Wednesday, July 27, 2011

2011 USTSA Word Series Day 2

I spent the two or three weeks before the Outlaws came to San Diego barking at the coaches about being positive and upbeat. I kept reminding them that the Outlaws are who they are and we need to enjoy the trip no matter what happened. I then got madder during the first game than I have been any time since Jack was playing with the Gunners in the fall of 2008.

The Outlaws played the So Cal Cavs in the the first game of the tournament. The Cavs are from Los Angeles.

At the plate, Jack was 0 for 2 reaching base on a fielders choice. In his first at-bat with Trevor on second and Jeremy on first, Jack hit a 1 and 2 pitch back to the pitcher. The pitcher threw to the shortstop to force Jeremy out at second. Jack was safe at first. Jack stole second. Josh walked to load the bases, but Breyton grounded out to end the inning. Jack hit the first pitch deep into left center for an out in his second plate appearance. He just missed a home run.

In the field, Jack played four innings at third base and pitched the third inning. At third, Jack had three put-outs on pop-ups to the left side.

Jack pitched the third inning. It was a train wreck. He gave up a home run on the first pitch he threw. Jack ended up throwing 33 pitches, 16 balls and 17 strikes. He ended up striking out one, hitting a batter, walking two, giving up three hits, four earned runs and six totals runs. Oy Vey...

The Outlaws lost to the Cavs by the score of 9 to 1. The box score is here.

I was upset during and after the game about the pitcher that the coaches started and that they ran Jack out to pitch. Jack has only pitched three innings in tournaments in the last seven months. I grabbed Jack and we left the ballpark to find somewhere to have lunch. At lunch, I realized that I was taking it harder than Jack was. To break the ice, I did something that Jack is always after me to do when I ordered lunch and that got him laughing. After looking for one nearby waymark [the smallest Spanish land grant in California], we headed back to the ballpark. Most of my anger had bled off...

The Outlaws played Fogball BBC in the second game. Fogball is from Brawley in the Imperial Valley.

At the plate, Jack was 2 for 2 with a walk, two RBIs and three runs scored. In his first at bat with two outs and Trevor on third, Jack drove the first pitch over the right center field on one bounce for a ground rule double and a RBI. He stole third and came home on a balk. With the count 0 and 2, Jack blooped one just behind the pitcher for a single. It was a low pitch and it looked like he had hit a pitching wedge. He stole second and then came home on an error on Josh's infield grounder. Jack walked on four pitches in his third at bat. He stole second and scored on Josh's line drive to left center.

In the field, Jack played four innings at third base. In one of those odd games, he had no assists, put-outs or errors. Jack handled the ball in an odd run down between first and second where Cooper ended up tagging the runner out when he stepped off the base after getting out of the pickle.

The Outlaws beat Fogball by the score of 12 to 2. The box score is here.

At the end of the day, I calculated that the Outlaws were seeded 7th of the 18 teams in their division.

Heading back to the hotel, the team spent the evening around the pool. The boys had a great time swimming, while the parents visited. Eventually, we ordered pizza for the group.

Rod, Ben, Alan, Scott and I finished the evening closing down the bar in the hotel.

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