Second Guessing a Coach

A special must-read guest post from Coach Mike...

It always happens.

What kind of batting order is this? I would call timeout and get them to settle down. The coach at first is too quiet. The coach at first is way TOO LOUD.

In 6,7,and 8 year old baseball everyone has an opinion, and I mean EVERYONE, including myself. In a world where the best coaches make millions and win championships, our head coach got by on high fives and the satisfaction that he made all 13 kids on the “All Blacks” a better teammate. Isn’t that what is really about? Isn’t that why we sign our kids up for rec sports? I for one, know that my two sons will probably never make it on the field at Fenway Park, unless of course, Gabe is on the grounds crew. I understand that it is not about my son being the best player when he is 7 years old. The reason I spend, what seems like every evening and weekend at some field, course, or court is because being a teammate and being able to work with other people is one of the most valuable lessons he could ever learn.

I remember our first Mudcat Team meeting in August 2009. We filled out uniform information, talked about the responsibility of getting to practice on time and the players favorite MLB team, and then came the rules. The Mudcat team rules: hustle, be tough, show good form and focus, be confident but humble, good sportsmanship, and of course have fun! It sounded simple but these rules would appear time and again over the next two years. How much of an impact did these simple sayings have? I can honestly say that they are ingrained in my son. Although many things don’t sink into his thick head, he can rattle these off with ease. And the last rule, have fun. I can’t imagine how much more fun he could have had. From the team outings, pool and birthday parties, and wall ball with his buddies to the unbelievable games with fiery fans, sometimes a little too fiery, Gabe sometimes felt like Scotty McCreery. I don’t think any kid in the history of West Raleigh Baseball, had more fun.

That’s just it, I honestly think each kid would say the same thing. We as parents sometime get so hung up on what position our kid is playing or where he is batting in the line-up that we lose sight of what is important in youth sports, being part of a team. If you ask any pro athlete what they miss about playing? Most, at least the good ones, would say being around their teammates. From the very beginning our coach has taken his job very seriously. He had detailed practice and game plans, researched and studied the fundamentals, and listened to others who were more knowledgeable than he about baseball. Our team mom worked extremely hard on planning events, organizing and I mean REALLY ORGANIZING everything else. It wasn’t only the google calendar, team website, and on-line order forms, we had to be the only 6-8 year old team in the country with both a beat writer and a photographer.

What our coach created was an unbelievable team first atmosphere that carried over to the parents. We became an extended family as a result. I really think or hope that in 15-20 years that some of us will still be friends. I think that Gabe will remember his teammates, now that he understands what being one is, and will be able to recall their nicknames.

After the last game, our coach was sitting in the edge of the woods on a bucket of baseballs where he had just had his last team meeting after a game. He sat there for a while after everyone had left. What was going through his head? Well I for one hope he was reflecting on a job well done… Thanks Coach!

Tournament game 5: Scrappers 12, Mudcats 5

Apologies to those who prefer red for quoting Roy Williams, but the Carolina head coach consistently talks about the "swiftness and suddenness" with which tournament play can come to an end. One minute you're constantly washing uniforms and preparing orange slices for what seems like six days in a row...the next you're wondering what you're going to do with your free time. One day you're almost floating home after celebrating one of the most fun games of the season...the next day it's all over.

That's the case for the 2011 Mudcats after an elimination game loss to the Scrappers. It felt very swift and very sudden, and there were some glum faces in the All Blacks dugout as the outcome became clear. Coach Andrew, though, gave it some good perspective in the fifth inning. "There are only three teams left playing baseball right now," he said. "Do you know what your friends on those other teams are doing right now? They're doing homework. Or they're cleaning their rooms. And we are having fun playing baseball."

And it was an incredibly fun season. Remember, this was a team that lost their first three games of the season by a combined score of 29-17 and basically had to figure out how to win again after a rough fall campaign. By the end of the year, they were one of only three teams to defeat the regular season champion Thunder and one of just three teams still standing on the Wednesday before Memorial Day.

A series of postgame bounty awaited the 'Cats, including Doritos and Oreos for everyone courtesy of JJ's grandparents and a double money fairy that meant double treats at the concession stand. As usual, there were cakes for coaches, plus envelopes that contained instructions on how to tactfully let umpires know of their mistakes.

The defeat meant the end of the Minor League careers for seven stellar eight-year-olds who, fittingly, made up the first seven hitters in Wednesday night's batting order. They included:

Anthony Alberghina: No longer known as "Red Hot," Anthony picked up the nickname "Hoover" from Coach Sean late in the year. The reason is simple: the second baseman with the softest hands in the league gobbled up everything on the right side of the infield. Not surprisingly, he earned the postgame season-long Doritos award as the team's most reliable defensive wizard. Anthony and his family will be incredibly missed as they prepare to make the move to Alabama.

Hayes Anderson: Somewhere deep in Hayes's soul, I think there's a Carolina fan trying to escape. Consistently the Mudcats' most dynamic baserunner, Hayes ended the season with 11 hits in his final 13 at-bats and made himself into a very solid outfielder who just might possess one of the strongest arms on the team. Hayes and his family are planning a move to Texas, but hopefully will return at some point in the near future. With their first pick in the 2013 draft, the Mudcats select Grant Anderson.

JJ Chapman: I don't know what it was like to be there for Kirk Gibson's home run in the 1988 World Series, when Gibson memorably exulted on his way around the bases. But I'm not sure I'll ever forget the look of sheer joy on JJ's face when he rounded the bases on Tuesday night after blasting a sixth inning home run over the right-center field fence. When he threw his arms out to the side and broke out in a wide grin between first and second, it was the perfect illustration of why we as parents spend all those hours out at the field. I believe it was Coach Jim who noted during fall tryouts that JJ was "raw with potential." He converted that potential into production over the fall and spring seasons, becoming one of the All Blacks' most consistent hitters, a dangerous baserunner, and a rock-solid outfielder.

Drew DiMeo: Drew is the reason Asher is playing in West Raleigh. His influence and example are the reason Asher loves getting ready for every practice and sits in traffic on I-40 on weekday afternoons. That's also why Asher remembers his sixth birthday for the following reason: "That's the day Drew hurt his arm." The day after the injury, I remember Coach Andrew saying he thought Sticks could start taking some swings one-handed in a matter of weeks. I also remember thinking, "Yeah, sure," and then a couple weeks later, there was Coach Andrew firing in fastballs to Drew, who was blistering them one-handed into the outfield. In all the time that he missed with his injury, I never heard him complain about having to sit out--but I did see him doing a lot of work to come back and play with his teammates again.

Christopher Gruskin: It floored me over the winter when Coach Andrew told me that Christopher actually hadn't been playing first base all his life. After watching him do it virtually flawlessly in the fall, I just assumed he'd been playing first base since t-ball. By the end of this season, he'd trademarked his own play--"The Christopher," in which he fielded a ground ball and then dove to slap the bag before the baserunner could get there. As the parent of a "little kid," you always watch to see how the "big kids" treat him. Christopher was the kind of respectful big kid I'd want Asher to be when he gets as big as Christopher...which will probably be around the age of 14.

Zach Hurand: I kind of wish I could be Zach for one day, just to see what it's like. In the fall, Coach Andrew kept telling us about this big kid who would be back for the spring, a kid named Zach who was still learning the game. I didn't know what to expect. What we got was a prototypical slugger who blasted 11 home runs during the season (he received the season-long Oreos award), including a two-homer, five-RBI night on Tuesday (by the way, he also was steady on defense both in the infield and the outfield). Despite all that success and despite the fact that his awed teammates constantly begged him to, "Hit a homer, Zach!", I never once heard him brag. The closest he ever came was Sunday, when I got to the game late and missed one of his homers. I arrived in the fifth (he'd homered in the first), just before he walked out to the on-deck circle. "Did you hear what happened in the game?" he said with a small smile. Somewhere, the Boshamer Stadium fences are nervous about what Zach might do to them in a few years.

Jacob "Smiley" Mitchell: Midway through Tuesday night's win, the Riverdog third-base coach was watching Smiley work behind the plate. He threw off his mask and pounced on a ball slapped off the plate that eventually trickled foul. "Whoa," the Riverdogs coach said, "that kid knows what he is doing back there." I'm not sure how it's possible that Smiley could simultaneously be one of the fastest players on the team...and always consistently even faster than you thought. At pitcher, he covered a wide swath of the infield from first base to third base. At catcher, any foul pop that didn't reach the fence was his ball. Through all that, I never saw him without a smile on his face.

The defeat also meant a major turnover in the Mudcat coaching staff and front office. Those coaches who will also move up include...

Coach Jim: A hitting guru, Coach Jim was the master of quietly--but educationally--offering that last-second tip in the dugout that translated to a base hit in the batter's box. Watching coaches from other teams berate their outfielders provided a nice reminder that his relentlessly encouraging defensive coaching style quietly made the Mudcats into a better team in the outfield.

Coach Rob: There was a period of about two weeks in the fall when I wasn't sure which player was Coach Rob's son. That's because he treated every single Mudcat exactly the same--like a proud dad. I remember pulling into the West Raleigh parking lot at the same time as him in the fall and suddenly being startled by a shout from our backseat, as Asher shouted, "There's Coach Rob!" with outright glee. That tells me much more about Coach Rob than Smiley's batting average (which was astronomical) or how many games the team won this year.

Coach Andrew: I think it was roughly two years ago that Coach Andrew first told me about West Raleigh Baseball. It sounded to me like the people involved might be a little crazy. Now I know that's obviously incorrect. They are definitely a little crazy. And even though Coach Andrew spent endless extra hours working on his team, I never got the sense that whether the team won or lost defined how he felt about the players on his team. We won, I think, two games in the fall. And right through the final team event of the season, he talked about how much fun he had with that group. This season, when a makeup game was scheduled at the same time as Drew's birthday party, I wondered what he might do. There was very little hesitation--we had the party and cut pregame short.

In a league where some teams take two-hour (or more) pregames, that's the kind of coach I want coaching my kid when he's six years old. I want him to teach my kid how to win, but also how to play and have fun. No kid has ever gotten burned out on baseball by having too much fun on his team. When I told Mike Fox, Carolina's head baseball coach, about the rigorous practice and game schedule in West Raleigh, he gave me a grim and skeptical look. "Is Asher having fun doing it?" he asked. As I think back on the fall and spring seasons, I have absolutely no doubt that Asher had fun, and that's a credit to the head coach.

GM Jenn: Late last fall, Stephanie and I were having a conversation with two other parents from our team. We were new to the league and thought we had somehow fallen into the major leagues. Awed by the precision and organization involved with a 6-8 year-old baseball team, we asked, "Is it like this on every team?" "I've heard that it's not," they said. "I think there's a big difference in playing West Raleigh Baseball and playing Mudcats baseball."

Much of that difference is due to Jenn. She's the one who battles for the practice slots that make sense. She's the one who lets us vote on the uniforms. She's the one who shows up to the field 90 minutes before the game with enough food to feed a school cafeteria, and then stands and hands it out between every inning. She comes up with the nicknames and sends out the emails and knows the name of every parent, grandparent and sibling by the second practice of the year. She is, in many ways, what holds the team together.

I'm not quite ready for it to be over, even though it's been a long season. In the next couple of days, we'll be sitting around in the afternoon wondering what we're going to do, and it will seem like it should be time to get in the car and drive to West Raleigh.

Asher was mostly quiet tonight on the ride home. He didn't say much about baseball. Just after tucking him in and just before walking out of his room, though, he did have one final comment that answered any question about whether he had fun as a member of the 2011 spring Mudcats.

"Daddy," he said, "when are the opening ceremonies?"

Wednesday's Mudcat scoring plays
First inning
Extending his streak to seven straight times on base in the leadoff spot, JJ reached on a hard-hit ball to left-center. Hayes followed with a bullet double down the line, putting runners on second and third for Drew. He came through with a two-run single to right, giving the Mudcats the early lead and with one swing marking the most runs the 'Cats had scored this year against the Scrappers in regulation.
Score after one-half inning: Mudcats 2, Scrappers 0

Second inning
This time it was the second half of the order producing a run, as Gabe drove in Charley with an RBI grounder.
Score after one and a half innings: Mudcats 3, Scrappers 2

Fourth inning
With one out, Zach lined a single to left. Christopher followed with a single to the left side, and Anthony lined an RBI single up the middle. Smiley's RBI grounder completed the scoring for the 2011 Mudcats.
Score after three and a half innings: Scrappers 6, Mudcats 5


Wednesday's Web Gems

• Smiley grabbed a line drive at pitcher in the third, then alertly fired to Anthony, who as usual was heads-up and covering second base, for the double play.



• Zach went deep in the hole to glove a grounder that appeared to be ticketed for left field and then threw to first to get the out. The runner was eventually pulled out of the dugout and placed on first base.



• In a league where catcher is sometimes a spot to "hide" a weak player, that was never the case for the Mudcats. They got consistently good play from all three of the players who spent extensive innings behind the plate--Charley, Gabe and Smiley. In addition to being responsible for all plays at the plate (which the All Blacks nearly pulled off on Wednesday), Coach Andrew also charges his catchers with maintaining the tempo of the game and the awareness of the infielders. Late in the year, especially, Gabe and Smiley developed into solid leaders for the infield.

Wednesday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Mudcats	2	1	0	2	0	0	5	7
Scrappers	2	1	3	3	3	X	12	12

Tournament game 4: Mudcats 9, Riverdogs 8

In the history of famous sports predictions, a few stand out:

1. Babe Ruth's called shot.
2. Joe Namath's victory guarantee before Super Bowl III.
3. JJ Chapman's home run promise before an elimination game in the 2011 minor league tournament.

Well before Tuesday night's elimination game against the Riverdogs began, and certainly well before Nowell Field sprung a leak, delaying the start time by about 15 minutes, JJ had predicted what was going to happen. "I feel like I'm going to hit one out," he told his dad, John, who should be off having any surviving video of this game committed to DVD and placed in a safe deposit box.

As it turned out, that's exactly what happened--and the 'Cats needed it. The All Blacks scored eight of their nine runs with two outs on the way to a narrow 9-8 victory over the Riverdogs.

"I'm giving the offensive player of the game award to me," Coach Andrew said, "for my pitching."

Of course, Coach Andrew didn't actually take home the Oreos. In a probable first in the history of the Minor League, neither did the player who hit two home runs, including a grand slam, and drove in five runs, as Zach had a career day (even for him) yet gladly ceded the offensive prize to JJ.

The game looked like a home run derby early, as the Mudcats surged ahead 7-3 in the top of the third on Zach's grand slam, only to watch the Riverdogs battle back for three runs in the bottom of the third on a three-run Blake blast.

The margin stayed at one run until the top of the sixth, when JJ--who has been on base six straight times from his leadoff spot and scored all six times--turned on an inside pitch and lifted it over the right-center field fence for his first career home run. JJ's ball had barely been located when Zach stepped to the plate and smoked the ball over the scoreboard in left-center. At the time, it seemed like a nice insurance run to have. As it turned out, every time the All Blacks crossed the plate was an absolute necessity.

In the middle of the sixth, Asher and Hayes provided key dugout inspiration by demonstrating their dancing abilities to "Dynamite." Somewhere, Taio Cruz shed a tiny tear.

Suitably inspired by the hot-dancing duo, the defense made just enough plays in the bottom of the sixth. Anthony made a key play by retiring the leadoff man on a pop fly just to the edge of the outfield grass. Then the hits began flowing, as a pair of singles and a pair of fielder's choices put men on first and second with two outs and a 9-7 Mudcats lead. At about this point, a member of the Riverdogs coaching staff began congratulating the 'Cat fans behind third base on a very exciting game and the great teamwork shown in getting the field ready for play. They made plans to meet for dinner and dessert later at the Backyard Bistro, and meanwhile the 'Dogs got a double that made it 9-8 and put runners on second and third with two outs.

Nervous yet?

Evidently, Charley wasn't, because he ran in smoothly on a sinking liner and snagged it out of the air, ending the game and causing pandemonium in the notorious All Blacks cheering section. The raucous group greeted the players by forming a human tunnel outside the guest dugout--which, as the head coach learned the hard way before the game, has a VERY LOW CLEARANCE. Look for his new headwear next game.

Fittingly for what will forever be known as "The JJ Game," JJ took home both the offensive and defensive player of the game awards. Coach Andrew generously handed out an entire sheet of stickers to every player in an effort to make himself look generous (or because he was still woozy). However, the postgame bounty had just begun. Extra treats included:

1. Blow pops
2. Cash--as Coach Sean said, the new prong of the Mudcat Motto is, "Play well, pay well."
3. Cakes for the coaches, which sounds like the name of a new charity that seems unlikely to take off. "For just one dollar a day you too can feed a hungry coach."

The 'Cats take the field again Wednesday at 5:30 against the Scrappers.

Tuesday's Mudcat scoring plays
First inning
Leading off a 3-for-3 day, JJ ripped a single the other way. Hayes followed with an infield single, and with two outs Christopher drove in the first run of the day with an RBI line drive to left-center. Hayes scored when the Riverdog third baseman couldn't handle Anthony's hard grounder, and Smiley capped the first-inning heroics with an opposite field RBI single.
Score after one-half inning: Mudcats 3, Riverdogs 0

Third inning
The inning began innocently enough, with two quick outs. But JJ powered a ball that nearly left the yard to right-center and ended up with a single. Hayes, again, followed with a single. Then, in a key play, Drew's grounder wasn't handled cleanly, bringing up Zach with the bases loaded. Any guesses on what happened next? Yep. King Za cleared the bases with a grand slam.
Score after two and a half innings: Mudcats 7, Riverdogs 3

Sixth inning
JJ led off with a home run. Wait, hold on a second...JJ LED OFF WITH A HOME RUN! That gave the Mudcats an opportunity for a season first, as they became the first team to blast two homers in the same inning. Three batters after JJ's blast, Zach homered again, this time crushing his eleventh of the season over the scoreboard for a solo shot.
Score after five and a half innings: Mudcats 9, Riverdogs 6


Tuesday's Web Gems

• JJ made a pair of key catches in center field, one in the third inning and one sliding catch on his knees in the fourth.



• Smiley ranged far to his left and hauled in a pop fly at pitcher in the third.



• With the Riverdogs threatening in the third, Hayes snuffed the rally by grabbing a line drive in left-center.



• With the tying run on third base and the winning run on second in the bottom of the sixth, a sinking line drive was lifted to left-center with two outs. For just a second, it looked like it was going to fall in and win the game. Suddenly, Shoeless Charley Hegeman came sprinting in out of nowhere--his shoes were a late arrival to the game, as Nike was not living up to the provisions of his endorsement deal--to make a one-handed basket catch down near the grass and preserve the win.

Tuesday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Mudcats	3	0	4	0	0	2	9	11
Riverdogs	3	0	3	0	0	2	8	12

Tournament game 3: Mudcats 9, Bulls 5

Some people think a Mudcats game begins when the first pitch is thrown. Longtime fans, however, realize that the game hasn't truly started until the first treat is handed out. Take it from me: you can arrive in the top of the fifth and still feel like you saw everything from milkshakes to dollar bills to Doritos.

More on that later. On the actual diamond, Sunday was all about a six-run explosion in the first inning that gave the All Blacks all the runs they would need. The Mudcats have pounded out 26 hits in their last two tournament games and have advanced to the Final Four of the Minor League tournament.

Offensive player of the game went to Zach. However, since the 'Cats have finally purchased all the Oreos ever made by Nabisco, he had to accept Doritos for being the offensive winner. Wait, Doritos for the offensive winner? Yep. The defensive winner, JJ, took home one of the giant Mudcat stickers for his batting helmet. The normal-sized helmet stickers were awarded to everyone. The All Blacks must have done a lot of good things this year, because Coach Andrew's sticker supply is looking a little depleted. Had their been a toughness award, it would have gone to Gavin, who played through a nosebleed in the outfield and seemed very reluctant to come out of the game.

Once the game was completed and the stickers were handed out, the day was about half done. The following still had to be distributed:

1. Candy from Noah, who had two pieces (for two tournament wins) for everybody.

2. Milkshakes from Gabe.


3. Most suspiciously, cash from an "anonymous donor" to be used at the concession stand. Seriously, it was an actual wad of cash. Due to my suspicions that it was actually all a ploy by Coach Mike to render Drew ineligible to ever play for the Diamond Heels, I documented the transaction with the photo at right.

The best part of being a Mudcat: on game day, you only have to eat two meals, because you know you'll always get a third meal at the field.

The All Blacks take the field next on Tuesday at 5:30 against the Riverdogs.

Sunday's Mudcat scoring plays
First inning
In an inning that tied for the biggest Mudcat inning of the season, JJ led off with a single. Hayes reached when the Bulls had some adventures in the midfield, and then Drew picked up the first of two RBI on the afternoon. That put two men on for Zach. We all know what happened next: Ka-boom, as King Za blasted his ninth homer of the year. But the scoring wasn't finished yet. Christopher and Anthony notched back to back singles, an error scored Christopher, and then Charley collected a fielder's choice RBI to finish the six-run explosion.
Score after one inning: Mudcats 6, Bulls 0

Second inning
On his way to a 3-for-3 day, JJ singled to center. Hayes drove him in with an RBI double, and then Drew picked up an RBI for the second straight inning with a single through the right side.
Score after two innings: Mudcats 8, Bulls 0

Fifth inning
Once again, JJ got it started with a single to center. Hayes singled to left, and then Zach made it a 4-RBI day with a single to left that scored JJ.
Score after five innings: Mudcats 9, Bulls 3


Sunday's Web Gems

• Christopher made the play that he has more or less trademarked as "The Christopher," snaring a grounder and then diving to slap first base before the runner could arrive in the first.
• Zach went in the hole and made a backhand stop of a grounder in the second, then threw the runner out easily at first.
• JJ caught a fly ball in center in the fourth, a play that was sandwiched between two good plays at pitcher by Charley.
• Hayes prevented what could have been a giant sixth inning for the Bulls by ranging back almost to the fence and camping under a fly ball to record the first out of the inning.
• JJ recorded a force-out from center, charging in to field a hard line drive and then throwing to Zach at second base for the force on the runner coming from first.

Sunday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Bulls	0	0	0	2	1	2	5	9
Mudcats	6	2	0	0	1	X	9	14

Tournament game 2: Mudcats 7, Lookouts 1

In one of the most dominating defensive performances you'll ever see on Nowell Field, the Mudcats allowed only one Lookouts baserunner past second base on the way to a 7-1 victory in an elimination game Saturday morning.

Once again, the crusty old scorekeeper did not charge the Mudcats with an error on a day that included a quick snag of a pop-up by the catcher and a 4-6-3 double play.

"That was our most complete game all year," said Coach Andrew. "It was unbelievable defense."




Playing in their preferred 9 a.m. time slot, where a series of doughnuts, biscuits, apples and jelly beans provided plenty of energy (plus a back-bleacher buffet of coffee, biscuits and caviar for the parents), the All Blacks jumped out to a 3-0 first-inning lead and never trailed. Double helmet stickers were awarded to everyone, and according to Gabe, his mom was so happy with the win that she volunteered to buy milkshakes for everyone. Since it was 10:30 in the morning, she decided that instead of milkshakes, she'd instead provide some great photos of the last several games--make sure you're checking them out on the right-hand side of the page.

In addition to the double stickers, there were also double Oreos and double Doritos. For igniting the 4-6-3 double play, Anthony/Hoover received one bag of Doritos, while Zach/King Za got the other. For Oreos, the awards went to Christopher and Hayes. It should also be noted that Hayes is believed to have set the world record for most jelly beans in the mouth at one time during the fifth inning. Yes, things are serious business in the dugout during games.

In keeping with that very serious theme, the two teams shook hands, and then the coaches of both teams congratulated the umpires on a job well done in their own unique way. "You've been (great) all year, Brad," the on-field microphones caught them saying.

With the win, the 'Cats advance to another elimination game on Sunday at 1 p.m. against the Bulls.

Saturday's Mudcat scoring plays
First inning
Fueled by a bevy of doughnuts, the Mudcats got on the board quickly. Hayes began a 3-for-3 day with a single to left, and Drew followed with a single to right that advanced Hayes to third. Zach drove in a run with a line drive single, and after Anthony singled, Smiley ripped a two-out, two-run single to center.
Score after one inning: Mudcats 3, Lookouts 0

Third inning
With Noah on first base and one out, Hayes picked up his second straight single. Drew drove in Noah with a single, and then Christopher blasted a two-run double to left that nearly hit the fence on the fly.
Score after three innings: Mudcats 6, Lookouts 1

Fifth inning
Noah led off with a single to left and advanced to second on JJ's fielder's choice. Hayes came through again, this time with a double that scored Noah.
Score after five innings: Mudcats 7, Lookouts 1


Saturday's Web Gems

• Smiley made another cat-quick play at catcher, tossing off his mask to snag a pop fly in the second inning.



• Andrew Penchuk (or as Gabe would call him, former Mudcat "LB's Dad") made a nice catch on a pop fly hit by...wait a second...hit by Asher. Never mind. It was not a nice play. Happy birthday to LB anyway, despite his dad trying to get Asher out.



• Zach, who was involved in nine of the game's 18 outs at shortstop, ranged to his left and hauled in a fourth-inning pop fly near the outfield grass.



• Christopher stopped a line drive that had been smoked by former Mudcat Big Ben Hunt in the fifth, picking it cleanly out of the air and potentially costing Big Ben extra bases.



• In an extreme rarity in the Minor League, the Mudcats turned a 4-6-3 double play in the sixth. The play began with a grounder to Anthony, who calmly dished the ball to Zach, who came across the bag with a solid throw to retire the hitter easily at first base. This now makes the count as follows: 864 times that Coach Andrew has yelled, "Turn it!" on a double play, and one double play turned.

Saturday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Lookouts	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	4
Mudcats	3	0	3	0	1	X	7	12

Bracketology

The Minor League tournament has finished round one. As we are all aware, the Mudcats play bright and early at 9 a.m. tomorrow against the Lookouts.

The loser of that game is eliminated. The winner will face the loser of the Scrappers-Bulls game (which will be played on Saturday at 5 p.m.) this Sunday at 1 p.m.

Other tournament games on Saturday include a winner's bracket game between the Thunder and Bats at 3 p.m., and an elimination game between the Bees and Riverdogs at 11 a.m.

Tournament game 1: Bats 4, Mudcats 2

Pitching and defense usually win a lot of baseball games. According to Coach Andrew, the Mudcats had the defense on Tuesday night, but they didn't have the pitching.

"This loss is on me," he said after the game. "It was terrible pitching."

That might have been an overstatement, but the Mudcat bats never fully awoke, picking up just five hits on the way to a 4-2 loss to the Bats. The defeat means the All Blacks have another Breakfast with the Mudcats on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. against the Lookouts. The winner of that game plays again on Sunday at 1 p.m.

The loss was very beneficial for one person who may not have even realized it--ace photographer Tonya. That's because just as the Mudcats took the field, Gabe announced to all his teammates, "My mom said if we win this game she is buying Chick-fil-A milkshakes for EVERYBODY!" No word yet on whether that offer automatically carries over to the next game.

Although the bats were largely silent--other than Zach's line drive homer and Brenner's sweet opposite-field RBI single--the defense was stellar. As Coach Jim pointed out, Charley set a record that can never be broken by making all three outs of the first inning...and did it while playing left-center. That means Charley has recorded five outs in the first inning against the Bats in the last two games. Unfortunately for Charley, the Doritos were stolen out from under his nose by Asher, who snagged a fly ball in the second inning in left field. In fact, coupled with Brenner's Oreo victory--he wrestled them away from Zach--the six-year-olds had a clean sweep of the food rewards.

Never content to let an opportunity to eat pass by, the team celebrated GM Jenn's birthday with cupcakes, which they very pointedly did not share with the moms from the other team, who had been thoroughly whipped in a heated cheering competition during the game.

The Mudcats have practice Thursday night at 5:15 and return to tournament action Saturday morning at 9 a.m., with pregame at 8 a.m. Breakfast will be served. The 'Cats will be in an earn-back situation for helmet stickers, as one sticker was awarded to everyone on Tuesday night, but Coach Andrew told the team a fully focused effort on Saturday will get double stickers.

Tuesday's Mudcat scoring plays
Fifth inning
Leading off the fifth facing a 4-0 deficit, Zach smashed what has to be the lowest, most line-drive of his eight home runs this season. There wasn't much question about whether it was far enough, but there was a real question about whether it was so low and so hard that it might just slam through the fence. Instead, it went over the fence, clearing it with room to spare and providing the first Mudcat run of the day. Suitably inspired, the All Blacks added another run when Hayes launched a double to center, ran the bases perfectly by being just daring enough on a couple of line outs, and then scored on Brenner's two-out opposite-field single.
Score after four and a half innings: Bats 4, Mudcats 2


Tuesday's Web Gems

• The next time the Bats play the Mudcats, the Bats are going to have a pregame meeting with the sole purpose of instructing their hitters to never--and I mean never--hit it to Charley Hegeman. The last time these teams met, he made two of the three first-inning outs from the outfield. This time, he decided to do a little better--and made all three first-inning outs from the outfield. He made the first two, which were actually difficult plays, look easy. And on the third, he made a shoestring catch that retired the Bats 1-2-3 in the top of the first.
• Trying to emulate Charley, Asher made a catch in left field in the second inning. This is how Stephanie described it: "The biggest, baddest Bat of them all hit a rocket shot to left. Asher ran in like a gazelle, timed it perfectly, had to leap over some obstacles, waited until the last possible second, and then dove with perfect form and focus to make the catch. After he caught it, he ran into the dugout while looking like the cutest little pumpkin of them all." This is how Adam described it: "I wish he would have used two hands." The truth is probably somewhere in-between.
• Charley proved he could play defense in the infield just as well as the outfield, as with the bases loaded he fielded a grounder at pitcher and then fired to Smiley at catcher for the force-out that prevented a run.
• The Mudcats seem to be making a habit of turning some strange double plays. This one involved a pop fly to the catcher, a ricochet off a runner, and a heads-up play by an outfielder. It started with one out and the bases loaded--obviously, a key situation. The Bats hitter popped up to the catcher, where Smiley alertly threw off his mark and grabbed the ball out of the air. He fired to third to try and catch the Bats runner too far off the bag. But the throw bounced off the runner's back and caromed into the outfield. That's where Gavin alertly picked it up and threw a laser back to third base, where Zach had wisely covered the bag from his shortstop position. He applied the tag to complete the very rare 2-8-6 double play.

Tuesday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Mudcats	0	0	0	0	2	0	2	5
Bats	0	1	3	0	0	X	4	11

Revised tournament bracket posted

Yesterday's rainouts, which mean the Mudcats will face the Bees in a makeup game today at 3, have forced the rescheduling of the Minor League tournament. The new bracket is now available at the West Raleigh website--look in the downloads section on the right-hand side of the page.

No matter the outcome of the game today, the Mudcats will play in the 4/5 game, which means the All Blacks will open tournament play against the Bats Tuesday night at 5:30. Win or lose, the next game will be this Saturday, May 21 (if they lose, they will play at 9 a.m.; win and the game is at 3 p.m.).

Closing ceremonies have been moved from May 25 and will now take place on May 31.

Saturday bracketology

This morning's 9 a.m. Riverdogs-Lookouts game was rained out, but the 11 a.m. Bats-Thunder game did take place, with the Thunder claiming a 4-1 win. That means a couple of things:

The Thunder are the regular season champions and will be the top seed in the tournament. The Riverdogs will be the second seed.

The Bats are locked into the 4/5 game in the tournament.

How the All Blacks can finish:

Scrappers (play at 3 p.m. vs. Bulls) win, Mudcats win: Scrappers finish third, Mudcats fourth, Bats fifth.

Scrappers lose, Mudcats win: Mudcats finish third, Bats fourth, Scrappers fifth.

Scrappers win, Mudcats lose: Scrappers finish third, Bats fourth, Mudcats fifth.

Scrappers lose, Mudcats lose: Scrappers finish third, Bats fourth, Mudcats fifth.

Any of those scenarios mean the Mudcats would play tomorrow (assuming no more rainouts) at either 3 or 5. The tournament bracket is available here.

Game 13: Mudcats vs. Bats

Thursday night’s 9-1 victory over the Bats ended in fitting fashion—a thrilling double play that included a Bats runner tagged out at home. Really, that was the only way the second straight solid defensive outing could have ended. The ruthless scorekeeper has now assigned just one error in the past two games, and the Mudcats allowed the Bats to get a runner as far as third base in just three of Thursday’s six innings.

In a Doritos-worthy performance, the newly aerodynamic Charley made two great plays in center field in the first inning that turned what could have been a huge inning for the Bats into just a one-run frame.

“We were focused the entire game,” Coach Andrew said. “We played outstanding offense and outstanding defense. I just kind of sat back and watched it. I didn’t have to yell. I just enjoyed it.”

That enjoyment was capped by the unique game-ending play. With runners at the corners and one out, the Bats lofted a soft line drive in the infield. Smiley, alertly realizing that the double play was a possibility, muffed the ball just long enough to create some uncertainty. Then he fired to Zach at second base to get the second out of the inning. Unwisely, the Bats tried to score from third against Zach. When the big shortstop fired it home, Gabe held on to the ball and applied the tag for the final out of the game.

“That was so easy!” Gabe said when he got back to the dugout. It sure didn’t look easy, but it was the third time this season the Mudcats have thrown out an opposing runner at the plate.

The tone set by the defense carried over to offense, where 11 different players recorded hits on the way to a 15-hit attack. Zach keyed the hitters and earned the Oreos, going 3-for-3 and blasting his seventh homer of the season.

Even a rain delay couldn’t snap the Mudcat focus, as the ‘Cats and Bats waited out a nearly 30-minute delay huddled near the concession stand.

The win left the Mudcats in a jumbled mess for a top-half finish in the Minor League. With all teams having just one game remaining, the final standings will come down to Saturday’s games. The Thunder and Riverdogs have locked up the top two spots, but the All Blacks are in a three-way battle with the Scrappers (face the Bulls at 3 p.m.) and Bats (play the Thunder at 11 a.m. in a game the Thunder need to win to clinch the regular season title) for third place. The scenarios for Saturday:

Mudcats, Scrappers and Bats all win: Scrappers finish third, Bats fourth, Mudcats fifth

Mudcats, Scrappers and Bats all lose: Scrappers finish third, Bats fourth, Mudcats fifth

Mudcats and Scrappers win, Bats lose: Scrappers finish third, Mudcats fourth, Bats fifth

Mudcats and Bats win, Scrappers lose: Bats finish third, Mudcats fourth, Scrappers fifth

Scrappers and Bats win, Mudcats lose: Bats finish third, Scrappers fourth, Mudcats fifth

Mudcats win, Scrappers and Bats lose: Mudcats finish third, Bats fourth, Scrappers fifth


Thursday's Mudcat scoring plays
First inning

Back in the leadoff spot, Smiley reached on a hard-hit grounder. With one out, he moved to second on Drew’s single up the middle. Then, as Coach Andrew said, “What happened next? Boom!” Zach hit the second pitch he saw over the center-field fence for a home run, his seventh of the season. But the Mudcats weren’t done. Christopher, Hayes and JJ ripped back-to-back-to-back singles, and then Charley drove in the fourth run of the inning with a grounder to the left side.
Score after one inning: Mudcats 4, Bats 1
Third inning
Leading off once again, Smiley doubled to right. Anthony singled to put runners on the corners, and Drew’s grounder scored Smiley.
Score after three innings: Mudcats 5, Bats 1

Fourth inning
This time, the bottom of the order did the damage. With one out, Charley lined a double to left. Brenner advanced him to third with a fielder’s choice. With two outs, the All Blacks got consecutive singles from Gavin, Gabe and Asher to drive in a pair of insurance runs.
Score after four innings: Mudcats 7, Bats 1

Fifth inning
Drew, Zach and Christopher hit back-to-back-to-back singles before Hayes slammed “his best hit of the season,” according to Coach Andrew, for a two-run double to left.
Score after five innings: Mudcats 9, Bats 1


Saturday's Web Gems

• Charley earned his Doritos by setting the defensive tone early. In the first inning, he snagged a fly ball in center. Then, with two outs and the bases loaded in that same inning, he speared a sinking liner on the short hop and fired to Anthony at second base, who made a great stretch to record the force and end the inning with just one run allowed—instead of what potentially could have been a huge inning.
• In the third, Smiley made a cat-like play at pitcher, leaping off the mound onto a grounder. After a solid throw, Christopher made yet another good stretch to record the out. Chris had another great stretch in the fifth that saved an out.
• Zach made a snowcone catch backing up on a pop fly over his shoulder at short in the fourth.
• Smiley tossed off his catcher’s mask, sprinted up the third base line, and hauled in a pop fly from his catcher position.
• The game-ending double play was one of the most unique plays you’ll ever see, as Smiley fired to second to record the force, and then Zach whipped the ball to Gabe for the tag play at home for the final out of the game.

Thursday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Bats	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	10
Mudcats	4	0	1	2	2	X	9	15

What we know...

The Mudcats face the Bats Thursday at 5:30. Once that game is complete, every team in the Minor League will have just one game remaining. Based on what's happened so far, here are the seeds we know for sure in the postseason tournament:

#1: Thunder (with win in regular season finale or Riverdogs loss in regular season finale) or Riverdogs (with win and Thunder loss)
#2: Thunder/Riverdogs
#3/4/5/6/7: Still very jumbled, see below
#8: Lookouts

So, specifically, what does Thursday's game mean for the Mudcats seeding?

If the Mudcats win Thursday...They finish third, fourth or fifth.

If the Mudcats lose Thursday...They finish either fifth or sixth (Scrappers have head-to-head tiebreaker). The winner of Saturday's game against the Bees would finish fifth, and the loser would be sixth.

The end-of-season postseason bracket is available here. We'll update more of what we know after Thursday's game along with potential scenarios.

Practice--Tagging up

Monday's practice session began, as usual, with a throwing contest. Smiley won the first round and Christopher claimed the second.

Following the throwing contest and a team lap (or, as Gabe likes to call it, "Everybody behind me!"), the Mudcats split into stations. Coach Rob manned the outfield station. In Coach Tom's absence (it is believed Coach Tom and JJ were off scouting another game), Coach Mike was in charge of the conditioning station. Coach Sean ran the infield station while Coach Adam played his usual integral role.

After a quick water break, the All Blacks came together to work on baserunning from third base and outfielders getting the ball to the cutoff man (in theory) and then relaying the ball to the plate. As you will remember, this is a play the 'Cats have executed successfully at least twice this year. Let's just say their conversion percentage is a little higher in the games than it is in practice. Perhaps we can blame the struggles on the slightly complex rotation put in place to make sure everyone tried each position, and on the catching advice being dispensed by Coach Mike, Coach Rob and Coach Adam to the unfortunate catchers.

Several players/groups earned praise after practice. The six-year-old trio of Brenner, Asher and Gavin were singled out for their leadership and effort. The eight-year-olds were noted for their improved effort level at practice. The seven-year-olds had the unfortunate role of being neither the youngest nor the oldest, but there was a team-wide helmet sticker awarded (the group of Christopher, Smiley, Drew, Zach and Anthony received two because they were in an "earn-back" situation) for focus and effort. Hayes and Zach were deemed the Mudcats who best personified the focus, so they captained the relay teams. Despite some shenanigans around home plate trying to slow up Hayes's team, they still emerged victorious, which allowed Hayes to lead the final team cheer.

The next Mudcats event is Thursday night's game at 5:30.

Mudcat Bracketology

A quick look at the postseason picture for your planning purposes as the Minor League enters the final week of regular season play:

It's not yet reflected in the standings, but the Thunder beat the Scrappers on Sunday afternoon. That means the Mudcats are officially eliminated from regular season title contention.

We now know that the Mudcats can't finish first (the regular season champion will be the Thunder, Riverdogs or Bats) or eighth. In addition, because the Riverdogs swept the regular season series from the 'Cats, the All Blacks can't finish second.

The current seeding picture is jumbled, as the only team locked into a seed is the eighth spot, which will be held by the Lookouts. Based on the official Minor League postseason bracket, we already know the Mudcats can't play Sunday, May 15 at 1 p.m. We also know it is very unlikely--but not impossible--that the Mudcats could play on May 15 at 7 p.m.

Game #12: Mudcats 15, Bulls 8

The season's best example of defense may have come Saturday morning at Nowell Field. The Mudcats and Bulls each pounded out 15 hits, but because the All Blacks were airtight defensively while the Bulls had some issues, the 'Cats claimed a 15-8 victory limited to five innings by the time limit.

The highlight of the defensive effort came in the fourth inning, when the Bulls were threatening to close an 11-6 deficit. On three consecutive singles, they quickly loaded the bases with no outs. But solid defense by the Mudcats resulted in three equally quick outs, and the Bulls left the inning with no runs. For that entire type of team effort--on the day, the ruthless scorekeeper did not charge the 'Cats with an error for the first time all season--the entire squad was awarded defensive player of the game honors.

The offense, meanwhile, was able to string together the 15 hits at exactly the right time, creating 15 runs and taking advantage of some occasional Bulls defensive miscues. The offensive player of the game went to Hayes, who is riding a streak of seven straight hits and has two consecutive 3-for-3 days.

Anthony was so excited by the big win, which brought the Mudcats back to .500, that he invited everyone to Monkey Joe's, where I'm guessing pandemonium still reigns at this very moment.

With two regular season games remaining, the All Blacks could still finish anywhere from first to seventh. The next official Mudcat event is Monday's practice at Kentwood at 5 p.m.

Saturday's Mudcat scoring plays

First inning
With JJ out with a fever, Smiley filled in at the leadoff spot and led off with a single to left. Anthony beat out an infield hit, and then a fielder's choice moved the runners to second and third. Zach drove in his first run of the day with an RBI double, and Christopher followed with an RBI fielder's choice. On his way to an Oreo-worthy performance, Hayes singled in a run and would eventually score two batters later after some adventures in the Bulls infield.
Score after one-half inning: Mudcats 4, Bulls 0

Second inning
The Mudcats did some major damage with two outs, tying their biggest inning of the season and doing it all with two outs. With two outs and Asher on first, Smiley and Anthony had back-to-back singles. Drew drove in two with a double. Zach and Christopher scorched grounders that weren't handled, scoring Anthony and Drew. Hayes completed the scoring with a 2-RBI single, giving him three RBI in the first two innings.
Score after one and a half innings: Mudcats 10, Bulls 3

Third inning
It was an inning for the Mudcat youth, as Gavin singled Brenner to second, and after a Gabe fielder's choice, Brenner scored on Asher's RBI fielder's choice.
Score after two and a half innings: Mudcats 12, Bulls 5

Fourth inning
This time it was the top of the order, as Anthony and Drew strung together back-to-back one-out singles. Then Zach (2 RBI) and Christopher (1 RBI) put together back-to-back doubles. Hayes singled, putting runners at the corners, and Charley scored Christopher with a grounder to short.
Score after three and a half innings: Mudcats 15, Bulls 6


Saturday's Web Gems

• Gabe speared a ball at pitcher and then threw to second from his knees to record a force.
• No one is still quite sure what happened, but the Mudcats turned a triple play in the third. The fact that there was already one out when the triple play was made should not deter anyone from putting it on the highlight reel. After a hard liner to Smiley at pitcher with the bases loaded, the Bulls baserunners strayed too far from the bag. Smiley went to Drew at third to get (we thought) the second out of the play and third out of the inning. But the umpires let the play continue, so Drew went ahead and threw to Anthony at second to catch the runner there. Whether it was two outs, three outs or four outs, it was still a nice play.
• In a great example of team defense, the Bulls loaded the bases with no outs in the fourth but got zero runs. Smiley caught a pop fly at pitcher for the first out, Anthony made a diving catch in foul ground at first base for the second out, and Zach made a heady play to grab a grounder and step on third to end the inning.
• Christopher made a very nice stretch at first base in the fifth to save an out.

Saturday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Mudcats	4	6	1	4	0	X	15	15
Bulls	3	2	1	0	2	X	8	15

End of season bracket is posted

Have you been thinking your calendar for the week of May 16 looked awfully barren? That problem is about to be solved.

With very little fanfare, apparently thinking ESPN would put it on the ticker, West Raleigh posted the end of season tournament brackets today. You can find it here in the download section (right-click "EOS Tourney brackets," then "Save Link As" to save it to your computer, and then you can open it).

Because the standings are still so uncertain, there's not a whole lot we know for sure from the bracket. Some things you can count on:

The Mudcats will definitely have a game on Sunday, May 15. It will start sometime between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. (yep, 7 p.m. on a school night)

Because of tiebreakers, the Mudcats can not finish 8th.

Closing ceremonies are Wednesday, May 25, at 7 p.m. Hope no one wanted to go to school on Thursday! Much like tornadoes, I assume school stops for West Raleigh Baseball. Of course, there is also an "if necessary" (or "necssary" as it is known on the bracket) championship game that same night scheduled to start at 7:45 p.m. Should be a really well-played game.

If a champion happens to come through the loser's bracket, which would be an absolutely incredible feat in this bracket setup, they would play seven games in 11 days. The winner of the NCAA College World Series, if it played the maximum amount of games, would play eight games in 11 days.

Presumably, the reason for this scheduling is the exorbitant ESPN rights fees. Look for your cut of the proceeds in the mail soon.

Game #11: Mudcats 11, Thunder 8

Coming into Monday night's game, the Thunder had scored 28 runs in its last two games and was sitting alone in first place in the Minor League. The Mudcats, meanwhile, were trying to finish off a tiring stretch of three games in three days. A mismatch, perhaps?

Not so fast, my friend.

Buoyed by a big six-run first inning and a raucous cheering section, the Mudcats steamrolled to an 11-8 victory, handing the Thunder just their third loss of the season. It was one of the more complete team games of the season, with hits from 10 different Mudcats and solid defensive plays at every position on the diamond.

"I don't care what anybody else's record is," Coach Andrew told the team, "but a lot of people think the Thunder might be the best team in the league. And today, we didn't even play our best game, but we still beat them."

Making good on his promise from yesterday, everyone earned two helmet stickers, capitalizing on the earn-back situation from Sunday. After terrific work behind the plate trying to control the tempo of the game--a responsibility also shouldered by Gabe and Charley--Smiley also earned an extra sticker.

The offensive and defensive players of the game might have been the most difficult decisions of the season. For igniting the six-run rally that set the tone for the game (and also for being on base seven straight times since moving to the leadoff spot), JJ earned offensive honors. After playing flawless outfield defense, Hayes captured day-old Doritos as the defensive player of the game.

Coach Andrew's message was succinct: "Let's keep on doing this."

Food report: Keeping up with all the runs prevented me from keeping a solid tally, but I know for sure there were some kind of fruit kabob things (which came with a handy wooden stick), Skittles and strawberries.



Also, after this morning's report of the disturbing news from a Florida youth football league, the Mudcat Blog Investigative Team turned up some suspicious activity behind home plate. Are you trying to tell me these people are just watching the game? Finally we have some idea of what is going on back there. I just want to know which one is O-Z. My guess is either Rebecca or Beth, because a stroller is the perfect place to hide dice or a roll of cash.

Monday's Mudcat scoring plays

First inning
In an inning that tied for the biggest frame of the year, JJ led off with a line-drive opposite field double. He moved to third on Anthony's single, then scored the first run of the game on Drew's RBI single. Zach blasted an RBI sacrifice fly to deep center, then Smiley picked up an RBI and with pure hustle turned what would have been a single into a double. Christopher, on his way to his second straight 3-for-3 day, put runners at the corners with a single. Hayes smacked an RBI single up the middle that scored Smiley, and then Charley and Brenner continued to put the ball in play and allow the All Blacks to take advantage of a Thunder miscue, plating two more runs.
Score after one-half inning: Mudcats 6, Thunder 0

Fourth inning
Gavin blasted a single to deep center that scored Christopher, who had led off with a single.
Score after three and a half innings: Mudcats 7, Thunder 2

Sixth inning
In an inning when the Mudcats desperately needed some insurance runs after the Thunder had pulled within 7-6, the middle of the order delivered with four big runs. Christopher picked up the first RBI of the inning, singling in Zach. Then Hayes, after receiving the type of coaching from Rebecca that probably could not be replicated by the coaching staff, ripped a double that scored Smiley. Charley picked up an RBI single and Brenner drove in the final run of the single with an RBI fielder's choice. It should be noted that none of the eleven runs scored by the All Blacks crossed the plate when a defensive player was prone on the infield dirt with an injury.
Score after five and a half innings: Mudcats 11, Thunder 6


Monday's Web Gems

• Christopher made a nice play on a foul pop in the first, ranging over nearly to the fence to make the catch.
• Smiley, who earned praise and an extra sticker from Coach Andrew for his work behind the plate, threw off his mask and hauled in a pop fly at catcher.
• Asher got a forceout from right field, throwing the ball in to Christopher, who made a nice catch to preserve the out.
• Hayes saved at least two runs with an inning-ending shoestring catch in left-center to end the fourth.
• Zach made a diving catch of a line drive in foul territory at third base in the fifth.
• Stop me if this sounds familiar: in the fifth, Hayes saved at least one run, and probably two, with an inning-ending catch in center field. On the day, he had three catches in the outfield.
• After the Thunder got the leadoff man in the heart of their order in the bottom of the sixth, Zach immediately snuffed the rally by picking up a grounder up the middle, stepping on second, and throwing to first to complete the double play.

Monday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Mudcats	6	0	0	1	0	4	11	15
Thunder	0	2	0	2	2	2	8	13

Problems West Raleigh Doesn't Have

I think we can all agree that no youth sports organization is perfect. Some play the games too early. Some play the games too late. Some try to play the games while there is a tornado watch.

But even with all the problems we see every day with the leagues our kids play in, and even with the long list of things we'll do differently "when we get to be in charge," a story that came out this weekend is still a shocker.

I realize no one has time to read lengthy stories anymore. But print it out, save it for later (InstaPaper is a wonderful invention and you can link it to your iPhone or to your Android phone via InstaFetch), read it at lunch...whatever you have to do to read this story about the extensive gambling on youth football in south Florida. There's a video and print component, and both are worth your time. At its core, the story is about gambling, but there are also some illuminating points made about how that gambling perpetuates the cycle of problems in those communities.

It's hard to know where to start--the story includes a bail bondsmen who is a coach in the league and has a self-expressed "zero tolerance" policy for gambling on his kids and then is confronted on camera with the fact that a hidden camera caught him exchanging money in the stands--but the most surprising thing is that it isn't happening in some other country we've never heard of. It's not ESPN's piece on golf in India, the Mumbai Masters (which is another must-see). It's less than a three-hour flight from home. And while our fans are busy passing carrot cake cheesecake around, in the stands at other leagues they're passing around $20 bills.

I'd like to make it clear that Asher is absolutely not up for bid...unless the purchaser is paying in cupcakes, in which case we'll have to talk.

Game #10: Bats 10, Mudcats 8

As so often happens in the middle of a long stretch of games, the Mudcats hit a lull in the middle game of this weekend's three-game series, falling 10-8 to the Bats in yet another game that wasn't decided until the final at-bat. That makes three games in a row that have been decided in the final at-bat. Six of this year's 10 games have been decided by three runs or less, a fairly unusual statistic in the high-scoring Minor League.

A slightly juggled offensive lineup did pay some dividends for the Mudcats, as JJ was on base all four times in his leadoff spot and scored a run, while Drew and Hayes also picked up two-run singles in their new slots in the order. As Coach Andrew told the team, "We hit the ball well enough to win the game."

Defensively, however, there were some focus issues. "I'm not sure there was one inning where we were completely focused for the entire inning," Coach Andrew said. "We didn't quite do it defensively." The All Blacks made errors in four of Sunday's six innings, and the Bats scored runs in all four of those innings.

The leaky defense--or, really, the occasional focus lapses--meant no team-wide helmet sticker was awarded. But the 'Cats were close enough that Coach Andrew promised they were in an "earn-back" situation on Monday, when six solid innings of play will result in two stickers instead of one. After an impressive 3-for-3 day with a pair of doubles and two runs scored, Christopher earned the offensive player of the game award (Note: Not an actual photo of Christopher). No defensive player of the game award was handed out, and Coach Andrew was last spotted buried in a mound of Doritos, laughing hysterically.

I know why you're all really checking the blog: Sunday's between-inning food presentations included strawberries, apples, grapes, lobster and jelly beans. Only one of those is not actually true. Also, carrot cake cheesecake was provided for the fans, who were working hard in the first-base bleachers. Stay tuned next season when I will be a participant on The Biggest Loser: Mudcats Edition.

The three-game series concludes with Monday night's 5:30 first pitch against the Thunder ("Thunder thunder thunder nation, we're the best team in the nation..." Sorry, standing in the dugout during the games tends to get in your head a little bit).

Sunday's Mudcat scoring plays

Second inning
Chris launched a one-out double and moved to third on Charley's fielder's choice. Brenner picked up the first Mudcat RBI of the evening with a fielder's choice, and Gavin hustled out a grounder to short to beat the throw and score Charley.
Score after one and a half innings: Mudcats 2, Bats 1

Third inning
Powered by the Rally Monkey, Asher singled to left and moved to second when JJ--batting in the leadoff spot for the first time--smacked a hard-hit ball up the middle. Anthony powered a run-scoring opposite-field single, and then Drew provided the inning's big blow with a two-run single to center.
Score after two and a half innings: Mudcats 5, Bats 2

Fourth inning
On his way to enjoying a bounty of Oreos, Christopher smacked another double, then ran the bases aggressively and managed to come all the way around to score when the shortstop couldn't handle Brenner's grounder.
Score after three and a half innings: Mudcats 6, Bats 6

Sixth inning
Zach blasted a single that was probably a double in reality but was hit so hard that the center fielder was able to catch a favorable carom off the fence and throw it in quickly. The Bats had some more infield adventures with Smiley's grounder, putting runners on second and third. And then Hayes came through with a two-run single to left that cut the four-run deficit in half.
Final score: Bats 10, Mudcats 8


Tuesday's Web Gems

• The Mudcats converted yet another outfield relay to nab a runner trying to score. This time, it was Zach-to-Smiley-to-Charley, who made the surehanded catch and then applied the tag in plenty of time.
• Coach Andrew began the fourth by instructing his team to "Go get the ball." Smiley proceeded to illustrate that perfectly by bouncing off the pitcher's mound and making what could have been a difficult play look easy, gobbling up a grounder and throwing to first.
• Hayes saved what would have been extra bases in the fifth by stabbing a grounder that was headed down the third-base line.

Sunday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Mudcats	0	2	3	1	0	2	8	12
Bats	1	1	4	0	4	X	10	17

The Postgame Remains The Same

There were at least two extra-inning baseball games played on Saturday. One of them was a heart-pounding, fantastic finish that had a capacity crowd roaring. The other was played by the Cleveland Indians.

Ordinarily, unless the game involves Willie Mays Hayes, Rick Vaughn or Jake Taylor, a Cleveland Indians game wouldn't be particularly interesting. But this one had some local significance, as former Carolina standout Alex White was making his major league debut as Cleveland's starting pitcher. Asher has long been enamored with White, who came along in Chapel Hill just as he was starting to really pay attention to individual college baseball players. He's followed him from Chapel Hill to Omaha, so Cleveland made sense.

Watching the Indians-Tigers game, in which Cleveland won their 12th straight home game, it was startling how different it was from the epic Mudcats/Scrappers game we'd watched a few hours earlier. Over 26,000 people were there. The stadium was huge. The concession stands had something called a "fried trio," which included a mix of fried Twinkies, fried cookie dough and fried funnel cake. After the Indians won 3-2 in 13 innings, virtually no one in the crowd left, because the team celebrated with a 10-minute fireworks extravaganza coordinated with musical highlights from the 1970s.

In other words, it was largely a show with baseball mixed in--a tremendously enjoyable show, but still a show. It did not bear much resemblance to what we're accustomed to seeing at Nowell Field.

But then, after the game, it was equally remarkable how much the scene looked exactly like a Mudcats game. Somewhere on the bottom level of Progressive Field, they have a room set aside for families and friends of the players. This room could be a carbon copy of the area around the West Raleigh concession stand after a Mudcats game. Players mingle with players from the other team. Kids run around. Parents look proud.

The only difference is there are slightly fewer cupcakes and/or biscuits, but maybe they only bring those out for the really big games.

After he'd pitched in front of 26,000 in person and countless more on television, after he'd had his picture flashed up on the 120 foot by 200 foot HD scoreboard, and after he'd made himself into a household name in Cleveland, there were almost exactly the same people waiting for Alex White that had often stood around waiting after his Little League games in Greenville, N.C.: his parents (his mom, Catherine, keeps score at all his games) and a few friends. Somewhere outside the walls there were fans talking about him and wondering about his future. Inside the walls, he was just a 23-year-old wearing an untucked shirt, cowboy boots and jeans, rehashing another game the same way he'd done many times before.

You half expected him to ask them to wait while he went to pick up his free drink at the concession stand, or maybe dash off to play a little wall ball with Grady Sizemore (speaking of which, Alex says the game the Mudcats call "the hat game" is actually called "flip," which it will now be known as). After four hours of marveling at how different baseball could be at the highest level, it was striking how similar baseball could be at the highest level.

"I really wasn't nervous," Alex said as the group pressed him for details of his once-in-a-lifetime day. "I saw a lot of familiar faces out there."

Game #9: Scrappers 7, Mudcats 4 (7 innings)

The Mudcats and Scrappers have now played 12 regulation innings this year and have exactly five combined runs to show for it. Unexpectedly, after battling to a 1-1 tie through the first six on Saturday, the offenses woke up in the extra inning, as the two teams combined to score nine runs, with the Scrappers holding on for a 7-4 win.



Saturday's pregame festivities began at what felt like 5:30 a.m. That wasn't enough to prevent the Mudcats from either: A. Filming a rap video or B. Playing the Game That Has No Name But Involves Turning Your Hat Around When You Miss The Ball (informally called "The hat game"). If you're wondering, the idea is that every time you drop the ball, you turn your hat a quarter turn. Certain individuals have a very loose interpretation of "a quarter turn."

Meanwhile, some players took the opportunity to partake of the bounty in the dugout, which put most breakfast places to shame. Unfortunately, one Mudcat snacking on his pregame meal made the mistake of saying, "Don't put this in the blog." I think we all know what that means.

Given the early hour, it wasn't especially surprising that the Mudcats went through a scattershot round of pregame infield, thus proving the often-repeated theory that a perfect round of pregame infield often leads to shaky play in the actual game. Because once the game started, the All Blacks immediately fired off a 1-2-3 defensive inning and overall retired 12 of the first 15 All Navys that came to the plate.

"I like defense," Coach Andrew told the team after one particularly stellar inning.

"I like Doritos," replied Hayes, providing the type of non sequitur that only fans of the West Raleigh Mudcats would understand, and also illustrating that the association with the defensive player of the game award seems to be catching on.

"You guys made some great plays," Coach Andrew told the team after the game. "That one is on me. I made a couple of mistakes in that game, but you guys played awesome. And you hit the ball very well. The Scrappers made some great plays. You just have to shake their hands."

All players were awarded a helmet sticker for the solid effort. Zach (duh) and Christopher (diving tag at first) picked up extra stickers for outstanding individual efforts. Offensive player of the game honors went to Gavin, while Anthony picked up the defensive award and then got into the hot tub.

This weekend's three-game series continues tomorrow at 5.

Saturday's Mudcat scoring plays

Third inning
Gavin crushed a double to left, then ran the bases aggressively and was able to score on a fielder's choice.
Score after three innings: Mudcats 1, Scrappers 0

Seventh inning
Smiley led off with a double, which gave him a great vantage point to watch Zach hit. The best part about Zach coming to the plate: watch behind the fence. It looks like Waveland Avenue outside Wrigley Field out there, with numerous fans moving into position to try and catch a homer. They got their opportunity this time, as Zach launched his sixth homer of the season, this time to dead center. The scoring wasn't over, however, as Christopher doubled in JJ.
Score after seven innings: Scrappers 7, Mudcats 4


Saturday's Web Gems

• In the second inning, Gabe made a diving play of a pop-up at pitcher.
• In the third, Smiley covered a ton of ground to run down a pop-up, also at pitcher.
• Christopher made one of the toughest plays in the minor league, backing up and dealing with the slight drop behind the infield to haul in a pop fly behind shortstop.
• Showing the benefits of what happens when you work hard in practice, JJ played a flawless first base in the fourth inning.
• Anthony (brought to you by Doritos) ranged far to his right and got a force-out at second.
• Christopher showed good range at first base, then dove back to the bag to slap the tag on first base just before the runner arrived. It was the second time this season he's made that exact heads-up play.

Saturday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H
Scrappers	0	0	0	0	1	0	6	7	10
Mudcats	0	0	1	0	0	0	3	4	13

Asher

Practice--Flying blind

Something so incredible, so astonishing, so unbelievable that it had to be seen to believed happened on Thursday night at Pullen Park--the Mudcats went through a two-hour practice with no formal practice plan.

I know, I'm as surprised as you are. But it really happened.

Don't think there was no organization whatsoever. Coach Andrew had formulated a rough practice plan, but because Pullen Park was an unfamiliar environment, no one was quite certain what the state of the field might be. After all, we all remember the Great Kentwood Easter Egg Hunt on Monday. As it turned out, though, Proctor and Sons must have the field maintenance contract at Pullen Park, because the fields were in great shape.

Coach Jim made the mistake of arriving early to pitch to Christopher, which meant every Mudcat who arrived wanted to hit off the lefty. Eventually, after about half the team had taken their hacks against Coach Jim, Coach Rob took the 'Cats who had already hit into the outfield to shag some fly balls while Coach Andrew took over on the mound.

Apparently, the bright sunshine must have been getting to Coach Andrew, because he formulated a diabolical plan for the second half of the scrimmage. He installed Coach Tom as the head coach/full-time pitcher for one team, and picked Coach Adam as the head coach/full-time pitcher for the other team. Sides were chosen, and the teams went through a very even four-inning scrimmage. Highlights included Coach Adam pitching to Zach, JJ playing a slick first base, and the Fightin' JJ's using some dubious tactics to "win" the practice-closing relay race. Of course, there were also some shenanigans from the other team, as Coach Tom suspiciously got much better-looking and faster during the race.

You might notice that Coach Andrew does not appear to have a job description in the above scrimmage. He was very busy.

The next Mudcat event is Breakfast at West Raleigh on Saturday at 9 a.m., with pregame beginning at 8 a.m. Fans and players are encouraged to arrive hungry in the event that there might possibly be food on hand.

Game #8: Riverdogs 8, Mudcats 6

It has carefully not been noted on the blog that the Mudcats were riding a four-game winning streak going into Tuesday's game against the Riverdogs at Nowell Field. Jinxes being what they are, it just seemed like an unwise move. For just a moment, it looked like they had another comeback in them and planned to extend the streak. But a three-run Riverdog sixth was enough to break a 5-5 tie and drop the All Blacks to 4-4 overall.

"We know we can beat anybody," Coach Andrew told his team after helmet stickers had been awarded to everyone for a solid effort. "We've got four wins, and that shows us we know how to win. We've also got four losses, and we've learned lessons from each of those losses."



Tuesday's first lesson was taught by an alert grounds crew. Brief pregame showers meant the field necessitated some TLC from the Proctor and Sons maintenance division. Once everything was pristine--Gabe even took the time to make sure the foul line carefully split the base--the much-anticipated 'Cats vs. 'Dogs battle began.

The Mudcats looked a little listless in the early innings, perhaps unable to overcome their disappointment that Coach Lance of the Riverdogs was not wearing his yellow pants. GM Jenn quickly solved the malaise with a rapid-fire succession of oranges, apples, jelly beans and an apples/grapes mixture. If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, then based on his quantity of apples ingested Smiley should anticipate next visiting the doctor in approximately the year 2031.

The constant barrage of snacks eventually resulted in a five-run third inning, capped by a game-tying Zach three-run homer to center. The next three innings were very well-played, including some of the best defensive plays from both sides you'll ever see on Nowell Field. The Mudcats made three straight highlight-reel plays in the fourth; Riverdogs shortstop Blake responded by flawlessly playing a role in five of the final six Mudcat outs of the game.

"There were moments of amazing, absolute fun in that game," Coach Andrew said. Bountiful stickers were handed out, including one for each of the night's web gems, plus a sticker to Zach for his titanic home run. Zach also claimed the offensive player of the game award, while Charley earned defensive honors.

Wednesday is an off day, and the Mudcats return to the practice field (at Pullen Park) on Thursday.

Tuesday's Mudcat scoring plays

Third inning
Noah reached on a one-out fielder's choice and moved to second on Drew's one-handed single. Hayes and Smiley picked up back-to-back RBI singles, which brought Zach to the plate with two men on as the tying run. I think we all know what happened next. When last seen, his fifth homer of the season was bouncing off the batting cage in center field on one hop. The Riverdogs become the second team of the season to be victimized twice by Zach bombs, and it should be noted that unlike some other coaches who have been in similar situations, Coach Lance of the Riverdogs was one of the first people to congratulate Zach on his way around the bases.
Score after three innings: Mudcats 5, Riverdogs 5

Sixth inning
Drew completed a 2-for-2 day with a leadoff single. With one out, Smiley--who finished 3-for-3 with 2 RBI--ripped an RBI single to right.
Score after six innings: Riverdogs 8, Mudcats 6


Tuesday's Web Gems (You might want to get a snack, as it takes a while to list them all)

• On the game's first play, Hayes stayed with a grounder that took a tough hop and was able to make the play because he stayed down on it.
• Gavin picked up an outfield assist from center, throwing to Zach at second base.
• In the fourth, which included three straight web gems, Drew threw from his knees in center to get a force at second base.
• On the next play, after being perfectly positioned by Coach Sean, Anthony made a nice one-handed grab in left-center.
• To wrap up the inning, Charley (brought to you by Doritos) stayed down and backhanded a one-hop throw from third to preserve the tie game.
• To end the fifth, Asher chased down a long single to left and tossed the ball in to Zach, who turned and unleashed a perfect strike from the outfield grass to Smiley to cut down a runner unwisely trying to score from first. Smiley made the catch and sweep tag to complete the play.
• In the sixth, Anthony made a smooth backhanded diving play up the middle while playing second base and cut down the runner at first.

Tuesday's line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Riverdogs	4	0	1	0	0	3	8	17
Mudcats	0	0	5	0	0	1	6	11