Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Now Batting... Manny Mota!
Now there's a random Airplane quote for ya. Wonder if anyone recognized it. Anywho. I just had my last softball game of the season yesterday. Somehow, I managed to finish the season batting 1.000, going 6 for 6 in my 3 games. And all six of this hits managed to stay in the infield.
I love playing 16-inch softball. For years, I languished on a 14-inch team, unable to hit my way out of a paper bag. But in 16-inch, I turned into Pete Rose. (By that, I mean that I'm gambling on all our games.) What makes 16-inch so much easier for me is that I'm fast and I pull the ball. So if I hit a grounder to the third baseman, I'm going to get to first before he can throw the large ball over there.
My favorite hit of the season came yesterday too. I roped a single right up the middle. I POUNDED the ball. It was a veritable rocket. For some reason, the pitcher decided to stick her hand out and almost lost it. The first baseman was joking with me about how she might have to pitch with her other hand now. Love to hear that.
The best part about the game, though, was that we won. Not only did we win, but we beat the #1 team, which happened to be undefeated. We pounded them 12-8. The key to victory for us was that their pitcher was off. I think the pitcher is the single biggest factor in 16-inch softball. All you need is someone who can consistently get the ball over the plate. You don't need to strike them out. You just want them to swing and hope you can play defense. The pitcher yesterday was all over. The balls were often FEET outside or behind the batter. She ended up walking at least 6 people, and we weren't being overly picky in the balls we were taking.
I noticed that the pitcher had a number written on the back of her leg. Which means that she just did the triathlon on Sunday. So maybe she was just a little tired from that, which threw off her pitching. But it doesn't matter WHY she sucked or WHY we won. The important thing was that we beat the #1 team. And now our team is rocking as we prepare for the playoffs. Unfortunately, I'm going to be out of town for the playoffs, so I'm done for the season. But at least I finished the season batting 1.000. Now that's a record that won't be beaten.
I love playing 16-inch softball. For years, I languished on a 14-inch team, unable to hit my way out of a paper bag. But in 16-inch, I turned into Pete Rose. (By that, I mean that I'm gambling on all our games.) What makes 16-inch so much easier for me is that I'm fast and I pull the ball. So if I hit a grounder to the third baseman, I'm going to get to first before he can throw the large ball over there.
My favorite hit of the season came yesterday too. I roped a single right up the middle. I POUNDED the ball. It was a veritable rocket. For some reason, the pitcher decided to stick her hand out and almost lost it. The first baseman was joking with me about how she might have to pitch with her other hand now. Love to hear that.
The best part about the game, though, was that we won. Not only did we win, but we beat the #1 team, which happened to be undefeated. We pounded them 12-8. The key to victory for us was that their pitcher was off. I think the pitcher is the single biggest factor in 16-inch softball. All you need is someone who can consistently get the ball over the plate. You don't need to strike them out. You just want them to swing and hope you can play defense. The pitcher yesterday was all over. The balls were often FEET outside or behind the batter. She ended up walking at least 6 people, and we weren't being overly picky in the balls we were taking.
I noticed that the pitcher had a number written on the back of her leg. Which means that she just did the triathlon on Sunday. So maybe she was just a little tired from that, which threw off her pitching. But it doesn't matter WHY she sucked or WHY we won. The important thing was that we beat the #1 team. And now our team is rocking as we prepare for the playoffs. Unfortunately, I'm going to be out of town for the playoffs, so I'm done for the season. But at least I finished the season batting 1.000. Now that's a record that won't be beaten.
