Winning ..and losing..Ugly

It was a beautiful 80 degree day again and Team A finally won our first game this morning 10 to 9 -- but it wasn't pretty.  Sloppy fielding and baserunning (again we had two doubleplays turned against us - one on a fly ball like the final play in Monday's game) kept us behind most of the game.  Fortunately for us -- but too bad for baseball purists -- our opponents, managed by Arnie Beyeler, committed as many errors and mistakes as we did.  We fell behind early -- I started pitching and gave up 6 runs in the first three innings with two strike outs and a hit batter (three runs scored in one inning when the opponents didn't get a base hit.)  We pulled even and Chris Clark, our best pitcher, shut down the other team at the end.  In the top of the last inning Joe Cardi hit a triple to right field.  The next batter - Jody Zarbano -- drove in Joe with a grounder to second, and gave us a one run lead.  Chris kept them scoreless in the bottom of the inning for the win.  I was 1 for 1 at bat with a walk. 

It is better to win, even if it is ugly.  The afternoon game proved that losing ugly is worse.  We are getting thin at pitching -- there are four of us who have pitched regularly in the past: Chris, Adrian Rosati, Joe and me.  So this afternoon a couple of our teammates who haven't pitched much before started the game -- Steve Malinowski pitched very well in the first inning but hit two batters in the second inning.  If you hit two batters you must be taken out of pitching for the game.  He was replaced by Fred Kopatich -- who also pitched well and got us through the third inning.  Unfortunately Steve and Fred did not get strong fielding support and we didn't capitalize on opponents' errors and were behind by a score of 8 to 3.  We had a mild rally in the fifth inning -- adding two runs but the inning ended with a double play with our base runner doubled off on a line drive.  They got one more run and we were shut out in the last inning -- a 9 to 5 loss.  An ugly game much like the morning game but with a disappointing final result. I was 1 for 2 at bat with a double. 

Our record is 1 and 3 -- after tomorrow's morning game the Ponce officials will "re-seed" the teams to try to balance teams with equivalent records.  It looks like we will be in the lower bracket -- three teams have a 3 and 1 record.  We will have to tighten up our play - particularly in the field -- if we hope to be competitive later in the week.  In my first three years here my collective team record was 1-26; the next three years was 23-4 with two championships and a second place.  Our aspirations now are first to stay out of the cellar!

My college friend Flint Taylor spent the morning at the park - solving one problem.  At the beginning of the week, I was concerned about how my cheering section -- my brother Bill -- would be able to do the Wave by himself.  Mike Levy had a solution "one arm at a time."  Well today, with Flint here, an even better solution -- the two of them did the Wave after I got a hit in the morning game to drive in a run.  There may even be visual evidence of their Wave!

When Flint got to the hotel Monday night he ran into a Ponce player and asked him if he knew Jay Hedlund -- the player said yes, "he struck me out today, but we won the game."  A nice introduction.  After the morning game today Flint, Bill and I drove over to the Red Sox training facility - Jet Blue Park, a replica of Fenway Park.  We visited the gift shop, walked around the outside but couldn't get more than a peek at the field.  It was great to have Flint here -- he promises (threatens?) to post some of his impressions of the "action" in the comments section of the blog.

I spoke a bit today with Victor Rodriguez about his new assignment as batting coach for the Red Sox -- he said he got some very nice text messages from Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, Will Middlebrooks and a number of other Red Sox players who were excited for his appointment.  Victor worked with them as they came up through the minor league system when he was minor league hitting coordinator for the Red Sox.  He said that a number of the new Sox -- such as Shane Victorino and Mike Napoli -- are very excited about joining the team and anxious to get going into the season.  Tonight Bill and I had dinner with Chris, Joe, John Fernstrom, Mo Werner and Arnie Beyeler who is the new Red Sox first base coach.  Arnie said that he is excited to be in the major leagues and will work with the infielders as well as coach first base.  He expects to work to help Daniel Nava learn how to play first base (he has been an outfielder to now) to increase Nava's versatility and be an extra asset to the team.  Arnie was at the Fenway Park celebration in memory of Johnny Pesky -- and took part in the ritual where players and officials signed their names on the Pesky pole.  Bill ushered at that event and was stationed by the pole to hand out Johnny Pesky commemoration baseball cards to every one who signed the pole -- including Arnie, who got one of the cards.

Diamonds on the Soles of our Shoes

A beautiful 80 degrees with blue skies as we took to the diamond today for our first two games.  The only flaw in the day is that Team A (the good guys) dropped both ends of our doubleheader -- the first game by a score of 7-3 and the afternoon game by a score of 6-5.  In the first game -- against the team coached by Stu Cliburn, Stan's brother -- we were a little shaky in the field, made some baserunning mistakes, and did not have timely hits.  I was 1 for 2 at bat with an RBI, and pitched two innings giving up three runs and striking out 3.  In the second game we fell behind early and struggled to catch up, and were behind by a score of 6 to 4 going into the bottom half of the last inning.  After one out, Jamie Bell got a hit and I walked.  Jamie scored on an infield hit.  Down by one with the tying run on third base and the winning run on second, Joe Cardi, a powerful hitter, hit a screaming line drive to right field.  It looked as if it would produce the tying and winning run, but the drive fell into the hand of the right fielder who then threw to second to complete a double play.  A tough loss to end the day.  I was 1 for 1 with two walks in the game.

The other coaches here this week in addition to the Cliburns are Jeff Smith - who was a catcher in the Twins and Rangers system and is a new coach this year at Ponce; Darrin Garner who is a coach in the Mariners system, Victor Rodriguez who has been promoted this year to assistant batting coach for the Red Sox and Arnie Beyeler the Red Sox new first base coach.  Victor and Arnie have spent a number of years in the Red Sox minor league system.  Also here this week is former Red Sox lefthanded pitcher Bill "Spaceman" Lee.  He is making the rounds among the teams to give pitching tips and tell baseball stories.  He showed me his grip for a curveball and tips for how to get the proper curveball motion (he trains young people for the curve by having them throw an empty soda can or water bottle end over end with the correct hand and wrist motion for a curve.)  He also pitched batting practice to us before our afternoon game -- great fun to hit against a pitcher I watched play many times at Fenway Park.  Bill harvests maple from his property in Vermont that gets turned into prime quality baseball bats at a factory in which he has a part ownership interest in Fall River, MA.  Robinson Cano of the Yankees is one of the players who uses his bats ("he won the All Star Game Home Run Derby using our bat.")

We start each day with announcements, some jogging, calisthenics and stretching.  The trainers stress the importance of hydrating well each day and stretching as much as we can to keep the back and legs limber -- Steve Liddle says "that way you will be able to bend almost all the way over, and run in somewhat the right path to a fly ball."  My former teammate Kirby Jones was known to say, "I can bend over and I can run, but not at the same time."  Takes more than stretching, I fear.

Extraneous Note:  Graceland has to be one of the all time great music albums.  Elizabeth, Elaine and I saw Ladysmith Black Mambazo on Friday night and Joseph Shabalala (age 71) is still going strong.  Not bad for a geezer.

Extraneous Note Correction:  James Taylor is 64 not 62.  Not bad for a geezer.

You've Got a Friend....

Yesterday my flight was held up for 50 minutes in Washington to de-ice the plane before we took off for Florida -- down here 75 degrees and sunny -- let's Play Ball!  About 80 players from the Ponce de Leon senior baseball league gathered in Fort Myers tonight to get our team assignments and schedule for the week of play.  We will play 9 six-inning games for the week -- doubleheaders Monday through Thursday and a final game (and if, we are lucky, a championship game) on Friday morning.  Games take place at Terry Park, a county facility with four fields, that in earlier years hosted the Philadelphia Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates and other major league teams for spring training.   This is the seventh year out of the last eight that I have participated in the camp.   The camp director is Steve Liddle, former bench coach of the Minnesota Twins, and the managers of the six teams are all coaches with professional teams. 

This year the league has tried to form the teams to create a competitive balance for the week.  (In my first 3 years the record of the teams I was on had a collective record of 1win-26 losses, for the last three years the teams' record has been 23-4, with two championships and a second place.)  I was assigned to Team A, coached by Stan Cliburn, my coach from last year.  Stan, a long time coach in the Twins minor league system, now coaches in a professional independent baseball league.  There are 13 players on each team -- and I have played in the past with 7 of the players on my team this week -- either in Florida or back in DC.  Of the 80 players here this week I have played with or against more than half of them -- and many I consider good friends.   In DC the Ponce league has two divisions -- one for players aged 30 and over and a second for players 48 and older.  This week teams are mixed with players in their 30s on teams with players in their 40s, 50s, 60s and their 70s.  One of the great things about playing baseball as a geezer is the opportunity to make new friends while playing a game the love for which we have in common.  So this week I'll play with -- and against -- a number of friends -- and have the chance to meet players I haven't played with or against before.  But, balance or not, we all want to win.

Once again this week my brother Bill will be here to enjoy the action.  (The average age of the players is 58 so action may not be the right word.)  An extra highlight for me is that my college friend Flint Taylor is here on work for the beginning of the week and will be able to watch us play on Tuesday.  Flint is a civil rights lawyer in Chicago who has spent more than 40 years fighting police corruption and torture in Chicago and elsewhere in the country (google him to see the important work he has done throughout his career.)   Flint is the person to blame for this blog -- several years ago he suggested I write about my experiences at baseball camp and this is the fourth year I am writing it.

Games start tomorrow - Play Ball.

Extraneous Note:  James Taylor (age 62) didn't need to lip synch at the inaugural.  Not bad for a geezer.

Baseball is Baseball....

Once again it was a great week of baseball in Florida -- the sixth time in seven years I have attended the Ponce de Leon Spring Training.  This year's Silver Medal for a second place finish comes after being on the winning team the last two years.  (See the valuable hardware in the photo with this year's medal in the middle.)  Following the first three year record of 1 win and 26 losses, the record for the past three years was 23 and 4 - so hopefully I can go back in 2013 to keep climbing above a .500 record. 

I felt good about my play for the week -- I started very poorly at bat - 1 for 9 after four games but had 5 hits in 10 at bats the rest of the week, and swung the bat much better.  My pitching was more consistent than it has been in previous years -- didn't even hit a batter this year!  Physically it is the best I have felt in any of the years I have been there -- Sun Salutations (remembering to breathe Jackie!) and a lot of stretching before and during games kept my legs in good shape.  My throwing arm felt strong all week.  I think the physical results were due in large part to off-season workouts I have been doing at Diamond Sports Training in Sterling VA, organized by my Ponce weeknight teammate Mike Heath (a devotee of St. Yaz.)   Mike rents a cage at DST several times a week and organizes some of his teammates to throw and bat (live pitching off a mound as well as batting off a JUGGS machine.)  I have been there with him a number of times over the last two months and it made a real difference, I think, in my preparation to play this week -- and helped keep me healthy for the duration. 

A couple of baseball items picked up during the week.  The Minnesota Twins had a terrible year last year -- in large part because their two MVP caliber players, Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer, had been hurt.  Steve Liddle said that he believes that Mauer will be fully healthy this year but that Morneau is still recovering from a severe concussion in 2010.  He continues to have after-effects from that concussion that may be exacerbated by hits taken as a young hockey player in his native Canada.....Victor Rodriguez said that Red Sox minor leaguer Ryan Westmoreland, a former top prospect who had brain surgery in 2010 at the age of 19, faced live pitching in a game in the Dominican Instructional League last fall -- and made contact in each of 6 trips to the plate.  He has made a remarkable recovery but still has an extremely long rehabilitation road ahead....Victor's son, Victor, had a successful first year as a Red Sox scout assigned to the Dominican Republic -- signing 10 players.  Bill suggested to Victor that one of those "might be the next Pedro!"....Victor had his Red Sox 2004 World Series ring on for the Awards Dessert on Thursday evening - an eye-popper, with 86 small diamonds, one for each year between World Series victories, Victor's name on one side, and "Greatest Comeback in History" on the other....Former Red Sox pitcher Bill Lee was at the camp on Wednesday -- he lives in Vermont but has a place in the Fort Myers area.  Lee plays in numerous senior league tournaments in New England as well as in Florida....Ryan Kalish, a top Red Sox minor league outfielding prospect was out last year with a hurt shoulder and neck.  He had neck surgery in the off-season that was the same as the surgery Peyton Manning had.  Kalish will likely need rehab going into the early part of this season.

One of the great things about the week and Ponce in general is that, by and large, teammates are very supportive of each other.  Particularly for this week (and the weeknight seasons back home) when rosters are a mix of ages from the 30+ league and the 48+ league, literally a generation can separate the players by age.  There is also a great variety in experience and skill levels.  Nonetheless, teammates pull for each other and overlook errors and mistakes so long as players try, and commit to the game.  While there are age jokes made by younger teammates -- I have been asked if I knew Abner Doubleday personally and what was it like to actually live through history like the Red Sox 1967 Impossible Dream year -- people 20 years or more younger than me like Mike, Chris Clark, Izzy, Zark and others treat me first as a ballplayer and a teammate (even if they did give me the Oldest Living Player Award a couple years ago.)  It is appreciated and it makes you want to try hard to keep up (a bit) with them.  There are a few exceptions.  The first year I went to the winter camp I was 59 years old and had my very first experience of anyone, anywhere patronizing me as a "old" person -- by a teammate that year who was about 10 years younger than me.  That player was back this year - and, with the intervening years, fitting in well with the older demographic of the camp.  I wonder if he is more enlightened now about the aging process. 

Finally, a real highlight for me this year was having my brother Bill with me for the week.  He came to the park every day and watched each one of my nine games.  We would talk over the games later and talk baseball (as well as family, politics, etc.) throughout the week.  I have been going to Red Sox and other baseball games with Bill for 60 years -- I have learned more baseball from and with him at ball games than from anyone else.  I have had great times at games with John, George, Flint and many others in years past but Bill is the gold standard for someone to watch a game with.  (I will say, however, that over the last 20 years Elizabeth has hit that standard as we go to Sox games or watch them nightly during the summer.)  My batting average was down this week, but that was only due in part to Bill making me report my performance accurately.  The biggest fib of the week was the one Bill told Ben today, "It was a week to fondly remember, including some great baseball (really.)"  When I asked Bill on Wednesday if the "action" was too boring and would he prefer to go off and do something else in Fort Myers during the day instead, he said, "No, I'm enjoying it.  Baseball is baseball."  That's how we all felt this week.

Chapstick Cosy with Chapstick

Pitchers and catchers report in two weeks.

By a Touchdown and Extra Point . . .

Late breaking sports flash -- in the premier national sporting event of the weekend, the Ponce Championship game in Fort Myers, the good guys - Team 3-C-Cliburn - lost to Team 2-B-Knapp by a score of 7 to 0.  Not much in the way of highlights for Team Cliburn.   We had some decent pitching and steady defense -- but we just did not handle the pitching of Chris Clark and Joe Leginus, the two best pitchers we faced in camp this week.  They held us to one or two hits in the first five innings until we posted a mild rally in the final inning to no avail.  I was 0 for 2 at bat.  They finished with the Gold Medal and a record of 8 and 1; we had a final record of 6 and 3 and settled for the Silver Medal (the medals are worth at least $5 or $6.)  A slight consolation particularly, as Elizabeth points out, "there's no medals in baseball" -- trophies or rings yes, medals, not so much.

Bill and I are on our way to Tampa to have dinner with Ben, Cristina and family and we fly back north on Saturday.  I will do a final posting with some thoughts on the week later on Saturday after I get back to DC.

A great week but we fell a little short.  Still, I believe the nearly undefeated team that was seeking revenge winning by a touchdown and extra point, bodes well for the Patriots in their game against the Giants in the second major sporting event this weekend -- Patriots by 7!   Go Pats!

It's Not The Super Bowl, and It's Not Indianapolis, But .....

Team 3-C-Cliburn will play in the Ponce championship game on Friday morning in Fort Myers in the Terry Park main stadium.  We won two games today by scores of 10 to 5 and 5 to 4 to finish with a record of 6 wins and 2 losses.  However, that left us in a tie for second place with the team managed by Arnie Beyeler -- a team we split with in two games.  So the team to play in the championship game was chosen by a coin flip tonight at the awards dessert session.  Head's won the championship contest for Team 3-C-Cliburn.  We will oppose Rick Knapp's team that finished at the top of the standings with a 7 and 1 record, their only loss coming to us Wednesday morning when we won by a score of 8 to 5. 

To today's games.  This morning we beat the team managed by Victor Rodriguez by a score of 10 to 5.  The game was close throughout until we added three runs in the top of the sixth (the final inning) to get a 10 to 5 lead and hold on for the win.  Our fielding, which has been good after a shaky start on Monday, was very strong again today.  I pitched the final two innings - pitching well and giving up no runs - and was 1 for 2 at bat with an rbi.  In a see-saw afternoon game, we ended up winning by a score of 5 to 4 against Stu Cliburn's team.  They went ahead 2 to 0 with a run in each of the first two innings.  We tied it up in the third but they scored in the fourth to go ahead by a score of 3 to 2.  We scored 2 in the fifth and one in the sixth to take a 5 to 3 lead into the bottom of the final inning.  A hit and hit batter put two of their runners on base with one out.  Their next batter hit a ball over our left fielder's head -- with all runners taking off.  One run scored, but a perfect throw by our left fielder - David Remy - followed by a strong and accurate relay throw by shortstop Steve Abbuhl to the catcher got the second  runner -- and tieing run -- out at home plate.  The batter ended at third base with two outs and the score now 5 to 4.  The next batter hit a hard ground ball down the third base line, where our third baseman Brian Ronholm made a backhand stop and threw the batter out at first base to secure the victory.  Quite an exciting game and a finish that qualified us for the coin flip for the championship game.  I was 1 for 2 at bat and had a sacrifice fly. 

Tonight at the awards dessert (if you can have an awards dinner you should be able to have an awards dessert -- where only dessert and coffee are served) each team coach announced a winner of the Spirt of Ponce award and the team's Most Valuable Player award.  Team 3-C-Cliburn's spirit award went to George Borababy who was, I think, the most improved player on our team this week and a very encouraging and supportive teammate.  Brian Ronholm won the MVP -- pitching nearly shut out ball each day, making all the routine and several special plays in the field and hitting soldily all week.  Two very well earned awards.

A couple of notes:  On Wednesday our 72 year old pitcher Dave Wheeler was pitching to our 71 year old catcher Joe Neville with the batter at the plate 75 year old Skip Schatz.  The youngsters won that battle.  Skip, who has come to the Ponce camp for 12 of its 13 years of existence, announced tonight that he is "retiring" but looks forward to coming back to see games next year.  He was given his team's spirit and MVP awards and a standing ovation.....Victor Rodriquez said that Jose Iglesias, the young top shortstop prospect in the Red Sox system, is ready to play defense at the Major League level but still needs to work on his hitting and likely will play in Pawtucket for the year... Several coaches from other teams are puzzled that the Red Sox don't have someone set for the shortstop position, wondering how they can have such a big payroll but still have such a key position unsettled going into camp.....Steve Liddle said that he thinks very highly of Nick Punto who played a number of years for the Twins and whom the Sox picked up this winter.  He said he is a very valuable utility player....Three players on my team this week -- Evan Katz, Scott Collentro, and Rich Brouillette -- are here this week from Groton, Massachusetts.  They play senior baseball in a league centered in Lowell MA.  Evan was a childhood friend of Dan Beckhard in Brookline MA and Dan now lives in the DC area and is a long-time Ponce player and a key member of our team this week.  He first encouraged Evan to come to the camp some years ago and Evan has since recruited Scott and Rich.  Evan works as a financial officer in Ayer MA (home of Don Rzasa and Vicki Franz) for the Shirley-Ayer School District.

Finally, in response to inquiries about the fantastic Chapstick Cosy -- it is a holster for a chapstick with a hook that can hang on a belt loop.  Some people apparently are thinking I have hung the Chapstick Cosy to my uniform and have taken it to the field.  They are asking if I am applying chapstick during lulls on the field (there are plenty of those during Ponce "action.")  But no, that would be wrong -- disrespecting both baseball and chapsticks.  I have, instead, attached the Chapstick Cosy to my equipment bag and apply the chapstick, as needed, discretely in the dugout.  Hope that clears things up.

More tomorrow after the big game.  We will be a big underdog even though we beat them on Wednesday.  We did not face their two best pitchers then and, like the Patriots this weekend, they will be seeking revenge for a devastating loss that stood in their way of an undefeated season.

Moving into Contention!

Winning a doubleheader today -- on Hump Day -- put Team 3-C-Cliburn back in the championship race with just three games to go in the week.  This morning we took on the only previously undefeated team and gave them their first loss by a final score (I think) of 8-5.  We got to a lead of 3 to 1 in the first inning and, with good pitching, strong fielding and timely hitting stretched the lead to 8 to 3 going into the final inning and held on for the win.  A key play came in the fifth inning (all Ponce games this week are 6 inning games) when they loaded the bases with one out.  We were able to turn an inning ending double play (shortstop to second to first) to snuff their rally, with me in the middle on the turn.  Double plays in successive games!  I was 1 for 2 at bat, with an rbi single.  My tips from Don Buford ("move your hands up and flatten the bat") and brother Bill ("take a strike, see some pitches, you are too anxious up there") seem to be sinking in.  The team we beat had many players from the teams I played with the last two years when we won the championship each year and which includes, I think, the two best players in camp -- Chris Clark and Joe Cardi.  It was a nice victory

In the second game, we won 7 to 5 against the team that shut us out on Monday afternoon.  Again we had timely hitting, good pitching and tight defense.  Brian Ronholm (our youngest player at 44 years) pitched three strong innings to start the afternoon game after closing the morning game.  I had an rbi single in my first at bat and a double on my second.  Again we built an early lead, kept adding to it and held the opponent off in the end. The two victories put us in second place with a 4 and 2 record going into Thursday - only behind the team we beat on Wednesday morning (they are 5 and 1, with two of their wins coming in sudden death "shoot outs".)  The teams with the top two records after Thursday play for the championship in the main stadium on Friday morning.

A few notes:  Bill and I drove by the new Red Sox spring training facility -- JetBlue Park -- on Tuesday afternoon.  We couldn't get in to walk around the facility - security turned us back -- but it looks like a modern park in the middle of nowhere -- about 3 miles from the Fort Myers airport.  Victor Rodriguez -- Red Sox minor league hitting coordinator, just back from meetings in Boston -- said that some of the rookies will start workouts at the camp next Monday (and, I think Red Sox fantasy camp starts then too.)   Victor said that there are seven fields -- two for the major league team and five for the minor leaguers.   Plans for the area adjacent to the ballpark include hotels, apartments and commercial areas. 

Arnie Beyeler, as manager of the Red Sox triple A team in Pawtucket, was called up to the Red Sox to help in September after the AAA season ended.  He said it was very difficult for everyone to live through the Sox collapse during the month -- that people did everything they could to pull out of it, but nothing worked.  He said he had never seen anything like it.  (Same for all of us, I guess, but we didn't have the up close and personal view he had.)

There have been some cynical suggestions that - just because I'm in big time sports here in Fort Myers - I was giving a paid endorsement for the fabulous Chapstick Cozy and the delicious variety of Kellogg Cheez-It products.  How could people stoop so low and make personal attacks based on nothing but rumor and innuendo?  (My best non-denial, denial.)