about the new 38+ cubs, there's good news - and bad news.
the good news is for the league: we've got a competitive team here, they're going to put lots of teams to the proverbial test.
the bad news was for the red hot chili peppers who didn't fare so well on that test: the expansion team from scotia beat us 16-3 in its very first game on a bright, breezy sunday at the town of kinderhook park.
[the park, by the way, is a flat, mostly green, expansive place with two diamonds, where the wind whips down a stony road from a cornfield. neither diamond has an outfield fence, but the one we played on, the second one, had a level infield that was dragged smooth and it had neat, thick white lines on the base paths (now you know what kevin jackson did with one saturday evening.) the field is without outfield fences but it has a nifty, teal-colored water tower about 300 yards behind the backstop on which some soul, years ago, dared to climb about 200 feet up a narrow ladder and paint in black a peace symbol on its bulb with a "class of '71" next to it. ah, those were the days.]
i don't have the scorebook in front of me, but the short of it was that the peppers scored the first run, small ball fashion, against john martin, who then proceeded to shut us down on, i'd guess, about two hits over the next five innings. john, like his older brother ted (now living and pitching in florida), is a former umass pitcher who knows how to pitch inside, outside, high, low, fast, slow, curving, cutting, riding and sinking, and most of what he tosses nicks the plate. which meant that when the peppers hit the ball at all, we were usually off balance, slapping grounders at waiting infielders.
tough way to scrape off winter's rust.
offensively, manager dennis maille has assembled a team of hitters. the peppers pitchers (who shall go nameless, though you're reading one here) found that any pitch from the thighs up got whacked pretty darn good and those from the knees down were pretty much ignored.
beyond their offensive and defensive talents, the cubs have a liveliness and spirit that's nice to see. part of that - and as a kind of bonus - several players are willing to teach spanish to anyone who'll listen. for example: "usted paga para la cerveza." ("you pay for the beer.")
You and your team are a class act and thank you for such a pleasant description of the field. Muy Bien. Kudos to Kevin for preparing a quality field. And with the conversation I had with his dad, he's proud of him as well.
Thanks for the sodas and chips Mike. With this warm reception I can see the League growing and fulfilling the dreams of many as well as filling up the fields of dreams throughout the capital region.
And the Spanish lesson for the the day is
"That's what it is" = eso si que es (pronounced ES - OH - SEE - KAY - ES)
