Sunday, October 31, 2010

HOME RUN! [2010 Outlaws Baseball Tournament #10 Day #2]


The Outlaws were back at the Mather Sports Complex for the second day of the Super Series Halloween Scream Tournament. Jack and I were out of the house at 6:30 a.m. for an 8:00 a.m. game. The Outlaws were seeded sixth and played the third seeded Folsom Flames.

At the plate, Jack was 1 for 3 with a run scored. In his first at-bat, he hit a 3 and 1 pitch for a hard fly ball right at the center fielder for an out. Jack grounded the first pitch to the third baseman and was thrown out at first in his second plate appearance.

In the top of the six inning with the score tied 1 to 1, Jack led off the inning by hitting a 1 and 2 pitch down the third baseline for a single. He stole second and third. Breyton and Trevor drew walks to load the bases with no outs. Ian hit a 3 and 1 pitch over the left fielder's head for a grand slam!

In the field, Jack played first base for three innings and third base for three innings. He had two put-outs and one assist. At first base, Jack had put-outs on throws from shortstop and second baseman. At third base, Jack fielded one grounder cleanly and threw the runner out at first.

On the strength of Ian's grand slam, the Outlaws won the game by the score of 5 to 1. They advanced to the semi-final game of the tournament against the Sluggers. The Outlaws beat the Slugger by the score of 6 to 4 when they won the tournament in Woodland in June.

Jack struggled with the strike zone in the last two games of the day. Jack is very selective at the plate; he rarely swings at a bad pitch. With the umpires were calling a very large strike zone, this worked against him.

At the plate, Jack was 0 for 2 with two strike-outs looking. He struck out looking twice on 1 and 2 counts on outside pitches.

In the field, Jack played four innings at first base. He had five put-outs. Jack had four put-outs on throws from the shortstop and second baseman. In the first inning, he made a great diving stop on a hard grounder hit to his right; Jack popped back up and raced to first base for the out.

Jack left the game in the fourth inning to go and play in the semi-final flag football game with the SEAs Eagles.

With Josh pitching a complete game, the Outlaws beat the Sluggers by the score of 4 to 3. They advanced to the championship game against the Diamond Dawgs.

At the plate, Jack was 1 for 2 with a home run. In his first at-bat, he struck out looking on a 1 and 2 outside pitch. Jack crushed a 1 and 1 pitch into right field in his second plate appearance. The ball skipped all the way to the right field fence. Jack raced home standing up for a home run!

In the field, Jack played three innings at third base and two innings in left field. He had one put-out and one assist. In the first inning with a runner on third, Jack fielded a grounder to the left side and threw home to Trevor for the out. Trevor did a nice job of holding on to the ball and tagging out the runner as he was bowled over.

The Outlaws starting pitcher got tagged for seven earned runs and the Outlaws lost the game by the score of 10 to 2. For the second time this fall, the Outlaws finished second in a Super Series tournament.

Saturday, October 30, 2010

2010 Outlaws Baseball Tournament #10 Day #1

The Outlaws played in the first day of the Super Series Halloween Scream baseball tournament at Mather. After last night's flag football play-off game and Jack's social event [more about this in a future post], I got Jack up at 6 a.m. and we were on the road to the ballpark by 6:30 a.m. It rained for about 5 minutes just before the first game started, but then never really rained again all morning.

The Outlaws played the Demons in the first game. They had beat the Demons by the score of 9 to 2 in an elimination game two weeks ago before the tournament was rained out.

At the plate, Jack was 0 for 2 with a walk and a run scored. Jack has actually started to make good contact again, but is hitting the ball right at people. In his first at-bat, Jack crushed a 2 and 0 pitch into right field. Initially, I thought it was going to be over the right fielder's head, but he was playing very deep and made a very poised catch. Jack walked on four pitches in his second plate appearance. He stole second. Josh was walked to load the bases with no outs. With Breyton batting, there was a passed ball. Jeremy scored from third. Trying to get Jeremy, the catcher flipped the ball back over the pitcher's head towards the mound. No one was backing up the pitcher. Moving from second to third on the passed ball, Jack never slowed down. with the ball rolling near the pitcher's mound, Jack scored standing up without a play. Jack struck out looking on a 3 and 2 pitch that was outside and pretty far off the plate.

In the field, Jack played three innings at third and three innings in left field. In the first inning, Jack took a throw from Trevor to tag out a runner trying to steal third. In the fourth inning with Jack in left field and the bases loaded, a line drive was hit down the third base line. Jack did not get the best jump on it. He leaped at the last second and just missed the ball. Two runs scored. Jack threw to Jeremy as the cut-off and Jeremy threw home to get a runner out.

Leading 3 to 1 going into the bottom of the sixth, the Outlaws gave up three runs and lost the game by the score of 4 to 3.

The Outlaws played Oorah Baseball in the second game of the day. They had beat Oorah by the score of 6 to 5 four weeks ago.

At the plate, Jack was 1 for 2 with a walk and two RBIs. In his first at-bat, Jack walked on four pages. He stole second, but ended the inning there. In the third inning, Jack came to bat with the bases loaded and two out. He drove a 0 and 1 pitch up the middle for a single and two RBIs! Jack stole second and went to third on a passed ball, but ended the inning at third. Jack lined a 3 and 1 pitch hard right at the second baseman in his third plate appearance.

In the field, Jack played five innings at third and one inning at first. He had two put-outs and two assists. In the first and third innings, Jack fielded grounders to the left side and threw the runner out at first. In the sixth inning playing first base, he had put-outs on throws from the pitcher and third baseman. Jack made a nice dig on the one hopper from Jordan for the last out of the game.

The Outlaws won the game by the score of 6 to 2. They finished the day with 1 win and 1 loss and were seeded sixth out of the twelve teams in the tournament. The Outlaws will be back at Mather for an 8 a.m. game against the Folsom Flames on Sunday morning.

Friday, October 29, 2010

2010 PAL Flag Football SEAs versus Sacramento Country Day

The SEAs Eagles played their seventh game of the 2010 PAL Flag Football season against Sacramento Country Day at Jesuit High School. This was the first round of the single elimination playoffs.

On offense, Jack was the starting wide receiver. He had a number of balls thrown in his direction in this game. In the first half on a fly pattern, the quarterback threw one up for grabs in Jack's direction. Jack went up between two taller players and only got a hand on the ball as it was knocked away. Also in the first half, he had a pass thrown to him on a crossing pattern that was high; Jack got a hand on it, but could not control it. Late in the second half with the Eagles driving, they ran a half back option to Joe. Joe threw the ball to Jack on a crossing pattern in the end zone. The throw was low and Jack lost control of the ball when he hit the ground. Two plays later, the quarterback threw to Jack on a corner route. The defensive back was called for pass inference. Jack was very frustrated with himself; he felt that he should have caught three of the four passes.

On defense, Jack played linebacker. Sacramento Country Day kept trying to run sweeps and Jack made several nice "tackles" on the corner.

The Eagles had a rough first half. Their quarterback was 0 for 8 with two interceptions. Sacramento Country Day scored on a long pass when the receiver got behind the defensive back. Sacramento Country Day led by the score of 6 to 0 at the end of the first half.

The Eagles settled down in the second half and scored two touchdowns to go ahead by the score of 14 to 6. Sacramento Country Day scored late in the fourth quarter on another long pass where the receiver got behind the defensive back. They failed on the two point conversion making the score 14 to 12.

The Eagles put together a long drive to the one yard line to chew up the remaining clock and seal the victory.

The Eagles advance to the semi-final game on Sunday. They will play St. John Evangelist (SJE). SJE played the game before SEAs. They have a number of tall receivers that are going to present a real challenge for SEAs defensive backs.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Bills Simmon's Predictions for the 2010-2011 NBA Season

On twitter, Bill Simmons posted his predictions for the 2010-2011 season NBA basketball season. The most depressing prediction is the Kings winning only 22 games. The Kings won 25 games last year. The Vegas over/under for Kings wins is 27.5. Other predictions include:
East playoffs
Mia 63 wins
Orl 61
Bos 58
Chi 46
Atl 45
Mil 42
NKY 41
Ind 37

Second Round: Bos over Orl and Mia over Chi
Conference Finals: Bos over Mia (6).

West playoffs
OKC 62 wins
LAL 56
Uth 55
Dal 53
Por 52
SA  49
Phx 44
Hou 42

Second Round: OKC over Por and LAL over Uta
Conference Finals: OKC over LAL (7).

NBA Finals: Bos over OKC in 6. 

Lottery
LAC 42 wins
NO  41
Den 41
Mem 38
Cha 36
GS  34
Was 33
Det 29
Cle 26
NJ  26
Sac 22
Phi 21
Tor 20
Min 19

MVP: Durant

ROY: Griffin.

All-NBA: 
KD LBJ Wade Howard DWill (1st)
Amare Kobe CP3 CB4 Dirk (2nd)
RWest Roy Bogut Melo Pau (3rd)

NBA Power Rankings 2010-2011 Preseason

The Sacramento Kings open training camp ranked as the third worst team in the league in Marc Stein's power rankings of NBA teams, ahead of only the Raptors and Pistons.

NBA Basketball Power Rankings - National Basketball Association - ESPN
My new non-Casspi-related obsession: If Cousins' big preseason launches him to the ROY trophy, this'll be the first team to field back-to-back ROYs since my Buffalo Braves did it in 1973 (Bob McAdoo) and 1974 (Ernie D).

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

California Historical Landmark #155

Lone Star Mill
California State Historical Landmark #155

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located at the entrance to Stillman L. Magee Park, Mackville Road, 1 mile north of Clements, California. There are 24 other California State Historical Landmarks in San Joaquin County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 12.233 W 121° 05.508.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

California Historical Landmark #115

A sawmill built in 1852 on the Mokelumne River was removed to Hodge and (David S.) Terry's ranch in 1854 and a flour mill attached the following year. The mill burned in 1856 and was rebuilt on its present site as the Lone Star Mill.

California Historical Landmark #115

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Junip - In Every Direction

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!
Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Junip - In Every Direction

Code Expiration: January 21, 2011

Monday, October 25, 2010

ESPN 30 for 30: Tim Richmond: To the Limit

Tim Richmond: To the Limit is the twenty-sixth film in ESPN's 30 for 30 series. The documentary looks at the life of race car driver Tim Richmond.

Born into a wealthy family, Tim Richmond was a flamboyant open wheel and NASCAR driver. In the late 1970's, Richmond raced sprint and Indy race cars. He was named the 1980 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year.

In 1980, Richmond switched to stock cars. Esquire magazine named Richmond as one of "the best of the new generation" in 1984. Improving steadily, he won seven NASCAR races and finished third in the Winston Cup series points race in 1986.

Richmond was the antithesis of the Southern, blue-collar, dirt-track racers who dominated NASCAR. Living a fairly debauched lifestyle, he earned the nickname "Hollywood." Richmond was a showman who basked in the attention of the media and fans, especially the attention of female admirers.

Reportedly suffering from double pneumonia, Richmond unexpectedly withdrew from the NASCAR racing circuit. In reality, he had AIDS. Richmond returned to the track in 1987, but he was gone from the sport by the next year as his health deteriorated.

He spent his final days as a recluse, dying on August 13, 1989, at the age of 34.

Like a number of the 30 for 30 films, I did not know this story; I had never heard of Tim Richmond. Interestingly, Bill Simmons mentioned in a mail bag almost a year ago that the story of Tim Richmond was a 30 for 30 documentary that he wished was made but wasn't. Somewhere along the way, the film got made.

Tim Richmond: To the Limit is an interesting, but not great documentary. I felt that it dragged a little in the last third. I would rank it about 20th out of the 30 for 30 films that I have seen to-date.

The film is available on Amazon.

Tim Richmond: To the Limit is also available on iTunes.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

In a steady rain 2010 PAL Flag Football SEAs versus St. Ignatius

PAL Flag Football in a steady rain


The SEAs Eagles played their sixth game of the 2010 PAL Flag Football season against St. Ignatuis at Jesuit High School. The Eagles faced St. Ignatius in the first game of the season; they lost 20 to 0 in a game that did not count in the standings.

It rained steadily from the time that we showed up on the field to the time we got back to the car.  As a result, it was a sloppy and disjointed game.  The officials called a large number of penalties for pushing people down and grabbing the player rather than the flags.

On offense, Jack played wide receiver. He had two passes thrown in his general direction, but nothing catchable. With the wind, steady rain and the mud, both teams struggled to get their offenses moving.

On defense, Jack played cornerback. I think that he played every play of the game. His highlight for the day was a kick return up the middle for about 25 yards. For second, I thought that he might break it for a touchdown.

The Eagles scored first on the second play of the game. They trailed 10 to 6 at half-time. St. Ignatius intercepted two passes in the second half: one was returned for a touchdown and a second interception set up a touchdown. The final score was St. Ignatius 22, SEAs 6.

The Eagles ended the regular season with a record of 4 wins and 1 loss. They are seeded second in the Central Division and will play the second seed in the Western Division (probably Sacramento Country Day) next Friday afternoon.

Deborah and John

Friday, October 22, 2010

2010-2011 Kings Season Wins Over/Under

In the 2008-2009 NBA season, the Sacramento Kings won 17 games. Last year, the Kings won 25 games. For the 2010-2011 season, Vegas has the over/under for Kings wins at 27.5.

On his two part October 19, 2010 podcast, Bill Simmons with his friend Joe House reviewed the over/under for every NBA team and predicted whether they would be over or under. Simmons was very pessimistic about the Kings. He pointed to the problem of trying to find minutes for a number of similar players, including Carl Laundry, DeMarcus Cousins and Jason Thompson. Simmons also cited the issues surrounding the arena. He believes that arena problems create a general malaise for the Kings that negatively impacts the players, coaches, management and the fans.

Simmons and House are forecasting that the Kings will win less than 27.5 games in 2010-2011.

2008-2009 Kings Season Wins Over/Under

Kevin and Donna

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Pony Express Genoa

Pony Express Genoa
See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located in front of the Genoa Courthouse Museum, Genoa, Nevada. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 39° 00.293 W 119° 50.749.

A list of Pony Express Waymarks that I have visited can be found here. You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

Genoa Pony Express Monument

These plaques are near the site of the original Pony Express station. The Pony Express passed through Genoa, the oldest city in Nevada, utnil the completion of the telegraph.

Genoa Pony Express Monument

Liz, Janie and Sharon

Liz, Janie and Sharon

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

ESPN 30 for 30: Once Brothers

I am an unabashed fan of Vlade Divac. I enjoyed immensely watching him play basketball for the Sacramento Kings for 6 years. Once Brothers is the twenty-fifth film in ESPN's 30 for 30 series. The documentary tells the story of the relationship between Dražen Petrović and Vlade.

From 1986 to 1990, Petrović and Divac played together on a very good Yugoslavian National Basketball team. They were roommates and became best friends. The team included several other future NBA players, including Toni Kukoč.

Both players joined the NBA in 1989: Petrović with Portland and Divac with the Lakers. They initially remained close; talking to each other often on the phone.

With the fall of the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia split up. A war broke out between Petrović's Croatia and Divac's Serbia. These two men, once brothers, were now on opposite sides of a deadly civil war. When Divac became embroiled in a Croatian flag controversy at the 1990 World Championships, he became a pariah to the Croatians, including his best friend Petrović.

Narrated by Divac, I enjoyed this film a great deal. It includes some great footage of the Yugoslavia National Team playing as well as highlights of Petrović playing in the NBA. At an hour and a half, it is longer than most of the other 30 for 30 documentaries, but it did not drag. I will eventually rank all of the 30 for 30s, but this film will be in my top ten, maybe higher...

The film is available on Amazon.

Once Brothers in October is also available on iTunes.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

2010 Fall Dinner Party Menu

A Spanish Night


October 16, 2010



Cured Meats of Spain
(Jamon Serrano,
Chorizo Español,
Jamon Iberico,
Lomo Embuchado Español,
Iberico de Bellota)
olives, peppers, manchego cheese
~~~
Sangria



Seafood Paella
~~~
Hoya de Cadenas
Rosada 2009



Wild Berry Sorbet
~~~
Champagne Floater



Roast Suckling Pig,
Roasted Asparagus
~~~
La Rioja Alta
Vina Adanza
Reserva 2000



Pumpkin Flan
~~~
Choice of Merryhill 2006, 
Muscat Canelli 2006, 
or St. Chapelle 2007 
Special Harvest Riesling Snake River Valley


2010 Fall Dinner Party Suckling Pig



Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Kings of Leon - Birthday

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!
Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Kings of Leon - Birthday

Code Expiration: January 14, 2011

Monday, October 18, 2010

2010 Outlaws Baseball Tournament #9 Day #2

Back at Hal Bartholomew Park for the elimination games on Sunday, the Outlaws played the Demons Baseball Club. It was a cold, windy and cloudy morning.

At the plate batting fifth, Jack was 1 for 1 with a double, a run scored, two RBIs and two walks. In the bottom of the first, Jack came to bat with two outs and Jeremy on third and Josh on second. He ran the count to 3 and 2 and then crushed a pitch into left field. Initially, I thought that the left fielder had a bead on the ball. Unfortunately for the fielder, the ball was hit very hard and the wind was blowing from right to left. The ball dropped for a double and Jeremy and Josh scored. Jack went to third on a wild pitch, but ended the inning there when Jordan grounded out to second.

Jack walked on five pitches in his second plate appearance. He went to second on an error on Jordan's grounder to the right side and to third on Greysen's walk. With two outs, Jullian ran the count to 3 and 2. With everyone running, Jullian hit a chopper to the right side of the infield. The pitcher got to the ball, but kicked it. When the pitcher finally did find the handle, he threw it over the first baseman's head. Jack scored easily. With Greysen running on the pitch, he scored all the way from first. With Breyton on second running for Jordan, Greysen rounded third right behind Breyton.

In his third at-bat, Jack walked on five pitches. He stole second and went to third on a passed ball. With the time limit exceeded, the game ended with Jack on third.

In the field, Jack played three innings at third and one inning at first. He handled the ball only once. In the top of the fourth, Jack made a great dig on a throw from Josh at shortstop for the put-out. When I saw the ball skip about six or seven feet in front of him, I was sure that it was going to eat him up, but he handled it cleanly...

The Outlaws won the game by the score of 9 to 2 and advanced to the semi-final game against Showcase. The Outlaws had beaten Showcase by the score of 5 to 2 two weeks ago.

Unfortunately, it started to rain pretty hard just before the scheduled start of the game. With the Outlaws as visitors, they got up in the top of the first. The infields at Bartholomew are dirt and were quickly becoming a sloppy mess. The game and the tournament were cancelled after the half inning. I think that this is the first time in three years of playing fall tournament baseball that a game has actually been rained out. While we played in some heavy rain at Manteca in 2008, I don't remember a rain being cancelled.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

2010 Outlaws Baseball Tournament #9 Day #1

With Sharon and I scrambling to get everything ready for the fall dinner party, the Outlaws played in a playutrip tournament at Hal Bartholomew Sports Park on Saturday. I hate it when Jack plays and I am not at the games. In the first game, the Outlaws played the Sacramento Blue Devils.

At the plate batting fourth, Jack was 1 for 3 with a run scored and a strike-out. In his first at-bat, Jack hit a 2 and 0 pitch to the left side and was thrown out at first by the third baseman. He singled down the third base line in his second plate appearance. Jack went to second on Josh's base on balls, to third when Breyton walked and scored on Jordan's single. Jack struck out looking on a 2 and 2 pitch in his third at-bat.

In the field, Jack played five innings at third base. In one of those odd games, he never had a ball hit to him.

With the score tied 5 to 5 in the bottom of the fifth and time expiring, Greysen had a game winning single to score Josh. The Outlaws won the game by the score of 6 to 5.

In the second game of the day, the Outlaws played the Defenders.

At the plate batting fifth, Jack was 1 for 3 with a strike-out and reached base on an error. In his first at-bat, Jack struck out swinging on a 1 and 2 pitch. He pushed one to the right side for a single in his second plate appearance. Jack ended the inning at first when Breyton was doubled off second on Jordan's line drive out. Jack reached base on an error by the right fielder in his third at-bat. With two out, Jordan doubled to right field. Waved around third by Scott, Jack tried to score from first base and was thrown out at the plate.

In the field, Jack played three innings in centerfield and three innings at first. He had one put-out. In the bottom of the sixth, Jack fielded a grounder to the right side and made an unassisted put-out.

With the Outlaws leading by the score of 3 to 1 in the bottom of the sixth, the Defenders first batter reached base on an error. The Defenders ended up scoring 3 runs to win the game by the score of 4 to 3.

The Outlaws ended the day seeded fourth out of the seven teams. They play 8:00 a.m. on Sunday morning against the Davis Demons.

After the games, most of the team went to Red Robin for dinner; Jack had a great time!

Saturday, October 16, 2010

2010 Fall Dinner Party

Sharon and I have made it a tradition to host a fall dinner party [2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003]. The group included the Cunninghams, Gainsleys, Sanborns, Liz and Janie this year. It was a great group, but frankly I miss the Larkins and the Bells. Hopefully, we can figure out a schedule to get the Larkins back in future years...

We were able to get everyone out of the kitchen and into the backyard before dinner for sangria and Spanish meats and cheese. Sharon made a great dinner including seafood paella and roast suckling pig. I will post the full menu in the next couple of days.


While we have gone very late in past years, this year turned out to be an earlier evening. With several people having commitments for early Sunday, the party wound down a little after 11:00 p.m.

Table for the Fall Dinner Party

Table for the Fall Dinner Party

Friday, October 15, 2010

Zero History

I finished reading Zero History by William Gibson. The story ties loosely with two of Gibson's previous books, Pattern Recognition and Spook Country, to create a trilogy.

Gibson made his name with Neuromancer in 1984. It has probably been 25 years since I read that book and really need to go back and reread it. Neuromancer won the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award and the Philip K. Dick Award. Since I read his first book, I have always looked for and read Gibson's books.

Unlike his earliest science fiction, Zero History is set in the near future. The backdrop for the book looks like the world we know. Interestingly, everyone has an iPhone... The book explores the hacker culture, surveillance, paranoia, viral marketing, the fashion industry, celebrity, base jumping and the Festo AirPenguin.

I read the two previous books in the loose trilogy in 2003 and 2007. While I remember a couple of the more interesting ideas from those books, I am fuzzy on the characters. Several of the characters from the previous book are the main characters in Zero History. I feel like I need to go back and read the previous books again.

I enjoy the pace and style of Gibson's writing. I found myself getting drawn into the story and the characters. Zero History can probably be best described as a thriller rather than science fiction. It is a solid book which I would give a 'B'. Although the book could stand alone, it probably makes sense to read Spook Country before this book.

Festo AirPenguin

The AirPenguin plays a prominent role in the plot of Gibson's Zero History.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

California Historical Landmark #676

Site of St. Mary's College
California State Historical Landmark #676

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located at 3093 Broadway, Oakland, California. There are 35 other California State Historical Landmarks in Alameda County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 37° 49.220 W 122° 15.670.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

California Historical Landmark #676


St. Mary's College was founded in 1863 in San Francisco by Archbishop Joseph Sadoc Alemany. The Christian Brothers took charge of the college in 1868. The original location in San Francisco is marked by California Historical Landmark #772. In 1889, they moved the college to Oakland on Broadway, near Thirtieth Street, erecting an impressive masonry structure called affectionately, "the old brick pile." The building served the college well, but was eventually outgrown. The college moved to its present campus in Moraga, Contra Costa County in 1928, and "the old brick pile" was demolished soon after by the new owner, an automobile dealership.

The plaque reads:

Site of Saint Mary's College, 'The Old Brick Pile,' 1889-1928. Plaque placed by Saint Mary's College Alumni, April 25, 1959. California Registered Historical Landmark #676


Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Outlaws Baseball 12U Looking For A Few Players - Free Agent Market

Almost two years ago, the Gunners Baseball team that Jack was playing on put out an ad looking for players. The Outlaws Team has published a similar ad.

Outlaws Baseball 12U looking for a few players. - Free Agent Market
Competitive team based in Elk Grove, CA (Sacramento) looking for a few players. Front-line pitcher and/or catcher are priority, but all interested players will be considered. Team is planning to go to Cooperstown for second time (went as 10yos in 2009) next summer, and looking to add a few players to take it to the next level. Tryout/Open practice this Wednesday, Oct 13th, at 5:00pm at Backer Park (Just off Bilby Road, halfway between Bruceville Road and Franklin Blvd).

Practices are Wednesdays and Sundays.

We have four more tournaments scheduled through fall season, then will begin working out in our indoor practice facility during the winter months.

Please send email to playeragent@outlawsbaseball.info if you'd like to attend a tryout/practice session (or arrange a private tryout), and/or call Head Coach, Scott Congress at (916) 308-8688.

http://www.outlawsbaseball.info/

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Arcade Fire - Month of May

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!
Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Arcade Fire - Month of May

Code Expiration: January 7, 2011

Monday, October 11, 2010

ESPN 30 for 30: Four Days in October

Four Days in October is the twenty-fourth film in ESPN's 30 for 30 series. The documentary looks at the last four games of the 2004 Amercian League Championship series between the Red Sox and the Yankees.

Losing the first three games of the series and trailing 4 to 3 in the bottom of the ninth in Game Four, the Red Sox rallied to win the series in seven games. It was the first time that a team had ever come back from a 3 to 0 deficit to win a baseball playoff series.

The games were literally played over four successive days: October 17, 18, 19 and 20. Starting at 8:20 p.m. EST, Game Four lasted until 1:22 a.m.

There are a number of amazing moments in series, including:
  • David Ortiz's home run to win Game Four in the bottom of the 12th inning;

  • David Ortiz's single to drive in the winning run in the bottom of the 14th inning in Game Five;

  • Curt Schilling pitching seven innings in Game Six on an ankle with a temporary stitch holding a tendon in place and leading to the bloody sock; and,

  • Alex Rodeiguez being called for interference when he knocked the ball out of Bronson Arroyo's hand in the bottom of the eighth inning in Game Six.

There is some amazing footage of David Ortiz just as he goes to bat in Game Four. The look of determination and focus on his face is incredible.

I find it a little odd that there is almost no footage of Manny Ramirez. I only saw a brief shot of him getting out of car at Yankee Stadium. It is almost like Major League Baseball wants to pretend that he does not exist...

Like House of Steinbrenner, Four Days in October is a solid, straightforward documentary. I rank it somewhere in the middle of the 30 for 30 films that have been shown so far.

Bill Simmons makes a couple of appearances in the film; he is sitting in a bar talking to someone else about key sequences of the game. Simmons talks to Kevin Hench about the documentary at the end of his podcast looking back on the Red Sox's 2010 season.

The film is available on Amazon.

Four Days in October is also available on iTunes.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

2010 PAL Flag Football SEAs versus Merryhill - Eastern Prep

After Jack worked out with the Outlaws for three hours in the morning, Jack and I grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed to Jesuit High School. The SEAs Eagles were scheduled to play their fifth game of the 2010 PAL Flag Football season against Merryhill - Eastern Prep. Unfortunately, Merryhill only had 7 players and had to forfeit.

In a surreal moment, Merryhill actually had a very organized squad of 9 cheerleaders on the sideline. Really? They could field a group of cheerleaders, but not 9 players?!?

The two teams took the opportunity to play a practice game. Playing wide receiver, Jack had two passes thrown to him. On a deep post pattern, Jack was open, but the ball was under thrown. On a point after, Jack caught an out slant to score the extra point.

On defense, Jack played linebacker.

SEAs scored 5 touchdowns, while Merryhill only scored one touchdown in the practice game.

The SEAs Eagles record for the season is now 4 wins and 0 losses. As a result, they have qualified for the play-offs. The first play-off game is Friday night October 29.

The Eagles play St. Ignatius in the last regular season game in two weeks; they lost to St. Ignatius in a practice game a month ago.

Outlaws Baseball Practice


Outlaws Baseball Practice, originally uploaded by heringermr.

Cigar Guy

Cigar Guy revealed

Friday, October 08, 2010

30 Years Ago

I started working for Farm Credit as a Research Analyst on October 6, 1980. I was a joint employee of the Federal Intermediate Credit Bank of Sacramento and the Sacramento Bank for Cooperatives.

Thursday, October 07, 2010

America's Most Expensive Colleges and Universities

Larkin sent me a link earlier this week to an article highlighting America's Most Expensive Colleges and Universities. Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York, tops the list this year at $57,556.

Morgan graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in May of 2009. It has always been an enigma to me where the money came from to pay for her room and board and tuition...

America's Most Expensive Colleges and Universities
Located just northeast of New York City, Sarah Lawrence College is America's most expensive school for higher education. Without a waiver, students are charged an additional $1,780 for accident/sickness insurance (not included in our cost estimate). About 65% of SLC students receive financial aid.

Annual cost: $57,556
Tuition and fees: $43,556
Room and board: $14,000

The Most Expensive College Dorm Rooms : Planet Money : NPR
Forbes took a look at the charges in the 2008-09 academic year, the most recent available on a federal database. The magazine learned that Sarah Lawrence College in New York had the most expensive room and board fees, averaging $13,000. This coming year, room and board at Sarah Lawrence plus the cheapest meal plan total $13,820.

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

California Historical Landmark #181

I stopped at this waymark on my way back from having brunch with Morgan in the Carmel Valley.

Fremont Peak
California State Historical Landmark #181

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located in Abbey Park on the southeast corner of Fourth and Muckelem Streets, San Juan Bautista, California. There are 4 other California State Historical Landmarks in San Benito County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 36° 50.685 W 121° 32.375.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

California Historical Landmark #181

In March 1846, Jose Castro, Mexican Military Commander, ordered John C. Fremont from the country. On March 6, 1846, with Kit Carson and 60 men, Fremont moved to the top of Gabilan (Gavilan) Peak (Fremont Peak), built entrenchments, unfurled his colors and for four days awaited the attack of a force of Californians. The battle did not materialize by the night of March 9. Frémont broke camp and departed for Oregon. Bear Flag Incident and Mexican War followed.

California Historical Landmark #181

Tuesday, October 05, 2010

ESPN 30 for 30: Into the Wind

Looking at the 30 for 30 schedule and reading about the up coming films, Into the Wind was not one of the documentaries that I thought much about. Watching it while running on the treadmill, I was pleasantly surprised. The twenty-third installment of ESPN's 30 for 30 film series is extremely compelling.

In 1980, three years after having his right leg amputated six inches above the knee due to cancer, Terry Fox set out to run across Canada to raise awareness and funds for cancer research. Starting in the Atlantic Ocean near St. John's, Newfoundland, Fox planned to cover more than a marathon’s distance each day until he reached the Pacific Ocean in Victoria, British Columbia.

Anonymous at the start of his journey, the media attention steadily increased as Fox worked his way west. Watching the crowds build day by day is one of the most amazing parts of the film. After 143 days, 3,339 miles and two-thirds of the way across Canada, Fox’s journey came to an abrupt end when new cancerous tumors took over his body.

This documentary was produced by NBA star Steve Nash and his cousin Ezra Holland. In the summary on the ESPN web site, Nash talks about being a six-year-old boy and waking up every morning and rushing to the TV to see where Terry was that day. Nash and Holland do a fantastic job of sorting through pictures, news footage, radio interviews and Fox's own diary entries to tell the story.

This was not a story that I really knew anything about before I watched the film; I do not believe I had ever even heard of Terry Fox. It is a very well done film that is definitely worth seeing. I would rank in the top five or six of the 30 for 30 films shown to-date.

The film is available on Amazon.

Into the Wind is also available on iTunes.

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Mavis Staples - You Are Not Alone

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!
Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Mavis Staples - You Are Not Alone

Code Expiration: December 31, 2010

Sunday, October 03, 2010

2010 Outlaws Baseball Tournament #8 Day #2

Outlaws


The Outlaws were back at the Mather Sports Complex to play the Hitmen at 10:00 a.m. in the first elimination game. Jack had the stomach flu and diarrhea overnight so he stayed home for the first game.

Trailing 8 to 7 in the bottom of the sixth, the Outlaws scored two runs to win the game by the score of 9 to 8. Greysen was hit by a pitch and Cooper walked. Greysen scored on a passed ball to tie the score. Ian hit a double to right center to drive Cooper in and win the game. Giving up five errors, the Outlaws were lucky to escape with the win.

After the winning the first game, I called Sharon and she brought Jack came for the second elimination game. The Outlaws played Ooarh Baseball in the second elimination game of the day. The Outlaws scrimmaged against Oorah Baseball a couple of weeks ago. It appears that Oorah Baseball has several teams and I am not sure that the Outlaws played this same squad.

With the score tied 5 to 5 in the bottom of the sixth, Jullian walked. Greysen bunted for a single to the left side. Jullian rounded second and headed for third. Looking at third, I realized that the catcher, third baseman and pitcher had all chased after the bunt so that there was no one covering third. Jullian rounded third and headed for home. At this point, there was no one covering home. Jullian was able to outrun everyone to home plate and scored the winning run; Outlaws 6, Oorah 5. Jack entered the game only as a courtesy runner for Josh.

The Outlaws played the Lamorinda Diablos in the tournament championship game. The Gunners played Lamorinda two years ago.

In a promising development, Jack hit the ball hard twice. He was 0 for 2 with two walks and a run scored. In his first at-bat, Jack hit a 2 and 2 pitch hard into straight away center for an out. He ran the count to 3 and 2, fouled off a pitch and then drew a walk in his second plate appearance. Jack went to second on Jullian's walk, to third on a passed ball and scored on Greysen's single. In his third at-bat, Jack walked on four pitches. He went to second on Jullian's ground out and to third on Greysen's single, but was forced out at home on Cooper's fielder's choice. Jack hit a 2 and 0 pitch for a hard line drive up the middle in his fourth plate appearance. I was sure that it was going to be a hit, but the shortstop made a nice leaping grab to spear the ball for an out.

In the field, Jack played five innings at third and one inning in left field. He had one assist at third. Jack handled a soft grounder to the left side and threw the runner out at first.

With the game tied 1 to 1 in the top of the third, the Outlaws ran out of pitching. The Outlaws pitchers walked 7 batters and gave up 10 runs. With both teams running out of pitchers, the Outlaws lost to Lamorinda by the score of 17 to 9 in a 2 hours and 20 minute adventure.

After a spending more than 9 1/2 hours at the ball park, everyone was beat, but felt satisfied with the results of the weekend. The Outlaws really need another strong pitcher. I would love to see the Outlaws get Niko back from Hard90!

Saturday, October 02, 2010

2010 Outlaws Baseball Tournament #8 Day #1

After a very unsettled week, the Outlaws played in a 12 team tournament at Mather Sports Complex. This complex is very close to where I work and I have been looking forward to Jack playing a tournament here for a long time. Sharon noted that it is probably one of the nicest places that we have played.

The Outlaws played Showcase Baseball in the first game. This team includes a number of players that were formerly part of Hard90.

Jack continues his fall struggles at the plate. He was 0 for 2. In his first at-bat, Jack hit a 0 and 1 pitch for a pop-up to the second baseman. Jack struck out swinging on a 1 and 2 pitch in his second at-bat.

Jack was a courtesy runner twice: one for Breyton and once for Josh. He was caught stealing in the third inning running for Breyton. In the fifth inning, running for Josh, Jack stole second, went to third on Breyton's single. Trying to score on a passed ball, he was tagged out at the plate.

In the field, Jack played three innings at first base. He had four put-outs on throws from the pitcher, shortstop and catcher. In the bottom of the sixth, Jack made a very nice catch on a throw from Jeremy at catcher on a swinging bunt to force the runner at first. I was sure that the ball was going to hit the runner in the head.

The Outlaws won the game by the score of 5 to 2.

In the second game of the day, the Outlaws played Team Velocity from Nevada. In an oddity for this age, this team had a girl playing catcher.

At the plate, Jack was 0 for 1 with 2 walks and 2 runs scored. In his first at-bat, Jack ran the count to 3 and 2 and then drew a walk. He stole second and scored on Josh's single to left center. Jack popped the first pitch up to second baseman in his second plate appearance. In his third at-bat, Jack walked on five pitches. He stole second and scored on Josh's double to right center. Jack was also a courtesy runner for Josh at second base. He went to third on Jordan's infield error and came home on a wild pitch.

In the field, Jack played three innings at third and one inning at first. At first base, he had three put-outs on throws from second and shortstop.

Trailing 5 to 3 in the bottom of the fourth, the Outlaws scored 10 runs in the inning. The final score was Outlaws 13 and Team Velocity 3 in five innings.

At the end of the day, the Outlaws were seeded second in the tournament. They will play the Hitmen in the single elimination bracket at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday morning.

Friday, October 01, 2010

2010 PAL Flag Football SEAs versus Merryhill - Park City

The SEAs Eagles played their fourth game of the 2010 PAL Flag Football season against Merryhill - Park City at Jesuit High School.

On offense, Jack was the first team wide receiver. He only had one pass thrown to him. Jack was wide open on a post pattern but the ball was overthrown.

On defense, Jack was the first team linebacker. He actually played defensive lineman for one series at the very end of the game.

SEAs rolled to a 19 to 0 half-time lead and won the game by the score of 35 to 12.

It was an odd game. In spite of the fact that they did not have much success, Merryhill repeatedly ran the ball. The Eagles would score on a big play and then Merryhill would have the ball for 7 or 8 running plays without making much progress, but chewing up the clock. The Eagles would get the ball back and score on another big play. As a result, it seemed like the Eagles only ran 12 or 15 offense plays in the whole game.

The SEAs Eagles record for the season is 3 wins and 0 losses. The Eagles play the Merryhill - Eastern Prep team next Sunday.