Venting...

[BrianC14]

:ranton:

OK, here we go.... spleen venting time.

File this under 'Improve Game Management', if you wish.

Top of the 1st, two out, R1.

B4 hits a 3-hopper (charity hop) to F6.

F6, in his 17 years of wisdom, decides that 15 feet is too close to get R1 at 2B with an easy flip, so the boy baseball genius decides to throw to 1B.

Well, as the baseball gods would have it, F6's throw pulls F3 off the bag in the direction of home.

F3 turns to try and tag B/R... but I'm straightlined, and honestly the best I could manage was a quick glance between the B/R and F3 on the 1B side.

"SAFE".

HC for the home team goes nuts. "Can you ask for help? Can you get help?"

Sure, I'll get help. :::: conference w/ UIC::::: "I didn't see a tag, Brian."

"Runner is safe."

HC is steamed, but tough sh*t, coach. Better to ask your F6 why the he threw to first to start with. Deal with it, coach.

Now bottom 2nd. Score is 1-0, home team, who is at bat.

R1. F1 for visitors does a pivot-foot up and back and snaps around (RHP) but feints a throw. No call. I see his pivot foot up and back, and the pitcher's plate is covered with dirt. I'm not picking that booger. HC (as 3B coach) is livid, wants a balk. AC at 1B wants a balk, and I shut him down PDQ. HC over at 3B keeps harping on it, and I give him the hard stare.

"That's two you've missed."

And I....

....

...

... just continue to stare at him. But he shuts up.

I should have warned at that point, but didn't.

Game moves along. We're really flying. Partner/UIC has a great zone going, so I leave him alone, no need to bring my problems his way.

4th inning, home team at bat. Nobody on, 1 out.

Little dribbler up the 1B line, about 6 feet fair.

F1 comes over to field it. Drops it. Tries to pick it up again (with his GLOVE - - hello?) Drops it. Picks it up again (finally!) and decides no need to flip to F3, I'll just jog over and step on the bag. Meanwhile, B/R has been going hell-bent-for-leather up the line.

"SAFE!"

So now it's the visiting HC's turn to explode. "Hey! He stepped on the bag!"

"I know, they both did," says I.

"But our guy beat him there!"

"No, John, the B/R got there first."

"Oh, that's just AWFUL!"

Move to bottom 5: home team's up, bases loaded thanks to 2 walks and a soft hit to center.

B5 rips one - and I mean a (*&$^* rocket to the right side, which F4 does his best Dustin Pedroia imitation and lays out horizontal, but can't come up with with it, and it goes all the way to the fence, a bases-clearing double. Wow.

Next batter also doubles, and the score is quickly 5-1.

Now we're in the top of the 6th. Visitors at bat, nobody on. 2 outs.

Bouncer to F5, who doesn't seem to be in a big hurry to throw over, so it turns into a .... BANGER. 'OUT!'

"That wasn't even close!" he screams, from 130 feet across the diamond. He decides for whatever reason that he needs to come all the way over to 1B (as I'm now out in short right field) - - apparently he saw the need to get the B/R's helmet, even though the 1B coach is there for that. And he's bleating like a sheep hung up on a barbed wire fence in February.

So he makes his way back to the dugout (3B side) and is still bleating, when he says, "That was AWFUL! You made an AWFUL call there!"

So now I'm waiting for some friendly help (UIC.. you're right there... shut him down, will ya? But he doesn't... ) so I jog all the way and provide the rat with a warning. (This is where partners need to step in, guys...)

Bottom 6th goes quick, top 7 goes quick, and that's that.

Sorry, guys, I just needed to vent my spleen.

Hopefully there's a lesson in here for someone.

GAME MANAGEMENT might be one.

B)

[Paperipper17]

Now we're in the top of the 6th. Visitors at bat, nobody on. 2 outs.

Bouncer to F5, who doesn't seem to be in a big hurry to throw over, so it turns into a .... BANGER. 'OUT!'

"That wasn't even close!" he screams, from 130 feet across the diamond.

I love that. No, no, you're right. Your view from waaaay over there and at a bad angle was much better than mine, standing over here 20 feet from the play and at 90 degrees. I've only seen that same exact thing a few thousand times, what do I know. Rat.

Nothing like a game where players do their best to make the calls look iffy. Especially when it all goes against the same squad. I think the little....angels do it on purpose sometimes.

[mstaylor]

I did a JV tournament today, baaaad baseball. We start off with several walks and hit batters. We were two or three runs down before we had a batted ball, foul, 35 minute top of the inning. I'm thinking this is bad but maybe it will be a 10 in 5 and go home. Nooooo, the other team has a 25 minute bottom of one. Final score 15/8 in 7. Both teams are from another area that lets coaches yak way too much.

I run players back in the dugout a couple of times, then on a bases loaded walk the team wants to come and high five the R3. I tell the coach they can't do that and the next I see out of the dugout is done for the day. He says he's never heard a rule like that. I told him not during live ball, on a HR it's OK. He wants to know what's the difference. One's live, the other is dead.

Then we have runners at first and second, popup in foul to the left side. The ball starts foul and comes back and drops a foot fair. No IFF from my PU so they pick it up and get the double play. Of course the manager wants to know why no IFF. My 17 yr old partner says no ordinary effort. He said the way it tracked it wasn't ordinary effort. Bottom of five the slaughter run is on third, two outs. The batter walks and decides to keep going to second. As they throw to get him R3 takes off and gets thrown out by fifteen feet.

To top it off it was a 2:45 ugly game. I feel your pain.

[BrianC14]

I did a JV tournament today, baaaad baseball. We start off with several walks and hit batters. We were two or three runs down before we had a batted ball, foul, 35 minute top of the inning. I'm thinking this is bad but maybe it will be a 10 in 5 and go home. Nooooo, the other team has a 25 minute bottom of one. Final score 15/8 in 7. Both teams are from another area that lets coaches yak way too much.

I run players back in the dugout a couple of times, then on a bases loaded walk the team wants to come and high five the R3. I tell the coach they can't do that and the next I see out of the dugout is done for the day. He says he's never heard a rule like that. I told him not during live ball, on a HR it's OK. He wants to know what's the difference. One's live, the other is dead.

Then we have runners at first and second, popup in foul to the left side. The ball starts foul and comes back and drops a foot fair. No IFF from my PU so they pick it up and get the double play. Of course the manager wants to know why no IFF. My 17 yr old partner says no ordinary effort. He said the way it tracked it wasn't ordinary effort. Bottom of five the slaughter run is on third, two outs. The batter walks and decides to keep going to second. As they throw to get him R3 takes off and gets thrown out by fifteen feet.

To top it off it was a 2:45 ugly game. I feel your pain.

See - this is where Mom's sage advice always comes in handy...

"Well, it could always be worse..." B)

I feel better already.

I mean, I had BOTH coaches angry with me, so I figure I must have been getting 'em right. :ranton:

[mstaylor]

Tell me about it. I didn't mention the catcher dropping his shoulder into the runner then tagging him.

[Tyennie]

Hey at least you guys are getting to call some ball. North of you Brian we are still in the frozen tundra.