New Blog Template

Okay, so I’m preparing for the grand re-opening of this blog that really should have happened almost two months ago, but heck, that’s what happens when your expectations outpace reality.  I simply didn’t have the time during the last month or so to keep the thing going.  Now that I have the luxury of procrastination again, I can once again focus my efforts on making this place nice and snazzy for the best-dressed team in baseball.

I’ve moved the blog to a new template, one that’s a little more “with the times”.  The only problem I’ve noticed so far is that the page widths are a bit smaller than the old one, so a few of the old charts aren’t all making it on the screen right now (like the past stats page).  I’ll be getting to those eventually, but for the time being I’m posting the stats in pdf format.  It makes for a little more work, generating the pdf and uploading rather than the old cut-and-paste, and it’s not as elegant, but it’s what we’re stuck with until I can modify the formatting to allow everything to fit on the screen.  I tried toying with embedding the pdfs, but that didn’t work either – wordpress.com is locked down tighter than a nun’s undergarments – no inserting or embedding allowed!

So welcome back to the blog, and my apologies for keeping everyone waiting for so long.  Go Cripplers!

The World Needs More Purple (Cripplers v. S&G – May 9)

2011 Season Opens in Style!

Welcome back for another season of Crippler’s Baseball!  The uniform has changed, and so has the colour scheme on the site, as you can see.  We’re styling in our new purple shirts, and it’s good to be back.  You really couldn’t have asked for a better day to start the season off – bright, sunny and warm, and that’s just our disposition after winning our opening game for the first time in years, and breaking the dreaded Crippler curse.  Guess we just needed a little more purple.

I’m in the process of updating my spreadsheet with the new players and entering the season’s first game, so check back tomorrow for complete stats, but here’s the game summary for May 9 – Cripplers vs. Shitts & Giggles:

Scoring:

Cripplers	3	3	0	1	0	1	1	9
Shitts & Giggles	0	2	2	0	3	0	0	7

Highlights:

• Jermaine may have showed up late, but he sure didn’t miss an opportunity to contribute, going 2 for 2 with a pair of singles, a walk, a run, and an RBI
• Scott showed he’s still got a finesse swing, placing balls all over the field to go 3 for 4 with three singles; he also got his cardio, scoring two runs and touching more bases than anyone else on the team.
• Mo, Anthony, and Emily made their Cripplers debuts in style, all going 2 for 4 on the night.
• Bryan proved that you don’t need to record a hit to get an RBI, going 1 for 4, with 3 RBIs, all on fielder’s choices.  Sorry Sanna!
• With the exception of Bryan, every Crippler batted at or above .500 on the night.

Rule Changes

Hi everyone!

I just got back from the mid-season captains meeting and there were some interesting developments.  Starting Thursday, there will be the following key changes:

1. Pitchers will be required to stand 30 ft back from the plate, on the designated mound.
2. Pitches will fall within a designated pitching corridor that will be 3ft across.
3. Encroachment cones will be moved from the current 150 ft to the standard 175 ft.

Not really rule changes, but clarifications:

1. The batters box starts 3 ft in front of the plate, so there is an answer for the low pitches
2. Players must play a minimum of 4 games with a team in order to be legal for the playoffs.
3. Three of the outfielders must be behind the encroachment lines, the rover can play inside.
4. Suspensions on Monday nights will count for Thursday nights as well, and vice-versa.
5. Captains are responsible for keeping players and spectators in line.  Captains are the only players who should discuss calls with an umpire.  Sniping and chirping will not be tolerated.

Aug 2 v Shitts & Giggles

Scoring:

Cripplers	0	0	2	1	3	4	2	12
Shitts & Giggles	3	6	2	1	6	0	x	18

Highlights:

• Jordan had his best night of the season, going 3 for 3 with 2 doubles, a single and a sacrifice fly.
• Derek had a perfect night with three singles.
• Matt had the mini-cycle, with a single, double, and triple.
• Jermaine went 2 for 2 with a single, a double and a sacrifice fly.

July 26 v Running Rebels

Scoring:

Cripplers	0	0	1	0	7	0	0	8
Rebels	3	2	0	3	0	0	4	12

Highlights:

• Derek went 2 for 3 with a single, a double, 2 runs and an RBI.
• Scott went 3 for 3 with three singles, a run and an RBI.
• Bryan went 2 for 3 with a pair of singles and an RBI.
• Rob went 1 for 2 with a double, a walk, a run and an RBI.
• Sanna didn’t register a hit, but did score two RBIs on a sacrifice fly.

July 19 v Slush Puppies

Scoring:

Cripplers	1	5	1	2	0	2	x	11
Slush Puppies	3	0	4	0	0	4	x	11

Highlights:

• Bryan had an excellent night, going 3 for 3 with two singles, a double and a sacrifice fly.  He had 2 runs and 3 RBIs.
• Sanna had her best night of the season going 4 for 4 with 4 singles and 4 RBIs.
• Matt had a good night going 3 for 4 with three singles and three runs.
• Gavin smacked a solo home run in the third inning that turned out to be essential to the final score.

July 13 v Strikers

Scoring:

Cripplers	0	1	0	0	0	0	2	3
Strikers	7	2	0	0	7	2	x	18

Highlights:

• Mike.  A perfect 2 for 2 with two singles and a walk.
• Knight had a good night as well, going 2 for 3 with two singles and a walk.
• Bryan came close with a pair of singles but no walks…
• Sarah missed the memo and went for 2 walks instead.
• Pascale made her debut with the team, smacking a single in her first game of baseball ever.

July 5 v Jamieson

Scoring:

Jamieson	2	0	2	0	1	4	1	10
Cripplers	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1

June 26 v Hinge Devils

Scoring

I don’t actually have their score so this cannot be completed accurately.  We scored one run each in the 3rd and 6th inning.  They scored plenty in all innings.

Highlights:

• Mike went 3 for 3 with a trio of singles
• Jamie T went 2 for 3 with a pair of singles
• Bryan had the only multi-base hit of the game with a double in the third.

Ordinarily I would put up the poll for the game MVP, but this week there was no competition.  Mike had the only flawless bat at the plate, and made several good plays from the SS position to shore up what was generally a pretty solid defence.

Congrats Mike!

June 25 v Chronic

Scoring

Cripplers	0	0	3	0	0	2	6	11
Chronic	6	0	4	7	1	7	x	25

Highlights:

A number of people had pretty good nights at the plate, in spite of the outcome.  They were led by:

• Alex, who went 4 for 4, and …
• Mike who went 3 for 4 with 4 RBIs.
• Jamie T had a solid game as well, going 3 for 4.
• Maria even touched the bag with a slight squeak.  :-)

In spite of a number of good at bats, we never really got a groove going.  In the end though, it was our defensive failings that were the story of the game.  There was a palpable feeling of hopelessness the last few innings, and it felt like we were going through the motions rather than really playing the game.

Welcome to tier 1 Cripplers!  We’re going to have to work hard over the next 4 games to keep the atmosphere light and the start having fun.  We might not win much up here, but we should still have a good time playing.  Lets keep making the right plays even if we think there’s no point, it’s the only way we’re going to grow and help others learn the game.  Trust our arms, trust our teammates, and lets start building the chemistry we used to enjoy back the glory days.

[steps down off the soap box]  :-)

The return of the MVP poll!