NM State Aggies vs UTRGV Vaqueros Baseball 4-9-17

The start time of this game was moved up an hour.  I remember showing up to a game late last year because of a similar issue, which turned out to be a great game.  Thankfully, I was at the Saturday game where the PA made sure to let the fans know about the change.  The crowd was pretty small at the start of the game, but filled in pretty well as it went on (555 official attendance).   

  

Today’s giveaway card featured Brent Sakurai.  He’s one of my favorite players on the team.  I think I met him outside the stadium once, and he was a nice guy.  I came hungry, since it was early and dollar hot dog day.  The hot dogs weren’t ready before the game.  That was disappointing.  I did get one 10 minutes later right before the first pitch.  It was just further disappointment.  (The Corn in a Cup was good though.)  Ron was hungry too, but he smartly picked up a hamburger at Jack in the Box before picking me up.  I just don’t know about NMSU concessions (though I’m still hoping to try the Pan-Am Center hamburger).

It was a little cooler today, but worse, the wind was colder and blowing into the grandstand.  I wished I had brought the jacket that I’d brought yesterday.  UTRGV was wearing grey pajamas today out on the field.  It wasn’t an upgrade from Saturday’s uniform.  (They also started three guys named Garcia.)  The Aggies were in sharp-looking crimson tops and white pants.  I’d planned on not wearing Aggie stuff today, but reconsidered to respect the streak, so I was in crimson too.  Also for a second day, Nolan Fox wasn’t in the radio booth with Adam Young.  Adam seemed pretty preoccupied with the curfew time three and half hours from the start time (so that UTRGV could make their plane).  Specifically, he was worried that they’d changed the time without telling him.     

A little girl from the Aggie Kid’s Club threw out the first pitch.  She threw like a girl, but dropped a strike right into (I think) Jason Bush’s mitt.  The crowd roared.  Jason congratulated her and handed her the ball.  The team mobbed her as she came off the field.  It was so cute.  I’d like to think that gave the Aggies some good karma for the game.            

Jonathan Groff started off the game well for the Aggies with two groundouts.  Then the third batter sent one deep to center field.  Marcus Still got an unfortunate error trying to catch it.  He may have misjudged it with the wind.  If he’d been less athletic, Still wouldn’t have gotten a glove on it and thus been charged with an error.  The next batter singled the runner in.  The PA played Shania Twain’s “That Don’t Impress Me Much.”  I’m thinking the two-run homer next did.  Because of the two-out error, all the runs were unearned.  0-3 Vaqueros. 

Men’s Basketball coach Paul Weir came in in the bottom.  I wanted to congratulate him on their season as he went by, but didn’t get his attention.  I should give up on wanting to talk to Aggie sports figures.  I saw Mario Moccia again.  This time he wisely brought his wife with him to keep track of his two little girls.  Marcus hustled his way on to start the Aggie frame and when he got moved over to third, he took home on a wild pitch.  That’s some atonement.  Dan Hetzel then drove in a run.  Tristan Carranza got a gift single on a ball that rolled foul, then fair.  Unfortunately, he didn’t run it out and only made an out.  Little John Hatch, better known as LJ (little wonder he goes by his initials), would drive in Hetzel, and Mason Fishback would drive in LJ.  4-3 Aggies in a good bounce back inning.  The crowd was totally loud and into it for the comeback. 

A staffer walked by with a big beautiful dog, like a cross between a German Sheppard and a collie with one droopy ear.  Oh, how I wanted to reach out and pet that dog, but it was just out of reach.  Meanwhile, two very large birds orbited over the field, checking out the action.  So much for wildlife, back to the game.  The Vaqueros scored another run in the second.  It was a complicated series of events.  A runner got on via another error, though was thrown out on an overslide trying to advance on a wild pitch.  The next batter tripled in the lead runner, who had gotten on by a single previously.  Somehow that’s an unearned run.  I don’t think the rule book will help me this time.  4-4 tie.     

The Aggies came right back in their at bat and nearly sent nine men to the plate again.  Austin Botello doubled in Joey Ortiz.  Hetzel then blasted a 400’ non-wind aided shot over the centerfield wall.  7-4 Aggies, in spite of what the scoreboard said.  Adam pointed out it was wrong.  I wondered how he could see the board with the sun on it.  The lights on it are almost invisible in direct sunlight. 

There was another poor play in the third.  Groff picked off the runner on first, who managed to get around the tag at second after a bad throw and stole the base.  He came around to score on a double, and that was after a bad non-strike call.  7-5 Aggies.  If Groff got frustrated with the defense, he had to like the offense.  You know things are going right when Ortiz tried to bunt the two runners over, the first baseman fielded it, lost his glove with ball still in it, and he’s safe to load the bases.  A pass ball plated one run and a double play scored another.  9-5 Aggies.     

          

Ron went off for a walk during the fourth.  He was not himself and didn’t seem well.  An inning later, he returned and tossed me a ball.  He bragged about outmuscling the ballhawk kids for it.  Just kidding.  He found it lying around behind the grandstand.  Here was a conundrum for me.  I’d always thought that if I got a ball, I’d do what you’re supposed to do and give it to a kid (after getting a picture with it).  However, as I fondled the pitching mud-encrusted object, I found it very hard to part with.  Hmm.  I contemplated seeing if I could get an autograph on it after the game.  Okay, next ball I’ll give away.  Actually, after I showed it to dad, I think he wanted one too.  So the third ball, I’ll give away.  Unless somebody else I know wants one too.  They’re kind of magical, you know. 

The top of the fourth finished without anyone scoring finally, but there was still drama.  I was watching a high foul fly get caught by the Vaquero dugout for the last out, when I suddenly noticed a crowd around home plate.  The home plate umpire was on one knee being attended to by both training staffs and the coaches.  He’d collapsed, perhaps from dehydration, though it wasn’t hot out.  He got a good round of applause for staying in the game from the people who’d been questioning his strike zone.  It’s just game in the end.  In the bottom of the inning, he called a Balk on the Vaquero pitcher.  He actually went to the mound and explained to him what he did to correct him.  Cooper Williams, starting today, sacrificed Fishback in from third.  10-5 Aggies.

Fifth inning and more hi-jinks.  On a bouncer to first, Carranza took it himself instead of tossing it to Groff covering and it became an infield single.  Amazingly, the runner didn’t score later.  Here’s stranger news: the Aggies didn’t score in their half of the inning either.  A couple of young guys sitting by us, brought in a pair of new hats to a couple older gentlemen they were sitting with.  They looked pretty cool, sort of like Brooklyn Dodger hats, but the hat was a different shade of blue and the Olde English “B” was in gold.  I wonder where they came from. 

In the sixth, the Aggies tacked on two more runs, 12-5.  Adam pronounced this, “A game that is taking forever.”  He was looking at the clock and wondering how much longer they’re going to be able to play.  I started to wonder if he had a plane to catch too.  By the seventh, the sky was now overcast, but the wind had died down, so it was actually more pleasant.  A couple of the ballhawk kids walked by with a half dozen balls in a mitt.  I still feel a little bad about keeping my ball, but not too bad. 

Apparently, the Aggies wanted the game over too.  In spite of a double play taking out the first two batters, the next two batters got on the hard way after getting hit.  Hatch knocked in one of them.  (I have an error advancing a runner, but the scorer must have waved that off later.)  Mason Fishback then delivered the game-winning, two-RBI single that ended the game immediately on the 10 run rule.  Aggies 15, Vaqueros 5 is our final.  That only took two hours and 25 minutes and nobody missed their flight.                   

First, I have to give a raspberry to Aggie fielding today with four errors and other mishaps.  I only recorded three errors, and I think I have the hits right, so the scorer must have changed his mind on something else.  The guys will probably be running laps or something at the next practice.  Those muffs kept UTRGV in this game.  While Jonathan Groff gave up five runs in six innings, only one was earned (though I’m confused why that run in the second was unearned).  Given the wind and his defense, Groff gets a star.  Likewise, Dan Hetzel and Mason Fishback were awesome today driving in runs.  The Aggie offense scored in six of seven innings.  The Aggies are now 6-0 for the first time in the WAC, and the only undefeated team with Grand Canyon losing on Saturday.

Right after the game, Ron wanted to leave.  I didn’t argue, though I wanted to try to get Coach Brian Green’s autograph on my ball.  (Actually, I wanted an excuse to talk to him for a second to make a suggestion.)  I asked him about the family lunch he was going to, at which point he confided that he really wasn’t feeling well and was going straight home.  He felt he just needed some rest.  It was a great game.  I was sorry him and Adam didn’t enjoy it.  Before we left though, he drove around the baseball/softball complex.  Ron was looking for a way to get at the home run balls behind the fence.  Maybe next time.       

NM State Aggies vs UTRGV Vaqueros Baseball 4-8-17

Ah, it was a beautiful day here in the desert southwest.  The temperature was in the mid 80’s with hardly a cloud in the sky.  There was a stiff breeze, but it actually helped cool things off.  However, Garth Brooks was in town to do five concerts this weekend.  Yes, five.  No, I don’t know why, but they all sold out.  At Friday night’s game (10-2 Aggies), it was Garth Brooks night, and they played his music between innings.  (I was only splitting time last night between that game, the Chihuahuas, Aggie softball, and the Astros and Royals.)  Given the influx of people for the concerts at the Pan-Am Center, University street was blocked, and along with it, our usual path to the ball field.  Ron had to take a circuitous route to get to the park, but we got there without any trouble.

Today’s promotion was by ASNMSU (the student association).  They handed out free pizza and souvenir cups.  To students.  So much for the fans and alumni.  However, the team handed out baseball cards of the players, unfortunately one at a time.  Today’s game card was Greg Popylisen.  He’d injured himself in the Texas Tech game earlier this week, but at least he wasn’t traded, like what happens to major league players on their bobblehead giveaway days.

I was in my new crimson shirt, which I hadn’t had a chance to wear for months, with my Aggie button.  Meanwhile, UT Rio Grande Valley was on the field wearing super bright orange tops.  I didn’t see any of their fans wearing similar shirts.  As their workout ended, they came off the field, one at a time, and lined up in front of the dugout.  They have a better record than the Aggies, but mostly because they had a softer pre-conference schedule.  I’m getting worried about this Grand Canyon University team mentioned during the radio pre-game.  They’re like 6-0 in conference, though not eligible for the WAC tournament.    

The crowd was small to start with.  Some hot girls, who were presumably the players’ girlfriends, were camped out next to the Aggie dugout.  The ASNMSU guys sat by the UTRGV dugout, but were pretty quiet.  One of them threw out the first pitch and got ragged on by his friends.  A Vaquero player was seated in the section next to us with a radar gun and a stopwatch.  I saw broadcaster Adam Young chatting with some fans in the stands.  The son of a co-worker came by and said “Hi” to me.  He was working the camera for Aggievision today, as part of his A/V degree.  I don’t know if likes the sports he’s broadcasting or not.  If not, this would be a terrible job.

The wind was gusting hard across the field to the right.  The pitchers would be trying to keep the ball down until it died down later in the game.  The Vaqueros got a couple runners on right away in the first.  The lead runner, though, got thrown out at third, trying to advance on a wild pitch.  That pitch bounced off the ump, instead of to the backstop.  Adam reported seeing Aggie catcher, Jason Bush, smiling after the play, having gotten lucky.  That probably killed that rally.  In the bottom, strangely, just about the same thing happened.  Joey Ortiz would be thrown out at third, trying to take the base on a wild pitch.

By the second, the late-arriving crowd filled in the place (603 attendance).  Maybe they got caught by surprise by University being shutdown.  Aggie starter, Marcel Renteria, was firing in the mid 90’s.  The Vaqueros loaded the bases, but Marcel wriggled out of it.  In the bottom, Dan Hetzel walked and Tristan Carranza was hit by a pitch, but called back for failing to try to get out of the way.  He ended up walking anyway.  LJ Hatch sacrificed the runners over and got a huge cheer from the dugout.  Mason Fishback was intentionally walked (more or less) to load the bases.  With Brent Sakurai at bat, Adam mentioned how hard it is to double up the speedy infielder, at which point he grounded into a double play to end the inning.  Why do broadcasters insist on tempting the baseball gods?

In the third, Aggie Athletic Director, Mario Moccia, came in and sat in front of us briefly with three little girls in tow.  The top of the third ended with Austin Botello going to the left field wall to catch a long fly ball.  Me and the UTRGV player next to us both thought that it was going out, but the wind knocked it down.   In the bottom, Botello drove in Ortiz for the game’s first run.  1-0 Aggies. 

For the fourth, I noticed the girl in front of me was watching a softball game on her phone.  I don’t think it was the Aggie girls.  Mario attempted to do an interview with Adam in the booth, but had to leave quickly as one of his little girls was wandering around the grandstands looking for him.  He returned for the bottom of the inning and would take credit for the Aggies’ offense coming to life.  With the bases loaded, Marcus Still sacrificed a run in.  Ortiz singled in a couple of runs.  Botello followed that with a drive to center field.  The fielder made a great dive at it, but didn’t come up with it and another run scored.  5-0 Aggies. 

In the fifth, a ball went through the net and right into the stands.  Scary.  Even scarier, Renteria loaded the bases again, but two strikeouts and a ground out ended the threat.  Nails.  Carranza and Sakurai both solo homered in the bottom.  An Aggie wind seemed to carry both balls over the fence.  Brent’s went about 400’.  7-0 Aggies 

The main news of the sixth was Mario wandering around the grandstands looking for his girls.  In the seventh, Marcel was touching 96 mph and triumphantly finished off his appearance.  This should have been end of the game, or it should have ended on a run-rule when the Aggies loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh.  Instead the Aggies didn’t score any more runs.  Unfortunately, their relievers started giving them up.  Keaton Graf was removed after coming in and giving up two walks.  Dalton Shalberg loaded the bases and walked in a run, but finished the inning without further damage.  7-1 Aggies.

The top of the ninth got downright hairy for a having a six-run lead going in.  Normally reliable Matt McHugh surrendered two runs without getting an out.  With three on and the tying run at the plate, closer, Ruger Rodriguez, was brought in.  He yielded a run on a sacrifice, but got the outs and ended game.  Aggies 7, Vaqueros 4 final.  Frankly, those last two innings took forever and shouldn’t have happened.  I was starting to bake in the sun too.  Oh well, a win’s a win. 

Going seven innings with no runs allowed, Marcel Renteria is the easy-to-pick star of the game.  Joey Ortiz gets the offensive nod for going 2 for 3, with 2 runs and 2 RBI’s.  For UTRGV, Anthony Gomez had a pretty good game, going 4 for 5, and Josh Witherspoon did pretty well in relief, giving up only two runs in over four innings. 

It was like a model convention in the “kiss and cry” area next to the Aggie dugout after the game.  Lucky bastard players.  Good thing they won after nearly blowing that seven-run lead, otherwise the girls might have deserted them.  Expired What-A-Burgers were handed out at the gate because of the win.  Mixed feelings there.  Ron and I had dinner at Arby’s.  It was swell, especially the salted caramel chocolate chip cookie I had afterward.  Looking forward to tomorrow’s Sunday game.             

NM State Aggies vs Texas Tech Red Raiders Baseball 4-4-17

I did say I wasn’t going this game, right?  They changed time from 6:00 to 2:00, making it impractical for me to go.  I told the people at work about the change for this game, and they told me to go ahead and go.  In fact, they were downright insistent I go.  Fine.  (I didn’t even need Athletic Director Mario Moccia’s work excuse letter.)  Game Day, I awoke to cold 40 mph winds.  (Actually, I got woken up by a repairman, who was turning A/C’s for the building.  You think your job sucks, these guys spent literally all day on the roof in those winds.)  With no abatement of the winds by noon, I called Ron and asked if he still wanted to go.  Yep, he still wanted to go.  (Ron must really want out of the house as much as possible.)  I even had him check the team twitter feed to see if the game had been cancelled or delayed.  It was on, so off we went. 

Luckily, the winds died down a bit by game time.  It was bright and sunny and about 80 out of the wind on what would otherwise be a nice day.  We got there way early.  The parking lot was mostly full, but it may have been mostly students parking for classes.  Ron got a parking pass off the NMSU website.  A ticket seller last year told me that they don’t ticket people on game days, but why take the chance?  There was a group of Texas Tech fans tailgating by the stadium.  Inside the park, the concession trailer was shockingly closed.  I suddenly had a bad feeling about what the crowd size was going to be.  Not to mention, I was thirsty.  By the way, that bank of water fountains by the dugouts don’t work.  I also discovered a third bathroom for confused Snowflakes around the corner from the normal people bathrooms.  You guys in the Athletic department put in a third bathroom, but don’t have working water fountains, and you wonder why you’re having financial problems. 

Inside, there turned out to be an entire visitors’ section full of Tech fans.  And I thought Yale brought their fans.  They easily outnumbered the Aggie fans that were there early.  One of the Red Raider players was from El Paso, so his extended family was there with signs and t-shirts.  (Of course, he was getting the biggest ovation of any player going up for an at bat.)  The main thing I noticed was that the Tech fans spent a lot time taking pictures of themselves.  (The Aggies were coming off a three-game sweep of Seattle U, where Aggie fans actually may have outnumbered Seattle’s.  These things happen.)  There were just a couple of kids in attendance as you might expect for a Tuesday afternoon.  One was a cute little toddler in an A’s hat and an El Paso Chihuahuas’ shirt.  His caretakers got plenty of exercise corralling him.  Somehow, the usual ball hawk kid was also present.   

We got good seats behind home plate, just next to the reserved section.  We were mostly out of the wind, which alternated between blowing across the field to blowing in.  The PA was the guy that did most of the announcing last year and not the new girl.  He does a good job, but I kind of missed the girl all but flirting with the Aggie players as she announced them.  One last thing I noticed about the opposing team was that the Tech players all have their names on the back of their jerseys.  That’s the first time I’ve seen that for a college baseball team.  I guess that’s a perk of being on the #6 ranked team in the nation.

These are two of the densest scorecards I’ve ever kept.  Unbelievably, everything added up at the end (more or less).  (Did you know that a run scored on a passed ball is unearned, but a run scored on a wild pitch is earned?  Yes, I was hitting my rule book again for help.)  The main explanation for the completeness was the amount of time I had to work on it while at the game. 

This was not Aggie pitcher, Chris Kucko’s, day.  Even for a bullpen day, this was a bad show.  Right out of the gate, the bases were loaded on a hit, walk, and a hit batter, and there was already action in the Aggie bullpen.  The first five Red Raider batters scored, and apart from some cheering from the Tech fans, the crowd and dugouts were ominously quiet.  The fiery Andy Frakes came in for relief and even he was fairly subdued in mood.  He managed to only allow one inherited runner to score (on the first out of the inning no less), but eventually closed out the inning.  0-6 Texas Tech after a half inning and batting around +3.

During the Aggie half of the inning, there was some hope, as Dan Hetzel tripled in Joey Ortiz to bring the score to 1-6 Tech.  By this point, the game may have been going on for the better part of an hour (I didn’t check the time at the time).  A much larger, late-arriving Aggie crowd filed in.  This was heartening.  The stadium filled up nicely and good, noisy chatter coursed through the crowd.  They were also bringing in concession items.  I wonder if somebody forgot to tell the concession people about the time change and then quickly called them in when they saw how many people were showing up. 

Also with this crowd were some other Aggie sports players.  A couple of volleyball players came in after their practice.  (Megan Hart wasn’t with them.  I’m disappointed that I didn’t get to see her.)  Softball player, Amy Bergeson, came in with her boyfriend (presumably) and given how much I like the way she plays the game, I should have said something to her as she walked past.  A very pretty blonde girl wearing an Aggie soccer sweatshirt came by.  She must new.  I’d have remembered seeing her on the field. 

If I’d had a drink with me (which I never ended up getting), I would have done a spit take as women’s basketball star, Brooke Salas, came in.  I didn’t figure her for the “let’s support the other Aggie teams” type.  Maybe this is part of that “leadership” thing I mentioned in another post that she should start doing.  Brooke had her hair down and styled and looked glamorous.  I almost didn’t recognize her teammate, Zaire Williams, with her, with her hair attractively down too.  I really wanted to say congratulations to them on their season as they walked past.  Unfortunately, they weren’t just attractively intimidating, they were intimidating period.  I don’t know how much fan interaction these girls wanted today and wasn’t willing to find out in an awkward way.  (Brandee Walton or Tamara William, I’d have said something to, because I know they’re nice.)

Okay, the game itself was kind of functionally finished by this point.  It was just a question of how bad would the outcome be for the Aggies.  Let’s just hit a few inning by inning highlights rather than drag this out (unlike actually having to sit through this game).  Another great moment in heckling occurred in the third as the umpires gathered to discuss if Austin Botello had been hit on the foot by a pitch.  After a couple of minutes eventually a “Call New York!” cry rang out, to my complete amusement. 

Greg Popylisen was making the most of his spot start in center.  He had a highlight reel, diving catch in the fourth.  In the bottom, catcher, Mason Fishback, got picked off first.  He slammed his helmet down back in the dugout.  Given that he probably hadn’t had any intention of stealing that was kind of embarrassing.  However, when the Red Raider pitcher tried to pick off Brent Sakurai, one of the speedier players on the team, he ended up throwing the ball away for a two-base error.        

I had an idea.  Inspired by the brave trumpet player, I started working on some signs to hold up to get Brooke’s attention behind us.  Ron declined to participate, so I let it go.  Popylisen again went all out in the fifth, slamming into the wall, trying to get at flyball.  The middle of the fifth had my favorite moment of the whole game.  The PA told Aggie fans to make some noise if they wanted free What-a-Burger coupons.  The loudest section was actually the Tech fan section, but the attendant completely snubbed them.  But when the inning started, he apparently had change of heart and went back to them and handed out a bunch to them, at which point the Tech fans started chanting, “Go Aggies!”

In the sixth, Mario Moccia came by.  I’d been looking for him.  He sat in the nearby reserved section with some boosters and/or alumni or player families and chatted with them.  If I’d talked to him, I was going to tell him that I was playing hokey from work to be there (and maybe bring up a few issues if he was foolish enough to stick around).  Popylisen again made another dive for a ball.  This time he ended up hurt and had to come out.  David Bellamy came in for him.  Where’s Marcus Still, the regular centerfielder?     

Meanwhile, Brooke and Zaire had gotten up and moved around, walking past me a couple more times.  I felt all but taunted.  They stopped and talked with Mario for a minute right in front of me.  Eventually, the girls, Mario, and most of the Aggie fans left by the eighth.  The Texas Tech fans all stayed.  The weather alternated to warm and sunny with no breeze, but by the end, the wind started again and shifted into the stands.  It got a bit cold and I started feeling my cold coming back.  Gamewise, the Red Raiders kept up a fairly steady pace of scoring, including sending all nine men to the plate in the eighth.  The Aggies scratched out a couple more runs, but never really seemed to get a rally going.  Three double plays certainly killed a few innings.

The game finally ended.  Our final was Aggies 4, Red Raiders 15.  The Aggie fight song played, which was surprising, since it was a loss and a bad one.  The Tech fans started clapping along with it.  Perhaps our fight song sounds like their fight song, and they were confused.  Let’s get the most important stat of the game out of the way: in spite of all that wind and 19 runs scored, zero home runs.  Zero.  Who would have picked that there would have been more double plays (4) than homers today? 

Our players of the game are Joey Ortiz, offensively, going 4 for 5 with 2 runs.  The team got hits and scored runs, so they weren’t completely overwhelmed by the competition.  Defensively, Greg Popylisen gets the nod for his efforts in centerfield.  He literally sacrificed himself out there, trying to limit the damage.  The team actually had no errors today, so they at least didn’t self-destruct outside of their pitching.  Credit to Frakes for gritting his way through four + tough innings, and to Chance Hroch and to Keaton Graf for having two clean relief innings.  In honor of the two Texas Tech cowboy hicks in the next section, that I had to listen for two innings in the eighth and ninth, that ragged on Las Cruces and the Aggies, I’m not recognizing any of their players’ efforts here.        

I asked Ron for the time, since I’d actually planned on going to work after the game.  Holy crap!  This game took four hours.  This didn’t surprise me, but it was still shocking.  The Yankees and Red Sox would have called this a slow-moving game.  I’d missed my window for making work worthwhile and had to call in for the rest of the day.  As we pulled out of the parking lot, we noticed an Aggie Women’s soccer match going on on the pitch next to the softball field.  I had no idea they were playing in the spring.  I’ll have to look them up (and see if that pretty blonde was on the team).  Dinner was at the NY Pizza place somewhere on the East Mesa.  That was a nice place with really good service.  The pizza was good, but had some not-so-good after effects.  No lasting damage done. 

Much like the Tennessee softball game, I’m disappointed at the result, but it was kind of cool to see a really good, nationally-ranked team playing here.  I wonder if this is the highest-ranked opponent Aggie baseball has hosted.  Probably not, given how long they’ve had the program, but I think it’s the highest since the remodel at least.  Also, it was good to see that big crowd in the stadium, even if a bunch of them were for the other team.  (These guys were not the classy, friendly Yale fans.)  Hopefully, the unexpected (and undeserved, given the time change and late concessions and no water fountains) success of this game may bring more nationally ranked teams here.  Maybe I can be there for some great upset victory in the future.        

   

NM State Aggies vs Utah Valley Wolverines Softball 4-1-17

After three endless weekends of beautiful weather, Aggie sports finally returned to action.  It was about 10 degrees colder than the previous weekends, but still pleasant.  Unfortunately on a personal level, I was getting over a cold.  (And still am as I write this.  I’m writing this in a fog.)  Since I was just going to be sitting around all day miserable anyway, I may as well be doing it at the softball complex.  Ron, extremely eager to get out as well, picked me up.  Lunch was Schlotzsky’s new barbeque brisket sandwich, which was great, of course.

The softball team was coming off a definitive double header sweep of the UTEP Miners in El Paso.  Game 2 featured a 9-run inning for the Aggie offense.  They had also won Friday night against this weekend’s opponent, the Utah Valley Wolverines.  That game was actually delayed a couple of hours for blowing dust.  I got to watch the game and an Aggie baseball game (and a win) thanks to the WAC digital network.      

The crowd filled in nicely for Game 1.  There was a table up front with crayons and poster boards for do-it-yourself rally signs.  It was a good day for Ron right off the bat.  The old man wasn’t there and the enthusiastic little girl, his favorite, was.  There was a couple, who were good-natured Utah Valley fans, in front of us.  The PA was a young woman, though I don’t think it was the same one from the baseball park.  For April Fool’s Day, she had the unfortunate duty of telling a corny joke each inning, causing the crowd to groan every time. 

I like watching team pre-game rituals.  The Aggie girls, in their black and grey uniforms, were lined up in a “U,” linked together.  One end would start a snaking motion and it would continue on through the end of the line.  As the Utah Valley starters were introduced, the first one out did a “trust” fall into the arms of a teammate.  The starters for both squads drew in the dirt as they stood on the baseline.  During the anthem, the Aggies held a “guns up” behind their backs, while the Wolverines had one finger out. 

We were cheating on the girls a little bit during the game.  The Aggie guys were playing in Seattle and their game started an hour before.  Ron and I were listening to the radio call during the softball game.  I found myself mostly watching the game in front of me and paying attention to the baseball during various lulls in the action.  The NCAA Men’s Final Four was also going on, so the fans there were checking the scores on that.  I asked about the Women’s Final Four and found out that UConn’s 111- game winning streak had ended yesterday.  Too bad that the Samuelson sisters didn’t get that championship matchup, but what a run!  (Kate Lou is a fox.  I was planning on watching the final.)   

Game 1

Samaria Diaz (Sam) started for the Aggies and was a bit nervous, hitting the first batter, giving up a single, and then a three-run homer.  She wasn’t showing her usual smile in the circle.  Sam settled in after that.  There was a dispute over the final out.  The crowd started shouting after a fly out that that was the third out.  The Wolverine fans in front piped up and said there had been an illegal pitch on a previous batter.  “Settle down Aggie fans!” the guy said.  I think my scorecard is actually right, but I totally missed seeing a batter called back to continue an at bat.  (We’ll have some more rules confusion later.)

The girls weren’t disturbed at all starting the game down 0-3.  The dugout was singing loud and enthusiastically for their batters.  They had particularly loud “3-0” chant when that count came up.  Haley Nakamura and Kelsey Horton drove in a pair of runs to make the score 2-3.  A big cloud moved across the sun and dropped the temperature 10 degrees.  Ron nudged me.  In Seattle, the guys had hit their third triple of the day.

For the second inning, free t-shirts were tossed to the crowd from outside the pressbox.  Or should I say, the crowd was bombed by free t-shirts as they came in with some heat.  Some basketball or football players were in attendance, and they got one.  I didn’t see any volleyball or women’s basketball players.  Meanwhile, I mentally congratulated myself for getting my scorecard fully filled in. 

In the third, we finally got a smile out of Sam as she snagged a hard liner back at her.  In the bottom, Rachel Rodriguez, with her swinging bunt style, got a hold of one.  The right fielder, who was playing in, had to run back, but the ball improbably continued to carry over the fence.  The Aggie dugout erupted and rushed home plate to congratulate her.  The PA announced that that was Rachel’s first home run of the season.  3-3 Tied. 

In the fourth, Sam was smiling again.  She was in a groove.  You could hear her really popping the mitt and mixing that with an offspeed.  Kawehi Kahana came in as a pinch hitter.  The PA really had trouble with her Hawaiian name during the introductions and didn’t do any better this time.  The UV fans in front were making a mess with some nut shells, but politely cleaned up after themselves when they finished the bag like a good guest.  If only Aggie fans would do the same.  A lady next to me offered me a Kleenex as my nose began to ominously drip.  In the bottom of the inning, Merina Illi hammered one out to right center.  4-3 Aggies.  Kelsey put her arm around her in congratulations and walked her back to the dugout.                    

In the fifth, Amy Bergeson got an infield hit.  I swear she crossed first before the shortstop fielded the ball.  That’s fast.  The little fan girl was up for the dance contest, but was unfairly snubbed.  The Wolverine couple earned a handful of lollipops.  In the sixth, Aggie catcher Nikki Butler, was hit by a pitch.  Or was she?  The ump called her back.  Perhaps she made an insufficient attempt to get out of the way.  She got on with a hit anyway.  There was a nifty double play on the next batter, as Wolverine Taleigh Williams caught a liner and doubled off the runner on first.  However, the UV fans started yelling at her during the play to throw to second.  She had a shot at picking off the runner there for a triple play!  Not to worry.  I’m sure I’ll get plenty more chances to write a triple play on my scorecard. 

The eighth inning finally ended in Seattle.  I think it took an hour to play out.  Back in Las Cruces, a foul ball hit the backstop net hard.  The little fan girl was too close to it and took a tumble backward.  No harm done.  Ron was amused.  After a hit by pitch to start the bottom of the seventh, Coach Kathy Rodolph put Kayla Green in.  She was the Friday starter and the Game 2 starter.  While still lean, I think she’s put on a little lean muscle over the season.  No doubt she needs it for the workload.  Amy put an exclamation mark on the game as she caught a fly out and threw out the runner on first.  The crowd was all over that.

For Game 1 stars, I give it to Amy for her usual great left field defense and, surprisingly, Brittney Vansway for the Wolverines for her first inning three-run homer.  The Aggie baseball game finished as Game 1 let out.  It was another Aggie victory.  I noticed this watching on Friday, but a got some explanation during Saturday’s game.  I kept hearing the crowd cheering more for the Aggies than the home team.  It was a small crowd in Seattle and a bunch of Aggie player families went to the game.  Unfortunately also confirmed during the broadcast, Tuesday’s game versus Texas Tech here has been moved to 2:00 in the afternoon, instead of 6:00 in the evening. I’d already asked to take off early from work to go.  I can’t go in the afternoon, and I’m sure a bunch of other people who had planned on going can’t go either.  No explanation on the move.  Sigh.

Game 2

Local girl, Alexis Maynez, came in as catcher for this game.  I like her chatter behind the plate.  At times, I could hear Kayla talking to the infield too, like a leader.  The crowd was smaller, but still okay.  I could hear the Wolverines singing during the first.  The Aggies matched it in the bottom.  They’ve even added in some complicated harmonies to their cheering songs.  Amy made another great catch in the outfield in this inning.    

I couldn’t help but notice the Wolverine catcher, Basia Query.  That’s a hard to miss name.  (Basia was one of my favorite 90’s artists.  Time and Tide was in my CD player all the time.)  I got a good look at her with her mask off and she was also very exotically pretty.  In a game sense, it probably wasn’t a good sign for the Wolverines that she was throwing harder than their Game 2 starter.  Rachel started off the bottom of the inning with a hustle double as her infield hit bounced off the third baseman’s mitt.  The new Wolverine pitcher didn’t have it any easier after that, as the Aggies batted around plus 4, scoring seven runs.  My scorecard was happily destroyed. 

There were two plays of note in that long first inning.  Hayley was apparently picked off third rounding the base on Kelsey’s RBI hit.  The home plate ump then called a meeting.  Hayley was awarded home plate for an unearned run.  The Utah Valley fans were upset as no explanation was forthcoming.  I went to my rule book at home.  I think it was a ruling of Obstruction, Interference’s lesser known cousin.  A fielder may not block the runner’s path without being in possession of the ball.  The play is dead when called and the runner is awarded the next base.  I attributed the error to the attractive catcher as the likeliest candidate, but it might have been the pitcher.  [Edit: After looking at the official box score, it was the pitcher.  Of course a catcher would have known better.]  Amy had the best at bat in the inning as she had an epic battle.  She took a close pitch, and I caught her smiling inside her helmet.  She took a base on balls and drove in a run.

I was starting to lose the battle with my nose.  It was dripping constantly.  The sun was going down and the temperature with it.  Most of the fans had anticipated this and the coats and blankets came out.  Kayla’s second inning didn’t start well either, as she surrendered three runs.  Her offspeed wasn’t coming in for strikes.  Kayla kept with it and it eventually started getting called.  The PA also started getting Kawehi Kahana’s name right, though she was announced as the pinch hitter.   She was probably the Designated Player, but I missed the lineup, running to the bathroom for paper towels for my nose.  7-3 Aggies. 

The Wolverines brought in a new pitcher for the second, not surprisingly.  The Utah Valley couple got an Aggie t-shirt in a giveaway.  The Aggie fans next to them demanded that the guy put it on.  A bunch of noisy birds orbited the outfield trees.  A couple of seniors got up to leave.  They were heckled by some other seniors, “Is it past your bedtime?”  The little girl was bundled in a blanket and sitting on her dad’s lap, keeping them both warm.  She was shouting out encouragement to the girls constantly. 

In the fourth, Kelsey had a scary at bat.  She hit a couple monster foul balls that almost hit the light poles.  I’m ready to nickname her, “The Natural.”  Then she hit one off her foot.  Kelsey had to walk it off for a couple of minutes and finally popped up.  In the fifth, the music started calling out dance directions and the crowd (including myself) start spontaneously stomping along.  There was a hard foul ball that went straight into the Aggie dugout netting, nearly taking out half the team.  The Utah Valley couple was actually from Las Vegas.  They had an interesting conversation with a couple next to them about Las Vegas sports.  Yes, there wasn’t not much going on in the game.  Local girl, Brandy Hernandez, came in as a pinch runner in the fifth.  I thought Caity Szczesny was small, but Brandy definitely has her beat.  And what happened to Caity?  She came out after the first inning and we didn’t see her again.

In the sixth, they were throwing gold coins into the crowd.  I missed it having to run to the bathroom again.  That’s what I get.  Kayla started off the inning with a strikeout.  Alexis almost nailed Fahren Glackin at first to start throwing it around the horn.  Honestly, this game wasn’t a highlight reel for Alexis.  The team settled on freshman Nikki Butler after a few series, since she could hit well.  I should also warn Coach Rodolph that the Wolverine fans had figured out the pitching signs and were calling them out to the players.  You can bet the players figured it out before that.  The highlight of the inning was the playing of 80’s favorite Jenny 867-5309 between innings.  At last, music that I like.

Kayla hit the first batter of the seventh.  The ricochet hit Alexis on the helmet too.  Ouch.  “Don’t listen to him, Kayla.  He’s cross eyed!”  There was a steady, but relatively gentle, ribbing of the umps all during both games.  She managed to close out the inning anyway.  7-3 Aggies was our final.  My stars of the game are Makayla Shadle, the Wolverines’ relief pitcher, who blanked the Aggies in five innings of work, and Rachel Rodriguez, who went 2 for 4 with two RBI’s. 

A fan left a giveaway Aggie Softball shirt on the courtesy table.  Ron picked it up and gave it to me.  I didn’t need another shirt and didn’t want to deprive anybody, but I admit, it was kind of nice.  We had What-a-Burgers after the game, which I did not need either.  My cold had ruined my appetite.  I’d like to think that going to the games didn’t make my condition worse, but I would have hated missing a couple of Aggie victories. 

2017 Baseball Preview

I decided to forgo buying a season preview magazine this year, in favor of availing myself of a free subscription to Sports Illustrated.  (Thank you Coke Points.  Your final gift to me.  RIP.)  I received their baseball preview yesterday and read their scouting reports last night.  I haven’t watched any Spring Training so far and even missed watching Team America’s awesome victory in the World Baseball Classic.  With changes coming to my job and my entire living schedule, I’m just not sure I’m going to be able to follow baseball this season as much as I have been.  My enthusiasm just isn’t where it should be.

So let’s get down to it.  Your 2017 World Series winner will be (JDH417 waits five full minutes for the clouds to part and for a divine light to shine upon him, gifting him with prophecy) . . . determined by the end of this post.  We’ll have to work our way through this and arrive at a solution the hard way.    

The American League East is expected to be dominated by the Boston Red Sox with the addition of Chris Sale to the rotation and their awesome hitting.  I’m not sold.  Even if they win the division, frankly, they’re soft.  Dustin Pedoria’s got grit, but he’s the only one.  They’re not going anywhere near the World Series.  People are counting out the Blue Jays after losing Edwin Encarnacion, but Marcus Stroman really impressed me in the WBC.  I think they’ve got the grit.  Expect them to at least get a Wild Card.

Meanwhile, Boston’s loss was Cleveland’s gain.  Encarnacion, along with Michael Brantley returning from injury, should give the Indians plenty of pop.  With Corey Kluber and Andrew Miller, along with the rest of the staff healing from last season’s late injuries, they should be getting plenty of outs.  They should win the AL Central going away.  Unfortunately, the window may have closed for the Tigers and the Royals due to a couple of unfortunate deaths.  Tigers owner, Mike Illitch, was the soul of the team (not to mention the money) and pitcher, Yordano Ventura, was the Royal’s fire.  Detroit may spontaneously combust from injuries to their older players.  Kansas City’s homegrown core may be dispersed during or after this season.  (Sigh.  I like those guys together so much.  They should start a band in the offseason.)

Boy did I get it wrong last year, riding the Astros and the Rangers to the championship.  The Astros are just so loaded with the youthful talent.  Seductive.  Then they add high-level veteran talent in Carlos Beltran and Josh Reddick.  Very seductive.  They finally got rid of that stupid hill in the outfield.  Extremely very seductive.  I just have to question their pitching.  The Rangers are a bunch of “if’s.”  If Cole Hamels bounces back from a late season slump.  If Yu Darvish returns to his pre-injury form.  If the rest of the rotation pitches the way they should be capable of pitching.  If the bullpen’s arms don’t fall off covering for the rest of the rotation when they don’t.  If Mike Napoli can still be productive after a poor post-season last year.  If Shin-Soo Choo can come back from his injury and stay healthy.  And can Joey Gallo stop striking out all the time?  Maybe the Rangers can win if a few if these things come together.  The Mariners are actually a more complete team than either of these guys, but will team history get in their way?  I’ll take the Astros taking the AL West with reservations.      

The National League East should be a slam dunk for the Washington Nationals, as everyone says every year.  However much talent gets added to this team, they’re cancer-ridden.  It starts with their unofficial captain, Bryce Harper.  He really needs to go to a team where somebody like Adrian Beltre or Big Pappi can screw his attitude on straight.  I don’t know how the Mets are going to score runs, but their opponents aren’t going to score any either with the Met’s starting rotation.  I’ll pick them to win the division.  The Nationals may talent their way into a Wild Card.

The Cubs are going to degrade badly after their World Series triumph.  It’s their starting pitching that’s going to collapse.  Unfortunately for the Cardinals and the Pirates, they’re not in a position to capitalize on the Cubs’ weakness.  It’s still going to be the Cubs winning the NL Central.  Let’s just move along.             

Let’s start with Rockies here first in the NL West.  I don’t think they’ll win it, but they are intriguing.  If they could just stay healthy and get a little pitching, they’d bludgeon everyone.  It’s too much to hope for.  Meanwhile, the Giants at least shored up their bullpen by adding Mark Melcancon and getting rid of Hunter Strickland (addition by subtraction).  Relief pitching overshadowed every other problem they had.  Oh, crap!  Wait.  They kept Strickland.  Buster Posey, Madison Bumgarner, and Johnny Cueto’s great performances this year will all be wasted.  I guess it’ll be the Dodgers winning the division, but they’ll choke in the playoffs.  (Meanwhile on the Padres, it's nice to see so many former Chihuahuas on the big league club.  Unfortunately, they're listed as the worst team in SI’s preview because of their pitching.)

So how does it all end?  Cleveland over the Astros in the AL.  Mets over Cubs in the NL.  (Yes, shocking.  Isn’t it?  The Dodgers lose in the Division Series after accumulating the best record in baseball.)  Cleveland takes it all.  I can only really see them losing if they suffer a rash of injuries during the season, in which case I’ll go with the Astros again (foolishly) as my backup pick.

NM State Aggie Basketball Recap

First, let me start by congratulating the Aggie Men’s and Women’s basketball teams on their seasons.  I should have done this earlier.  Since I didn’t actually see the tournament games, only hearing them on the radio, I didn’t want to comment on them at the time.  Maybe I was being a bit lazy, but I don’t like recapping events I didn’t actually see, especially a sport as visual as basketball. 

The girls finished their WAC season undefeated.  The championship game was decided in the second quarter.  With the Aggies up by five, Seattle’s coach drew a technical, which the Aggies converted into two free throws, the ball back, a three-pointer, and a 10-point lead.  It was over from there.  The men had a much harder time later that day against Bakersfield.  They made four field goals in the first half and were down by nine going into half.  Only their foul shooting and defense saved them.  Down by as many as 13, the Aggies then started finding the basket and turning up the wick on defense.  They won by 10.  The next day at work, I found out my co-workers had all tuned out at halftime.  I was dubbed a true fan for staying until the end.

Both teams drew tough seeding in the NCAA tournament.  The Men hung with Baylor for a half and even had the lead going into the locker rooms.  Baylor then completely dominated the Aggies in the second half.  The guys look like they’ll still have a good team next season and really seem to have a good new coach in Paul Weir.  Hopefully he sticks around.  Perhaps my favorite moment of the tournament was a story that occurred before it happened.  Girls’ coach, Mark Trakh, with his two NCAA appearances in a row, went in and talked to Weir before the games to give him some advice and encouragement.       

The girls’ game against Stanford was a bit more heartbreaking.  The Aggies led by as many as nine and led through three quarters, though the girls gave up size and height at every position to the Cardinal.  I don’t think I’ve heard Adam Young so excited calling a game.  It was going to take an almost perfect performance to win, as they were overpowered in the fourth.   As coach Trakh said later, “We both got tired in the end, but they were still taller.”  What a great season though.  The girls didn’t beat themselves and certainly proved they deserved to be there.  

Brooke Salas, who was a bit quiet in the WAC championship, came out in a big way with 26 points.  She even took an elbow to the throat early in the game (as I saw later on the news).  With all the senior departures, it’s going to be though next season.  Brooke does just about every well on the court.  She just needs to learn one more thing: leadership.  I’d love to suggest that she spend some time with Jordan Abalos, captain of the volleyball team.  She’s got it.  Moriah Mack had a quiet leadership quality, but it was still there.  Brooke isn’t Jordan or Mo, but there are some leadership qualities that transcend personality.  I hope she can pick it up somewhere, because I’m looking forward to seeing her develop into a star next season.  I also hope I can find a “3-Pete” shirt (for the team’s three conference championships in a row) for games next season. 

NM State Aggies vs Yale Bulldogs Baseball 3-5-17

I was sorry I was at work Friday night and not able to go to the first game of the Aggies’ series versus Yale.  I could hear the size of the crowd over the radio, which was listed at 1,300+.  It was Little League night and a bunch of little kids were there.  Adam Young reported that the concession stand was doing great business.  (On a similar note, Nolan Fox did a really good job during the game providing color commentary.)  Unfortunately, the crowd may have scared the Aggie’s mighty bats in a 1-3 loss.  At least the kids got to see Marcus Still making an awesome diving, highlight reel catch in centerfield during the game. 

When Ron picked me up for today’s game, I found out he’d been at the Friday night game.  He’d baseball-cheated on me!  Well, I can’t blame for that, given that I’ve gone several times without him.  He reported that the parking for the entire baseball/softball complex was filled on Friday.  Ron was concerned about another big crowd and we got there way early.  It turned out to be a more modest 673 in attendance today, but a reasonable crowd.  We got to watch the team take infield.

What was easy to spot was how many fans were there for Yale.  They were outside tailgating in team gear.  Inside, they filled up the whole section next to the Yale dugout.  “I’m feeling outnumbered,” I remarked, as we sat next to them.  However, this was a friendly rivalry.  There were Aggie and Yale fans chatting amicably, including myself.  I talked to a friendly fellow in a cowboy hat with a Yale pin on the headband.  He was from California and had brought a scorecard book with him.  I mentioned last year’s star, Daniel Johnson, to him, just in case DJ makes the big time, he’ll know that he was an Aggie. 

Yale also brought along a pretty blonde trainer in their dugout, but I never saw her again after the anthem.  Not to be outdone, we saw a hot blonde going in the Aggie clubhouse with a case of beer before the game.  (Just partially kidding NCAA officials, I think she was actually heading to the Diamond Club section.)  A group of Aggie volleyball girls were sitting behind us.  A few softball players were on the other side of the stadium, but I couldn’t identify them.    

The pre-game crowd warnings seem to be getting longer.  Now the fans were cautioned to not shout out profanity in English or any other language.  I proudly yelled out a Klingon curse word at this overbearing political correctness.  Ron, helpfully, brought up a list of further Klingon profanity on his phone.  Fight the power!  

To start the game, we found out that the Yale fans were not here as passive observers.  I had heard them during the Friday night broadcast, but couldn’t really believe it.  It must have sounded like an away game to the Aggie dugout.  They were getting all over the umps with every contrary call.  When the Bulldogs scored, they absolutely erupted.  My hat is off to these Ivy Leaguers for their enthusiasm.  It was 0-1 Yale after a half inning. 

Maybe it was all the cheering that woke up the Aggie bats in the bottom of the frame.  The Bulldogs definitely shouldn’t have started off the game with an error that put leadoff hitter, Marcus Still, in scoring position.  What happened next may well describe what will characterize this season for the Aggies.  Mediocre pitching plus shaky defense equals Aggie runs in bunches.  All nine batters came to the plate, resulting in a 5-1 Aggie lead.

Things quieted down for the next couple of innings.  Marcus (just using “Still” is setting off my spellchecker) leadoff the second. He stole second and was singled in by Austin Botello.  That’s the line score.  What actually happened is Marcus slipped on the artificial turf rounding third.  He feigned back to third and then scampered home without a throw.  6-1 Aggies.  I still can’t believe I saw that.  And that was just the beginning of Marcus’ adventures on the basepads today. 

The top of the third saw the strange line score of LJ Hatch at shortstop recording three putouts in a row to Cooper Williams at first.  It was déjà vous all over again.  In the bottom, a Jason Bush liner bounced off the Yale first baseman, giving Marcus his third at bat in three innings, but it was cut short on a caught stealing attempt by Bush.  Marcus would start off the next inning.  Actually, he batted in every inning except the seventh. 

The fourth had a free What-a-Burger coupon giveaway.  The cowboy Yale fan tried to get in on the action, but was ignored.  A little bitty kid took up the broken window challenge before the fifth and had the whole crowd behind him, but just couldn’t find the pane.  The top of the fifth had a moment that Adam and Nolan actually missed on the radio call.  A foul tip hit the home plate umpire on the hand.  Catcher Bush grabbed him immediately and asked him if he was okay.  Bush then made a courtesy visit to Kyle Bradish on the mound, while the ump was literally shaking it off.   

The bottom of the fifth saw a Mason Fishback fly ball lost in the sun drop between the left and centerfielders, who were standing next to each other.  That went as a double, but failed to score Hatch who was at second at the time, since he had tagged up, assuming somebody would catch it.  Yale pitcher, Tyler Duncan, talked his way out of getting taken out after a line out.  The mound meeting sound clip from the PA was terrible, “And 10 minutes later.  Meanwhile, six months had passed.” And so on.  That was too funny.  Not so funny for Duncan, Cooper came up and rapped a single to drive in both runs.  You could just about sense that was coming.  The Yale crowd gave him a nice round of applause as he was lifted right after.  PA cruelly played “Let it go” from Frozen for his exit.  Duncan’s relief was greeted by a monster two-run homer by Bush to right field.  10-1 Aggies.

I took a shot at the Aggie trivia question in the sixth, but was wrong.  Oh well.  Bradish finally got into trouble in the inning, giving up four hits and two runs.  Frankly, he works too slow with runners on and it doesn’t seem to help his pitching.  10-3 Aggies.  Not to worry, the Aggies tacked on four more runs in the bottom, two on passed balls by the catcher.  They also scored two more in the seventh, one of those on a passed ball.  16-3 Aggies. 

Busted.  In the eighth, the Yale cowboy caught me yawning.  “There’s no yawning in baseball,” he said.  Chance Hroch came in for Bradish to finish the game.  He looked good for 1 2/3 innings.  What happened next confused me terribly.  After the passed ball runs in the sixth, Andrew Herrera came into catch (which didn’t help, as mentioned above) for Alex Boos.  When Boos came up to bat in the ninth, I was surprised.  I had assumed Boos was out of the game, but he had actually moved to short and kept his place in the batting order, but I hadn’t taken note of that at the time.  Maybe Hroch was surprised too.  What happened next was a home run and then a run scored on a wild pitch.  At least the Yale fans got something to cheer about.  It took six batters to get that final out.  Our final was Aggies 16, Bulldogs 5.

My Game one defensive star is Kyle Bradish for his seven-inning, three-run starting pitching performance.  Big ups also to the Aggie fielders for a clean game.  Picking an offensive star is harder, given all the hitting, but I’ll go with Austin Botello, going 2 for 4 with two runs and two RBI’s.  Our stat of the game is this: both teams had double digit hits and left eight runners on, but Yale gave up eight walks and the Aggies, only one.  

Game one went in a fairly tidy three hours.  The half hour break was uneventful, though I think I ran into the new female PA voice coming out of the bathrooms.  I would have told her she was doing a good job, if I’d been sure.  She took the night cap off in any case, and another PA came in.  We kind of lost our seats for Game two and I was behind a netting pole, but could still see the game fairly well. 

The Centennial high school baseball team came in, wearing their uniforms.  They were mostly seated in the Diamond Club area (though I assume the beer wasn’t there), but a few were in the stands.  Athletic Director Mario Moccia made a quick appearance at the game before going over to the Men’s basketball game.  He kind of stood out, being the only person in a suit and tie.  A few drunken frat boys came to the game after it started and were seated behind us, amongst the Yale fans.  I was afraid there might be problems, but they were just vocal in their cheering, so it was cool.  Several of the fans had blankets, including me.  Some kids were using theirs for blanket fort by the Aggie dugout.      

The Aggies got the game started with Marcus Still singling, stealing a base, getting moved over to third on a single, and finally being driven in on a Botello sac fly.  1-0 Aggies.  In the second, Yale fans were only able to get vocal over the mispronunciation of their left fielder’s name for his at bat (Rud-dee, not Rue-dee).  A new laughing porpoise strikeout sound effect was used in the third.  The PA was on fire today with the sound effects.  Marcus got on again in the bottom, but was thrown out on a blown hit and run.        

In the top of the fifth, Brent Sakurai and LJ Hatch combined for the defensive play of the game, with Brent fielding a grounder falling down and glove-flipping to LJ, who barehanded it for the out.  A couple of batters later, the rare Catcher’s Interference error was called on Mason Fishback.  Or was it rare?  It was called the previous night, with the same batter at the plate, who happened to be the opposing catcher, Andrew Herrera.  A little gamesmanship going on perhaps.  There was a close play at first to end the inning that the Yale faithful didn’t like.  I told Ron at this point that this one-run game was not going to hold up.  “If this is a 1-0 game, it’ll be the first at Presley-Askew Field.”  (A statistical exaggeration I’m sure.)  In the bottom of the fifth, the Aggies did tack on some insurance with Botello driving in two more runs.  3-0 Aggies.  

Our starter, Matt McHugh, had pitched a great game.  In the sixth, he finally showed some vulnerability with a single and his first walk to start the inning.  Marcus made a play in center on line drive that Yale fans and the radio guys thought was probably a trap.  The problem for the umps was that none of them called it quickly.  The Aggie dugout was screaming to throw the ball in, while Yale fans were screaming about the call.  The Yale baserunners barely made it back to their bases before getting doubled off.  Matthew Perea came in for McHugh.  He got another out on a fielder’s choice, but then surrendered a game tying three-run home run to Griffind Dey.  The Yale crowd was already worked up and this sent them into a frenzy.

In the bottom of the sixth, the inning ended on another close play at first that the umps appear to have gotten wrong again.  Questionable officiating were the watchwords of this game.  Aggie coach, Brian Green, had a talk with the first base ump between innings, but without any hysterics.  In the seventh, Perea gave way to Andy Frakes for the last two outs.  He came off the mound screaming, startling everyone, especially the Yale fans.  Frakes started pounding on his teammates as they met him coming into the dugout.  He was telling them to get fired up.  That they did. 

Marcus Still singled on and was moved over on a sacrifice.  A Botello double next should have scored him, but he got a bad break and only made it to third.  What happened next was complicated.  Dan Hetzel hit a grounder into the drawn in infield with Marcus and Botello going on contact.  Marcus was completely hung out between third and home as Botello took third.  Hetzel went to second as Marcus started dancing on the baseline.  Somehow, he forced enough throws that the pitcher made a mistake and he was able to slide around the catcher’s tag and slap the plate.  Fishback’s two-run single was almost an anti-climax after that.  6-3 Aggies.       

 

The Bulldogs did not threaten again.  Botello would drive in Marcus in the eight for the final run of the game.  As a final insult, the RBI was driven in off a shot that hit Yale reliever, Alex Stiegler’s leg.  That had to hurt, but he waved off the trainers, thus depriving me of seeing the cute blonde in their dugout.  Though not a save situation, Ruger Rodriguez finished off the game quickly in the ninth.  Our final was Aggies 7, Bulldogs 3. 

I went over to the cowboy Yale fan after the game and shook hands and found out he was a doctor.  He probably has a good bedside manner.  I told him not to feel bad about the losses.  From the radio call, I’d learned that the Aggies were leading the country in hits and runs.  Then I told him what the team did to Mount St. Mary’s last weekend.  That did actually seem to brighten him up a bit, and certainly magnified their Friday win.   

For Game two, Griffind Dey for Yale gets my opposing MVP for his game-tying, sixth inning three-run blast.  He looked big and took some mean cuts in the game, so that shot wasn’t a total surprise.  For the Aggies, Matt McHugh, Ruger Rodriguez, and Austin Botello all had great games.  But for the MVP’s, I’m picking guys for having great moments.  Marcus Still had some bad baserunning moments in this game, but watching him somehow evade an easy rundown to score and break the tie in the seventh was epic and made up for everything.  Andy Frakes had a really good relief outing, but his emotional outburst coming off the mound in the seventh got the team fired up and led to Still and two other runs scoring in the bottom of the inning. 

Even at two hours and 43 minutes for Game two, it had been another long day at the ballpark, but a successful one.  Thank goodness the Aggies have learned how to play more efficiently.  Ron and I got pizza down the street.  I got the final scores on the Aggie Men’s and Women’s basketball.  The Women won and went undefeated in conference this season.  The Men won and ripped off another 100+ point game.  Lastly, I found out that the US Women’s soccer team was defeated by England on a goal in the 89’.  Don’t say I’m not making sacrifices for the Aggies.  I gave up precious Alex Morgan viewing time to come to these baseball games.  Oh well.  Alex is still beautiful, win, lose, or tie.     

Afterward, we went to a local froyo place nearby.  Inside was most of the Aggie volleyball team, which was surprising.  Perhaps they had been at the Men’s basketball game.  After getting our order, I mustered my courage and spoke to Sasha-Lee Thomas on the way out, since she felt like the most approachable one of the group.  (Hey, these girls are a bit intimidating when together, being a team of attractive athletic young women.)  I said “Hi” and said I was looking forward to seeing them play next season.  Sasha seemed like she recognized me.  She’d have to have a pretty memory to remember our one meeting for autographs months ago.  She smiled and said “Thanks.”  I asked about her ankle, but she thought I was confused and asking about Tatyana Battle’s bad ankle, which I didn’t know was bad.  It was slightly embarrassing.  So from this, I guess that Sasha’s okay and Tatyana was playing hurt, but is okay now.  I think. 

There’s a while to wait before seeing the girls play again.  There’s also going to be a wait for more Aggie baseball and softball, three long weeks.  Hopefully the boys and girls’ basketball teams will be playing for a while longer in tournament play for something to listen to in the meantime.