NM State Aggies vs Omaha Mavericks Softball 2-15-20

Isn’t that an attractive poster?  Ron and I ate burritos for dinner in his car after going over to the Softball Complex from baseball.  Mine was tasteless and didn’t help my upset stomach.  Inside, the cute usher wasn’t there today, but there was a cute new girl with purple hair working the concessions.  If my stomach hadn’t been irritated and I hadn’t just ate, I would have gone ahead and met her to get a hot dog.  There was a light crowd in the stands, though better than last night.  It thinned out again for Game 2.  Ron was pleased that at least Tom wasn’t there.    

Game 1

It was 5-5 in the bottom of the sixth when we got there.  Freshman Felicia de la Torre was pitching for the Aggies in the top of the seventh.  No one scored in regulation.  In the top of the eighth, Omaha hit a two-run homer to take the lead and get the win, 7-5.  That’s basically what happened.  Coming into the game so late, I was only interested in the outcome.  Also, I was listening to Aggie Men’s Basketball on the radio, as they were playing a late afternoon game.  During the break, I watched the girls goofing off and throwing something presumably gross at each other.    

Game 2

Ron and I had picked Game 2 of softball over Game 2 of baseball, since this was the last time we’d be seeing the girls for a month.  I also thought that the softball would be finished quicker, but with Game 1 here going an extra inning and Game 2 going the distance and baseball being run-ruled, I was mistaken.  No regrets though.  This was a pretty good game.  As it started getting colder, I felt less and less like taking my hands out of my pockets to write.  Keep that in mind if this seems a bit skimpy. 

Unlike last time, I would be keeping track of Omaha’s players this time too.  I did have trouble filling out the lineups.  I was wondering why the PA was muted, before I remembered I was wearing earbuds and still listening to the basketball game.  Chloe Rivas started for the Aggies.  She was also hitting for herself.  Matalasi Faapito was in at DP.  Brandy Hernandez played left field, but wasn’t in the batting order.  I think they call that the “Flex player.” 

Chloe walked the first batter and then gave up a double.  Brandy made a good play on a flyball after that.  #88 Taylor Johson came up next.  That’s like a wide receiver number, not a ball player.  Taylor hit a blooper over the infield.  Brandy dove for it, but couldn’t come up with it.  1-0 Omaha.  Nikki Butler and Ramsay Lopez singled in the bottom, but were left stranded.

I was distracted to start the second.  The song Ron and I liked from yesterday came on the PA.  I took out the earbuds this time and listened carefully to the lyrics.  I got one line and had Ron search on it which finally gave us the song, Blinding Lights  by The Weekend.  (Strangely, the next night on sports talk radio they were talking about that song too.  The host couldn’t identify it either.)  That was also bad timing to cut out of the basketball game, which was in the final seconds.  I’ll recap that elsewhere, but I was back listening in time to hear the Aggie’s last second victory there. 

Chloe walked another batter to start the inning.  That player was scored on a double.  That was followed by a single, a batter hit on the hands, and a two-run double.  Chloe still hadn’t gotten an out.  Mata came in to pitch and was finally able to finish the inning.  (Chloe kept her place in the batting order.)  4-0 Omaha.  I might have been regretting going to this game over baseball at this point.

The entire third went 1-2-3 for both teams.  The Mavericks also went down in order in the fourth, but Nikki and freshman first base Riley Carley collided on a foul popup.  We were sitting near the bottom of the stands, so it happened right in front of us.  They were okay.  Increasing the pain, Nikki was then hit to start the bottom of the frame.  Another freshman, Asa Vigil came in to run for her.  Tom then came into the grandstand.  He must have been at the basketball game.  He got over here pretty quick.  Chloe brought Asa in with a single to make it 4-1 Omaha.

I could hear an Omaha fan talking on his phone.  It was a lot colder when they were watching a game in Arkansas last week, but he thought it was pretty cold here too.  Brandy was busy in the field in the fifth catching the first two outs.  She made a great catch on a liner.  Meanwhile, Tom’s cheering literally ran off a couple of fans in front of him to the other side of the grandstand.  In the bottom, Maverick shortstop Emily Klosterman, whom I’d noticed yesterday playing well, made another good play to get Hailey Tanori at first.  Jamie White made a big stretch to make the catch at first.  She hurt herself pretty bad and had to come out.  She got a round of applause for the effort.

Mata cruised through the sixth.  In the bottom, Ramsay walked and Keala Brown came in to run for her.  Mata singled and Gabby Aragon came in to run for her.  Chloe then came up again and bashed a three-run homer to tie it at 4.  The wind was blowing, but not out.  The ball curled in flight as it flew over the wall.  Casie Roberto doubled after a strikeout.  Tall blonde, Kamryn Meyer, was brought in to pitch.  Her first warmup throw flew over her catcher’s head and hit the backstop.  Jeanelle Medina grounded to third, but a bad throw allowed her to get on and drive in Casie.  5-4 Aggies.

The lead did not last long.  Diana Murtha, who came in for White at first, homered to lead off the seventh and tie it at 5.  Mata surrendered another hit, but finished the inning.  There was great fan catch of a foul behind us.  Boy, was I hoping the Aggies would win this in seven.  It was getting miserable cold.   

Nikki was hit again to start an inning.  This time it was hard.  She’d already gotten hit on a swing behind the plate last inning.  Kayla Bowen came in to run for her.  Sydney Ross made a good play on a bouncer at the plate by Ramsay and cut down the lead runner at second.  Mata then hit a grounder to Emily at short for a possible double play, but she bobbled it and everyone was safe.  Chloe walked next.  With the bases loaded and no outs, Riley hit a bouncer to third, but the throw home was late.  Aggies win 6-5!

Thank goodness.  If this had gone extra innings, I was going to whip out my lightsaber and cut open my tauntaun.  Gameball to Omaha’s Emma Dargy who went 2 for 4 with a pair of doubles and two RBI’s.  Condolences to Emily Klosterman, who I’d seen play so well in two games, for her critical error at the end.  Baseball is cruel.  For the Aggies, Matalasi Faapito did a great job in extended relief for six innings, only giving up one run (albeit at a bad time).  Chloe Rivas, the starter, did it with the bat instead.  She had a home run and 4 RBI’s. 

It was worth the frostbite, but only because the Aggies had won.  Afterward, I was uncharacteristically uninterested in going out for a meal or even dessert.  (Cold ice cream was terribly unappealing at the time.)  That was pretty cool to see a couple of comeback wins at baseball and softball today (and hear a last second win over the radio).    

NM State Aggies vs Texas Southern Tigers Baseball 2-15-20

Game 1

Oddly, there was no schedule poster giveaway for this first home series.  After Softball last night, Ron and I went to Jack-in-the-box.  We both had good hamburgers, but I got a bellyache that lasted into the next day.  I don’t want to blame the food.  It might have been because I was in a bad mood yesterday and that was the wrong thing to have eaten with an already irritated stomach. 

In any case, I was pretty quiet when Ron picked me up and while I was at the game.  It was another beautiful day and another great crowd to start today’s double header.  The Diamond Club area next to left field was particularly well-occupied.  I think they put up some new permanent umbrellas there.  The batting cages are behind the club.  I thought they were getting new indoor ones? 

I watched the Aggies take infield, until I realized it was actually Texas Southern.  The uniform colors are real close.  I thought the Aggies were in their alternate black tops.  This sort of confusion has happened before with Harvard (3-4-18).  Coach Kirby had an animated discussion with the umpires when they walked by the dugout.  That could have been about anything from dinner plans to complaining about the strikezone.

Four guys from the 1970 Aggie Final Four Basketball team, who were in town to be honored at tonight’s basketball game, were down in the dugout chatting with the players.  Two of the players would be throwing out first pitches.  They both warmed up for about five minutes.  That did not help their actual throws from the mound.  We did have an American flag today for the Anthem today, unlike yesterday.  Music from warmups next door at Softball stopped to let it play.  The Final Four players stood with team on field. 

“Finish him!” shouted the dugout when Aggie pitcher, Lyle Hibbitts, worked an 0-2 count on the first batter.  However, the ump was calling a tight strikezone to start.  The batter ended up getting a hit.  Catcher Jason Bush said something after the at bat to the ump.  Hibbitts hit the next batter on the helmet with an offspeed.  Austin Duffy got a grounder at third on the third batter.  He missed a tag on the passing runner and threw late to first.  The TS dugout started chanting, “Ole!”  When something like this happened yesterday to a Tigers player, he didn’t get charged an error for it. 

Bases loaded, nobody out, and we just started.  Tiger Oscar Ponce delivered a two-run single to make it 2-0 TS.  Hibbitts settled down and got the next three batters.  Between frames, beautiful Megan Hart and a couple other volleyball players came in.  I told Ron this was his chance to apologize to almost running her over yesterday.  He declined.  Oddly, the Star Wars theme played for the opposing pitcher introduction.  That’s not much of a heckle.  Jacob Morin had some trouble with the strikezone as well and walked the two All-Americans, Nick Gonzales and Tristan Peterson.  The zone might have widened afterward as he struck out the next two Aggies looking.

That first inning took a while between a small strikezone and two slow workers.  After a hit batter in the top of the second, who was brushed on the arm, Roderick Coffee did it again.  He hit another home run.  Why is this guy still batting ninth?  A foul ball nearly took out the third base coach and sent him falling to the ground.  Hibbitt hit a third batter, this one on the heel.  At least he’s distributing the damage all over.  Two hits in a row scored another run.  Finally, a caught stealing ended the inning.  Nick had to jump for the ball from Bush, but he still got the runner.  5-0 Tigers.

Bush took a bruise in the bottom of the second, but that was it for the Aggies.  Marketing intern/goddess Emerson walked by.  She was looking for kids for a contest.  I wouldn’t have wanted to be in any contest, but if she’d asked, I would have done it.  Hibbitt worked a clean top of the third.  Duffy stumbled on a catch, but threw out the last batter.  The contest was the window toss.  The Little Leaguer hit it on the third try.  (No doubt nervous because Emerson was right there.)  His teammates gave him the business when he got back. 

Two more Aggies got hit in the bottom of the third and got into scoring position via a wild pitch.  They weren’t hit hard, which was good because they didn’t score.  The PA accidently played the Super Mario sound effect for scoring with the third out.  Wishful thinking.  Hibbett got in trouble again in the top of the fourth.  He gave up a couple of hits and there was a stolen base.  Action started in the Aggie bullpen.  A runner scored on a fielder’s choice to make it 6-0. 

Okay, now I’m getting worried and my mood was getting worse.  An incredible girl with long dark hair and a white poncho dress and little shorts walked by.  Well, that’s baseball.  If the game sucks, at least the girls are pretty.  On that matter, Emerson searched both ends of the grandstand for some more contestants and found three boys together. 

After two outs to start the bottom of the fifth, I was not expecting much.  Bush legged out a surprise bunt to break up the no-hitter.  (Yeah, do that early.  Don’t wait until the eighth.)  The wind kicked up into a cool breeze.  Tristan Stacy and Zerek Saenz walked to load the bases.  Nick took a Purple Heart to drive in a run as he got hit hard.  Peterson followed suit getting hit to drive in another. 

The PA started playing the ringing phone sound effect to bring in a new pitcher with a mound visit, but Morin stayed in.  That was probably a mistake.  Duffy singled in two runs and Kevin Jimenez doubled in two more.  Suddenly we’re tied at 6, and I’m feeling a lot better about life in general.  A new pitcher came in too late and closed it out. 

Those three boys ended up spending a lot of quality time with Emerson waiting to do the “I Scream” contest after the inning, as they screamed for an ice cream gift certificate.  Hibbitt came out of the game.  He had three hit batters, but no walks, while giving up six runs over four innings.  Aldo Fernandez took over on the mound.  He started a nice double play to make it a quick inning.  The Aggie dugout was pumped.         

By the bottom of the fifth, Softball had started next door.  Their double header was supposed to start at the same time as baseball, but they moved it back a couple of hours.  I don’t understand Aggie Sports scheduling.  Noah Haupt led off and gave the Aggies a lead with a solo home run to center.  The wind was blowing out and he took advantage of it.  Bush hit a popup that dropped in over the infield.  Stacy was then drilled in the back.  Ouch. 

Zerek hit the pitcher on the ankle with a comebacker to drive in a run, but Jaiden Beck stayed in the game.  An El Paso TV sports reporter came in and set up his camera just as Nick got an RBI hit.  Hopefully, he got that on tape.  (Unfortunately, he works for a station that I haven’t been able to get here in Las Cruces for a month over the air.)  A new pitcher did come in after that and got a double play for the first outs.  Duffy tossed his bat after he thought he’d worked a walk, but got called back.  He apologized to the ump, who then rung him up on a called third strike on the next pitch.  9-6 Aggies.

To the top of the sixth, Aldo whiffed on a comebacker, but Nick made a great scoop and throw to get the runner.  During an around the horn after a strikeout, Peterson overthrew Nick into left field.  The crowd chuckled.  Nick made another good play to end the inning.  I hope the camera guy was getting all of this. 

Emerson was nearly mobbed by the large crowd during the “What’s in your pocket” contest.  Everyone wanted the Aggie lunchbox prizes.  Kevin nearly took first to start the bottom of the sixth.  Did he walk?  Was the scoreboard was wrong?  Was he hit?  After the umpires consulted one another, KJ was sent back and filed out.  Daniel Head walked, but that was the only damage.  The Tigers came off the field and made a power circle with the bench players.

AD Mario Moccia came in and greeted the reporter.  Mario was dressed up with a tie.  The Tigers started off with a hit and a walk.  Aldo got a couple of strikeouts, one was a delayed call and another premature trip to first on a presumed walk.  However, pinch hitter Jean (pronounced “Jan”) Ortiz delivered a run on a double.  Victor Bueno followed that with a two-run single.  We were tied at 9.  The power circle worked.  I was depressed again.

Paul Kindervater came for the Tigers in the seventh.  He struck out the side, only allowing an intentional walk to Nick.  To the eighth, Aldo gave up a pair of singles, but not a run.  In the bottom, Daniel became the final batter hit by a pitch in this game.  There were 10 total with the Aggies taking seven painful passes.  The scoreboard was consistently wrong this inning with the count.  The ump kept trying to correct it.  Alex Reyes came in and worked a no-drama top of the ninth.

I’d had enough mood swings for now.  I did not want extra innings, especially since we were planning on going over to see Softball afterward.  Stacy started the bottom of the ninth well with a single.  He was balked over to second.  Two defensive replacements were sent out to the outfield.  Zerek then beat out a bunt to put two on.  Nick was intentionally walked again, after taking one pitch, to load the bases with nobody out.  The scoreboard was still off during Peterson’s at bat, but he worked a walk to force in a run to win it, 10-9 Aggies.  

Some of the crowd was a bit disappointed by the lack of fireworks to end it, but I was happy.  Let’s hand out the gameballs.  For the Tigers, the story was again hot coffee, as Roderick Coffee went 3 for 4 with 2 RBI’s on a homer.  Paul Kindervater was the hard luck loser.  He pitched well for three innings and only gave up one run, unfortunately the winning run.  For the Aggies, Alex Reyes did a great job in the ninth pitching.  There was some good clutch hitting by several hitters, but I have to give it to Tristan Peterson.  He went hitless, but forced in two runs anyway, including the winning one.  That’s how an All-American contributes even when he’s in a slump.

From here, Ron and I were off to Softball.

Game 2

The Aggies took the other end of the double header 13-2 on a run-rule.  Oh yeah, sure.  When I’m not there, they have the run-rule in play.  This game even finished before the softball game.  Given the cold, it would have been better to have stayed with the baseball, but we would have missed a good softball game.  There were no live stats for Game 2, so we had no updates on it, other than hearing some occasional cheers.  On the radio broadcast for Sunday’s game, they mentioned Noah Haupt was ejected from this game, but the reason wasn’t elaborated on.  He wouldn’t be playing the next day. 

 

2-16-20  

I was not there for this game either, but Ron was.  I was at my dad’s apartment to watch the Daytona 500 with him.  That didn’t work out well.  While the prerace was entertaining and we saw the President take a pace lap in his armored limo, the sunny blue skies there suddenly started raining.  (It also didn’t help that the race essentially started an hour late.)  We ended up mostly watching a Gulf War movie with Sean Bean.  Not to mention, dad had wanted to try a hamburger at Freddy’s.  He didn’t like it.  That place is hit-or-miss in appeal.  I liked my chili dog, but it wasn’t Wienerschnitzel, which also would have been cheaper.     

I tried listening to the ballgame on the radio with my earbuds in.  At first, there was no coverage at the scheduled time.  When I tried back later, the game was in progress.  My little mp3 player/radio ran out of juice a half hour later.  I then borrowed one of dad’s portable radios, but the batteries were so depleted, I could barely hear anything.  This was really too bad, since Adam Young and former Aggie player, Marcel Renteria, were doing a really good job calling the game. 

In spite of all the disappointments, at least I got to hear an Aggie win, 15-8.  Nick Gonzales had a typical game with nine RBI’s and three home runs, including a grand slam.  Catcher Jason Bush hit four doubles in a row.  A bunch of bench players also saw action today.  I may have also seen a future star on the Tigers.  Roderick Coffee hit two more home runs in this game, giving him four for the series. 

I talked to Ron after I came home after listening to the game.  He reported that there had been an hour time change.  (Usually, a Sunday time change means the game starts an hour early, not later.)  He got there early enough to watch both teams take batting practice.  Ron reported that they no longer hustle to take down the batting cage like last year.  There was a lack of Esprit d’ Corps in general in their pregame rituals now.

Another good crowd showed up at the rescheduled time, so they knew when to come.  Half of the Softball team came in and sat near Ron, but he was too intimidated to talk to them.  On a disturbing note, they ran out of hot dogs on Dollar Hot Dog Day.  The concessions manager had refused to put in a full order for hot dogs today.  There should be an NCAA investigation. 

So, I’m kind of sorry I didn’t go, but I couldn’t have guessed there wouldn’t be a race today based on the good weather forecast and all of the sunshine.  I would have gotten to the ballpark two hours early, but would have seen Aggie batting practice, which I’ve never seen.  I might have gotten a hot dog, or not.  (I do know better than to try their experimental chili dogs again.  I probably got the better of that deal at Freddy’s.)  I might have chatted with the softball team, but the game went nearly four hours.  It’s a toss up.       

NM State Aggies vs Omaha Mavericks Softball 2-14-20

After Ron and I had watched Aggie Baseball’s Opening Day, we went next door to the Softball Complex to catch Game 2 of their double header.  We asked a softball fan outside (he was wearing an Aggie Softball shirt) about Game 1.  It was a 7-6 loss.  Apparently, the Mavericks had won it in the ninth.  Aggie freshman Ramsay Lopez was responsible for the titanic home run shot that went onto the baseball field earlier. 

There was a small crowd inside, nothing like last week’s game against Arkansas. Unfortunately for Ron, his favorite fan Tom was there.  Tom’s loud cheering for the Aggies seemed to amuse the Omaha fans and even the PA.  Just to even things out, there was a loud Omaha couple cheering right behind us. 

So, we arrived in the bottom of the first and I started an Aggie scorecard.  In the top of the second, I suddenly realized that I had no idea where the Omaha lineup was in their batting order.  I couldn’t make out a scorecard for them without making a mess.  Since I’d already started the Aggie scorecard, I went ahead and carried on with it.  In other words, this recap is going to be more one-sided than usual.

Freshman Hailey Tanori was leading off for the Aggies.  I hadn’t seen her play last weekend.  Coach Rodolph had assured everyone after the Troy Cox Classic that she still had a more new good new players to showcase.  Hailey singled to get on, stole second, and took third on a wild pitch.  I was already impressed.  Nikki Butler walked to set the stage for Ramsay to come up and hit a three-run homer.  This one wasn’t a tape-measure shot, but it only needed to go over the fence to count.  3-0 Aggies.

Hailey had an encore in the second.  After Casie Roberto had walked, Haily slapped one to the fence.  It was probably a double for any other player without afterburners, but she turned on the jets and flew around the bases for an inside-the-park home run.  I don’t think there was an announced error, so it was Haily just beating it out.  No offense to Aggie Baseball player Daniel Johnson from a couple of years ago, but I think this was the fastest I’ve ever seen someone run around the bases.  Just to top it off, Gabby Aragon got on the hard way with a bruise and Nikki drove her in with a homer to center.  7-0 Aggies.

There was a brilliant red sunset in west on display to the right of the grandstand.  This meant the sun was going down and it would be getting colder.  Having already seen a full game today, I admit I was kind of hoping for a quick run-rule for the night cap.  Analise de la Roca was in the circle for the Aggies had a great offspeed working.  Ramsay was at third and made a fearless catch of a liner aimed directly at her head to start the third.  However, the Mavericks scored a run on a double this inning to make it 7-1.  The Aggies loaded the bases in the bottom with one out, but failed to score.

Analise gave up a leadoff homer to start the fourth.  Coach Rodolph shouts out a code to call for pitches.  The pitcher and the infield then consult a matrix on their wristband to know what the pitch should be.  After one pitch, the coach said, “That was supposed to be an offspeed.”  I think Astros might be able to break that code.  Hailey, working in centerfield, went over the wall to rob a player of another home run.  She’s not tall either.  After a walk, there was another deep flyball to center that Hailey tracked down.  This girl is rapidly impressing the heck out of me.  7-2 Aggies. 

Nikki and Ramsay walked to start the bottom of the fourth.  Keala Brown came in to pinch run for Nikki.  Matalasi Faapito came into the lineup and singled to load the bases.  The Mavericks brought in a new pitcher.  Newcomer Hope Banales grounded one off the plate and was out at first.  However, there was confusion on the play.  It was thought the catcher had stepped on home for the force and made a double play, but it was instead ruled that Keala had crossed the plate safely.  The Omaha fans behind us let the ump what they thought of that decision.  Maverick shortstop Emily Klosterman made a couple of good plays to end the inning.  8-2 Aggies.

Mata was now in to pitch (and hit).  Nikki took over for Shelby Shultes as catcher.  Mata gave up a hit and hit a batter and loaded the bases with one out.  There was also a foul liner shot into the Aggie dugout.  Two runs scored on a sacrifice and a hit to make it 8-4.  Ramsay lost the third out on a pop up foul ball in the lights, but Mata got a strikeout to end it anyway.  The coach put in a couple more bench players in the bottom.  The Mavericks worked around an error to get a double play and a strikeout to end the inning.

By the bottom of the sixth, fans were starting to abandon ship for the cold.  That’s about what I felt like too, but I wanted to see a win.  Ramsay singled and Brandy Hernandez came in to pinch runner for her.  That turned out not to be necessary as Mata, with a nice easy stroke, sent the ball on a short flight over the center field wall.  Mellika Ofoia came in off the bench.  The dugout sang a song to her and went crazy for her when she singled.  Unfortunately, after a foul popup at first, she was picked off for a double play.  10-4 Aggies.  Freshman Maya Martinez had come in to play short earlier.  In the seventh, she made an error, but then got the final out.  10-4 Aggies was the final score.

Analise de la Roca and Matalasi Faapito only gave up a combined four runs for a good split effort.  Mata also made the most of her two at bats with two hits and two RBI’s.  Hailey Tanori got a home run the hard way and went 2 for 2 with two RBI’s.  Her defense also impressed me.  Sorry I can’t say much about Omaha, other than Emily Klosterman’s defense, without a scorecard.  This was a good bounce-back win for the Aggies and a bunch of players got to see some action.

Ron was fascinated by a new song that the PA was playing during the game and after it was over, but didn’t know what it was.  I liked it, but didn’t recognize it either.  Ron chatted up the ushers, including a little cute one, to ask about it.  Neither of them knew the name of it, but were familiar with it.  One of them had Shazam, but it didn’t work where they were standing.  We’d have to work on this mystery again tomorrow.  The cute one said she’d see us then, but was disappointingly not there on Saturday.  Okay, it was bit cold, but I think I used my day off from work pretty well.     

NM State Aggies vs Texas Southern Tigers Baseball 2-14-20

  

Happy Valentine’s Day!  What a better way to spend a romantic day than with my lover . . . baseball!  Bah humbug to women!  Oh wait, Emerson, our favorite sports marketing intern, is back at the ballpark, along with a bunch of other pretty girls (mostly girlfriends or sisters of the players).  Well, its okay that women are here as long as they don’t distract me from keeping my scorecard.  Ron was with me for the game.  I almost disowned him on the way over as he nearly ran over beautiful volleyball star, Megan Hart, at a crosswalk.  Well, that would have been one way to have met her.  (Poor thing, she looked kind of unhappy, even apart from homicidal drivers.)    

Yes, baseball is still my favorite even with the whole Astros’ cheating scandal.  Since more has happened since the last time I wrote about it, I’ll have more to say later in my Preseason Special.  For now, it’s the Aggie Baseball’s Opening Day.  People at work didn’t even complain that I wanted a day off when I said it was Opening Day.  They knew it was a special day (for me at least). 

It’s also a new day for Aggie baseball with a new coach, Mike Kirby.  Here’s what I know about him: nothing.  He’s been kind of anonymous since his hiring.  He wasn’t on the Aggie Coach’s Show this week to promote opening weekend.  Broadcaster Adam Young’s first interview with him (perhaps) was before today’s game.  I didn’t even get to hear it on the radio as the PA announcing the lineups at the same time.  The face of the franchise has (properly) been All-American and presumed first round draft candidate, Nick Gonzales.  He was the national batting champion last season with a .432 average.  I’ve seen him interviewed on local TV sports news a couple of times.  He has switched from second to short for this season.             

Today’s game was at 3:00pm Friday afternoon.  It was a great day here in Las Cruces.  It was in the high 60’s, clear, and no breeze.  A great crowd of 765 came out.  The parking lot was full with RV’s and tailgaters.  As the sun went down late in the game, it would get colder.  Aggie Softball was playing a double header starting at the same time.  That actually worked out, as we would be able to watch some of that later as well. 

As you can see above, they were handing out programs printed in color this season.  They were also handing out buttons and running a baseball bingo contest.  I passed on those.  In addition to the cute girls, there were also some cute dogs in attendance.  The PA was offering a “sweet prize” for returning foul balls.  Unlike most Aggie Baseball games, there weren’t many fouls in this game.  Current Mets minor leaguer and former Aggie, Marcel Renteria, was doing color commentary for the game and did a good job.  The bunting was out for opening day around the stadium.  Pistol Pete, the man himself, threw out the first pitch.  Lastly, and oops, they forgot to put the flag out in the centerfield.  Did anyone else feel a little silly saluting an empty flagpole during the Anthem?  Good thing there wasn’t any wind today that hitters and fielders needed to keep track of.        

I think I did okay on this scorecard, but only because the game wasn’t too complex (excluding a four-base error in the sixth, thank goodness there was a radio call).  Chance Hroch, whom we saw at Softball last week, was the Aggie starter today.  The last time I saw Chance pitching was in the final home game of last season (5-18-19).  He was prematurely pulled from a game he was dominating and the Aggies ended up losing.  If they’d won, the Aggies would have been the sole conference champions, instead it was a three-way share. 

But I’m not bitter or anything.  I’m sure Chance doesn’t remember Cal Baptist celebrating on field (twice).  This is only reason I haven’t gotten too upset over Coach Brian Green leaving.  He did such a great job with the program, but that questionable pitching move left a bad taste in my mouth.  Theoretically, it was done to save Hroch’s arm for the tournament, which didn’t work out anyway.  While there was a new conference championship sign on the wall, it didn’t entirely feel legit.

Let’s get to the game recap with Texas Southern coming all the way from Houston.  Last year, the Aggies swept out the Tigers in the opening weekend by a combined 98 to 19 in scoring.  Chance looked good in the top of the first.  He only gave up a bunt single.  Nobody’s expecting the three-hole hitter to bunt with nobody on.  Zerek Saenz from Las Cruces (via Mayfield and transferring from Eastern Arizona College, go Gila Monsters!) was leading off for the Aggies.  He got overeager in his first at bat and thought he’d worked a walk before he’d actually gotten four balls and ended up flying out.     

Chance cruised through the second.  Victor Bueno from the Dominican Republic came up as the DH.  Ron had liked his cannon arm from watching him take infield.  A roar came up from the Softball field to remind us that that was going on as well.  A double play killed an Aggie rally in the bottom.  In the third, the Tiger nine-hole hitter, Roderick Coffee, cranked a home run to left center.  1-0 TS.  The Texas Southern dugout got fired up.  In the bottom, Zerek drove in Noah Haupt to tie the score.  TS catcher, Victor Cruz bobbled two balls while Nick was at bat.  Zerek couldn’t resist the second time and made an ill-advised steal attempt that failed.  Adam and Marcel disapproved of the effort with the batting champ at the plate.

Kevin Jimenez, who’s taken over playing second, made a good play on the first out of the fourth.  On the final out, Nick made the defensive play of the game.  On what looked like a deflection by Hroch on a ball up the middle, Nick made a sliding catch and a tremendous throw to nip the runner.  In the bottom, this was the inning that I couldn’t help but notice that TS pitcher, Noe Guerrero, was losing his hat on seemingly every other pitch.  Get this kid a new hat. 

Suddenly play was briefly stopped.  A ball had gotten into the outfield . . . from the softball field.  It was a home run ball!  That must have been a monster shot.  The Aggie baseball team and the radio broadcast identified it as an Aggie home run, but that was all the information we got at the time.  Marcel was impressed.  I was awed that a Braden Williams’ home run made it onto the softball field last year (2-17-19).  I’ll cover more on this in my softball recap, since we went there after this game.   

Back to play, Nick walked, but was thrown out trying to steal on another bobbled ball.  Cruz even hesitated, but still got him.  Austin Duffy painted the line with the double.  Cruz mishandled another pitch.  The batter tried to wave Duffy over, but he stayed put and was left stranded.  To the fifth, Duffy bobbled a ball at third, but still threw out the runner at first for the final out.  Opening Day jitters maybe.  Down the aisle, Chance’s girlfriend (I’m assuming from her shirt with his name on it), came by with a cute little dog.

In the bottom of the fifth, Haupt singled.  There was another walk, which prompted a mound visit.  Right after that was a wild pitch that advanced Haupt to third.   Zerek drove him in with a sac fly.  2-1 Aggies.  I can’t believe I’m reporting station-to-station baseball with the Aggies.  Even worse, there was that Coffee guy again to start the sixth with another home run.  We’re tied again at 2.  Chance hit the next two batters, which prompted a mound visit.  The TS bench was angry, but the coverage didn’t think the hits were intentional.  Another blast drove Zerek to the left field wall, but he hauled it in.

The Tigers made a pitching change for the bottom of the sixth.  Duffy worked a walk.  There was another bobbled ball and this time he was able to steal on it.  Zach Smits, the Aggie DH, did not have a good game with three strikeouts, but did have the pivotal play of the game.  A bad throw to first from third got him on base.  A bobble in the retrieval scored Duffy and had Zach rounding second.  A final bad throw that went into the Aggie dugout got him waved home by the ump.  4-2 Aggies.  I should mention that Smits is a large person and has to be one of the slowest players on the team.  It was going to take a four-base error to score him.

Tristan Peterson, a fellow All-American like Nick, had his only highlight today with a shoetop catch on a liner in the top of the seventh.  Also in the inning, a foul hit the canopy overhead, but nobody saw it come down.  We were all a little nervous about that.  The Aggie bats finally woke up in the bottom.  Jason Bush led off with a homer to right.  Zerek hit an oppo double and Nick drove him in with another one.  The scoreboard erroneously had the Aggies up 7-2, but that wouldn’t happen until Duffy drove in Nick a couple of batters later.  Jimenez also got a hit on a mental error by the second baseman, who missed the tag on a passing Duffy and threw late to first.

Mitchell Allen relieved Chance in the eighth.  A co-worker of mine came by.  He had said he might come to the game, though I hadn’t seen him in the stands.  I think he got one of the giveaway shirts too.  The Tigers brought in a pitcher in the bottom who throws offspeeds and curves in the 50’s and 60’s, which momentarily confused the Aggies, but not for long.  Haupt tripled and scored on a wild pitch.  Tristan Stacy walked and Zerek singled.  This set the table for Nick to come up and blast a three-run homer to left.  He seemed mad as he crossed the plate for some reason.  Easy man, nobody hits a home run every at bat.  11-2 Aggies.

Allen closed it out in the bottom of the ninth, but not without some trouble.  He loaded the bases and there was that Coffee guy again.  Everyone in the crowd held their breath, but he struck out.  Aggies won 11-2.  This final wouldn’t have surprised anyone going in, but it was way closer than the score would indicate.

Let’s hand out the gameballs.  For the Tigers, Roderick Coffee’s two homers were their offense.  Why was he batting ninth?  Noe Guerrero held down the Aggies for five innings, but didn’t figure into the decision.  For the Aggies, Nick Gonzales went 2 for 4 with 4 RBI’s.  He’s started the season off right.  Noah Haupt went 3 for 4 and scored 3 times.  Lastly, Chance Hroch dominated for seven innings against anyone on the Tigers not named Coffee.   

It was another successful Opening Day, but it wasn’t over yet.  Since this game finished in well under three hours, Ron and I went over to the softball field to see most of the end of their double header.  May as well make the most of my day off.

Artifacts: Our Great Heritage Insight 100 Years of the Telephone

Heritage Index

This feels like a true artifact from the Bicentennial.  This was a promotional paper produced by the regional phone company at the time.  I think they were still called Mountain Bell then.  It’s got some really interesting historical information about the phone system in New Mexico.  The paper reproduced here isn’t yellow with age.  It was actually printed on tan parchment.  Scanning this was also a nightmare.  I did the best I could with it.    

A salesman tried to sell telephones to a county government in New Mexico.  "They believed the new invention could be of little use to them since it couldn't speak Spanish."

Check out the cabling going into the window here for the original Las Cruces phone office.

Read these two stories about a couple of heroic operators.

Here's why they used women operators.  They wanted a "Voice with a smile."  "Girls are steadier than boys and they don't drink beer."

Line maintenance was not a glamorous job.

  

Artifacts: Our Great Heritage Las Cruces Bicentennial

Heritage Index

During the national Bicentennial, a local Las Cruces savings and loan (which I don’t think is around anymore) produced this booklet.  This area had had European settlers for hundreds of years before the United States came into being.  The first “Thanksgiving” in North America actually happened in El Paso with Spanish colonists in 1598. 

The booklet strangely doesn’t talk much about Las Cruces.  Next door Mesilla was the larger settlement until they were passed over by the railroad for Las Cruces.  Before the town was founded, this site was where a party of settlers was massacred here by Apaches.  The crosses set up at their gravesite would give the city its name.

Artifacts: Our Great Heritage Miscellaneous Items

Heritage Index

After buying this series of books, mom took to putting some other Bicentennial items she collected at the time in them.  I found these items pressed between the pages of some of the volumes. 

First up is an eye-catching Bicentennial envelope.

Here are a couple of trading cards.  These were probably inserts with loaves of Wonder Bread. 

                                    

These articles are from the Las Cruces Sun-News.  Dr. Tombaugh was local celebrity here in Las Cruces discovering Pluto, the PLANET! 

Space exploration was still an ongoing effort in 1976.  The Viking probe landed on Mars.

Mom was still inserting articles years later.  She put in an article from 2005 about the then current space program.