El Paso Diablos vs Tacoma Rainiers 4-19-17 Part 2

Continued from Part 1

It took me long enough in this recap to get to the first inning.  Actually this game was the best part of being at the game.  Chuck and I were both keeping scorecards, but he’d forgotten to bring a pencil, so I lent him my pen, which had consequences later. 

Chris Heston started the game for the Rainiers.  This was a bit of a surprise for me, since I didn’t know where he’d gotten to lately.  The last I’d heard of him, Heston had pitched a no hitter for the San Francisco Giants in New York.  There was some brief hope he’d be the next great Giants pitcher.  I was using that winning image as my wallpaper for a while.  Likewise, I’d watched Rainier second baseman, Gordon Beckham, play several times for the White Sox, and he was one of my favorite players on the team.  (And now, WGN America doesn’t even show baseball games.) 

The night started well for the Diablos as pitcher, Tyrell Jenkins, had a clean inning to start the game.  In the bottom, Franchy Cordero led off with a triple and was driven in by Corey Spangenberg. 1-0 Diablos.  The top of the second had three plays I’m still in shock over.  The first batter grounded to Spangenberg at third, who dropped it.  As I was looking down to write “E5” on my scorecard, I looked up and saw that he had thrown out the runner.  ALWAYS WATCH THE ENTIRE PLAY BEFORE MARKING IT.  Jenkins walked the next batter.  He then picked off the runner, who hadn’t even strayed far enough to try to dive back.  It seemed like he tripped or came off the bag.  Jenkins walked the next batter.  He picked him off and the runner was diving back.  Two pick offs in a row?  Every time I think I’ve seen everything in a ballgame, I’m surprised shortly thereafter. 

The bottom of the second didn’t have much action, but I did suddenly see Chico in the upper level Westar Bank section casting a fishing line down in to the lower level.  I’m not sure what was going on there.  Also, a huge military cargo jet flew over.  It just seemed to defy gravity.  The biggest play of the entire third inning was a foul ball that fell into a nearby section and was dropped by a fan, who was boo’ed.  The people next to us were pretty loud and having a good time with audience participation.  They got right into the “We want a hit!” chant.  When the player at bat got a free pass, they changed to “We’ll take a walk!”  Dance Cam between halves featured a couple of attendants dressed as Diamond Girls dancing to Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.”

Clank!  Rainier Daniel Vogelbach bounced a two-run home run ball off the sign on the Big Dog House in right field.  Jenkins finished the fourth inning with a strikeout and two on in scoring position.  1-2 Rainiers, and that could have been worse.  The Diablo half of the fourth started off with a great Rainier defensive play, as DJ Peterson caught a foul ball going into the third base camera well.  OMG, are the fans in front of us using a selfie stick?  Sitting at a ball game, you need a selfie stick, really?  I’m just embarrassed.  Thankfully, the players didn’t notice. 

Spangenberg had a great diving stop and put out to start the fifth.  Meanwhile, catcher Tony Cruz earned his pay, getting hit on a backswing.  No obvious harm done.  Diego Goris tied it for the Diablos on a monster solo home run into the centerfield green seats (the elevated lawn overlooking the field).  Back in the old Diablo days, players hitting a home run would stand beside the stands by the dugout with their helmet out.  Fans would line up to give them tip money for the shot.  (I’m thinking probably a couple of phone numbers too.)  Yes, really.  Tips for home runs.  Cruz then doubled (I told you he was fine) and Franchy singled him home to give the team the lead.  3-2 Diablos.  

Chuck had gotten up to get a meal in this inning, and I continued his scorecard for him.  Of course, the hardest play of the game to score came up.  Rainier catcher Tuffy Gosewich attempted to pick off Carlos Asuaje on second.  The throw went into centerfield.  Asuaje hesitated for a second, then broke for third, where he was put out by the centerfield.  I have this as a Caught Stealing, but I think the official record disagrees.  Needless to say, the third base umpire was not a popular person after that play.  Thereafter, he got a steady stream of abuse on any call involving him, perhaps correctly.  In the sixth, the Rainiers answered with a run driven in to tie the score. 

In the top of the seventh, I ran out to get a drink refill and a pizza pretzel.  I still kept up with the game, via radio and a TV monitor by the concessions (clever).  I did miss the grounds crew dragging the base paths and doing a dance routine to Seals & Crofts’ “Diamond Girl.”  I think the PA called them the “Diamond Boys.”  The significance of this goes back the Diamond Girls that used to perform at Diablos games.  They were the team cheerleaders in little shorts and tops in team colors.  I think they were high school girls.  They’d sashay to the top of the dugout and perform a cheer routine to the song.  It was attention-getting.  I’m sure there are plenty of El Paso high school cheerleader girls, who’d be happy to perform this summer, if given an outfit and some direction.

Meanwhile in the Diablos’ half of the inning, a single, a sacrifice, and a hit by Spangenberg brought in Cordero to give the team a 4-3 lead.  The top of the eighth featured some kind of ice bucket Diablos’ trivia challenge with the loser getting wet.  In the eighth, the wheels came off for Rainier pitching.  Nine men came to the plate with five of them scoring.  However, this was not without controversy. 

Goris’ apparently hit a bases clearing double to center, only to have one of the runners called back to third.  The ball had bounced out of play and was ruled a ground rule double.  The crowd muttered in confusion, not having the radio call on like I did.  The new “pitch-less” intentional walk sent a runner to first without any preamble.  Tim Hagerty on the radio seemed to disapprove of the new rule.  I’m not sure what the fans thought. 

With the bases loaded, Asuaje sent a high fly ball into the near unobservable left field corner.  It looked out, but the third base umpire ruled it fair.  Chuck, using a pen, scratched this into his scorecard.  The video started to show a replay, and then immediately stopped before showing the ball in flight.  Meanwhile, the umpires convened and then sent the runners back to the bases.  You can imagine the crowd’s reaction, even knowing that was probably the right call.  Chuck’s scorecard was wrecked.  Back at the plate, Asuaje did go ahead and rap a two-run single.  9-3 Diablos. 

The ninth inning entertainment featured a girl in an NM State shirt playing a balloon-pumping game.  Good to see we weren’t the only Las Cruces natives in the park.  The Rainiers did score one run to bring the final score to Diablos 9, Rainiers 4.  The most exciting moment of the inning was actually a foul ball that hit the roof.  Experienced fans started yelling immediately and about three seconds later, the ball rolled back off and into a, thankfully, deserted section.  It’s that proximity of danger that makes the game so involving.  I give my star of the game to Diego Goris, mostly for his home run.   

After unfortunately having to end my brief affair with our usher, I went to the bathroom.  Again, I hit my head on the shelf over the urinal.  Next time, I’m using a toilet in a stall.  If traffic getting to the stadium was bad, we had no idea how much worse it would be on the way back.  Construction shutdown two lanes of the interstate, and it took a half hour just to get past it, and then another half hour to get home.         So the trip was bad, we missed the giveaway, and I didn’t like the expensive, ballpark food.  But gosh darn it, we had a great time.  Credit the great game and the atmosphere, including the cute girls and throwback uniforms.  Good show Diablos.  I’ll probably be back again before the construction finishes in another year, but I’ll certainly enjoy it more when it is done.  

El Paso Diablos vs Tacoma Rainiers 4-19-17 Part 1

Part 1

Yes, you read that right.  The Diablos are back in El Paso, at least for every Wednesday home game.  Finally, I can call the Chihuahuas what I’ve been mentally calling them for their entire existence.  The tradition of myself, Chuck, and Jacob taking in a ball game in El Paso continues for another year.  This time Ron joined us for the game.  (And we forgot to take a group picture.)  Even better, since we bought the tickets a month ago, this got us out of an after-hours, full organization meeting (though we did miss barbecue being served). 

I’m going to have to mention the traffic from Las Cruces to El Paso.  We left early, but ran right into rush hour traffic.  Further, the ongoing road construction made a bad situation worse.  We picked this particular game for the Diablos blanket giveaway, but weren’t even close to getting one.  Seeing a few floating around, I didn’t feel too disappointed.  Jacob, good-naturedly, got on to a girl handing out programs, even calling her by name (thanks to her nametag).  She apologized, but you have to get there early for the freebies.  (I already have the Cody Decker bobblehead.  What could be better than that?) 

80’s music filled the air.  Diablos shirts and hats filled the concourse.  I was immediately sorry I had lost my old yellow Diablos giveaway hat.  It was almost like the old days, though nobody was going to mistake the glamorous, award-winning Southwest University Park for Cohen Stadium (a nice place to see a game) or the Dudley Dome (umm . . . it had “character” and it wasn’t a dome; it was barely a standing structure).  

We hit the concessions.  I finally got my nachos in a dog bowl.  However upon finally receiving it, I suddenly realized that I just wanted chips and cheese and not all the other toppings.  I ended up handing it to Ron to eat and went back for pizza.  I also don’t have a pet, so I ended up giving bowl away.  (Ron and Jacob enjoyed the nachos, so it was just me.)  Unsatisfied (either with not having eaten enough or not having spent enough), late in the game, I went back for a pizza pretzel.  The pizza part was actually cooked into the middle of the pretzel and not a topping.  Points for originality and concept, but in taste, it wasn’t that great, being way too dry.  This all ended up being an expensive lesson ballpark eatery.  I never even got dessert.  Next time, just get a hamburger (those are good) and a large drink. 

Our seats were off to the left of home plate and had a great, close view of most of the field (except the left field corner, which would be meaningful later).  I have to mention a couple of attractive ballpark distractions.  I remember last year being fascinated by a waitress in the good seats below us.  This year was no different.  The girl this time had dark hair with blonde highlights at the ends.  Way too cute to be considered goth or punk.  Her hair kept falling in front of eyes, forcing her to keep brushing it aside in a most adorable manner. 

Meanwhile, our section usher was that rare combination of cute and beautiful with very long, flowing blonde hair and a sweet face, covered by oversized eyeglasses.  She was very pleasant and often smiling.  Every half inning, the attendants walk down to the front of their sections for some reason and then back to the top at the start of the inning.  Every time she came down, she kept catching me looking at her and didn’t seem to mind.  I think we may have been flirting.  On the way out after the game, I caught her eye and mouthed out a “Thank you,” and she smiled back.  If only I lived in El Paso and had season tickets.    

This reminds me of something that happened at Cohen Stadium in the 90’s with my friend at the time, Kyle.  At one game we were at, he saw a gorgeous section usher and, after obsessing over her for the whole game, he decided to make a play for her.  So, we came back on another night and got tickets for her section.  I should mention these were really good and expensive seats behind the plate.  But first, Kyle needed some courage and had a couple of the beers at the concessions.  He looked down at her from the concourse, like Gatsby pining for Daisy.  After he had perhaps gotten her attention from there, we made our down with a couple of more beers, and Kyle introduced himself to her.  Kyle downed both beers in a couple of innings and sent me back for a couple more.  “Six,” she muttered as I walked with both hands full.  “Kyle, I think she’s counting how much beer you’ve been drinking.”  It had been about six inside of an hour. 

Kyle started to give me inning by inning updates on how much his head weighed.  At about 250 lbs, he finally got up to relieve himself, or more accurately, staggered to his feet and wobbled up the steps.  He didn’t return for an inning.  Concerned, I got up to search to search the bathrooms and the concessions before returning to our seats.  He got my attention as I was walking back.  Kyle was back in the general admission area behind our seats.  “I can see her better from here.”  I couldn’t argue the logic.  He’d also made the acquaintance of a co-worker of his intended and used her to set up a meeting.  He was indeed granted an audience about 15-minutes following the game.  Kyle went off to his destiny.  And quickly returned.  “Let’s go,” he said, through a clenched jaw, though he started talking vociferously after we were out of the stadium. 

Here I made my mistake.  I let him drive.  Yes, still bombed and now angry.  Somewhat exceeding the speed limit, Kyle swerved from the on ramp to freeway, and then just as quickly swerved into the next off ramp and back to the stadium parking lot.  “I may be a little too mad to drive right now,” he explained.  We had both pointlessly brought mitts to the game, which were obviously useless sitting behind the screen.  I also had a ball, so we proceeded to play catch for a while.  This ended abruptly as Kyle ended up drunk tossing the ball into the bushes, and it was gone.  Eventually, Kyle sobered up, and we were the last to leave the stadium.  We didn’t go back for the rest of the season.  There’s no real moral to this, I guess.  As I recall, this girl was worth the embarrassment just to have a shot at her. 

Back to the present.  It wasn’t a full house, but it was a great crowd.  Walk-ups looking for cheap SRO or “green” seats were out of luck.  The party suites in the outfield were empty.  They should really make those seats available, since those sections are rented or not well in advance.  Our section was popular and packed.  Specifically, I was packed in like a sardine between my large friends.  I could just move my arms enough to fill out scorecard and stuff food in my face.  I probably needed a chiropractor afterward to put my shoulders back in place.  Regardless, it was a happy, enthusiastic bunch in attendance.  They were very into the game, arriving mostly on time and mostly staying to the end.

There were three first pitches.  First was a cute little girl who threw 90 mph strike on the outer black (slight embellishment).  Next came a local celebrity, who ran up and placed the ball in the catcher’s mitt and still bounced it.  Finally, and to the loudest applause, came former Diablos’ owner Jim Paul.  He’s still well thought of for his innovative management of the team.  His pioneering promotional techniques are still in use today right here at the new ballpark.   

On field, we had the team in the classic 80’s uniforms.  Some of the attendant girls were dressed as Diamond Girls (more on that later).  Chico was in a Diablos jacket.  The old team didn’t have a mascot, though the San Diego Chicken was a frequent enough guest to almost qualify.  An old TV news report was shown between innings which featured a montage of the season passed.  Both teams’ coaches, Rod Barajas and Pat Listach, were former Diablos.  Pat was introduced for his at bats as “Lightning” Listach.  I don’t think they had walk up music then, so they went with nicknames. 

The voice of the Diablos, Tim Hagerty, in his role as a baseball historian, was relishing being able to relate tales of the old team.  Is Jon Teicher still around town?  It’d be good to bring him in to call an inning and talk about the team.  Dearly departed Paul Strelzin, beloved and infamous PA for the team was discussed for his moment of glory, being ejected for playing Linda Ronstadt singing, “I’ve Been Cheated,” after a bad umpiring decision.  Baseball Digest once did list of ejections and that one topped it.                

Wait, I just remembered there was a game going on too.  I remember seeing it.  I sure hope this post is continued.

Part 2

NM State Aggies vs UMKC Roos Softball 4-15-17

As much as I’d like to crow over a couple of Aggie victories (spoilers), I’m still getting over a mild cold that manifested on Friday, just like the last softball game I attended.  This is second cold in three weeks.  Sometimes I think my workplace is actually a bio-hazard lab.  Still, I’d made commitments to go to Saturday’s softball double header and to going to lunch with my dad, when I should have stayed in bed.  It felt like my head was in a vice all day. 

Well, at least it was a lovely sunny 90 degree day with a slight breeze to keep things from getting hot.  I was wearing my new NM State Softball t-shirt courtesy of a Sports Accessories giveaway, which I have to say, looked pretty good.  It was Aggie Kid’s Club Day, but there was actually a strange lack of children at the game.  During player introductions, Aggie catcher, Nikki Butler, brought a couple of little girls with her to stand with the team.  Another little girl threw out the first pitch.  This was all very endearing.    

Ron was with me and I hope I didn’t infect him.  I’d brought an umbrella for the sun.  He was amazed I had an actual El Paso Diablos umbrella.  Unfortunately for Game 1, he was sitting to my right, and I couldn’t use it.  Luckily, we changed sides for Game 2.  Aggie baseball was finishing up on the road at the same time as this game was starting.  Between fiddling with my umbrella and a non-user friendly radio, I missed the end.  Ron didn’t have any trouble tuning it in and informed me that the Aggies had won.  Of note during the game while I was listening earlier, Brent Sakurai hit another triple.  He’s closing in on an Aggie record. 

The crowd filled in well for Game 1 and thinned out for Game 2, but was still pretty good.  I didn’t notice immediately, but Tamara William and Tyler Ellis from the basketball team were in the unofficial student/athlete section of the grandstand.  Me and Ron were in the unofficial senior citizen section (which was full) across from them, and I didn’t get a chance to congratulate the girls on their season.  Surprisingly, they were still there for Game 2 until the end.  (Cutie Tamara doesn’t have anything better to do on a Saturday evening?) 

“It was too good to last,” said Ron.  His nemesis, the old man, showed up after being absent from several Aggie events.  He was in fine form, loudly cheering on the girls the whole time.  This time there was something of an answer.  There was a loud Roos fan in the center of grandstand, the unofficial visiting fans’ section, who cheered on his girls.  I didn’t find any of this terribly annoying, though there were a couple of fans behind us who seemed to be doing play-by-play commentary on a baseball game they were watching.  I never figured out what teams were involved in the game.

Game 1     

The first thing I noticed was that the Aggies’ regular left fielder, Amy Bergeson, wasn’t in the game.  She showed up as a pinch runner in Game 2, but that was it.  I hope she’s okay.  Also, Nikki didn’t catch this game, which didn’t surprise me, since it was a day game after a night game.  She ended up DP’ing for both games.  Local girl, Alexis Maynez did all the catching.  I’ve been rooting for her to do well.  She really always seems to trying hard.

Kayla Green started for the Aggies.  She looked very poised out there for the game.  For her five innings, Kayla avoided having a bad inning.  She walked a couple in the fifth, but really helped herself out fielding by snagging a hard, low liner and then a popup in front of the plate.  Maybe her playing first base briefly earlier in the season wasn’t a stretch.  The Roos had their own “ball” chant during those walks, where they were counting up the number of balls, but it didn’t seem to get to Kayla.  The Aggie defense was solid behind her.  Alexis had her head up and made a couple of snap throws to bases to keep runners close.

The Aggies got the scoring going in the first, as Kelsey Horton was brought in via a centerfield error.  Roo pitching held the Aggies for the next two innings, but things got ugly in the fourth for them.  Victoria Castro hit a two-run homer that just cleared the left centerfield wall.  The Roo centerfielder seemed to come up with it to rob her, but it may have bounced off her glove, which she threw down in disgust afterward.  I’ve actually seen a major league player do that, not just Little Leaguers.  Now noticing I’ve mentioned her twice, I feel bad for Roo centerfielder, Kendra Leach.

Alexis faced a new Roo pitcher right after that and singled off her.  She always looked like she could hit when was in the batter’s box.  It was good to see her put it together for a hit.  I put an “IP” note on her progress on the scorecard to indicate being moved up by an illegal pitch.  Three more runs scored thanks to a walk, a single, a hit batter, and a run walked in.  During Nikki’s at bat in the inning, she did almost decapitate teammate Caity Szczesny on third base at the time.  Caity came up smiling and shaking her head. 

Up 6-0 in the fifth, Victoria singled her way on.  Alexis stepped up to the plate next and homered.  It was her first of the year, probably her career.  The dugout exploded for her.  It may have been more for her getting the big hit than ending the game 8-0 on a run rule.     For that shot, Alexis joins Victoria and Kayla for my players of this game.     

        

We spent the intermission in the Ron’s car in the air conditioning.  I was mostly head down over my scorecard trying to add things up.  (I did a really poor job for the day.  Events were complicated and I wasn’t feeling well.)  I missed the girls Ron was ogling who were walking by.  Unfortunately I did see a scene play out on the practice field next to the stadium.  Lia Lombardini, the Roo’s pitcher who gave up the game-ending home run, was being consoled by another player.  They hugged after a lengthy talk, and I suspect there were some tears involved.  Now I felt bad.  I didn’t want these girls beaten to the point of crying. 

Game 2

We got back inside just as the game started.  I immediately noticed there was a female umpire for this game, but heckling was still allowed.  I missed the lineups and never really recovered.  I was able to score the plays in the first, but wasn’t sure which Roos were involved.  It’s a good thing I was properly seated for the bottom of the inning, because it was a complex affair.  With Haley Nakamura on, Kelsey Horton came to bat.  She’d had a quiet Game 1, so her two-run blast to right center was completely expected.  It was her ninth of the year.  Nikki and Fahren Glackin reached, and Victoria came up and hit another home run.  5-0 Aggies. 

The Roo right fielder made a great diving catch on the next batter.  (Again, I missed the lineups.  I’m not sure who was where to give credit.  [Monday edit: After looking at the official scoring, I’m more confused than ever.  I think Alex Larson was in right field for the first inning.])  Myself and several other Aggie fans were applauding her in spite of our rooting interests.  It was looking that bad for them.  Alexis was up next.  The right fielder made another dive at her liner, but that ended up going for triple.  Destiny Blueford tripled her in and scored herself on a passed ball.  7-0 Aggies after one inning.

I could hear somebody, maybe the coach, tell the Roo dugout, “Don’t get down.”  Unfortunately for them, the Aggie second inning just piled on with three more runs.  The frame ended with the Roo right fielder making a great basket catch.  [Monday edit: This may have been Abby Warkentine’s play in right field.]  Up 10-0, the Aggies started putting in some subs in the third.  Kelsey went to play first, where she probably should be to begin with. 

Samaria Diaz, pitching for the Aggies, finally allowed a Roo run in the third.  I think this was the inning that Alexis dropped a foul tip for a strikeout, that instead ended up turning into a hit.  In the fourth, two more Roo runs scored via Kendra Leach, giving her some redemption for the day.  [Monday edit: Kendra was the pitcher for the first inning of this game, then moved to center.  Alex Larson went to the mound to pitch the rest of the game.  Kendra wasn’t listed as a pitcher and Alex wasn’t listed as an outfielder on the program.]  Alexis would hold on to a third strike foul tip this inning for a strikeout.  She learns quick.  10-3 Aggies. 

In the fifth, Alexis belted a double to leadoff.  I’m sure she never wanted this day to end, going 5 for 6 in total.  [Monday edit: Alexis was named WAC Hitter of the Week for this performance.]  Amy Bergeson came in as a pinch runner for her.  She was advanced to third on an error that got Brandy Hernandez on base.  Brandy attempted to steal second.  The catcher’s throw went high and into centerfield.  Amy trotted home for the run, bringing the score to 11-3 and another run rule game.  My player of the game picks are Kendra Leach for the Roos, and Victoria, Alexis, and Kelsey for the Aggies.

It’s hard to make two run ruled games into an epic struggle.  [Monday edit: Epic struggle would describe filling out these scorecards.  I made some corrections on mine according to the official scoring.  On Game 2, even if I had gotten the original UMKC lineup down, I would have been lost.  Apparently, the Roos catcher didn’t take an at bat.]  Friday’s win versus the Roos was at least closer at 5-2.  Ron was somewhat unhappy and felt like he’d been cheated out of four innings.  Both games played in under an hour and half.  He did get an Easter egg from one of the fan giveaways.  Stay lively at these softball games.  They’re always throwing stuff into the stands.  Where was the Easter Bunny anyway?  He showed up at a baseball game last year.  No wonder there weren’t any kids here for the game.

The Aggies’ next game is a Tuesday double header versus the Arizona Wildcats, which they announced as number one in the nation.  Good luck and sorry I can’t come for that.  I’ve already scheduled a day off to see the El Paso Chihuahuas on Wednesday.  I at least hope that I’ll show up in good health for the girl’s next weekend series.          

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.