 2017

9-14-17

Today was the start of my first vacation week of the year.  I overslept a bit, but still managed to tune in on time to the rescheduled Game 2 of the PCL Championship.  The game was switched to a day game so the teams could still come out and play in El Paso Friday night.  Tim Hagerty referred to the crowd as “respectable.”  He praised them for coming out for this awkwardly scheduled game.  He also noted that Memphis was playing walkup music, not necessarily flattering, for the Chihuahuas’ at bats. 

I have inning-by-inning notes on the game, but I’m on vacation.  Here’s the short version.  Kevin Herget, the Redbirds’ starting pitcher, struck out a whole bunch of the Chihuahuas batters and held them scoreless.  He nearly achieved an “Immaculate inning,” with three strikeouts on nine pitches.  Tim mentioned that was a feat that had only occurred about 60 times in baseball history.  Brian Rodriguez, starting for the Chihuahuas, also had a scoreless performance.

Chihuahuas’ catcher Rocky Gale threw out three runners, two stealing and picking off Herget on second.  However, Gale was thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double.  Diego Goris reached on an error, and he was thrown out trying to make it to second.  Both teams were pressing ineffectually on offense.  To bury the lead, it was 0-0 after nine.

By the eleventh, Tim remarked, “This is getting surreal.”  In the bottom, with two out and one on, an Adolis Garcia home run finally ended the game.  The crowd, which had been fairly quiet, suddenly erupted.  It was a 2-0 Redbirds win and a 2-0 Redbirds series lead.  Our potentially relevant stats of the game:  The Redbirds were 12-0 this season in extra innings (now 13-0), and the Chihuahuas struck out 20 times in the game.  Lastly, this was a quick one at two hours and 52 minutes.  This wasn’t a good start to my vacation.

I attempted to listen to the Rangers and Mariners in the evening, but reception on their El Paso affiliate went south quickly.  Later, I got caught a bit on their Amarillo station.  It was the sixth and it was 6-1 Mariners.  Eric Nadel and Matt Hicks were talking about the Indians and Royals game.  Francisco Lindor tied the game in the ninth, and it was going to extras.  Reception got worse and I gave up.  The Rangers lost anyway.  I’m getting really skeptical of their chances to get a Wild Card birth.

I accidentally stumbled on the New Mexico Lobos and the Boise State Broncos playing football on an Albuquerque station.  Reception faded in and out there too.  The Lobos got buried late.  I’m not sure if I was rooting for or against them.  Meanwhile, I discovered that the new Stadium digital network has a live nightly show recapping the day’s sports.  Tonight’s big topic: Cleveland won #22 in a row.  I saw the fans in the stadium and even the players going crazy as Lindor tied it to preserve the streak. 

9-15-17

While I was waiting for the Chihuahuas versus the Redbirds, I found women’s volleyball on the Stadium Network.  It was #1 and unbeaten Minnesota versus Boise State in Boise.  They were playing in a gym, but it was sold out and full.  There were bright school-themed overlays marking the boundaries on the court.  Those would be nice for the Aggies, if practical (perhaps not, since basketball and volleyball overlap).  There was a very enthusiastic student section behind on end of the court.  The kids there encouraged their servers, but when the teams switched sides, they got all over their opponent’s servers.  They were about four feet away, screaming “Choke!” and other things right at them.  The girls at least seemed to ignore them.  Minnesota won the first two sets, but Boise state came back and forced a fifth set, which Minnesota won 15-12.  It was quite a match.  (Did you know Boise State has a beach volleyball team?  I wouldn’t have believed it either, but I saw video of it.)

The baseball game was mostly polite enough to wait until the match was over before it got interesting.  The Chihuahuas were back in El Paso for Game 3 of the PCL Championship, down by two games.  A couple of my co-workers were going to the game.  (And they were indeed together and looked happy.  Ahhh.)  They were among the 5,000+ in attendance.  The pups did load the bases in the bottom of the first, but a good catch of a hard liner by Nick Buss ended that threat.

The next best chance came in the fourth on a Tony Cruz drive near the wall which was robbed on a good catch.  The next inning, the Redbirds tripled, but left the man stranded.  In the bottom of the fifth, finally there was a breakthrough as Franchy Cordero homered over the batter’s eye, 1-0 Chihuahuas.  The crowd roared.  The Chihuahuas loaded the bases again in the seventh with no outs.  The inning started on an eleven-pitch at bat by Jose Rondon, and even included Dusty Coleman attempting a sacrifice bunt but still managing to be safe at first on the play.  Franchy came through again and sacrificed in a run.  Another run came in on a Chase d’Arnoud single, 3-0 Chihuahuas.  That was all they needed to win.  We go to a Game 4 Saturday night.

I flipped over to the Rangers’ Amarillo affiliate and was surprised that the game was on instead of high school football.  I immediately regretted doing so as their opponent, the hated Angels, scored to take the lead.  The Rangers would make a comeback, but fell short, 7-6.  Finally in Cleveland, the Indians’ 22-game winning streak ended 4-3 to the Royals.  Wow, it was still close.  The players came out and saluted the fans afterward.

Baseball Journal September 11-13, 2017

9-11-17

Once again, no baseball for me on the tenth.  At work, I was able to catch a little of the Brewers versus the Pirates on the MLB free game.  I’m not passing up any chance to listen to Bob Uecker.  Since they’re playing in Milwaukee, I’m also not passing up a chance to see Front Row Amy.  Other than Mary Hart at Dodger games, I can’t think of any other attractive women regularly showing up behind the plate at a baseball game.  It’s kind of hit-or-miss at any given ball game whether there’ll be hot chicks in the crowd on camera.  When my co-worker went to see the Dodgers for the Fourth of July, I told him to look for Alyssa Milano behind the home dugout.  

Much of the game conversation was informative to me.  I didn’t know that the Brewers had just swept the Cubs in Chicago over the weekend, though I don’t think the standings have changed.  The Rockies swept the Dodgers as well.  It’s killing me that I haven’t been able to listen to Rockies when they’ve doing well.  I almost get the impression that the Cubs and Dodgers are resting up, waiting to turn it on for the playoffs.  Meanwhile, Cleveland’s winning streak continued as they put #19 in a row.  Ueker’s co-host asked him, “You ever seen a winning streak like this?”  “Nope.  Not me.  Nope.”  I was expecting a joke at that point, but he was being serious.  It’s just as well I didn’t see much of the game as it was a 7-0 Pirates blowout.  It looked like a good crowd there at least.

9-12-17

Game 1 of the PCL Championship in Memphis was canceled, perhaps remnants of the hurricane were moving through.  But in more awesome Chihuahuas’ news, I got an e-mail from Tim Hagerty.  Having an unexpected off day, he took a minute to send me a “Thank you” message for sending a link to that article about the Chihuahuas’ disastrous Labor Day game from the other team’s perspective.  I’m glowing.

The MLB free game was the Rangers and Mariners.  My first look at the game was 7-1 Mariners in the third.  Willie Calhoun, the main product of the Yu Darvish trade, was making his first Major League start.  His family was there, cheering him on.  He got his first hit in the first with an RBI.  My next look was in the fourth and it was 7-3.  Joey Gallo and Nomar Mazara had both singled in runs.  Manager Jeff Banister got tossed from dugout for arguing balls and strikes in the inning.  He came out and argued some more before leaving.  On replay, it was a bad call.

Meanwhile, the Indians won their twentieth game in a row.  Corey Kluber had a complete game shutout.  Eric Nadel and Matt Hicks (I was listening to the radio call of the game of course) discussed comparable winning streaks in other sports.  On the other end of the spectrum, the Dodgers continued their losing streak to eleven.  It was 10-3 in the seventh, so the guys continued chatting.  The Twins hit seven home runs in their game tonight.  Their team record was eight against the Senators.  Matt, from DC, was well aware of that one.  Willie Calhoun nearly made a great catch in the eighth, but actually managed to double off a runner for an out anyway.  He’s looking good.  The Rangers were not and lost 10-3.    

9-13-17

There were people here at work tonight doing networking stuff.  I was getting ready for vacation.  Thus, I did not get to listen to much of the PCL Championship Game 1 between the Chihuahuas and the Redbirds.  The game started well for the pups with a double by Travis Jankowski in the first.  The Chihuahuas loaded the bases with two walks, but a double play ended the inning without any runs.  Memphis scored two in the second and two more in the third, including an RBI by their pitcher, 4-0 Redbirds.

I came into the fourth inning as Hunter Renfroe was thrown out at the plate.  But, Tony Cruz drove in a run, and Nick Buss had a pinch hit RBI single, 4-2.  The inning ended with Cruz getting picked off of second.  The Redbirds scored two more in the sixth, 6-2.  In the eighth, the Chihuahuas scored two more of their own, but the inning ended with the bases left loaded.  6-4 was the final.  The crowd there was 3,700 for a weeknight game.  Cleveland 21 straight wins tonight.  

NM State Aggies vs Houston Soccer 9-17-17

I feel like I may have been unduly harsh the last time I wrote about going to a match.  Honestly, if it was just about watching the girls play, I’d be there, without complaint, win or lose.  I’m a bigger fan of just about any other sport I frequent, but live soccer is reasonably interesting in person.  Unfortunately, it is the peripheral parts of the sport here that make it unpleasant, specifically two things.  The soccer stadium is not a great place to watch anything.  While the softball stands might actually be worse, I at least like that sport a lot.  The sun and the heat just gets brutal on those metal stands.  (Another thing is that it’s hard to see action on the other side of the field.)  The other irritation is the fans there, which I’ve gone on at length about.  Nowhere else are they this bad (even the old man).  I’m having a hard time reconciling the sport and the experience.  Just to be clear, any future decisions on attendance are not a reflection on the girls and their play.      

I was going to this Sunday’s game.  First, I’m on vacation, and I want to be able to say I went a few places while I was gone.  Second, it was mentioned on the Aggie Coaches’ Show that there’d be a free t-shirt giveaway.  I had on my Chihuahuas’ t-shirt and hat though, that I had on yesterday (with an Aggie button).  You have to respect the streak.  There was a tailgater in the parking lot when I pulled in.  That’s good to see.  I got a hot dog at the stand that might have been leftover from last night’s football game.  (I should have gotten two drinks instead.)  Then I got my free shirt, “Los Aggies Futbol.”  Hmm, somehow I feel like I might not be in their target demographic.  Actually, I don’t think I’ve heard anybody speaking Spanish in the stands either.  Well, beggars can’t be choosers.  I’ll take it and wear it another day.          

In the bathroom, a couple of guys were talking about yesterday’s football game.  One was agitated about a 4 and 1 play.  In the crowd, I saw a kid with a Chihuahuas’ hat.  A lady had on a “Guns Up” shirt with the Rosie the Riveter image.  I’d seen that before at Sports Accessories.  It’s a cool shirt.  A group of tall, athletic, attractive Aggie girls showed up.  I didn’t recognize any of them and their Aggie shirts didn’t say what team they were on.  Track?  Swimming?  Golf?  Tennis?  (Was that Eli Arnaudova girl there?)  The baseball team was there (and might have been there last time as well).  They settled down in front of the stands.  Two girls’ soccer teams were there.  A pretty good-sized crowd showed up, so it was probably a good idea I showed up early for a shirt.    

The PA reported that it was 84 degrees.  Hell might have been cooler.  Much of the crowd was under umbrellas.  The music was bad during the long half-hour wait.  The teams worked out on field.  The referees worked out too, synchronized no less.  For player introductions, the Aggie girls walked out with a little girl’s team.  Jody Hernandez was just barely taller than the little girl she was with.  Aileen Galacia wasn’t starting.  Ashley Martin was back in goal.  On the Coaches’ Show, Coach Freddy Delgado expressed a lot of confidence in her.  The team did win on Friday, 3-2 (I don’t have any other details).  There was a moment of silence before the Anthem for victims of the Houston hurricane flooding.  That was a nice gesture to the Houston team.  They had three away games cancelled on their schedule, probably from heavy hurricane rain remnants.   

The Houston team (again, they didn’t put the team name on the program, maybe they don’t know who these people are either [edit: It's the Houston University Cougars]) had a couple of chances early.  We went five minutes before some calls came in from the crowd.  One loudmouth guy actually got heckled by someone else in the crowd who knew him.  There was another guy behind me who was giving some technical commentary to a girl about the play on field.  He knew his stuff. 

36’ left in the half, Ashley stopped a solid shot on goal.  Spoilers.  The good news for the afternoon was that Ashley did a very good job in the net today.  (Again as I wrote about the last game, I thought she could physically do the job.  She just wasn’t making good decisions then.)  The bad news was that she would get lots of opportunities to prove herself.  It’s going to be too tedious to list all of them.  I’ll just hit the highlights as they come along. 

Shortly afterward, a ball went into the stands.  It got tossed back in but rolled on to the field during play.  A little ball girl ran between the players and grabbed it and ran back.  The Ref didn’t see it.  Seriously, there were two balls in play within 10’ of each other and a little girl between them.  The fans didn’t say anything at the time, but may have mentally questioned the Referee’s attention.  A few minutes later, they spoke up when Cristina Bertoldo got called for a foul.  In fact, it got vicious and profane right out of the box.  I was concerned there were going to be fan ejections (or secretly hopeful).           

Most of the action of the half was in the Aggie end.  Finally at 22’, there was a shot on the Houston goal on a breakaway.  (I’m doubting my notes on who took the shot.)  Just a minute later, the ball was still in the Houston end.  The box area was under-defended and Jody Hernandez managed to take a shot right in front of the net.  GOOOOOAL!  Short players are A-Okay!  1-0 Aggies.

Aileen came in during the stoppage.  She looks so small and slight with an angel face, but has the heart of a lion.  Shortly after coming in, she knocked over another girl to get a ball.  I applauded.  The Referee didn’t see it.  Spoilers.  Unfortunately, this was Aileen’s only highlight of the game.  It wasn’t a good day for the offense.  My notes are again not good.  There was a corner kick.  A couple of headers put a ball over the net.  A player was pushed down in the Aggie box.  I wish I’d done a better job writing this down.

Before halftime, a guy in front of me was recruited by a pretty intern for the musical soccer game.  The PA loves this game.  By the time it was down to two, they were exhausted from running up and down the field.  The PA deeked them out on the music ending, just to mess with them.  Why don’t they have the loudmouths in the stands out there playing, since they seem to know how easy it is to run up and down the field in the heat?  In front of the stands, a couple of baseball players kicked a ball around.  Soccer player, Reilly Marks, who wasn’t playing today, walked by and commented on them.

For the second half, the old man started cheering up a storm.  He continued for the entire half and everybody heard him the whole time.  (If he was chugging from a hip flask, it’d all make sense.)  Nearby, a loudmouth I’m tentatively identifying as one of the girls’ dads also started in on the team in an un-encouraging way.  I’m blaming what happened in this half on them. 

38’ Aileen may have been carded for a foul.  36’ an Aggie was definitely carded, but I couldn’t see the player number.  All this happened on the other side of the field.  31’ Hannah Dauzat of Houston scored on a breakaway.  Ashley had no chance on it.  There was a bad defensive breakdown before it got to her.  1-1.  29’ the Aggies got a penalty shot just outside the box.  They had two fakes before kicking it, but no shot on goal.  28’ Ashley made a great punch save, but the ball stayed in the Aggie end.  On a corner kick right after, Hannah put it in directly.  The ball somehow curled into the far top corner.  It was a heck of a kick.  Again, Ashley didn’t have a chance on it.  2-1 Houston.

27’ Sarina Stockton took a kick to the head and had to come out.  24’ Ashley made a good push save.  A minute later, there was a pass to Hannah wide open in the Aggie box.  She almost got goal #3.  I would NOT have thrown my hat on to the field.  (Or is that just a hockey thing?)  Ashley made three more saves.  Are you sensing that the ball spent a lot of time in the Aggie end this half?  Coincidentally, that’s the furthest you could get on field from the two loudest fans in the stands.

Ooops.  Spoke too soon.  A guy at the other end of stands started growling a loud, “Yo!” on every Aggie misplay.  After what seemed like the tenth time, I was wishing I could call in a sniper team to “service” him.  10’ a ball got kicked over the stands.  No doubt some of the girls on both sides wouldn’t have minded firing balls directly into the crowd by this point.  9’ Ashley blocked a low shot from her knees, but the ricochet allowed Selena Peters an easy shot on an undefended goal.  3-1 Houston.

Oh, yeah.  Thanks, fans.  All that inane yelling really did a lot of good.  Then I missed something awesome on field on the kickoff (or whatever it’s called in the middle of the field) while I was writing down the goal.  Everybody buzzed for a couple of minutes.  I think somebody got run over on field.  I don’t know.  Now, I’m mad. 

4’ Ashley stretched out to push out a roller going for the net.  1’ another catch save.  A Houston player got flattened in the Aggie box.  Before the end, Audriana Chavez took a header so hard, she got knocked off her feet (and she’s one of the bigger players on the team).  The ball went to the other end of the field.  Earlier, another girl headed one so hard, it sounded like hitting a softball with a bat.  I suppose they’ll all be wearing helmets in the future.  Here and now, it’s a 3-1 win for Houston as time expired. 

Here’s your stat of the match, courtesy of the angry dad in the stands.  Late in the match, he kept yelling out the shots on goal count.  By the end, it was 12 to 1.  The Aggies had nearly no offense today.  It might have been mostly Houston’s relentless offense, more than the Aggies’ offensive problems.  Ashley Martin was our easy Aggie player of the game.  She at least kept it close.  Strangely, the crowd and myself didn’t seem to feel too bad about outcome.  The second half was just too overwhelming to feel like a win was in order. 

A handsome fellow in sharp Aggie shirt came down from the top of the stands and asked me if I was scout.  I was probably the only person in the stands taking notes, and I wasn’t wearing an Aggie or Houston shirt.  I told him I was just blogging about the game.  If he’d asked why, I don’t know what I would have told him.  He told me to write up the girls’ good plays.  That was kind of hard today.  His voice sounded familiar.  Was that one of the loudmouths?  He was much more reasonable after the match at least. 

For the remainder of the season, I’ll consider some more games.  We’ll see how it goes with the timing.  They have two games during my next vacation week, but both are during weekdays during the day.  I’d have to get a parking pass.  Once again, they’ve got scheduling issues holding them back, since they don’t have lights.  I hope to see them winning soon.    

Boxing Report 9-16-17 Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs Gennady “Triple G” Glovokin

I was talking to my dad before the match.  He said Canelo looked “fat.”  That’s what I’ve been saying since his last fight.  I haven’t even seen very many commercials with him lately.  It’s affecting his endorsements.  Both fighters were going to be at max weight for the fight.  Regardless, the experts have repeatedly assured us that this was going to be a real fight, not like that carnival sideshow last month.  No, you simpletons, you were not smart enough to fully appreciate Floyd Mayweather’s technical fighting style in his prime, and instead thought that seeing him actually fighting was entertaining.  Conor McGregor, a mere ruffian, had no place in that ring as a boxer.  He only won several rounds and only lasted ten rounds and was never actually knocked down. 

Actually, this fight would be between two boxers in their prime.  Glovokin was undefeated, which says all you need to know.  For his part, Canelo was popular and respected for his ability and willingness to move up in weight to find a challenge to fight.  I was looking forward to it.  This fight was big enough that Laiza, the Canelo-loving girlfriend of my co-worker, Mike, was not given free tickets to it.  She has “connections,” but tickets were too expensive this time.  (Mike said he would have sold his if he’d gotten one.)  They were cautiously optimistic about a Canelo victory.  Certainly, Mike was hoping to not receive a beating after a loss.  (I was amused after their dismissive attitude towards the Mayweather/McGregor fight that they ended up watching it on Periscope.)

Some guy in a bathrobe came out and sang the anthem for a ‘Stan country for Glovokin.  A chesty woman with her goods on display did the Mexican anthem for Canelo.  She looked familiar.  Was it Lucero?  I completely didn’t recognize the woman doing the US Anthem.  I was busy at the time listening to the Chihuahuas’ game and flipping back and forth to the NM State football game.  There was a great new Mexican Sylvester Stalone commercial where he was reviewing the previous guys he’s scolded for not being manly enough.  Then he gets scolded by himself for sitting around watching this.  Oscar de la Hoya, the fight’s promoter, whispered a quick word to Canelo before the fight, “Thank you for making me so much money.”  And we were off.

Round 1

Sort of.  I was watching the end of the football game and missed half of the round.  They seemed to be feeling each other out.  Then, Canelo got in a good shot at G’s side and it was on from that point.  From here, they were throwing heavy punches and just missing on haymakers.  I’m not sure who won the round.  I didn’t see the whole round and it seemed pretty even.

Round 2

I was watching the football highlights and again missed the beginning of the round.  The guys were wrapping up with each other, but were still hitting hard.  I could hear women in the crowd screaming with each hit.  (Could I have been hearing Laiza from across town too?)  Again, I can’t pick a winner for the round.

Round 3

One thing’s for sure by this point: these guys can take a punch.  They were using each others’ bodies as punching bags and their heads as speed bags.  The crowd started chanting, “Canelo!”  He got in a good uppercut.  G wrapped him up.  Canelo danced away as G tried to engage him.  I gave this one to Canelo.

Round 4

The “Canelo” chant starts up again.  The TV Azteca announcers have given him every round so far in scoring.  G drove Canelo into the ropes, forcing him to cover.  The crowd roared.  Canelo was not looking pretty after a couple of shots to the head.  Golovkin took this round.

Round 5

They started off in a wrapup.  Canelo got in a jab to G’s gut, but Glovokin got in a hard right to Canelo’s jaw.  Canelo shook his head at him afterward.  The crowd and the announcers started going insane.  Canelo charged out the corner and drove G into the middle of the ring.  Fans there were jumping to their feet.  I had Golovkin taking this round.  Maybe?        

Round 6

Starting with this round, a couple of TV Azteca hosts would come on before the round.  One was a sharp dressed young man and the other was a glamorous blonde with piles of curls in a shiny gold dress.  During a wrap up, Canelo got in a cheapshot to G’s head.  The ref gave Canelo a warning.  The crowd might have been chanting for G.  I had G as the winner.  The TV Azteca guys had Canelo.

Round 7

The host couple were showing Twitter pictures from fans and giving away merchandise.  After all these rounds of frenetic punching, the guys looked tired finally.  I couldn’t pick a winner here.  (The announcers had Canelo.)  

Round 8

The host couple was hanging out in the arena’s concourse with Canelo fans.  For a few seconds in this round, the guys stopped hitting each other.  They feinted and flinched facing each other.  You could almost read their minds, I don’t know what to do next.  I’ve tried everything!  They reengaged.  Canelo got in an uppercut to G’s jaw while he was again knocked into the ropes.  I had Canelo.  The announcers had Glovokin.  It’s a tossup.

Round 9

The host couple was now interviewing some fans dressed as masked wrestlers.  G hit the top of Canelo’s head, stunning him.  Canelo then immediately got hit right in the face.  It just made him mad.  The crowd got back into it.  Canelo got in a powerful left to G’s head.  Round to Canelo.

 Round 10

They started the round wrapped up.  Canelo got in several hard, close shots, and G was staggered.  (This was the only time in the match I saw anybody wobble.)  The crowd screamed, chanted, and was standing again.  They wrapped up a couple more times, clearly exhausted.  G got in a good shot, and both appeared to get a second wind as they tore into each other.  I had Canelo.  The announcers had Glovokin.  Are we sensing a pattern here?  These rounds are too close to call and can go either way.

Round 11

G got in a rabbit punch to Canelo’s kidneys.  The ref missed it.  Canelo put another left into G’s jaw.  G put a double shot into Canelo’s face.  I can’t call it.

Round 12

Neither of the guys were bloodied coming out.  There was a bit of mouse under one of G’s eyes.  Canelo was hitting G pretty hard and there were more wrap-ups.  The blows became hard and fast from both.  The crowd was standing and cheering.  The last ten seconds, they both went all out.  Again, I can’t call a round winner.

Oh, this is going to be bad, I thought to myself.  They hugged and exchanged a couple of words afterward and both proclaimed victory in their corners.  Then the judges’ decision: one for Canelo, one for Glolovkin, one (pause for dramatic effect) for a draw.  The commentators on the Stadium Network nightly show right after the fight were incensed.  Other forms of sports media piled on afterwards.  Most of the controversy from the fight has been with the judge who had Canelo winning 10 of the 12 rounds.  Whatever. 

Here’s the part where I’m supposed to fly into indignant righteous rage.  I can’t do it.  I agree with the decision.  They were totally evenly matched.  They were even matched in stamina and neither could take advantage of the other being tired.  It was so close, I couldn’t figure out who to award rounds to.  Neither were holding back either.  You tuned in for a fight; you got a fight.  You just didn’t get a winner.  (It’s like soccer.)  I’m a bit surprised Golovkin wasn’t given the win.  Usually if the challenger doesn’t definitely win, the champion gets the victory, whether they really deserved it or not.  

The ring interviewer played the two off each other during the post-fight interviews.  Glolovkin saluted the Mexican fans.  Canelo said G wasn’t that powerful.  The crowd boo’d.  G wanted a re-match and accused Canelo of running.  The crowd cheered.  Canelo also wanted a re-math.  The crowd boo’d.  I feel like I need my ears checked, or I seriously underestimated Canelo’s support there at the T-Mobile Arena in Vegas.  I assumed he was popular one.  Was the crowd angry at Canelo?  I just don’t know.   

I called Mike to make sure he was still alive.  It turned out that my free over-the-air Mexican broadcast wasn’t lying, it was indeed live.  Amazingly, Mike and Laiza both agreed with the decision too, and they thought it was a pretty good show.  They didn’t feel too bad about buying the fight.  This is quite a shock for me too; I’ve actually seen two entertaining fights in a row.  Surely this streak can’t last.  I want the rematch, but I do not want a repeat of this fight.  One of these guys needs to figure out how to beat the other and finish this.  Tonight’s fight didn’t feel like a waste of time to set up a more lucrative re-match, but if somebody doesn’t get a legit win next time, fans will not be satisfied.  

NM State Aggies vs Western New Mexico Mustangs Softball 9-16-17

10:00 am was not a great time for me on a Saturday for softball.  I was a little skeptical of going, mostly because of Aggie football later in the evening and also because of the warm, sunny weather.  However, this was a free exhibition double header.  Also, Coach Kathy Rodolph was on the Aggie Coaches’ Show earlier in the week.  She was excited about a couple of new freshmen pitchers.  They would also free up, now junior pitcher, Kayla Green, to play the field a bit and bat.  Well, I had to see Kayla bat. 

In not so great news, Kat Heifner, Coach Rodolph’s assistant coach, has left the program for a head coaching job.  Rodolph considered Kat her “co-coach,” so that’s big loss for her.  Also, “The Natural” Kelsey Horton was reported to have a bad ankle.  I wonder if that was what was causing her to limp late in the season.  That’s bad if it’s still bothering her.

Wow, it’s not even 10:00 am and the football parking lot already has a bunch of RV’s parked there for tailgating.  It’s another “Stuff the Stadium” promotion with discount tickets and the team’s first home game (and they beat the rival Lobos last week).  There should be a good crowd.  I couldn’t get a hold of Ron, even though I could have gotten free tickets, so I wouldn’t be there.  More practically for me, all this meant that my usual path to the softball complex was blocked off.  Thankfully, I found a quick way around it to get there.   

There was a decent crowd there, surprisingly.  A bunch of them turned out to be travelling with Western New Mexico (Silver City?).  The regular senior crowd was there.  The old man’s cheering was amusing to the Mustangs fans, I think.  I noticed Gia Pack from the women’s basketball team came in.  Some guys from either the basketball team or the football team were also there.  There was a person lounging in the centerfield perch for reasons unknown.  Everyone was desperate for some shade, of which there wasn’t any, unless you brought an umbrella (which I did).  One fan reported it was 78 degrees.  It was not that on those shiny metal stands.  It was a lot hotter and maybe a bit humid.  I was sweating immediately.  After an hour, my notebook was hot to the touch and possibly melting, along with the ink from my pen. 

From where I was sitting, I could see a TV truck parked at the press box at the football stadium, the soccer team practicing next door, the baseball team training across from us, and I could hear the band practicing somewhere in the area.  Driving in, I think I was some tennis team matches going on.  (Ah, that’s where the courts are.  I wonder if Eli Arnaudova was there.  I may have made the wrong choice in sports attendance.)  It was a busy day for NM State Athletics.  

The girls looked like they were wearing different uniforms than their usual ones, like a practice uniform.  (I was wearing my Chihuahuas’ shirt and hat, hoping to give them some luck tonight, rather than my Aggie gear.  The Mustangs were wearing rather sharp gameday uniforms.)  Some of the Aggie uniforms didn’t have a number on them.  A couple of other girls, like Kelsey, were wearing different colors, white instead of the crimson.  I think that meant they weren’t playing, at least for Game 1.  Both teams had their happy, giggling pre-game rituals.  The Aggies did their in-line wiggle and bump.  The Mustangs made an interesting “Whooping” sound in theirs.
    

Here’s most of what I could figure out of the lineup.  I had a program from last year with me and was not bothering to fill out a scorecard for this game.  Kayla Green was pitching and may have been the Designated Player too.  Shelby Shultes was catching.  Amy Bergeson was in left.  Rachel Rodriguez was at shortstop.  Caity Szczesny (how I missed that name) was at second.    Victoria Castro was in center.  Nikki Butler was at first (and caused a bit of confusion among fans, thinking it was Kelsey at first glance).  Right field was a mystery.  A girl wearing Jeanelle Medina’s number was at third, but I’m not sure that was her (I’m not that familiar with her, and I thought I heard the girls calling her by another name).   

The top of the first went well for the Aggies with a double play ending the inning.  The bottom of the first was more eventful.  Victoria led off with an inside-the-park home run.  What a way to begin, 1-0 Aggies.  The girls were in a really good and enthusiastic voice when they serenaded Rachel for her at bat.  Nikki slugged a two-run homer for a 3-0 lead.  One of the Aggie girls went behind the fence to retrieve the ball.  Kayla did indeed take an at bat.  She hit one down the line that went of the third baseman’s glove.  Kayla made it to second.  She looked comfortable out there running the bases.  Four more runs scored in the inning, including Shelby driving in two and Amy singling in one, 7-0 after one inning.

What happened next was more than surprising.  Coach Rodolph walked over to the Mustang’s dugout and called the team to her.  I couldn’t quite hear what she was saying, but she seemed to be reminding them that this was just an exhibition.  Kathy may have been encouraging them a bit.  Kayla stood in the circle with her mitt on top of her head waiting to start.  Her next at bat in the bottom of the second was an adventure.  She seemingly hit a double, but the ump called her back.  Then she sent a hard foul right into the Mustang dugout.  The ump went over and checked on them.  Then she fouled one high into the stands and into the crowd.  Finally, Kayla worked a walk.  No runs scored.  Kathy’s pep talk must have worked for the moment.

In the top of the third, Kayla called for time and had all infielders join her in the circle, no coaches were involved.  In the bottom, Shelby hit a solo home run, 8-0.  Rachel then hit an infield single.  The Western New Mexico fans let the ump have it.  More importantly, Rachel came out of the game limping.  It seemed like her Achilles.  Hopefully, it’s nothing serious.  Brandy Hernandez came in for her and to play her position.  Caity singled in a run, 9-0.  She also stole second.  The team seemed to be stealing a lot, though I wasn’t recording it.  Nikki pounded a foul out of the park.  The old man insisted it was fair.  The opposing fans heckled him.  Victoria sac’d one in, 10-0.  Kayla fouled one off her foot.  She was in some obvious discomfort.  The ump gave her whatever time she wanted and dusted off home plate twice.  Nobody warned her about that happening during an at bat.  (Just kidding.)  She finally flied out.

Kayla didn’t go back out to pitch in the fourth, but I think she was still standing in the dugout, so I’ll say she wasn’t injured.  One of the new freshman pitchers came in (name unknown for now).  Kathy called for a timeout after two pitches, though she didn’t seem to be doing that bad a job.  In the bottom, Shelby tried to take second on a bobbled ball in the infield, but was thrown out at second.  The next batter (again unidentified) did actually take second on a ball that didn’t leave the infield.  Amy doubled in a run, Caity drove in two, Nikki tripled in a run, and then scored on a wild pitch.  It’s 15-0.

One of the senior fans got up to leave, “I’m gonna chase girls and watch football.”  A couple of other seniors had a chat about the Women’s Basketball team.  They were excited about the upcoming season.  By the fifth, the Aggie infield had been changed out.  Shelby threw out a runner at second with Brandy on the receiving end.  The Mustangs led off the sixth with a hit.  I could hear the girls in the dugout go crazy.  Next up got an infield hit.  Then a triple scored two runs, 15-2.  There was a lot of applause.  I think half of the crowd was there for Western New Mexico.  They just about went nuts over a strike call right after that. 

In the bottom of the sixth, Merina Illi came up and jacked a three-run homer.  Then there was a two-run homer by an unidentified player.  At 20-2, the Mustang’s starting pitcher finally came out.  God bless her.  In the top of the seventh, the new Aggie freshman pitcher finished off the game with a couple of strikeouts.  I have her at four for her outing, but I wasn’t really keeping track.  20-2 Aggies, Game 1 over.  Game 2 to start in 20 minutes.

At this point, I took stock.  I was boiling like lobster.  I’d finished off the water bottle I’d brought with me (mentally congratulating myself for bringing water with me to begin with).  I hadn’t paid anything to get in and these games don’t count for anything.  I’d seen Kayla hit.  I saw one of the new pitchers.  I had the feeling Kelsey wasn’t going to be playing today.  I doubted they’d invite fans down to the field to chat with the girls afterward, so I could ask Kelsey about her baseball cards.   

I bailed.  I’m not tough like these girls.  Clouds and wind kept flirting with cooling things off in the afternoon, but never did, so I didn’t feel too bad about it.  I did get bad heartburn from my otherwise delicious lunch at Schlotzsky’s as punishment.  The dates and times for the next exhibition games seem a bit ambiguous in their press release.  The next one, next week, would be finishing right before the Aggie/Miner football game, which will be a traffic mess.  I’ll have to skip that one, and I’m not sure about the rest.  Hopefully, this will be enough to tide me over until next year if necessary.

Baseball Journal September 8-9, 2017

9-8-17

Tonight was the big homecoming game for the Chihuahuas versus the Aces as a possible closeout game for the pups.  I had at least two co-workers going to the game.  (I’m not sure if they went together.  It’s a really sorted relationship.  I’m refusing to ask about them anymore.)  I did miss the first part of the game to listen to Aggie Volleyball.  I can’t resist the girls, even if it’s just over the radio and I can’t wait to see them on Saturday. 

I didn’t miss much good in that time.  The Aces scored one in each of the first three innings for a 3-0 lead.  When I got into it in the third, Tony Cruz hit a two-run homer to make it 3-2.  The Aces scored again in the fifth, 4-2.  In the seventh, the Aces went through three pitchers trying to maintain the score.  One of the pitchers was serenaded with a “Na na na na . . .” going off the field.  Regardless, Tony Cruz doubled in two runs to tie the score at 4.

  

Meanwhile for the Chihuahuas, Jason Jester came in and had a good two-inning bounce back after the Labor Day debacle.  Tim Hagerty sarcastically commented during the game, “The postseason is all about pitching.  In Colorado Springs right now, they’re up 16-14 over the Memphis Redbirds.”  (The Sky Sox would win 16-15.)   

In the bottom of the eighth, the crowd started getting into it, chanting, “We want a hit.”  Somewhere in the Great Beyond, Paul Stelzin wiped away a happy tear.  Jose Rondon may have gotten hurt on a foul ball in his at bat.  Tim pointed out this was a problem, since Manager Rod Barajas had already used most of the bench.  (Rondon took the field in the ninth thankfully.) 

Hunter Renfroe became the man of the hour during the inning.  He doubled down the third base line, just past the glove of the third baseman.  Rafael Ortega scored all the way from first.  Diego Goris then singled Renfroe in.  The inning continued and Goris scored from third on an error.  Jack Reinheimer had two errors on two plays in the inning.  7-4 Chihuahuas.

Corey Mazzoni came into close in the ninth.  After one out, an Aces’ batter got on, and then Christian Walker, the league MVP, came up and hit a two-run homer, 7-6.  The exuberant crowd was stunned into complete silence.  It wasn’t just the home run, but the distance on it, as the ball cleared the stadium.  Mazzoni still managed to get control and get the final two outs for the win.  Now the crowd of 5,000+ could safely celebrate another trip to the PCL championship series.

The team came out on field together to tip their hats and salute the crowd.  That was a great gesture.  With eagerness, but some trepidation, Tim asked to bring up the audio from the locker room celebration.  He had the station put on a delay first.  Barajas didn’t make a speech, but everyone could hear the cheering.  The stadium even put up the celebration on the video board.  Okay, the Chihuahuas’ odyssey continues next week.  I can hardly wait.

9-9-17

This morning, Fox Sports put on the Aaron Judge Show.  At least, that’s what it seemed like in the pre-game.  Judge is going to be the “Face of Baseball,” no matter what.  Not that he might not become great, but I’m suspicious of any agenda to overhype anyone, especially a rookie.  Our game was the Rangers versus the Yankees in Arlington.  OMG, what’s up with Matt Vasgerian!  He looks like bum who found a tube of hair gel and used the whole thing on his head.  #emergency makeover.  (Oh, I should be on Twitter.)  Whatever.  I put on the radio call instead.

In the first, Carlos Gomez made a nifty rundown of a short fly ball.  He then doubled off Brett Gardner, who was off with the pitch and thought the ball would drop.  Not to be outdone, Jacoby Ellsbury made a similar catch on a sure double in the bottom.  Aaron Judge’s first at bat came in the second and he set a rookie record for walks (or it was another AB during the game, do I work for the Ellis Sports Bureau?).  Joey Gallo was playing first.  Gallo is a large young man, who looked puny next to Judge. 

Flipping channels, I was surprised to find the alternate Fox game, the Indians versus the Orioles, on a Juarez station.  It’s not a good reception station for me, but I kept checking back, since the Tribe is on an epic winning streak.  With a 4-2 win today, they extended their streak to 17.  I mention this because nobody scored in my game until the fifth.  Brett Nicholas, starting a catcher today, doubled in Will Middlebrooks from first.  He also broke up Yankee pitcher, Luis Severino’s, no-hitter. 

Severino came out after seven.  On the other side, Andrew Cashner started the eighth with a hit batter and was taken out.  He was mad, probably with himself.  A sacrifice later brought in that runner to tie the score.  In the ninth, Roughned Odor made a bad throw on the back end of a double play to let on a runner.  In fairness, it was going to be close on a good throw, and he also made some good plays in the field today.  That DP not turned would later turn into two runs on a single and a bases loaded walk.

Gary Sanchez was the final out of the inning.  On the first pitch, he tossed his bat 10 rows up into the stands.  An overjoyed Yankees fan (of which there were many in attendance) got it and danced with it.  In the bottom, the TV crew showed a woman being treated by a paramedic in the stands.  She’d gotten hit with the bat and had a bruise on her shoulder I think.  She now had the bat as she was escorted from her seat.  She didn’t look as happy as the guy, but it was nice of him to give it to her.  I wasn’t happy as the Rangers lost 3-1.  Eric Nadel was also not happy.  With Mike Napoli’s strikeout to end the game, it left Joey Gallo on deck, and his first power versus power meeting with Aroldis Chapman will have to wait for another day.  #Cheated!  

Baseball Journal September 6-7, 2017

9-6-17

No baseball for me on the fifth.  Today, I made the mistake of rereading a volleyball post I had just posted.  It was terrible.  It was just badly written.  Since I’d already posted it, it wasn’t worth rewriting.  Though I’d gone to two volleyball games, watched some Godzilla films, and done some other things, it felt like I’d spent my whole three-day weekend in front of the computer typing. The writing was labored, forced, and tired, and it showed.  I need better editing and maybe some more time between writing and posting.

While waiting for the Chihuahuas/Aces playoff game, I finally got to check out MLB’s Twitter/Facebook/social media show, the Dugout.  It was at once more casual in conversation than MLB Tonight coverage on the MLB Network, but also more frenetic in pacing.  Where it felt like there should have been a commercial break, they kept going.  The show felt kind of intense and it must be exhausting for the hosts, especially with their high enthusiasm level.  Maybe that’s why they only run this once a week.  Overall, it was an interesting venue for baseball talk.  Allison Footer was one of the hosts.  I’d heard her many times on podcasts.  I was surprised she’s an attractive young woman.  From her knowledge and experience, I’d assumed she was older (and crustier, like a sports writer). 

And here’s where I bury the lead.  I was busy with work and never quite caught up.  So, I was listening to most of the Chihuahuas’ game, but just didn’t have the time and energy to take more than a smattering of notes.  This isn’t a good start for the playoffs for me.  I found out a co-worker is going to the game on Friday.  She even went to a recent game and a visiting player gave her little son a ball.  (I’m surprised the ball didn’t have his phone number on it.  She’s a hottie.) 

In Reno, a loud and passionate crowd showed up (though not large at 3,100).  The fans were issued thunder sticks, which they used for most of the game.  Between the “clacking” noise and occasional Latin music, it felt like a Brazilian Carnival was going on in the background.  The stadium’s PA was really good at revving up the crowd, and the music and sound effects were good too. 

Tim Hagerty was pleased that the rain during the day cleared off that night.  He also took pleasure in finally announcing Chihuahua, Nick Buss, as the league batting champ.  Tim had been going over his numbers, hits, plate appearances, and so on for a few weeks.  I’m sure he’s glad that the storyline finally resolved and happily resolved.

Okay, I heard most of this, but ended up having to reconstruct it from Gameday.  Reno took the lead in the second on a fielder’s choice, 1-0 Aces.  In the fourth, Hunter Renfroe homered to tie it.  Jose Rondon then drove in a run on a fielder’s choice, 2-1 Chihuahuas.  In the fifth, Renfroe again got an RBI on yet another fielder’s choice, 3-1. 

A light rain started falling in the seventh.  Tim tried to sell it as no big deal.  The pups hit into a really strange double play.  The third baseman picked up a bunt by Chase d’Arnaud and threw to first for one.  Travis Jankowski, seeing third was unoccupied, tried to take the base.  The Aces’ catcher, however, got up the line and covered for the out.  That was 5-3-2.  Tim thought Chase should still be credited with a sacrifice. 

Top of the ninth, Rondon hit a sure double or more which was caught by a sliding Evan Marzilli in the outfield.  Tim and the crowd there were very impressed with the play.  In the bottom, the game ended on a double play.  3-1 Chihuahuas win and take a 1-0 lead in the best of five series.  Tim was surprised by the low score, since the park and the altitude are very hitter friendly.  Chihuahuas’ and Aces’ pitching did well.  This felt like a close, tight playoff game.  This could be a good series.

9-7-17

I checked out the Braves versus the Marlins on the MLB Free Game.  New Suntrust Field is getting some exposure this year.  Dee Gordon led off the game with a triple and there was a second one by Marcel Ozuna, as part of a three-run inning.  Ender Inciarte was playing in the outfield next to fellow, former Chihuahua Jace Peterson.  Matt Wisler, another Chihuahua, came in as a reliever in the Rangers’ game on Labor Day.  I hope the Padres got someone good for all these guys.            

Chip Caray and Joe Simpson called the Marlins’ pitcher, Dan Straily, “A box of chocolates pitcher.”  Quoting from Forrest Gump, you didn’t know what you were going to get whenever Straily takes the mound.  Ender stole second in the inning.  He got there with Dee Gordon’s glove and the ball underneath his leg and Gordon left empty-handed.  Ender was still safe.

Because of the hurricane coming for Florida, the Marlins players had been told to take their families with them on the road trip.  The Braves were offering free game tickets to anybody from Florida who was fleeing the storm.  That was nice of them.  As of today (Friday), all of Florida and now Georgia are being warned.  There may not be any games in Atlanta this weekend.  The Braves won the game 6-5.

Back in Reno, the Chihuahuas and Aces were playing Game Two of the division series.  In the first, Chase d’Arnaud, was announced as “The Strikeout Batter,” on the Chihuahuas.  If he struck out during the game, everyone in a section would get a free beer or something.  Tim Hagerty seemed a bit put off by the promotion.  It was another lively crowd, if on the small side at 3,500.  They brought back their thunder sticks.

There wasn’t much offense to start, though Chihuahuas’ pitcher, Brian Rodriguez, got his first hit of the season.  He immediately stopped at first.  Ooops, emergency, emergency!  There’s a new Taylor Swift video with her cat!  I had to watch that a couple of times.  I can’t wait to meet the cat when I’m finally dating Tay.  While working, I walked back into the room just in time to hear Jose Rondon doubling in Hunter Renfroe, who scored from first.  Dusty Coleman, who was in the lineup for his defense, hit a two-run home run for a 3-0 Chihuahuas’ lead.  The Aces got a solo homer in the bottom, 3-1. 

In the fifth, with two Chihuahuas on, there was a pop up near the pitcher’s mound.  Two players collided and let it drop to load the bases.  (It wasn’t called an infield fly.  Back to rulebook, if first base is unoccupied, the rule doesn’t apply.)  It was bases loaded with no outs, but the Chihuahuas only got one run on a Christian Villanueva sac fly.  That was even with two (could have been three) errors in the inning.  4-1 Chihuahuas.

The pups had their own shaky inning in the seventh.  There was a single, a near error, and then another single, which drove in a run.  The runners moved up on the throw to the plate.  The crowd got back into it.  There was a walk to load the bases with no outs.  Manager Rod Barajas stuck with Brian Rodriguez. He finished off the inning with a strikeout, an infield fly, and another strikeout.  4-2 Chihuahas.

In the eighth, pinch hitter Diego Goris hit a long fly ball off the batter’s eye.  “What’s the call!” exclaimed Tim, waiting on the ump, “Home run!”, 6-2.  The crowd immediately went quiet.  In the ninth, Christian Villanueva doubled in a run, 7-2, and that was our final.  Another great pitching performance for the pups.  The Chihuahuas are now up two games in this best of five series and coming back home for the rest.

Let’s take a quick, belated trip around the MLB, mostly because I finally noticed a bunch of streaks in progress.  Cleveland, firmly in first in the AL Central, has a 15-game winning streak.  A local window business had a promotion related to that streak and had to pay up with a couple of million in free product and services.  Lucky they had an insurance policy on that.  Arizona has a 13-game winning streak and the Dodgers have a seven-game losing streak.  Even with that, it’s still not close in the NL West.  In the NL East, three of the five teams have already been eliminated from the playoffs, with a fourth about to join them.

Baseball Journal September 3-4, 2017

9-3-17

With little on TV today (like the NASCAR Southern 500 at Darlington which NBC put on cable, but I’m not bitter or anything), I almost forgot that the Rangers were playing the hated Angels this afternoon.  I joined the game in the second with the miserable Halos already up 2-0.  The Rangers got one in the bottom, but left the bases loaded.  In the third, Elvis Andrus homered to tie it.  Carlos Gomez struck out in the inning.  He then argued and tossed his bat and was ejected.  He’d apparently had other problems with the umps this series.  In the fourth, Robinson Chirinos hit a two-run homer and Delino Deshields followed that with a solo shot, 5-2. 

In the fifth, some loser named Al got an RBI for the crappy Angels.  (I don’t like this fellow in an increasingly unprofessional manner.)  Conversationally during the game, Eric Nadel was excited that he’d to be doing the Spanish broadcast for an inning this week.  The team’s Spanish broadcaster would be doing the English.  Eric also talked about the about the new ballpark that’s about to be built.  He was already visualizing the orientation of the field and where the sunlight would be coming in.  It was a hot, humid day in Arlington.  The guys are really looking forward to an air-conditioned, indoor facility.

In the sixth, Joey Gallo had an error at third, his third in three games with Adrian Beltre out.  Will Middlebrooks at first made a great play to end the inning.  I didn’t know he was with the team.  It turned out was his first game with the Rangers, his favorite team.  In the bottom, Elvis hit another homer, a 434’ line shot for two runs.  Eric and Matt Hicks were in awe, 7-3.  In the seventh, Gallo made a great diving catch.  He’s apparently made a great play around every error lately.

The ninth got hairy.  The bad news Angels got runners on second and third with no outs.  Al made the first on an infield fly rule.  Ha, ha.  Then Andrelton Simmons doubled, 7-5.  Runners were again on second and third with one out.  An intentional walk loaded the bases.  An unintentional walk forced in another run, 7-6.  Finally, Gallo fielded a grounder and threw out a runner at second for the nervous 7-6 win. 

Martin Perez went over 100 pitches for the win.  Tony Barnett got the shaky save.  He was the second pitcher used the ninth, and I think they said he’d worked three days in a row.  The Rangers won two of three from the horrid Angels, but their bullpen got shelled in the process.  Robinson Chirinos was the post-game guest.  He’d caught all three games in the series.  (Where’s Brett Nicholas?)  And the games dragged for like over 12 hours total.  He was cool with it.  Whatever it took to win.  Robinson just wanted to play and contribute.  If this turns out to be my last Rangers’ game on the weekend, it at least was a good one, in spite of the wretched Angels.

6:00 pm was the baseball game I was waiting for between the Chihuahuas and the Rivercats.  The pups could clinch it with a win today.  Tim Hagerty was back.  He had been attending a friend’s wedding yesterday.  The guest voice was Tim Roye, voice of the Golden State Warriors and obviously a friend of the Chihuahuas’. 

None of this came up in the first inning though.  Tim was too busy calling three straight Chihuahuas getting on base to start the game and Hunter Renfroe hitting a grand slam to bring them in.  He didn’t even have time to go over Renfroe’s bases loaded hitting stats before the ball went out.  Nick Buss kept it going with a single.  The next batter finally made the first out of the game, drawing a sarcastic cheer from the Sacramento crowd.  Tony Cruz then came up and hit a two-run homer.  After that, there was a double and the second error of the inning before the third out.  That was a six-run inning and it took about 16 minutes to play out. 

Renfroe made the highlight reel again in the second inning by throwing out a runner trying to stretch a single into a double.  There wasn’t much else to talk about until later in the game.  Tim started to talk about playoff ticket information.  He’s been doing this for a couple of weeks, but had to say that he wasn’t jinxing anything.  They have to offer the tickets beforehand.  He told the story about the Red Sox putting a World Series logo on their field before they actually got in one year (the Aaron “Bleeping” Boone series with the Yankees).  “I’ll let you in on a secret,” he said, “Every team does that.  They have to be prepared before the event.”  He also noticed a couple of Chihuahuas’ hats and a Diablos’ shirt being worn in the crowd.

Jose Rondon, back off the IR again, doubled in a run to make it 7-0.  Tim Melville, El Paso’s pitcher, let on two batters in the seventh and was taken out.  (He was also one of the outs in the first inning on a strikeout.  It was like his third professional at bat.)  Adam Cimber came in and unfortunately gave up a three-run homer to make it 7-3.   That was all the scoring.  In the eighth, Tim talked about when the clubhouse attendants should start putting up plastic sheets on the lockers.  A strikeout ended the game and began the Chihuahuas next run into the playoffs. 

They were eight games out halfway through the season.  The Salt Lake City Bees looked to run away with the division.  I don’t follow the team or their parent club, the suckwad Angels, but perhaps the big league team’s Wild Card run sapped the Bees’ roster.  With the Padres not contending, they had no problem with sending Hunter Renfroe down so he could hit over .500 with the Chihuahuas and help put them over the hump.  Before the game, manager Rod Barajas got a hold of the league offices to make sure that if they won, they were in.  You can never be too careful in making sure you don’t celebrate prematurely.

9-4-17 Labor Day

Comet TV had a Godzilla film festival on, but I found myself flipping stations.  The new Stadium network was showing the Pony League World Series.  It was Covina, California versus Seoul, South Korea.  Korea was up 1-0 for most of the game.  Their manager got ejected for arguing balls and strikes.  He nearly took his team with him.  In the seventh and final inning, Korea got the third out, but the tying run scored before that on the same play.  Their pitcher was ejected for arguing.  Covina won it in extras in the eighth on a two-run homer off a light pole, 3-1 US wins.  James Jimenez was the hero, going seven innings of one-run pitching and hitting the winning home run. 

Today was the last day of the PCL regular season.  The Chihuahuas played the Rivercats in the afternoon.  Several Chihuahuas were out of the lineup to rest for the playoffs.  Franchy Cordero led off with a home run, 1-0 Chihuahuas.  Franchy scored again on a sacrifice in the third, 2-0.  In the fourth, Dusty Coleman hit a home run that bounced off the top of the wall, 3-0.  In the bottom, the Rivercats got back-to-back homers to bring it to 3-2.  The crowd in Sacramento got into it.  They sounded like a large, enthusiastic group.  The game was halfway through in an hour.  Tim spent much of that talking about the playoffs and the post-game celebration. 

Hunter Renfroe got a pinch hit double in seventh.  Franchy singled in a run and Renfroe scored on a Carlos Rondon single.  Coleman singled after a pitching change, and then Ryan Schimpf doubled in three runs with the bases loaded.  When the dust settled it was 9-2.  Things were looking good.  Christian Bethancourt came in and gave up three walks in the eighth and two runs came in on a single, 9-4.  Jason Jester came in to finish the inning. 

Then came the ninth.  Jester gave up three home runs in a row without getting an out, 9-7.  The crowd was going nuts.  Jester was out after another hit.  Eric Yardley came in and did no better.  He gave up a two-run homer to tie it, 9 all.  Yardley hit for himself in the tenth.  Diego Goris had wanted to pitch today and was warming up.  The Chihuahuas apparently didn’t want use any more pitchers.  Yardley did go back out.  With two outs in the bottom of the tenth, a walkoff homer ended it.  10-9 Rivercats was our shock ending to the game.  We’re all going to hopefully forget this game ever happened and look forward to the playoffs on Wednesday.

Somebody was happy about the game.  You can tell if hasn't been a good season for the Giants when the Triple-A team winning the meaningless last game of the season makes their main fansite.  Still, from that perspective, it was a tremendous game.

The Rangers/Braves game coverage started on time thanks to a bottom of the hour starting time.  Elvis Andrus got it started in the first with a home run off RA Dickey.  Rangers’ pitcher, Andrew Cashner, helped himself out in the second.  With the bases loaded he sacrificed in a run.  Another scored on a passed ball, 3-0 Rangers.  Should Kurt Suzuki really have been charged with that given that he was catching a knuckleballer?  In the third, Matt Hicks commented on the height of the pressbox at new Suntrust Field in Atlanta.  It’s not quite as bad as Nationals Park, where you can wave “Hi” the blimp pilots as they fly by, but it’s still an aerial view of the game.  Joey Gallo tripled in a run and Roughned Odor sacrificed one in, 5-0 Rangers. 

Then there’s an unintelligible sentence on my notes.  I need to learn how to write.  Matt Adams, who had been playing an amusing left field in the game, got some revenge with a two-run homer in the fourth, 5-2.  In the sixth, Normar Mazara homered, 6-2.  Former Chihuahua, Ender Inciarte almost got it as it passed over a low point on the outfield wall.  Carlos Gomez tripled, as Matt Adams fumbled it in the outfield.  Ruggie drove him and himself in with a homer, 8-2 Rangers.

At this point I lost my local station with the sun going down.  Ah, but how could the Rangers lose at this point?  It’s in the bag.  Some kind of huge collapse couldn’t happen twice in one day, could it?  Actually, by the time I could pick up another affiliate, it was the ninth and the score was unchanged thankfully.  As the game was about to end, Eric Nadel noted they were just under three hours, “If we were playing the Angels, we’d be in the sixth inning.”  Earlier, the slimy Angels had set an American League record for pitchers used in a game at 12.  It was an 11-inning game and the previous record had included much longer games.  The craptacular Angels won the game in a tidy four plus hours.  Anyway, the Rangers beat the Braves tonight, 8-2.  Back to the Godzilla film festival.