Wednesday, March 31, 2010

2010 LYB Major Angels Game #2

Jack played in his first game of the 2010 Laguna Youth Baseball season. He missed the first game of the season last Saturday while we were at spring training. The Angels played the Diamondbacks.

It was a miserable day: cold, windy and wet. It started to rain in the second inning.

At bat, Jack was 0 for 2. In his first plate appearance, he popped a 1 and 2 pitch high to the right side of infield which was caught by the pitcher. Jack drove a 0 and 1 pitch to the right side of the infield in his second at-bat. The ball went through the second baseman into right field for an error and Breyton scored. Jack stole second and went to third on a passed ball. He ended the inning at third.

In the field, Jack played 2/3's of an inning at shortstop and pitch 2 1/3 innings. This is the most innings he has pitched in one game since the LYB Tournament of Champions last June. Jack had no fielding opportunities while he was playing shortstop.

With Niko struggling with his control in the cold, Jack came in to pitch with two outs in the bottom of the first. He told me after the game that he had a hard time getting loose in the cold. Jack pitched 2 1/3 innings. He threw 50 pitches and 25 strikes, walked 2, struck out 4, hit 1 batter and gave up 1 unearned run and 1 earned run. At pitcher, he fielded two infield grounders cleanly and threw to first for the out. In the bottom of the third, Jack tried to barehand a weak grounder on the left side of the infield. He had trouble getting the handle in the wet grass and then threw wildly to first. Fortunately, the gunner was thrown out trying to go to second on the overthrow.

The game was called after the third inning by the umpires due to lightning and ended in a 7 to 7 tie. The game log is here and the box score is here. The Angels now have 1 win, 0 losses and 1 tie for the season.

2010 LYB Major Angels versus Diamondbacks Box Score

March 31, 2010 - Angels versus Diamondbacks
Game Log


The game was called due to lightning after 3 innings and was replayed from the beginning.

.                     1     2    3    4    5    6    R    H    E
     Angels           4     1    2    X    X    X    7    1    3
     Diamondbacks     5     2    0    X    X    X    7    2    4

  #  Hitter          POS   AB    R    H   RBI  BB   SO   HBP   SAC  #P
  4  Niko            1/6    2    1    1    0    0    0    0     0    6
  8  Breyton          8     1    2    0    0    1    0    0     0    8
 22  Jack            6/1    2    0    0    1    0    0    0     0    6
 28  Dominic          2     2    1    1    1    0    0    0     0    5
  2  Greysen          5     0    2    0    0    2    0    0     0   12
 30  Austin           3     2    1    0    1    0    0    0     0   10
 24  Braden           7     2    0    0    0    0    2    0     0    9
 12  Richie           4     2    0    0    0    0    2    0     0    7
     Zachary          9     2    0    0    0    0    2    0     0   12

                           15    7    2    3    3    6    0     0   75

Jack reached base once and Austin reached base twice on errors by the
second baseman.  Breyton reached base on an error by the shortstop.

     Pitcher          IP    H    R   ER   BB   SO   HBP  ST-PC
  4  Niko             2/3   0    5    2    6    1    0   22-50
 22  Jack           2 1/3   1    2    1    2    4    1   24-50

                      3     1    7    3    8    5    1   49-100

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Monday, March 29, 2010

2010 Spring Training Day 4

Up early, we packed and had breakfast at the hotel. We returned the rental car and caught a bus to the airport. It seemed like there were an unusual number of delayed Southwest flights. Our flight left a few minutes late. We were home in Elk Grove a little after noon.

I enjoyed the opportunity to spend a big block of time with Drew. It was also a nice chance for Jack to bond with his brother...

Sunday, March 28, 2010

2010 Spring Training Day 3

A very busy day...

After a quick bite of breakfast at the hotel, Jack, Drew, Wallen and I headed back to South Mountain Park for a short run. We ended up covering 2.25 miles in about 39 minutes. We ran up and over some very steep terrain. I will post some maps and graphs of the run in the next week or so.


I have said that the day is quickly approaching when I will not be able to keep up with Jack anymore. The day is getting close. Given the roughness of the trail and the fact that I am not the most surefooted beast, I was pulling drag most of run.

After we got back to the hotel, Jack, Drew and I joined Wallen, Jill and Nate by the pool. We lounged in the hot tub and took some dips in the pool.

Getting cleaned up, we took off to catch up with Bachman, Chris, Mike and Tomasin at Starters in Tempe. We shot pool for a couple of hours and watched the Tennessee versus Michigan State NCAA Basketball game.

From there, we headed to Phoenix Municipal Stadium. The game for the day was the Oakland A's versus the Colorado Rockies. We tailgated for a while in the parking lot before heading into the game.


The game ended in a 6 to 6 tie after 9 innings. The Rockies led 6-1 before Oakland scored once in the seventh and four times in the eighth to tie the game. Troy Tulowitzki homered for the third time in his last four games while Rockies pitcher Jorge De La Rosa gave up one run in five-plus innings.

Bachman and I spent some time watching the game from the concourse. I enjoyed getting a chance to catch up with him and hearing about Gail who is serving two years in the Peace Crops in Ethiopia. Bachman traveled there earlier this year to visit her.

After the game, we spent some time back at the hotel around the pool visiting and playing cribbage.


We finished the night with a big group having dinner at My Big Fat Greek Restaurant in downtown Tempe.

At Phoenix Municipal Stadium

Shooting pool


Shooting pool, originally uploaded by heringermr.

Out for a morning run/hike


Out for a morning run/hike, originally uploaded by heringermr.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

2010 Spring Training Day 2

While the boys lounged in the room, I went for a morning run to the South Mountain Park in Phoenix from the hotel and then up into the park. Tomorrow, I will probably organize a group to drive back for a hike or a run.

After getting cleaned up, we took off with a group for Harlow's Cafe for breakfast. Jenny discovered this place in 2004 and we have been going back annually ever since.

Drew, Jack and I took off from there to Camelback Stadium. We are going to see the Dodgers play the Mariners today. We got to the ballpark early and laid in the outfield and watched batting practice.

We had 29 people in our group for today's game, including Wallen, Jill, Nate, Marcus, Bob Wallen, Adam, Jenny, CJ, Carol, Chris, Brea, Luke, Mary Rose, Kyle, Moore, Sue, Pete, Kelly, a friend of Kelly's, Bob, Tomasin, Chris, Mike, Bachman, Jonathon, Mari, Drew, Jack and I.

The Dodgers beat the Mariners by the score of 3 to 1. Knuckleballer Charlie Haeger threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings for the Dodgers.

The crowd of 15,583 set a Cactus League single-game attendance record. Yesterday, there was only 4,407 people at Maryvale. Unfortunately, it took forever to get out of the ballpark. We sat for almost 40 minutes without moving before the traffic started to flow.

Brea and Luke invited everyone back to their house. We finished the barbecuing and hanging out at their house.

Along my morning run


Along my morning run, originally uploaded by heringermr.

Friday, March 26, 2010

2010 Spring Training Day 1


Up very early, Jack, Drew and I caught a flight from Sacramento to Phoenix to spend a few days at spring training. This is the fifth straight year that Jack has gone with me to spring training in Arizona and the second straight year that Drew has attended.

We had a leisurely breakfast in Phoenix, did a little shopping and waymarked one site. I really enjoyed the opportunity to hear some rough cuts from the new album that Drew is working on and some tracks from the Milo Green project. We finally caught up with the Wallens in the late morning and then headed to the ball park.

We went to Maryvale to see the Milwaukee Brewers play the San Diego Padres. Maryvale has always been one of my favorite spring training venues. The Padres won the game by the score of 9 to 4. After taking a year off from baseball, Jim Edmunds signed with the Brewers. He had a two run homer and a RBI double.

We had some great seats behind home plate. The group for today totalled 18 people, including lots of Wallens! I have jokingly called this the Wallen Family and Friends Spring Training Tour over the last few years. The group will be even larger tomorrow.

After the game, we fought our way through Friday afternoon traffic back to the hotel. We are staying this year at the Best Western Temple by the Mall.

We spent some time in the room visiting and watching the NCAA basketball tournament sweet 16 games. The group eventually headed to Doc and Eddy's to watch the end of the basketball games and grab a late dinner. Given that we started the day at 4 a.m., Drew, Jack and I crashed pretty hard.

At Maryvale


At Maryvalle, originally uploaded by heringermr.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

GoldenEye

Continuing our glacial quest to watch all of the James Bond Films in order, we watched GoldenEye on Saturday night. GoldenEye is the seventeenth James Bond movie and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Released in 1995, the film is unrelated to any of the works of novelist Ian Fleming.

GoldenEye was released after legal disputes forced a six-year hiatus in the series. During this period, Timothy Dalton resigned from the role of James Bond and was replaced by Pierce Brosnan. M was also recast with actress Dame Judi Dench becoming the first woman to portray the character replacing Robert Brown.

In the film, Bond fights to prevent an arms syndicate from using the GoldenEye satellite weapon against London in order to cause a global financial meltdown. GoldenEye was the first Bond film made after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War which provided a background for the plot.

In addition to Pierce Brosnan as James Bond and Dame Judi Dench as M, the film stars Sean Bean as Alec Trevelyan (an MI6 agent who fakes his death and establishes a crime syndicate), Izabella Scorupco as Natalya Simonova (a programmer who helps Bond disarm GoldenEye), Famke Janssen as Xenia Onatopp (Trevelyan's henchwoman), Joe Don Baker as Jack Wade (a veteran CIA agent), Gottfried John as General Ourumov (a renegade Russian general) and Desmond Llewelyn as Q (head of research and development).

Llewelyn was the only actor to reprise a role from a previous Bond film.  Samantha Bond made her first of four appearances as Moneypenny.

GoldenEye was the first film bound by a three picture deal with BMW. Although used in a very limited role, the BMW Z3 was featured in the film months before its release.

This is one of the James Bond films that I remember seeing in the theater. At this point in the series, the stunts start to get a lot bigger. I distinctly remember several of the stunts, including the sequence where Bond skydives into a plane and scenes where he is driving a tank through St. Petersburg. The opening sequence of the film includes a 720 feet bungee jump shot at the Verzasca Dam in Switzerland.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

.700 BA; .786 OBP; .900 SLG

With baseball gearing up, Jack has been practicing with his rec [Angels] and tournament [Outlaws] teams over the last three plus weeks. The Outlaws team played a local tournament this past weekend. Although the competition was not as tough as some of the tournament teams that we have faced, Jack had a tremendous weekend.

Jack had a .700 batting average (7 for 10 - 6 singles and a triple), a .786 on base percentage (4 walks) and a .900 slugging average. He had 5 runs scored and 6 RBIs.

Have I said recently, how much I am looking forward to the rec season?

Outlaws 11U versus Diehard Baseball 11U Box Score

March 20, 2010 - Outlaws versus Diehard Baseball
Sac March Madness 4GG tournament Pool Game #2

Spring 2010 Game Log

.                      1    2    3    4    5    6    R    H    E
     Diehard Baseball  0    0    1    0    X    X    1    1    4
     Outlaws           8    4    3    3    X    X   18    7    1

  #  Hitter          POS   AB    R    H   RBI  BB   SO   HBP   SAC  #P
  5  Cooper          6/4    2    3    0    1    2    1    0     0   22
  2  Trevor          7/2    3    1    1    1    1    0    0     0   16
  3  Josh            3/5    2    3    1    0    2    0    0     0   17
 55  Jeremy          2/6    4    2    1    0    0    0    0     0   11
 33  Jack           8/5/1   2    2    2    0    2    0    0     0   20
 10  Jordan          5/7    2    2    0    0    1    0    1     0   12
 22  Breyton         1/3    2    2    1    4    2    0    0     0   17
 00  Greysen          9     3    2    0    0    1    0    0     0   13
  1  James           4/8    2    1    1    0    1    0    0     0   13

                           22   18    7    6   12    1    1     0  141

2B: Josh, Jeremy, Breyton

Breyton reached on an error by the right fielder.  Greysen reached on 
an error by the shortstop.  Josh reached on an error by the catcher.
Jeremy reached on an error by the second baseman.

     Pitcher          IP    H    R   ER   BB   SO   HBP ST-PC
 22  Breyton          3     1    1    0    4    3    1  28-50
 33  Jack             1     0    0    0    0    2    0  10-16

                      4     1    1    0    4    5    1  38-66

Outlaws 11U versus Brentwood Blast Blue 11U Box Score

March 20, 2010 - Outlaws versus Brentwood Blast Blue Baseball
Sac March Madness 4GG tournament Pool Game #1

Spring 2010 Game Log

.                           1     2    3    4    5    6    R   H   E
     Outlaws                3     4    1    1   10    X   19  10   3
     Brentwood Blast Blue   0     0    2    0    6    X    8   9   4


  #  Hitter          POS   AB    R    H   RBI  BB   SO   HBP   SAC  #P
  5  Cooper         6/1/4   2    4    1    1    3    0    0     0   19
  1  James            9     4    2    1    0    0    0    1     0   13
  3  Josh             2     4    2    1    0    1    0    0     0   10
 55  Jeremy          1/6    3    2    1    3    2    0    0     0   16
 33  Jack             3     3    1    2    3    1    0    0     0   14
 10  Jordan           5     3    1    0    0    1    0    0     0   14
 22  Breyton          8     4    1    1    0    0    1    0     0   13
 22  Trevor          4/1    2    3    1    0    2    0    0     0   11
 00  Greysen          7     4    2    2    3    0    0    0     0   15

                           29   18   10   10   10    1    1     0  125

2B: Jeremy

James reached on an error by the shortstop.  Josh and Trevor reached on
an error by the third baseman.  Jeremy reached on an error by the second
baseman.

     Pitcher          IP    H    R   ER   BB   SO   HBP ST-PC
 55  Jeremy           1     0    0    0    0    0    0   7-14
  5  Cooper           3     3    2    1    3    7    0  36-58
 22  Trevor           1     6    6    2    0    2    0  16-19

                      5     9    8    3    3    9    0  59-91

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Califone - 1928

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!
Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Califone - 1928 #fb

Code Expiration: June 18, 2010

Monday, March 22, 2010

NBA Power Rankings 2009-2010 Week 21

After suffering a concussion, chipped tooth and gum laceration in the overtime loss to Milwaukee, Tyreke Evans will miss at least three games. He is not expected back until Friday in Boston at the earliest. With 11 games to go in the season, Evans is averaging 20.3 points, 5.6 assists and 5.2 rebounds.

The Kings dropped from 22th to 24th in Marc Stein's weekly power rankings of the 30 NBA teams, ahead of the Pistons, Warriors, 76ers, Wizards, Timberwolves and the Nets.

NBA Basketball Power Rankings
Even if you think he's already done enough to clinch the ROY trophy you're obviously hoping Evans is back soon to finish his rookie season strong. Casspi can't make the Kings watchable on his own ... except maybe for us.

Spring 2010 Outlaws Tournament Game Log

03/21/2010 - Outlaws 7, Delta Dawgs 4 - [Box Score]
03/21/2010 - Outlaws 7, Delta Dawgs 4 - [Box Score]
03/20/2010 - Outlaws 18, Diehard Baseball 1 - [Box Score]
03/20/2010 - Outlaws 19, Brentwood Blast Blue 8 - [Box Score]
02/15/2010 - Bulldog Baseball Club 12, Outlaws  0 - [Box Score]
02/14/2010 - Outlaws 6, Tri-Valley Dawgs 6 - [Box Score]
02/14/2010 - Bandit Baseball Club 6, Outlaws 4 - [Box Score]
02/13/2010 - Outlaws 4, Danville Diablos 1 - [Box Score]
02/13/2010 - Outlaws 8, Bret's Muckdogs 6 - [Box Score]
01/31/2010 - Bandit Baseball 12, Outlaws 1 - [Box Score]
01/30/2010 - Outlaws Baseball 7, Bandit Baseball 0 - [Box Score]
01/30/2010 - Outlaws Baseball 9, Norcal Diamond Dawgs 5 - [Box Score]


The Fall 2009 Outlaws Tournament Game Log is here.

Outlaws 11U versus Delta Dawgs 11U Box Score

March 21, 2010 11:10 AM - Delta Dawgs versus Outlaws
Sac March Madness 4GG tournament Pool Game #3


.                     1     2    3    4    5    6    R    H    E
     Delta Dawgs      1     0    0    0    3    0    4    6    0
     Outlaws          1     0    2    0    4    X    7    6    3

  #  Hitter          POS   AB    R    H   RBI  BB   SO   HBP  SAC  #P
  5  Cooper          4/8    3    2    2    0    0    1    0    0    9
  8  Niko            1/4    2    2    2    1    1    0    0    0   12
  3  Josh             5     1    1    0    0    2    0    0    0   13
 55  Jeremy           6     2    1    0    0    1    0    0    0   12
 33  Jack             3     2    1    2    3    1    0    0    0   12
 10  Jordan         7/1/7   2    0    0    1    0    0    1    0   14
 23  Breyton        8/7/9   3    0    0    0    0    2    0    0   10
 22  Trevor           2     1    0    0    0    1    0    0    0    9
  1  James           9/1    1    0    0    0    1    0    0    0    5
 00  Greysen          10    2    0    0    0    0    1    0    0   10

                           19    7    6    5    7    4    1    0  106

Triple: Jack

Jack had the game winning hit.

     Pitcher          IP    H    R   ER   BB   SO   HBP ST-PC
  8  Niko             1     1    1    1    0    1    0  14-23
 10  Jordan           4     5    3    1    2    3    0  37-54
  1  James            1     0    0    0    1    1    0  10-17

                      6     6    4    2    3    5    0  61-94

Sunday, March 21, 2010

the most exciting play in baseball [2010 Outlaws Baseball Tournament #3 Day #2]

Back at Freedom Park for the second day of a tournament, the Outlaws played the Delta Dawgs.  The Dawgs had beaten both the Blast and Diehard on Saturday.

At the plate, Jack was 2 for 2 with a walk, a run scored and three RBIs.  In his first at-bat, Jack walked on four pitches.  He stole second and went to third on a passed ball, but ended the inning at third.  Jack drove a 3 and 1 pitch through the left side for a single in his second plate appearance.  Again, he ended the inning on third base.

With the Outlaws trailing 4 to 3 in the bottom of the fifth, Jack came to bat with the bases loaded and one out.  He crushed a 1 and 1 pitch over the right fielder to the fence.  I don't know that I have ever seen him hit a ball harder.  The fence on the field was 279 feet.  Three runs scored and Jack motored into third.

As Hank Aaron once said, "the triple is the most exciting play in baseball."  Trying to watch Josh running from second and Jeremy running from first, the ball rolling in the outfield and Jack rounding the bases all at the same time, it was a wild 10 seconds...

Jack scored from third on Jordan's ground out.

Jack played sixth innings at first base.  He had a fairly busy game with six put-outs on throws from the catcher, third baseman, second baseman and shortstop.

The Outlaws won the game by the score of 7 to 4 in six innings. The box score is here.

Based on the pool play, the Outlaws turned around and played the Delta Dawgs again in the championship game of the tournament.  The Outlaws were seeded #1 and the Dawgs were seeded #2.

At the plate, Jack was 1 for 3 with a run scored.  In his first at-bat, Jack struck out looking on four pitches.  The called third strike was high and inside, but Jack bailed out of the batter's box.  At this age, the umpires are pretty consistent about calling strikes if it is close and you don't stay in the box.  Jack pushed the first pitch into right field for a single in his second plate appearance.  He ended up scoring from third on Josh's sacrifice fly.  Jack drove the first pitch hard right at the third baseman for an out in his last at-bat.

Jack played sixth innings at first base.  He had five put-outs, including throws from the catcher, second baseman and shortstop.  Jack also made a nice catch on high pop-up in front of first base.  The Outlaws turned two double plays in this game: a 1-2-3 with the bases loaded in the second inning and a 1-6-3 in the fourth inning.  I can't remember the last time they turned a double play.

This was the most exciting game I have seen the Outlaws play in a while.  They gave up four runs in the top of the first.  The Outlaws then scored one run in each of the first four innings to tie the score at 4 to 4 after four innings.

In the bottom of the fifth with one out, Josh doubled into left center.  With Jeremy running for Josh, Jordan hit a hard grounder to the shortstop.  The shortstop booted it; it was the Dawgs only fielding error in either of the games.  Breyton walked to load the bases.  After a fly out to left center made it two outs, James lifted one into left center to drive in a run; this turned out to be the game winning hit.  Greysen followed with another hit to drive in two more runs.

The Dawgs loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the sixth, but James made a shoetop catch in right field to end the game.

The Outlaws won the game by the score of 7 to 4 in six innings.  The box score is here.

Outlaws 11U versus Delta Dawgs 11U Box Score

March 21, 2010, 1:30 PM - Delta Dawgs versus Outlaws
Sac March Madness 4GG Tournament Championship Game


.                     1    2    3    4    5    6    R    H    E
     Delta Dawgs      4    0    0    0    0    0    4    6    1
     Outlaws          1    1    1    1    3    X    7    9    1

  #  Hitter          POS   AB    R    H   RBI  BB   SO   HBP   SAC  #P
  5  Cooper          4/6    4    1    1    0    0    1    0     0   16
 33  Jack             3     3    1    1    0    0    1    0     0    6
  3  Jeremy          6/1    3    0    2    0    0    0    0     0    8
 55  Josh             2     2    1    1    1    0    1    0     1   15
 10  Jordan           5     2    1    0    0    0    0    1     0    5
 22  Breyton         7/8    2    1    0    0    1    1    0     0   17
  2  Trevor          8/4    3    2    2    0    0    0    0     0    9
  1  James          1/7/9   3    0    1    1    0    0    0     0    4
 00  Greysen         9/7    2    0    1    2    1    1    0     0   15

                           24    7    9    4    2    5    1     1   95

Doubles: Josh

Jordan reached base on an error by the shortstop.

James had the game winning hit.

     Pitcher          IP    H    R   ER   BB   SO   HBP ST-PC
  1  James          1 1/3   4    4    4    0    1    3  22-38
 55  Jeremy         4 2/3   2    0    0    4    3    0  32-58

                      6     6    4    4    4    4    3  54-96

Saturday, March 20, 2010

2010 Outlaws Baseball Tournament #3 Day #1

Since the beginning of March, Jack is back playing baseball. He is practicing with both the Outlaws and his rec team the Angels. With the rec season starting next weekend, the Outlaws decided to squeeze in one last tournament.

The Outlaws played in the Sac March Madness 4GG tournament at Freedom Park. They played against the Brentwood Blast Blue in the first game.

At the plate, Jack was 2 for 3 with a walk, a run scored and 3 RBIs. In his first at-bat, he hit a chopper to the right side to drive in Jeremy and was out at first. Jack walked on four pitches in his second plate appearance and ended the inning at second base. In his third at-bat, he drove one down the third base line for a single. Jack ended the inning at third. With bases loaded and one out in the fifth, Jack pushed one through the right side in right field to drive in two more runs in his fourth plate appearance. He eventually came around to score.

Jack played five relatively quiet innings at first base. He had two put-outs on throws from the second baseman and the catcher.

The Outlaws won the game by a score of 19 to 8 in five innings.

The Outlaws turned right around and played Diehard Baseball Club in the second game of the day. This team seemed very new.

At the plate, Jack was 2 for 2 with two walks and two runs scored. Jack walked on six pitches in his first plate appearance and eventually came around to score. In his second at-bat, he hit a hasty chopper down the third base line and was safe at first. Trying to draw the throw so that Jeremy could go home from third, Jack got thrown out at second. He walked on five pitches in his third plate appearance and eventually came around to score. Jack hit a 2 and 2 pitch through the left side for a single in his fourth at-bat. With Jack on first, Jordan hit a high hopper to the right side, Jack, the second baseman and the ball all got to the same place at the same time. Jack was called out for interference.

In the field, Jack played center field for two innings, third base for one inning and pitched the fourth inning. In center and at third, Jack did not handle the ball. After Breyton pitched the first three innings, Jack pitched the fourth and final inning. This is the first time that he has pitched for the Outlaws since pitching 1/3 of an inning in early September. He threw 16 pitches: 10 strikes and 6 balls. Facing the top of order, he got the first batter to ground out to first and then struck out the next two batters. Jack got the last batter to strike out on a circle change in the dirt.

The Outlaws won the game by the score of 18 to 1 in four innings.

They will face some more difficult competition tomorrow.

Friday, March 19, 2010

2010 Service Awards Banquet

I attended the 2010 SHSS Service Awards Banquet at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Sacramento.  We missed last year due to Rosemary's funeral.  Sharon has typically gone with me in the past.  For the first time this year, they changed the policy so that unless you were receiving an award you could not bring a guest; very odd...

For the first time, they assigned each group to a specific table of set of tables.  Technical Services had three tables.  As part of the program, I had the responsibility of going around, talking to about a dozen employees who work in my service line and thanking them for their service.

I enjoyed wandering around and talking to the honorees.  I actually ran out of time and had to rush through the last one.  As part of my management rounding process, I have been sitting and talking a random Technical Services employee about once a week for an hour.  I am going to add all of the honorees to the schedule.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Laguna Youth Baseball Score Keepers Clinic

I attended the Laguna Youth Baseball score keepers clinic on Wednesday night.  I am going to be the official score keeper for Jack's rec team this year.

When Jack started playing tournament baseball in the summer of 2008, I started keeping my own scorebook so I would have some idea of who was doing what.  Prior to this, I had never kept score.  When Jack played minor rec ball last spring, the coach's wife kept score and the coach published box scores and summary statistics so I did not keep score.

At Cooperstown last June, I decided to just relax and enjoy the games rather than keep score.  Afterwards, I regretted it.  Without being able to look back at the score book, I kept thinking what the heck happened.

When Jack started playing in the Northern California Cal Ripken Tournament last July, I ended up as the official scorer for the team.  I also generated box scores and summary statistics.  This continued when Jack played tournament play with the Outlaws last fall.  When basketball season started, it morphed into keeping score for Jack's basketball team.

I was an economics major in college.  At higher levels, economics is a lot of math and statistics.  I enjoyed the statistics then and still do now, but fell in love with the computers that we used for to do the heavy lifting for advanced statistics and the economic modeling.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Licence to Kill

With Sharon out of town, Jack and I watched Licence to Kill in Blu-ray on Saturday. This is the first Blu-ray movie I have seen.  I was impressed with the quality enough that I will probably sample a few more films in Blu-ray in the future.

Released in 1989, Licence to Kill is the sixteenth James Bond film. It is the first film not based on an Ian Fleming novel. More violent and darker than its predecessors, it was the first James Bond film to be given a PG-13 rating in the United States. Due to the rating and some marketing problems including a last minute title change, Licence to Kill grossed only $34 million domestically. Adjusted for inflation, it is the lowest grossing of the James Bond films. It is also a film that I had definitely never seen.

The second Bond film starring Timothy Dalton, it turned out to be his final performance in the lead role. Legal wrangling over control of the series and James Bond character created a years-long delay in production of the next Bond film which resulted in Dalton deciding to not pursue a return.

In the story, Bond resigns from the secret service to avenge the attempted murder of his CIA friend, Felix Leiter. The early parts of the film are set in the Florida Keys, including a pivotal scene in the Hemingway House. The latter parts of the film are set in the Republic of Isthmus, a fictional South American country based on Panama. Mexico was used to double for this location.

In addition to Timothy Dalton as Bond, the film stars Robert Davi as Franz Sanchez (the most powerful drug lord in Latin America), Carey Lowell as Pam Bouvier (an ex-Army pilot and CIA informant), Talisa Soto as Lupe Lamora (Sanchez's girlfriend), and Wayne Newton (Sanchez's middleman and TV evangelist for Olimpatec Meditation Institute).

Sharon is looking forward to moving on to the Pierce Brosnan films.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Tyreke Evans 20-5-5 Watch Game 68

Last Game: Lakers-106, Kings-99
Tyreke Evans Game Total: 25 points, 11 rebounds, 9 assists
Tyreke Evans Season Averages: 20.3 points, 5.6 assists, 5.2 rebounds

Only Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan and LeBron James averaged 20 points, 5 assists and 5 rebounds (20-5-5) as rookies.

Sutter Health to jump-start its $400M EHR installation in NorCal

San Francisco Business Times: Sutter Health to jump-start its $400M EHR installation in NorCal

By Chris Rauber
March 15, 2010

Sutter Health said Monday it will accelerate implementation of its electronic health record system in affiliated hospitals across 26-hospital system, after putting on the brakes in late 2007.

Sacramento-based Sutter estimates the project will cost $400 million over the next five years. The nonprofit system slowed the installation process in November 2007, in response to a rapidly cooling economy.

At the time, Sutter said it would aim to complete the huge project in phases by 2015, starting with six hospitals that account for roughly half of overall patient volume at the 26-hospital system. That phase began with Burlingame’s Peninsula Medical Center in early 2009.

In Monday’s announcement, Sutter said the reinvigorated inpatient EHR project “builds on Sutter’s ongoing installations across its affiliated medical groups and follows the nationally-recognized installation at Sutter-affiliated Mills-Peninsula Health Services in Burlingame last year.”

What Sutter didn’t say is that it also follows in the footsteps of arch-rival Kaiser Permanente, which recently put the final touches on a $6 billion electronic medical record installation across all of its hospitals and clinics.

“Last year we directed our resources to where the majority of our patients access care – physician offices,” Pat Fry, Sutter’s president and CEO, said in the March 15 statement. “Now, we’re ready to ramp up our hospital roll out.”

To make sure that multiple hospital can “go-live” with the EHR by 2011, officials said Sutter will launch prep work this year at five facilities: Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center of Santa Cruz, Menlo Park Surgical Hospital, Memorial Medical Center, Memorial Hospital Los Banos and Sutter Tracy Community Hospital. All five are slated to go live next year.

Earlier plans called on San Francisco’s California Pacific Medical Center and Alta Bates Summit Medical Center -- with campuses in Berkeley and Oakland -- to have the Epic electronic health record system installed by mid-2011, but neither CPMC nor Alta Bates was mentioned in Monday’s announcement.

Sutter says it has already installed the EHR system in most of its physician offices and clinics throughout Northern California, connecting more than 12,000 clinicians. In addition, nearly 300,000 patients use the network’s personal health record service.

Starbucks iTunes Pick of Week - The Watson Twins - Modern Man

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!
Starbucks iTunes Pick of Week - The Watson Twins - Modern Man #fb

Code Expiration: June 11, 2010

Monday, March 15, 2010

20-5-5 plus Rookie of the Year plus NBA Power Rankings 2009-2010 Week 20

With only 15 games left in the Kings season, I am convinced that the team has set its sights on two goals.

First, they want Tyreke Evans to finish the season averaging at least 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. As of today, Evans is averaging 20.3 points, 5.6 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game. A week ago, Evans was averaging less than 5.0 rebounds per game. In the last three games, he has gotten 10, 10 and 9 rebounds to pull his average over 5. I don't think that this is a coincidence!

Second, The Kings want Evans to be Rookie of the Year. As a result, I expect the Kings to be less focused on winning games as they are on making sure that Evans is showcased and that he piles up statistics!

The Kings climbed from 24th to 22th in Marc Stein's weekly power rankings of the 30 NBA teams, ahead of the Pistons, Clippers, Warriors, Wizards, 76ers, Pacers, Timberwolves and the Nets.

NBA Basketball Power Rankings
Tyreke is still averaging 20, 5 and 5, something only Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan and LeBron James did as rooks. Which is why Tyreke is still the ROY favorite ahead of his fast-charging Golden State neighbor.

Sunday, March 14, 2010

ESPN 30 for 30 - Winning Time: Reggie Miller versus the New York Knicks

After a three month hiatus, ESPN aired the eighth installment of their 30 for 30 film series, Winning Time: Reggie Miller versus the New York Knicks. I turned it on Sunday night just to check and make sure that it was being DVR'ed and Sharon, Jack and I got drawn into watching the whole thing. The film tells the story of the 1994 and 1995 NBA basketball play-off series between the Indiana Pacers and the New York Knicks.

1994 and 1995 were particularly interesting years because Michael Jordan was playing minor league baseball. His absence from the NBA created an opportunity and a sense of urgency for a number of teams, including the Pacers and the Knicks.

I was particularly captivated by three aspects of the film.  First, the NBA game was much more physical then. There was a lot more fighting and hard fouls. By increasing the penalties and the length of suspensions, David Stern has effectively softened the game over the last fifteen years. Second, I did not realize how good a basketball player Cheryl Miller was. Reggie Miller grew up trying to compete against his older sister who was a better basketball player for much of his early life. Third, the subplot of Reggie versus Spike Lee has some amazing footage. Spike Lee has court side seats in Madison Square Garden. Lee and Miller spent a number of games in the two play-off series trash talking each other.

As an NBA fan, I enjoyed this installation of the 30 for 30 series a great deal. Bill Simmons has a podcast with Dan Klores, the director of the film; I am planning to listen to it in the next couple of days.

The film is available on Amazon.

Winning Time is also available on iTunes.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Outlaws Sleepover

Jack's tournament baseball team, the Outlaws, had a sleepover on Friday night. They played Laser Tag on Friday night in Carmichael and then spent the night together at one of the coaches houses. I am convinced that he got almost no sleep.

I picked Jack up about 10 a.m. Saturday morning and took him to baseball practice for the Angels, his rec baseball team; getting him there was a challenge. It was after 1 p.m. by the time we got home and Jack was a vegetable the rest of the day...

Friday, March 12, 2010

El Retiro San Inigo 2010

Sharon and Janie took off for a weekend at El Retiro San Inigo, the Jesuit Retreat House of Los Altos. They are attending a silent retreat for members of the legal profession; this year's session is titled Jesus Christ: The Source & Goal of Our Desiring. Sharon has gone to this retreat every year since 1994, except the year after Jack was born; 16 out of the last 17 years.

Apple iPad now available for pre-order

iPad now available for pre-order

Posted using ShareThis

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Ten Years Ago Today - Building the Elk Grove House Pic #1

In January of 2000, Sharon and I sold the house in Shingle Springs and started the process of building the house in Elk Grove. Over a three plus month period, I took pictures of the house as it was built. The first picture shown below was taken ten years ago today. Drew, Morgan, Jack and I stopped at the site on the way to Davis to see Keith play baseball and have dinner with the Snipes.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

2010 Kings versus Raptors plus Rally for 'Reke Roy


Lew Gasper and I went to the Sacramento Kings versus Toronto Raptors NBA Basketball Game. Trailing 51 to 45 at the half, the Kings scored 43 points in the third quarter. The Kings continued to pull away in the fourth quarter and won the game by the score of 113 to 90.

The Kings designated the game "Rally for Reke Roy Night." They gave out 10,000 free "Reke Roy" T-shirts and 5,000 face-on-a-sticks which include an image Evans. The pre-game introductions included a couple of extras touting Tyreke Evans for Rookie of the Year (ROY).

I was a little worried before the game that Evans would wilt under all of the attention. The opposite happened. Evans turned in his first triple-double! He had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in 36 minutes. He was 7 for 15 from the field, 0 for 2 from three and 5 for 7 from the free throw line.

Evans loves to drive to the basket, but actually kicked the ball out to open shooters three or four times. If he can add this to his game consistently, the Kings will be a much better team.

Evans also had an amazing circus shot. Fouled on a baseline drive late in the second quarter, Evans tossed up a floater from behind the backboard that went in.

Beno Udrith was actually the leading scorer for the Kings. He had 24 points on 10 for 14 from the field, 2 for 2 from three and 2 for 2 from the free throw line. Beno added 4 rebounds and 8 assists.

Center Andrea Bargnani was the leading scorer for the Raptors. He had 20 points on 8 for 12 from the field, 1 for 1 from three and 3 for 4 from the free throw line. Touted as one of the major free agents next summer, Chris Bosh looked out of sync. He had 14 points on 6 for 20 from the field.

Tuesday, March 09, 2010

2010 LYB Major Angels First Practice

After getting rained out for the last week, Jack's rec baseball team finally got on the field to practice last night. When I was done with my run, I sat and watched the team take infield. After watching Jack play in the Cooperstown tournament last June, the Cal Ripken Northern California tournament last July, six travel tournaments during the fall and one tournament in February, I had frankly forgotten what rec baseball looked like!

It will be interesting to see how the Angels round into shape over the next couple of weeks and how they do during the season. They have a strong core of players.

The coaches had Jack at first base and Niko at short during the infield practice. It will be interesting to see where Jack ends up playing the most innings over the course of the rec season.

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Findlay Brown - Everybody Needs Love

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!
Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Findlay Brown - Everybody Needs Love #fb


Code Expiration: June 4, 2010

Monday, March 08, 2010

Missing You - The Andrew Heringer Band

NBA Power Rankings 2009-2010 Week 19

The Kings climbed from 26th to 24th in Marc Stein's weekly power rankings of the 30 NBA teams, ahead of the Pistons, Pacers, Warriors, Knicks, Timberwolves and the Nets.

NBA Basketball Power Rankings
Our beloved Casspi was back in Dallas on Friday night for the last time as a rookie, while the committee [of one] was on a plane bound for Dorkapalooza. Which is the only bad thing we can say about the weekend.

Sunday, March 07, 2010

2010 Kings versus Thunder

John Cunningham and I went to see the Sacramento Kings versus Oklahoma City Thunder NBA Basketball game. Keeping the game close, the Kings lost by the score of 108 to 106.

It was an odd game. It was the most inconsistently called game I have ever seen. At the times, the referees would let the players bang each other and then they would turn around and call a foul on what was incidental contact. The game included four technical fouls and a flagrant foul. Two of the technical fouls were called on Durant and Evans when they scored baskets. The crowd got very restless with the calls and started consistently booing after most of the calls. At one point, a fan sitting to our left got up and walked down and yelled at the referees. The referees had security throw him out of the arena; I am not sure that I have ever seen this happen at Acro before.

Kevin Durant scored 27 points for the Thunder on 9 for 21 from the field, 8 for 8 from the free throw line and 1 for 3 from three point range. He added 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Durant looked very smooth.

Tyre Evans led the Kings with 24 points on 9 for 16 from the field, 2 for 3 from three points range and only 4 for 7 from the free throw line. Evans missed three consecutive free throws at the end of the game. He added 4 rebounds and 7 assists.

Unfortunately, the thing that I am going to remember about this game is how poor the officiating was...

The Kings have 3 wins and 6 losses in games that I have seen in person this season.

Friday, March 05, 2010

Pony Express Mangels Ranch Adobe

Pony Express
Mangels Ranch Adobe

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

This landmark is located in the Pony Express Business Park, Fairfield, California. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 13.800 W 122° 07.900.

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.

Mangels Ranch Adobe


Possibly dating back to 1836, this adobe structure is one of the oldest in Solano County [California].

The structure remains a mystery with many theories as to who constructed it and what it was used for. One such idea is that it was part of the mission system and provided shelter to missionaries and their converts.

In addition the site was on the route of both Stages Lines and the Pony Express (1860-1861) route from Sacramento to the Benicia Ferry and on to Oakland. This route was used when the steams ship could not navigate the Sacramento River or riders missed the connection with the ships to San Francisco.

The site was part of the original 230 acres acquired in 1876 by Louis Mangels from money earned during his days as a cooper in San Francisco.

Because this site has been part of the history of California and Solano County it was preserved by Headwaters Development to provide inspiration, education and a monument to the adventurous spirit which is… California!

Dedicated October 10th 2007


Mangels Ranch Adobe

Thursday, March 04, 2010

Dinner with Randy Wong

Randy Wong and I got together at Scott's on the River for drinks and some food. We ended up sitting at bar and talking for almost three hours about kids, wives, work and youth sports.

Randy and I had gotten together early last year when the Gunners were trying to recruit Aaron for the Cooperstown trip. I had reached out to him again in the last couple of weeks because the Outlaws are going through some changes and Scott and Rod were wondering whether or not Aaron might be available.

Wednesday, March 03, 2010

2010 PAL JV Comp SEAs Eagles Season Statistics

for the games played after January 1, 2010
.                                 Rebounds           Miscellaneous
  Name      GP    GS   MIN   PTS   OFF    DEF   TOT   AST    SLT   BLK    TO   A/TO    PF
Joe         16    15   213    92     4     18    22    17     36     0    25   0.68    24
Jacob       16     1   173    66     7     15    22    13     14     0    20   0.65    10
Jack        16    15   217    77     6     14    20    16     35     2    15   1.07    16
Chad        16     1   141    14     3      8    11    11     15     0    12   0.92    11
Malcolm     15     2   177    46    11     30    41     9     18     1    17   0.53     7
David       15     2   127    27    19     24    43     0     14     3     9   0.00     8
Anthony     14     1   110    20    13     19    32     0      2     1     7   0.00     6
Connor      15    12   119     9     4     24    28     0      5     0    14   0.00     7
Jake        16    15   211    79    17     33    50     4     21     2    14   0.29    13
Aidan       16     4   181    62    37     59    96     3     14     1     7   0.43    14
Andy        16    12   191    88    41     44    85     5      7     5    13   0.38    17

                      1860   580   162    288   450    78    181    15   153   0.51   133


         Fields Goals      3-Points           Free Throws        2-Points
  Name     FGM   FGA   FG%   3PM   3PA    3P%   FTM   FTA    FT%   2PM   2PA    2P%   PPS
Joe         37    98  37.8%    1     7   14.3%   11    24   45.8%   36    91   39.6%  0.94
Jacob       23    72  31.9%   12    33   36.4%    3     7   42.9%   11    39   28.2%  0.92
Jack        36   116  31.0%    0     1    0.0%    3     8   37.5%   36   115   31.3%  0.66
Chad         7    44  15.9%    0     5    0.0%    0     2    0.0%    7    39   17.9%  0.32
Malcolm     22    59  37.3%    0     0 #DIV/0!    2     7   28.6%   22    59   37.3%  0.78
David       13    55  23.6%    1     3   33.3%    0     2    0.0%   12    52   23.1%  0.49
Anthony     10    30  33.3%    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     0 #DIV/0!   10    30   33.3%  0.67
Connor       4    15  26.7%    1     1  100.0%    0     2    0.0%    3    14   21.4%  0.60
Jake        37    66  56.1%    0     1    0.0%    3     7   42.9%   37    65   56.9%  1.20
Aidan       28    67  41.8%    0     0 #DIV/0!    3    10   30.0%   28    67   41.8%  0.93
Andy        41    82  50.0%    0     0 #DIV/0!    4    11   36.4%   41    82   50.0%  1.07

           258   704  36.6%   15    51   29.4%   29    80   36.3%  243   653   37.2%  0.00

Tuesday, March 02, 2010

2010 LYB Major Angels

With the rain washing out the first scheduled practice of Jack's spring rec baseball team, the coach had a team meeting at his home.

As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I had a lot of trepidation about this year's baseball draft. Jack ended up getting drafted 15 overall in the middle of the second of twelve rounds (I think the fourth 11 year old?) by the Angels. Two of the assistants coaches for the team are dads whose sons played on the Outlaws. Overall, there are three of Jack's teammates from the Outlaws, including Breyton, Niko and Greysen. Breyton was Jack's bunkmate at Cooperstown last summer with the Gunners. Additionally, the Angels drafted one of Jack's classmates and Eagles' teammate, Andy. Unfortunately, Andy broke his wrist in the Eagles last game against OLA and will probably be out for the season.

Overall, I could not be more pleased.

I think that the Angels will be a very competitive major league team.

Charlotte Gainsbourg (featuring Beck) - Heaven Can Wait

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!
Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Charlotte Gainsbourg (featuring Beck) - Heaven Can Wait #fb


Code Expiration: May 28, 2010

Monday, March 01, 2010

2010 PAL JV Comp SEAs Eagles Championship Tournament Statistics

.                                      Rebounds           Miscellaneous
  Name      GP    GS   MIN   PTS   OFF    DEF   TOT   AST    SLT   BLK    TO   A/TO    PF
Joe          2     2    37     7     0      2     2     0      1     0     7   0.00     3
Jacob        2     0    16     7     0      0     0     0      0     0     1   0.00     2
Jack         2     2    35    14     0      2     2     0      4     0     2   0.00     4
Chad         2     0    10     0     0      1     1     0      1     0     1   0.00     2
Malcolm      2     1    28     2     0      2     2     2      1     0     0 #DIV/0!    1
David        2     0    11     2     0      3     3     0      1     1     0 #DIV/0!    2
Anthony      2     0     8     0     0      0     0     0      0     0     2   0.00     0
Connor       2     1    12     0     0      1     1     0      0     0     1   0.00     0
Jake         2     2    36     5     1      7     8     1      2     0     1   1.00     0
Aidan        2     0    22     3     4      6    10     0      0     0     3   0.00     3
Andy         2     2    25    10     7      7    14     2      1     0     3   0.67     5

                       240    50    12     31    43     5     11     1    21   0.24    22


            Fields Goals         3-Points           Free Throws        2-Points
  Name     FGM   FGA   FG%   3PM   3PA    3P%   FTM   FTA    FT%   2PM   2PA    2P%   PPS
Joe          1     7  14.3%    0     0 #DIV/0!    5     7   71.4%    1     7   14.3%  1.00
Jacob        3     9  33.3%    1     5   20.0%    0     0 #DIV/0!    2     4   50.0%  0.78
Jack         6    20  30.0%    0     0 #DIV/0!    2     2  100.0%    6    20   30.0%  0.70
Chad         0     1   0.0%    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     1    0.0%  0.00
Malcolm      1     5  20.0%    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     0 #DIV/0!    1     5   20.0%  0.40
David        1     3  33.3%    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     0 #DIV/0!    1     3   33.3%  0.67
Anthony      0     0 ######    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     0 #DIV/0!######
Connor       0     1   0.0%    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     1    0.0%  0.00
Jake         2     7  28.6%    0     0 #DIV/0!    1     1  100.0%    2     7   28.6%  0.71
Aidan        1     4  25.0%    0     0 #DIV/0!    1     4   25.0%    1     4   25.0%  0.75
Andy         5    10  50.0%    0     0 #DIV/0!    0     0 #DIV/0!    5    10   50.0%  1.00

            20    67  29.9%    1     5   20.0%    9    14   64.3%   19    62   30.6% #REF!

NBA Power Rankings 2009-2010 Week 18

The Kings climbed from 28th to 26th in Marc Stein's weekly power rankings of the 30 NBA teams, ahead of the Warriors, Knicks, Timberwolves and the Nets.

NBA Basketball Power Rankings
We certainly didn't expect Westphal's Kings to need this long to reach 20 wins after a 13-14 start ... but we can also still remember plenty of folks back in October who thought this team's ceiling was less than 20 wins.