Shady Grove Church Softball League (www.shadygrove.org)

So the season is officially over now that the we've had the post season committee dinner. Not much new on the horizon. Looks like there will be a next season. This is always a question as we don't like to take the league for granted. There are a few changes coming but not big enough or far enough along in the planning stages worth mentioning.

Be thinking who you want to play with next season. The maximum in a group allowed is 3 so figure out who you love more, as friend, of course. Large groups have made drafting teams difficult, to say the least. Please use this as a guideline.

I'm working on getting us a full fledged method to sign-up online. We'll see how that goes, but be assured the option to pay the league fee online will still be there, along with the standard methods.

Little over 7 months till next season. I'll pop up from time to time with updates. I imagine silence till after the Holidays but who knows?

Women's Score

Penguin 6 - Cheri Nelson
Blues 5 - Latricia De La Rosa

Men's Scores

Kingfishers 10 - Randy Skinner
Four Winds 12 - Team Winds

Iron Men 9 - Mack Barron
Dark Horse 8 - Jeff Wienecke

Trashmen 16 - Josh Briscoe
Donkey's Return - Trey Collins

PLAYOFFS

Round 1

Warriors 20 - Ryan Swinney
Sons 8 - Chuck Carter

Texas Dangers 8 - Team Danger
Transformers 14 - Jason Barnes

Championship

Warriors 12 - Jason Kunz
Transformers 11 - Nick Economou

There they are.....Shady Grove Softball Champs!

In a bit of deja vu, the Warrior started as the underdog in game 1 in the 3rd base dugout, on the green field. Same result as in '08, blowout win, capped by a Captain Willis 3 run homerun. The Warriors nailed 3 Sons going to 3rd with perfect throws ending several threats. Matt Willis played great cleaning anything hit to the left infield turning it into outs. The momentum was clearly with them after a convincing win and just beating the previously undefeated Transformers going into the final. Could preverbal lightning strike twice in 2 weeks?

The Transformer took care of their own business on the red field with another big inning to push comfortably past the Texas Dangers. They were back to their winning ways for a rematch against the only team to taint their record.

The final started fast with runs quickly going on the board but then the defenses started closing things down. The Warriors scored a fistful of runs to take a late lead 12-10 heading into the Transformers' last at bat. I was sure that lead was not safe with the top of the line-up quickly approaching. To be honest, I was counting the chickens. After a couple of batters reached base, 2 quick outs were recorded. The Transformers were on life support. With 2 runners on there was a base hit. 1 run scored and the tying run was held at 3rd. If he was sent it would have been a very close call at home. Good call by the base coach with Jason Barnes, Home Run King, coming up to bat. I bet you could count the number of times this guy was retired this season on 1 hand. After taking a pitch outside, he lined the next ball into shallow right center. The Warriors had shifted their team to the right with 3 outfielder roaming in right field. The ball looked destined for a grass stain when the Warrior player cupped it right at the cusp of the grass for the final out. Most likely if that ball did touch the grass, it would have brought around 2 runs to yield a different result. The Deja vu continues with a 1 run championship win.

To recap the vus: 1) Warriors surge to make it into the playoffs after early struggle (like '08) 2) Warriors semifinal blowout win on green field from 3rd base dugout (like '08) 3) Warriors 1 run championship win (like '08) 4) Warriors league champions (like '08) 5) Wayne cries for joy after climbing the Shady Grove Softball Mountain again (just kidding)

Well there you have it. The 2009 champion is the same as 2008, Wayne Willis' Warriors.

Now for a bit of fun, here is the 1st annual Mikey Likes It Softball Team.

1B: Jason Barnes - Transformers (Home Run King)
2B: Wayne Willis - Warriors (Gotta have the repeating champ coach on the team)
SS: Michael Babb - Iron Men (Have you seen this guy play?)
3B: Matt Willis - Warriors (All around solid)
LF: Jesse Crane - Transformers (Human Hoover)
LCF: Aaron Caines - Sons (Human Tom-Tom....for balls....hit to him....he's got perty teef)
RCF: Joshua Sedillo - Donkey's Return (Continues ascesion in the league)
RF: Chris Perry - Trashmen (Consummate leader of outfield chatter and sweet plaid shorts)
P: Paul Grove - Kingfishers (The Greg Maddox of the league)
C: Marc Carroll - Transformers (Consummate leader of infield chatter - sparkplug - just like his style)

Thank you for all your support this season with this league.

Personal thanks to: Lockheed Martin and staff, softball coaches, softball committee, families and friends, the Kolars and the concession stand team, Jim Morton and Kaye Green, our gate keeper, Carrie Nelson and the pop ice, Shady Grove Church, all the players, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Hope to see many of you at the Airhogs game next Monday.

Check the blog from time to time. I'll add new information as it become available up to the 2010 season.

Women's Scores

Braves 3 - Shelley Gribbin
Penguins 10 - Julie Grove

Men's Scores

Kingfishers 9 - Robert Price
Trashmen 12 - John Money

Donkey's Return 14 - Curtis Herring III
Texas Dangers 12 - Jonathan Sidler

Four Winds 12 - Doug Hartzell
Iron Men 9 - Rick Barron

Trashmen 13 - Anthony Bell
Four Winds 7 - Tim Goring

Sons 11 - Buddy Zahn
Dark Horse 6 - Brad Braddy

Transformers 10 - Andrew Vera
Warriors 11 - David Cantwell

Week 8: No More Goose Eggs

That's right. The top and bottom team were able to remove that 0 from the standings. The Transformers lost by 1 to the Warriors to remove that pressure to remain undefeated going into the playoff week. The Trashmen stormed to 2 victories to not only eradicate that 0, but vault them out of the bottom spot for the first time all year. Life has to taste and feel a little sweeter today for those guys.

Now who knocked off our last undefeated team.....last year's champs, Wayne Willis' Warriors. Playing in the early game, the Warriors sucked most of the drama out of the second hour with their victory, sewing up the final playoff spot. Congrats, guys. You seem to have made the post season your home in this league.

The only thing left to be decided in hour 2 was who would be the 3 and 4 seed between the Warriors and Texas Dangers. If the Dangers won they would get the tie breaker over the Warriors due to a victory in head-to-head play. All they had to do was beat the 3-5 Donkey's Return. I personally have seen over half of Donkey's games. They are much better than the record suggests, and proved it by holding back the Dangers to 4th seed. That might not be such a bad thing as the #4 and final seed has won the crown the last 2 years.

So here are our playoff match-ups at 7:00 next Monday:

#1 Transformers vs #4 Texas Dangers
#2 Sons vs #3 Warriors

Championship Game 9:15:

(Winner #1 vs #4) vs (Winner #2 vs #3)

Non Playoff games taking place:

7:00 Kingfishers vs Four Winds
8:15 Iron Men vs Dark Horse & Trashmen vs Donkey's Return

Sportsman of the day is Michael Babb. No one may know about this but I want to bring it to light. Michael is most capable of hitting outside the park homeruns to left field. However, his game was on the yellow field, and from time to time people will play soccer just outside the left field fence. This was one of those times as little girls about 6 years of age were having soccer practice beyond that fence. Michael mentioned how he wished they weren't there and hit the ball to the opposite field (right field) during his at bats to avoid any chances of hitting the girls. He put away any selfishness to eliminate even the slimmest chance of a child being hit. What a guy.

The most entertaining game of last season, in my opinion, was the ladies all-star game. As the featured 9:15 game last night it didn't disappoint. Similar to last year, one side (almost all Penguins) went up big and the route appeared to be on. The other team comprised of mainly Blues and Braves mounted a comeback and held on to win in the final inning. This is always a fun game to watch. Even the crowd started the wave and added random Rick Flair-esk "whoo"s.

Come out next week for it will be the last night of softball till next June. Be blessed and gents, get ready for our curtain call next Monday.

Hey guys and gals (players). Join us Monday night August 24 at Quiktrip Park in Grand Prairie for a free Airhogs baseball game. That's the first Monday night after the softball season has ended. Ask your coach or Brad Lee for additional details. IT'S FREE. I'll be there.

http://www.airhogsbaseball.com/

Women's Scores

Penguins 10 - Maribel Graham
Braves 3 - Kim Hilton

Blue 7 - Jennifer Bates
Braves 6 - Bryn May

Men's Scores

Iron Men 9 - Paul Babb
Warriors 15 - Andrew Cantwell

Dark Horse 8 - Jeff Wienecke
Four Winds 9 - Alex Martin

Dark Horse 8 - Ethan Howell
Donkey's Return 21 - Mark Sedena

Kingfishers 8 - Sam Hilton
Iron Men 17 - PJ Babb

Warriors 10 - Jason Kunz
Trashmen 9 - Pat Dadono

Trashmen 16 - Brandon Briscoe
Transformers 17 - Mark Cruz
*3 extra innings

Four Winds 10 - Marty Nelson
Sons 15 - Chesley Davis

Sons 13 - Chuck Carter
Texas Dangers 9 - Chad King

Donkey's Return 5 - Aaron Goar
Transformers 6 - Paul Foster

Texas Dangers 14 - Jeffrey Kral
Kingfishers 5 - Rodney Johnson Sr.

One Pitch Game O Death, OVERtime, & Playoff Picture

What a rough night to get reacclaimated to the heat and the game of softball. I noticed during the 7 o'clock games, with all fields full, that it was very quiet. I saw errors galore like it was the first week. This really cost some teams.

With all the rainouts games had to be made up. Thus, the league revived the dreaded 25 minute, 1-pitch game (Game of Death). There was a lot on the line with so many teams in playoff contention. Just to refresh everyone, this game gives each batter 1 pitch per at bat with the possible results being out (for a strike), walk (for a ball), or hit. To make things most interesting, or favorable to the pitcher, we removed the strike mat and told players that taking pitches would be very risky as anything deemed "hittable" would be an out. Pitchers loved it but batters had a tough time as they normally could wait for the perfect pitch. They are fun games to watch but tough to play in as you are running to get to the plate, run the bases, then take the field to chase the ball. Personally, I wouldn't mind playing a whole season under the 1-pitch system. It's exciting stuff.

Game of the night was the David versus Goliath match-up of the 7-0 Transformers versus the 0-6 Trashmen. The Trashmen jumped out to a 8-0 lead, but as the league has come to know, no lead is safe from team Foster. The Transformers chipped away at the lead and tied the Trashmen to go to extra innings; which hold a 1-pitch rule that both teams just got finished practicing in their earlier games. In the first extra inning, the Trashmen pushed 4 runs across, but the Transformers matched them. In the 2nd extra inning, the Trashmen scored 2, and again, the Transformers matched. After holding the Trashmen scoreless in the 3rd extra inning, the Transformers sent in the speedy Keris Collier for the winning run. A key moment in the extra innings was the Trashmen had the bases loaded with 2 outs. A sharp grounder was sent up the middle, a sure base hit, but the ball hit James Gadberry to end the inning. He was on the way to 3rd and he lifted his back leg to avoid the ball but, just like the Transformers, the ball matched that foot for the 3rd out. That ball and the Transformers took the form of a nippy little dog that you just can't shake and continued the softball oppression of the Trashmen by similar score (Kingfishers v Transformers from week 1) of 17-16. This was salt in the wound as the Trashmen fell by 1 in the 1-pitch game of death to the Warriors. They are vastly better than the record losing by 1 in 3 different games. We got out of the park at about 11PM due to the 9:10 start and first 3 extra inning game. Trashmen have 2 more games to get off the schnide. Let's cheer them on next week (sorry Four Winds and and Kingfishers).

The playoff picture is starting to come into focus. There is only 1 left with the Transformers clinching #1, Sons clinching #2, and the Texas Dangers clinching a spot. They can take #3 with a win or a Warriors loss next week. 3 teams are still alive for the last spot: Warriors (5-3), Dark Horse (4-4), and Four Winds (3-4).

-Warriors are in with a win (vs Transformers) or with a Dark Horse loss
-Dark Horse is in with a win (vs Sons) and a Warriors loss and 1 Four Winds loss
-Four Winds are in committee decision (with Warriors and Dark Horse) with 2 wins (vs Iron Men & Trashmen) and Warriors loss and Dark Horse win (if that doesn't make sense I can explain later)

Josh Briscoe has shins of steel! He was tagged about 4 times with line drives during the Transformers game hitting him in various places, including said shins on the final time. Get this man some shin guards.

I feel great today after a long awaited day of softball. Thanks again for the help from everyone, from the gate keeper to the fans(mily). Have a blessed week.

Just a quick note that the games have been canceled for Sunday 7/26/09 and 7/27/09. Double headers will be played on 8/3/09, including one of the games being a 30 minute 1-pitch game. Strike mats will not be used for these games to give pitchers more grace. Be ready to swing at every pitch.

"Sorry folks, park's closed!" I feel like Chevy Chase after traveling across country, running across the parking lot to the Chariots of Fire theme song, only to be told by the rubbery construction Wally Moose that the park is closed. I want to punch that big honkin' moose nose right now. Unfortunately, I don't think holding the Commish up with a pellet gun will have that same effect as with John Candy....or we'd be playing now.

That was the feeling this afternoon when I got the official text notification that tonight's games were cancelled due to rain. That's the bad news. The games will be made up at the same times this Sunday evening (7/26/09). Call your coaches for any other information.

See you all this Sunday.

Women's Score

Game Postponed Due to Kid's Camp

Men's Scores

Texas Dangers 8 - Laique FazalDin
Dark Horse 3 - Lamar Howell

Transformers 13 - Mike Knight
Sons 10 - Danny Lawing

Iron Men 6 - Paul Babb
Donkey's Return 11 - Curtis Herring II

Kingfishers 7 - Matt Morgan
Warriors 12 - John Stewart

Week 6: Shuffle Sandwich

Would you notice if you ate a hamburger with the vegetables under the meat? I sure would and would administer that little head pinch thing (using your first 2 fingers and the distance visual effect of the person having a head big enough to fit between your fingers) to the perpetrator; after which I would request another, properly trained burger artist to rectify the obvious burger hate crime. Thus is the case with our standings this week. Now I just need to figure whose head to squash. With our bread (Transformers and Trashmen) firmly in place the fixin's got all mixed up. Some teams lost yet moved up. It was THAT crazy. After order was restored, 6 of 10 teams moved after a fairly stable week of standings.

This was a big week with the top four teams in action against each other. #1 vs #3 and #2 vs #4. A relief to those 4 is that they are all still the top 4 but were weakened (2-4 anyway) as they beat each other into a 3 way tie for 2-4 place , while the teams below had an opportunity to jump into the top 4. As stated before, none of 5-10 teams could take advantage of the chance this week but next week is set for a shake up of the top 4. They've gotten pretty comfortable there as they have been there for the last 3 weeks, and 3 of the 4 teams have been there all season. Next week #2 plays #4 and someone will have a chance to tie the losing team for a top 4 spot. It's starting to get down to the nitty gritty.

The Transformers used another big final inning to crank out another win versus the Sons. Will anyone knock off this team? So far they have played and beaten the top 3 teams and have played the toughest schedule, record-wise. Stranger things have happen so they are far from safe with 3 weeks left in the season to protect their goose egg from the Warriors, Donkey's Return, and the Trashmen. In past seasons last place teams have knocked off the undefeated top teams for pride and softball glory. Rumor is glory tastes pretty good.

Bobby Boucher award goes to Richard Kolar. While umpiring a heated contested with an unruly crowd, which I'll address later, he made sure I was not dehydrated, fully refreshed, and morally supported . Let's say it together. H2O!! No, he doesn't have a wooden spoon but I'm sure he knows why alligators are so ornery and is a fan of Captain Insano, who shows no mercy. Thanks, Richard, for being so refreshing and considerate of our umpires! Next time bring me some tackling fuel. Mrs. Nelson, please give this man an extra Otter Pop next week.

Now, to that mob of hecklers at the 8:15 green field game, aka The Commish's Posse......simmer down now! I have eagle eyes able to spot the slightest movement from miles away; even a wee field mouse. Or was that a kangaroo rat? No difference! How dare you question my impeccable discernment, my flawless softball judgment, my fancy stretchy socks. You are just jealous you do not wield the mighty blue plate brush or the oh so clickity at-bat counter thingy. Burden me no further with your, "he was safe!", "are you blind?", or "WHAT!". I see through it all to your green like envy. You silly English k-nig-ets. Kindly accept this head pinching (as mentioned above) and digital raspberries. Go away, or I will taunt you a 2nd time.

Now where was I? Ah, yes.

Get ready next week. We will have 2 more games than this week with the re-emergence of the Four Winds and Trashmen, who will both face double peril with 2 games. No game is irrelevant with standings implications all around.

Thank you all for your support of this league! Whether player, family, or rabid Kingfishers' fan, all our planning each season would be for naught without you. I hope everyone is enjoying this season and summer as much as yours truly.

Have a blessed week.

Women's Score

Blue 10 - Sarah Webb
Penguins 11 - Chelsea Nelson

Men's Scores

Sons 12 - Buddy Zahn
Warriors 7 - David Cantwell

Iron Men 11 - Wes Flores
Trashmen 6 - Nathan Watkins

Dark Horse 11 - Jeremiah Bridges
Kingfishers 8 - Dan Hilton

Donkey's Return 12 - Curtis Herring
Four Winds 15 - Dan Gerdt

Texas Dangers 10 - Brad Lee/The Team
Transformers 11 - Daniel Foster

Week 5: On The Outside Looking In

This week was a little less exciting than the previous few. Not that it didn't have any drama because we had walk off wins and comeback victories. It was due to having so many exciting weeks leading into it. There had to be a let down. This was it.

Of all of this weeks match ups only 1 team could not beat their opponent below them in the standings. That 1 team was tied by record but had the tie breaker with more total runs scored. As a result there was no change in the top 4 teams and a little shifting in the next 6. The distance between the top and bottom is now wider. Chances of the teams with losing records making the 4 team playoff is that much slimmer. Should they now raise the standard of the spoiler, pulling other teams into the depths of the standings? The most disheartening thing is if they look over the scores of the past weeks those teams from the top could very well be beneath them with more than a handful of 1 run wins between them. What could have been?

Take heart! It's not over yet. Next week the top 4 will play each other so 2 of them will have an additional loss by this time next week. Then in the coming weeks there will be 2 other games between them to further close any gap. There is something to play for, other teams to root for, or against, depending on record. Nothing is a done deal, yet, even for that 5-0 or 0-5 team.

I'm not sure of any official out of the park homeruns in a game with Shady Grove Softball but there were 4 in the first 2 innings of the Sons vs Warriors game last night. First Aaron Caines and Greg Carter for the Sons. Then Tim Sims and topped off by Wayne Willis whose blast bounced off the top of the fence and over for the Warriors. There was a nice breeze blowing out, not to take too much from the catapulters.

Player of the night goes to Jon Dunn. He was playing 3B for the Warriors when there was a close play. The runner slid in safe just under the tag. The runner picked himself up to brush off and stepped off the base a couple of step (not to go home but steady and dust himself). The runner was a guy obviously a little rusty on the rules and could not hear the instruction of his base coach. Jon told him to get on the bag to remain safe as opposed to getting a sure out. He could have tagged the runner for the out but he chose not to. I was shocked he didn't take the out. It spoke volumes to me that Jon made the "right" play to show mercy to this lost player. No, everyone shouldn't run out and let guys get away with rules oversights, intentionally walk players, or let them get on base for the sake of sportsmanship. In this case, the runner was safe but made a simple mistake. In the same spot I hope I would have done the same thing. He also had a good game with a couple of solid hits. Great job Pastor Jon!

Just a notice of a schedule change. The Trashmen vs Four Winds game next week has been post postponed until 7/20 at 7:00 on the yellow field due to kid's camp. Both teams will play double headers that day.

EVERYONE! Listen up! Security on the Lockheed Martin grounds has asked us to observe the 20 mph speed limit. This is a very serious matter as other leagues have been ejected from Corsair for similar group behaviors. Please slow down! This will give you an opportunity to see any trash that needs to be disposed of in the parking lot.

Have a great week!

The competitors were ready. Everyone had collected and were ingesting the miscellaneous goodies under the watchful eyes of 10 hungry men. The time had come. Jowls were lubricated. However, the weapons of this war were in short supply. Then the announcement came: "This year's hot dog eating contest has been cancelled." I was devastated. No meat by-product massacre. No premature regurgitation. No new nicknames assigned such as, "Jaws", "Hungry Hungry ____", or "Hot Dog Breath". No crowning of the hot dog hero. Complete denial of mastication madness.

The cookout was just too successful. There were only 2 unclaimed hot dogs left when the food lines died down and the ground seemed to blanketed with people.

Many suggestions were made from cookies or condiments replacing the hot dogs, to adding uneaten hot dogs to the 2 we started out with. All suggestions were deemed unworthy to replace the planned battle of the bulge. I can't help but wonder if we missed out on a miracle similar to the loaves of bread and fish.

Given the present triple digit temperatures, Sunday was wonderful with some early morning rain and mostly overcast during the cookout. Misters also helped in lowering the mercury.

Pastor Josh started and Pastor Jon finished the 2 shifts at the dunk tank. That line didn't seem to drop under 10 people. What happened to respect for our "elders"? No, I did not participate in this forced baptism. It was truly barbaric ;)

More prizes were given out than I expected. Children filled the bounce houses. More people were present than I had time to visit with.

Thanks go to the planners, servers, and cooks. Everything was wonderful and I look forward to our 2nd annual softball cookout.

For those of you that couldn't make it, you were missed and if you plan on coming next year you must compete in the hot dog eating contest to make it up to the rest of us. But seriously, you missed a fun afternoon.

Women's Scores

Blue 3 - Jennifer Bates
Braves 15 - Teresa Leach & Jen Sidler

Men's Scores

Transformers 30 - Mark Cruz
Four Winds 9 - JR Self

Kingfishers 9 - Randy Skinner
Donkey's Return 6 - Curtis Herring

Trashmen 11 - Pat DaDano
Dark Horse 12 - David Green **Extra Innings**

Warriors 6 - Ryan Swinney
Texas Dangers 8 - Labique FazalDin

Iron Men 8 - Tim James
Sons 9 - David Walters

Picture this: It's a cooler than usual June evening in Texas (low 90's/high 80's). You are standing in shallow right center field preparing for the next batter digging in, in the batter's box. It's a tight game so you are focused in on the play at the plate. Then you notice a hissing noise all around growing increasingly louder breaking your concentration. You brace for the assault of 9th feline cavalry, then a wide stream of water whisks by your face. That was me last night in the last inning of our game. Unfortunately, no one got hosed during the premature sprinkler launch. They were on for, probably 2-4 minutes. I was ready to resume the game as long as both teams had to play with them on. They got turned off just before that plan could be hatched. Could have been fun. A routine fly ball could get deflected by the water, or a player could get sprayed in the mush chasing down a line drive. It would have been magnificent.

Parity took a nap for the night as the gap between the top and bottom teams grew wider. Most of the games were very close, minus a 21 run win by the first place team. Save those for later. A win is a win, boys. Sheesh! The Trashmen almost got off the schnide but just fell in a 1-pitch extra inning.

Player/Play off the night goes to Michael Babb of the Iron Men. Have you seen this guy play? I remember him last season diving and chasing down everything, then having the poise to throw the runner out at first. He had more than 5 put outs last night. He nearly turned a triple play. There were runners at 1st and 2nd, no outs. The Sons had already put 3 on the board and were ready to put 2 more up to score the max runs in an inning. Michael fielded a sharply hit ball to short. He tagged the runner going to 3rd, tagged 2nd for the force out and threw to 1st. His throw was just a bit high and the 1st baseman had to come off the bag just as the batter touched it, making him safe. This effectively killed the Son's momentum that inning by stopping the scoring at 3. My advice: don't hit it to short when playing the Iron Men. Great job, Michael!

I hope you are all having a good summer. Invite someone out to the Monday night games. Even if you are not playing it's a blast visiting and razzing, I mean rooting for your favorite club wielder.

***Don't forget to come to our Softball Cookout as Shady Grove Church this Sunday, July 5th at 10 AM. All are invited!***

And yes, we will have games on July 6th.

Have a fun, safe Independence Day!

Ladies:

Penguins 8 - Jennifer Wienecke
Braves 7 - Angelica Sidler

Men:

Donkey Return's 8 - Peter May
Warriors 11 - Tim Sims

Sons 11 - Andy Hughes
Trashmen 5 - John Money

Transformers 14 - Kyle Bumgardener
Dark Horse 12 - Ray Albertson

Four Winds 10 - Steven Parra
Kingfishers 7 - Zach Faught

Texas Dangers 10 - Timothy Beene
Iron Men 11 - Isaiah Flores

Maybe only 2 teams saw it this way as 2 of the 3 undefeated teams turned to stone in the gaze of that Medusa, parity. Both of those teams went down in the final inning of their respective match up.

It was a very exciting end of the night with all 3 undefeateds in action; and 1 was sure to fall as 2 of them went head to head. I stood at the north corner of the pavilion watching to see which game seemed to be ending soonest of the last inning tied games of Iron Men (IM) v Texas Dangers (TD) & Transformers (T) v Dark Horse (DH) . The second match up roused my interest a little more due to being the battle of the 2-0 "titans", but the first was in a 1-pitch extra inning. After walking a few steps towards T v DH and noticing the start of the inning I quickly went to IM v TD knowing the game would flow much faster with 1-pitch (walk, out, or hit) extra inning. By that time the TD had taken the lead 10-9 in the top of the inning. Between the inning I ran over to T v DH. The transformers had tacked 4 on the board. Back to IM v TD. IM had pushed 1 across the plate to tie the game at 10. They loaded the bases with all the pressure on that poor pitcher to hit that black rubber mat. The weight of the world was just too much. Ball 4, game over as the winning run strolls to the plate under no threat of an arm cocked, ball wielding fielder. As I walk away from the Iron Men celebrating win #1 versus the previously undefeated Texas Dangers, I notice DH has scored 2 and has only 1 out. But before I can reach the field, a ball is caught in the outfield for the second out; then the ball in thrown to 2nd base to double up the runner leaving prematurely for third out to end the game. Dark Horse gains their first loss and the Transformers remain the spotless lamb at 3-0. Now there's something in the Good Book about spotless lambs, but that's for another week ;)

To summarize that mess look to the scores above and the standings.

Something the softball committee strives to do have the greatest amount of parity as possible. We'd like every game to be competitive. So far this season, so good. Now we just need to get the Trashmen a win.

Speaking of the Trashmen. Player and play of the night goes to John Money. He made a great over the shoulder catch as a catcher. The ball was lofted high above the fencing and seemed to calculate the perfect trajectory to fall back into play yet get as close to the fencing as possible. John showed reckless abandon, probably emboldened by to great right field catches earlier, and charged the fence with eyes fixed on the ball that had surely reach terminal velocity. He throws on the breaks and lifts his glove high with the ball he seemed to own for the evening. Then came the blood curling shout of victory. John is a spark plug that Briscoe's crew can be proud of and draw strength from.

Remember to mark your calendars for July 5th, 10 AM at SGC for the softball recognition service and cookout. All are invited! Word to the wise for all hot dog eating gladiators - shave. No one wants to see bits of nitrate soaked meat burrowing in that, most interesting man in the world, beard. Failure to comply could mean getting hosed like a muddy dog.

Thanks to everyone for another great week!

When?

Sunday July 5, 2009 at 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Where?

Shady Grove Church
2404 N. Carrier Pkwy
Grand Prairie, TX 75050

Who?

Players and their families and friends

Why?

To honor the league players and those active in its success

What?

Free cookout with burgers & "long steaks" (hot dogs)
Bounce Houses
Dessert Competition
Dunking Booth
Door Prizes
Hot Dog Eating Contest to the death with 1 hungry hungry hippo from each team
%u2026..And Much More

Week 2 Scores

Iron Men 12 Paul Babb
Transformers 22 Dustin Wood

Warriors 10 Ben Leach
Dark Horse 11 Mike Kalmar

Four Winds 10 Dave Green
Texas Dangers 12 Curtis Kral

Trashmen 5 Nathan Watkins
Donkey's Return 12 The Commish

Kingfishers 16 Stephen Grove
Sons 13 Devin Bussey

Rookie Coaches Reign

Every season you can count on seeing some of the same faces hanging up the lineup cards in chain linked dugouts. Their names are synonymous with the constant name of their team (Warriors, Kingfishers, Four Winds, and Sons). To this point in the season the only teams not to have tasted defeat are the "rookie" coaches.

Laique Fazal Din is the coach of the Texas Dangers and is the most rookie of the coaches. He and his family have been staples of Shady Grove Church and, most recently, in the softball league with his 3 brothers. He is very well thought of amongst the men in the league, even before this season. He drafted a great team (with help of Brad Lee) and kept his cool in the tumultuous draft room. He is exactly the kind of guy we look for in leadership.

Lamar Howell is the skipper of Dark Horse. It's been a couple of seasons since Lamar has coached, but we are happy to have him back in league leadership. His team is appropriately named as they don't have the sizzle of such league greats as Goar or Carranza, but they seemed to have a special something from the time the roster came together. The key to this team is balance. They have a little of everything needed to be successful. At this point they might be considered more than just a dark horse. Great job, Lamar.

Last but not least, and first according to the standings, are the Transformers lead by Daniel Foster. Like Lamar, Daniel has coached in this league before and has the most experience of the 3. This team has many surprised scattered throughout the line up with many quality players that are new to the league. I have probably watched this team more than any other and they certainly pose a serious threat to the reigning champion Warriors. I don't believe this team is a just a flash in the pan. They could be gold. Danny knows what he's doing. Go easy on us, brother.

I got to watch a little of all the 7:00 games, then my own at 8:15. Play of the day goes to Casey Graham, 2nd baseman of the Sons. Back peddling and leaping, he caught a ball that I knew for sure was a dinker base hit. After the catch, I knew he had to drop it. After all, about landing on his head and doing a backward somersault would knock loose any grip; but not Casey's. And as if that weren't enough, he fires the ball to 2nd base to double up the man leaving the base, probably thinking the same thing I was, base hit. This was not only a great play, but a rally killer. WOW!

I plan to start adding the standing for the women's league so check back this week for that.

Great job "rookie" coaches but get ready for the revenge of the vets. See you all next week. Be blessed!

Week 1 Scores

Transformers 17 Mark Tijeria
Kingfishers 16 Shane Green

Sons 14 Chesley Davis
Donkey's Returns 12 Peter May

Texas Dangers 11 Raique Fazal Din
Trashmen 6 Dustin Green

Warriors 13 Bob Leach
Four Winds 7 Tim Goring

Dark Horse 16 Jamie Holley
Iron Men 6 Isaiah Flores

*Names to the right of scores are team sportsman of the week

It was great to get back to Corsair Park for the start of the 2009 Shady Grove Church Softball season. Now I just have to get used to having a late night every Monday again. On the positive side, Monday will temporarily cease to be a four letter word and vault to my personal favorite day of the week. This upsets Tuesday as it becomes the new goat, but I digress.

This week all the visiting teams pulled out victories in defiance of the odds of such a feat. All games are home games at Corsair but having the final at bat is very crucial as the "home" team gets the last chance to either pull ahead or tie. The guys can attest to the value of having one last chance at the plate.

All of the teams had practices leading into the season but the rust showed with all the fields littered with errors; but that makes for a much more interesting game for the fans and a devastatingly frustrating, and stressful, evening for the players and coaches.

Personally, I spent all last night on the green field and didn't get to roam to watch the action on red or blue. Both games on green were exciting and finished in similar fashion. In the early game, the Kingfishers and Transformers traded leads until the home team, Kingfishers jumped out to a large lead. It didn't seem like the Transformers would have an answer, but in one inning they overcame the large deficit and turned it into a large lead of their own that they would not relinquish. It looked like the Kingfishers might be done, but they chiseled away a 6 run hole to just 1. 2 outs, tying run on third. The ball gets popped to shallow left center field. It looks like it might fall in for a hit but the ball went high enough to give the fielder the chance to make the final out for the Decepticon (I assume with the navy uniforms) victory.

In the late game, Donkey's Return (DR) scored the maximum amount of runs the first 2 innings to jump out to a large lead on the Sons. It was very fortunate for the Sons that there was a run limit in place with the combination of the hitting of DR and the multiple errors they were making. The next two innings would only yield 2 more runs for the home team, DR. The Sons scored a couple each inning to be down by 2 going into the final inning. They loaded the bases, managed to score 5 runs, and left the bases loaded when the final out of the inning was recorded. Donkey's Return looked poised to comeback with the batters at the bottom of the line up reaching base and the top of the line up coming up. They were able to just get 1 across the plate before the game ended.

There were two phenomenal catches during the Transformers/Kingfishers contest, appropriately, one for each team. The first was by Mark Tijeria at third base. Wearing a mitt on his left hand he dove-leapt to his right to snag an extra base screamer down the left field line. I'm not sure another guy in our league could have made that play. The second was by our league acrobat, Aaron Morgan, in left field for the Kingfishers. Running out of time to track down a fly ball while backing up, he leapt in a way that one might confuse the jump for a back flip attempt and not a desperation maneuver at catching a fly ball. He came up with the catch immediately landing flat on his back, yet grasping the ball to ensure the out. This conjured images of future chiropractic adjustments in my head for the spinally impacted, bandana sporting dynamo. Spectacular, fellows!

We'll have spots on other teams as the year progresses.

It was a great night of fellowship and it was great to see faces I only see this time of year. Thanks to all for helping us pick up the complex and please continue this effort during the season.

Please pray for our contact at Lockheed that gets us the fields every year, Russell Neely. He has a brain tumor and will be having surgery very soon.

Have a blessed week and thanks for a great start to the new season.

This year, and over the past couple of seasons, the visiting teams of the 8:15 games have been responsible for cleaning up the area around the field they just played on, including the stands. This policy is the same this year. In the past softball committee members have stayed long after the complex has emptied to pick up the park and parking lot. Coaches, please take the initiative and encourage your team to help shoulder this load so everyone can go home ASAP.

Friends, family, and fans, please pick up after yourself and encourage others to do the same. Also, if you see trash under the stands or on the ground, please dispose of it. The players of the late games will get to leave much quicker. This will help us all keep Corsair Park tidy. As of now, we are the only league allowed to play at this facility because of our diligence in cleaning before we leave. Help us be an example to Lockheed Martin and those around us by being responsible for our litter.

Thanks in advance from the softball committee, teams, and Shady Grove Church.

Here's this year's softball jersey logo put together by Brad Lee. Let's give him major credit. The past couple of seasons he has worked into the wee hours of the night, and weekend, to put together these jerseys with sponsors and creative logos. This is in addition to his normal assistance on the softball committee. Great job, Brad!

***Home teams noted last, playing from 1st base dugout, and reading devotional***
***8:15 visiting team in charge of field clean-up***

June 8th
7:15
Texas Dangers v Trashmen - Red
Transformers v Kingfishers - Green
8:15
Warriors v Four Winds - Red
Dark Horse v Iron Men - Blue
Sons v Donkey's Return - Green

June 15th
7:15
Warriors v Dark Horse - Red
Iron Men v Transformers - Green
8:15
Trashmen v Donkey's Return - Red
Kingfishers v Sons - Blue
Four Winds v Texas Dangers - Green

June 22nd
7:15
Donkey's Return v Warriors - Red
Four Winds v Kingfishers - Green
8:15
Sons v Trashmen - Red
Transformers v Dark Horse - Blue
Texas Dangers v Iron Men - Green

June 25th
7:15
Kingfishers v Donkey's Return - Red
Warriors v Texas Dangers - Green
8:15
Trashmen v Dark Horse - Red
Transformers v Four Winds - Blue
Iron Men v Sons - Green

July 6th
7:15
Iron Men v Trashmen - Red
Donkey's Return v Four Winds - Green
8:15
Dark Horse v Kingfishers - Red
Sons v Warriors - Blue
Texas Dangers v Transformers - Green

July 13th
7:15
Texas Dangers v Dark Horse - Red
Transformers v Sons - Green
8:15
Trashmen v Four Winds - Red
Warriors v Kingfishers - Blue
Iron Men v Donkey's Return - Green

July 20th
7:15
Kingfishers v Iron Men - Red
Sons v Texas Dangers - Green
8:15
Warriors v Trashmen - Red
Dark Horse v Four Winds - Blue
Donkey's Return v Transformers - Green

July 27th
7:15
Dark Horse v Donkey's Return - Red
Four Winds v Sons - Green
8:15
Trashmen v Transformers - Red
Iron Men v Warriors - Blue
Texas Dangers v Kingfishers - Green

August 3rd
7:15
Kingfishers v Trashmen - Red
Transformers v Warriors - Green
8:15
Donkey's Return v Texas Dangers - Red
Four Winds v Iron Men - Blue
Sons v Dark Horse - Green

August 10th

PLAYOFFS

Last night's draft was fast and furious with trades, name calling (friendly of course), and controversy. When the dust cleared here is how the teams lined up this year. No, this was not the draft order but at random. Let me know if your name has been excluded or if your coach doesn't contact you in a week. Jerseys will be ordered today and hopefully they'll arrive before the first game. It's a little over 2 weeks before the fun starts. Get ready.

Iron Men (Woods): Luke Babb, Michael Babb, Paul Babb III, MR Babb, Paul Babb, Andrew Fritz, Rick Barron, Marc Rosselot, Jimmy Simental, Tim James, Cory Woods, Mack Barron, Isaiah Flores, Wes Flores

Orioles (Briscoe): Josh Briscoe, Michael Bell, Brandon Briscoe, Gary Echols, Matt M., Nathan Watkins, Anthony Bell, Dustin Green, James Money, Chris Perry, Pat Dadano, Joel Money, John Money, James Gadberry

Texas Dangers (Fazal Din): Jeffrey Kral, Brad Lee, Laique Fazal Din, Raique Fazal Din, Labique Fazal Din, Austin Benjamin, Jonathan Sidler, Curtis Kral, Chad King, Bruce Dyer, Caleb Beene, Christopher Beene, Jeremy Kral, Timothy Beene

Transformers (Foster): Daniel Foster, Paul Foster, Mark Tijeria, Niko Tijeria, Kyle Bumgardener, Jason Barnes, Mark Cruz, Andrew Vera, Dustin Wood, Jesse Crane, Nick Economou, Marc Carroll, Kerris Colier, Mike Knight

Donkey's Return (Goar): Trey Collins, Phillip May, Phillip May II, Jamar Johnson, Peter May, Curis Herring, Curtis Herring Jr., Darnell Robinson, Joshua Sedillo, Chris Herring, Aaron Goar, Matthew Sedillo, Christopher Taylor, Benny Salazar

Kingfishers (Grove): Paul Grove, Daniel Grove, Stephen Grove, Zachary Faught, Robert Price, Aaron Morgan, Matt Morgan, Kyle Morgan, Randy Skinner, Dan Hilton, Reggie Taylor, Rodney Johnson, Rodney Johnson Jr., Sam Hilton, Shane Green

Dark Horse (Howell): Ray Albertson, Lamar Howell, Brad Braddy, Josh Braddy, Ethan Howell, Josh Rosser, Jeff Wienecke, Calvin McCrary Jr., Norvel Rohrer, David Green, Jamie Holley, Steve McDonald, Jeremiah Bridges, Michael Kalmar

Four Winds (Nelson): Chris Pell, Steven Parra, Maxwell McDuffie, Marty Nelson, Sean Richardson, Gumaro Castillo, Frank Martin, Dave Green, Doug Hartzell, Tim Goring, JR Self, Alex Martin, Dan Gerdt, Nathan Paba

Sons (Turman): Aaron Caines, Greg Carter, Chuck Carter, Danny Lawing, Casey Graham, Jason Robertson, Michael Singleton, Devin Bussey, Wesley Walters, Buddy Zahn, Andrew Hughes, Michael Turman, Chesley Davis, David Walters

Warriors (Willis): Wayne Willis, Matt Willis, David Cantwell, Ryan Swinney, Quentin Willis, Chris Willis, Andrew Cantwell, Kris Newman, Jason Kunz, Tim Sims, Bob Leach, John Stewart, Jonathan Leach, Benjamin Leach, Damon Lindsey

I don't remember how it started but I remember the invitation a couple of years ago to join a group after the Monday night games at Whataburger. I expected a couple of people or families but the place was packed with people from our league. Most of the time I ended the evening sipping on a chocolate shake discussing who won, the controversial plays of the night, and possible rule changes. My wife would join the ladies and talk about lady things (I don't know what that means). Most of the times the ladies would goad us into leaving well after the restaurant staff locked the doors.

Consider joining us this summer after the game at what is commonly referred to as the happening place, Whataburger on Pioneer Parkway just east of Great Southwest.

The Shady Grove Softball League 2009 Draft is scheduled for 5/21/09. However, due to the admission of late sign-ups and the pending trip of our IT guy the draft could be moved back. No worries. The league starting date is still 6/8/09. Stay posted. I will post draft results online as soon as it occurs.

If you missed sign-ups come out to the park to watch and enjoy the wonderful atmosphere.

For you guys that have played the last 2 season you will recall the unique, or lack there of, jersey numbering. 2 seasons ago we had a "1" on the back of all jerseys with scripture making up the number. Last season we had a "3" on all jerseys with scripture making up number. This season it seemed logical to make up for the missing number "2".

With the popularity of the organization "I am second". We decided that would be a natural theme. Just one problem. We needed the approval of the organization to use the logo. Upon calling we found out that they don't lend the logo. However, on the other end of the line there was a conversation that ended by one guy telling the other not to say no yet. They asked for a presentation of our league and what we do. We presented the league and the other types of lettering we used in the past. They loved it and agreed the "I am second" theme fits right along with their goals as well as our. They agreed to let us use their logo for our jerseys.

Look forward to seeing that in a little more than a month.

Reminder: Last week of sign-ups will be this Sunday 5/2/09.

Why Corsair?

Over the years I've played a lot of baseball and softball (high school and recreational) but the best kept fields and complex I have ever played at are at Corsair Park, on the grounds of Lockheed Martin in Grand Prairie, Texas.

How did Shady Grove Church Softball League end up there instead of Mike Lewis Park, which is right next door to the church? Relationship. There was a contact with Corsair/Lockheed that was able to get us a time slot. It turned out it was cheaper than Mike Lewis as well.

To get to the park you must go through a security gate, protecting the Lockheed facility. The park has a small field just outside the area of the fields where occasionally there will be a soccer practice but otherwise, the facility is just for our league. This has made for a wonderfully safe, family centered environment.

The past few years there have been threats of no longer being able to use the grounds. Other leagues were expelled from the grounds as there aren't enough workers to maintain the grounds after trashing the fields. We were allowed to stay because, in their words, we leave the park in a better condition than we find it. It's taken a little work from everyone involved to be sure we clean up well, but it has been worth it to stay in such great, private facilities. As of last summer, Shady Grove Church Softball League was the only league able to use the fields. Private and exclusive; can't beat that.

My hope is that Corsair Park will be the permanent location for the league. We have been there 7 years, but each year it's a discussion. I'd like it to be a formality. For me, since day one, it has just had this "magic" to it. A proverbial field of dreams.

"Is this Heaven?"

"No, it's Corsair Park"

Just to let everyone know today is the final day of the sign-up discount. The fee will be $30 instead of $35. Don't give away a foot long sub just to delay signing up. See you at the sign-up tables today at Shady Grove Church.

I've personally been a part of this league for 6 years and have been on the league committee for 2 years. I wouldn't consider myself a softball junkie but I do play recreationally during the year (It's my only physical activity). Christmas comes 2 twice a year for me with this league. It is unlike any other league I have played in, in any sport. I love playing the game but it's the people involved that make it so special. I almost feel bad when my team beats another team b/c the guys on the other team are fantastic. To me, this is the league I really want to play my best and win. Before each summer is over we are just a bunch of friends playing for fun and bragging rights.

The league is comprised of about 40% of people associated with Shady Grove Church, with the remaining 60% coming from outside. Several families play together (father/son/grandfather) on a team. Guys play with co-workers or classmates. Only people 13 and under cannot play. True, the skill set is diluted by being all inclusive but the level of competition is very intense.

Games are played at Corsair Park in Grand Prairie, Texas. This is a completely fenced in, private complex of 4 fields. We are the only league that plays on these field over the summer. The fields are, by far, the best I've played on (no bad hops in the infield/no outfield potholes/manicured).

One of the biggest complaints about women's sports is the over competitive nature. This element is greatly dulled in this league. Teams are very encouraging, especially to those learning to play. League history has revealed the most talented team does not always win; but more times than not the team that lifts each other up does. It's a place to play, be uplifted, and have fun with some great gals.

Last season there were 10 mens teams and 4 womens teams of about 13/14 players. In the recent past there have been as many as 14 mens and 8 womens teams.

At the end of each game night a large group goes to the Whataburger east on 303 (Pioneer) to get caught up on the night's action.

This time of year turns Monday to the best day of the week and Tuesday, the new Monday.

The season opens exactly 2 months from tomorrow. Oil up those gloves, shine that bat, lace up those cleats or tenni's. You coach will be calling in early May after the draft. Can you smell the freshly cut grass yet?