HELPING THE LITTLE RASCALS...

HELP THE KIDS PLAY TOURNAMENT.

Coventry and Keogh Parks - Over the past weekend the Help the Kids Play Tournament took place and the Hurtin' Units took part. There were 12 teams in total, made up of mostly teams from the T.O.T league, there were some invited players from the waiting list, past players of the league and guests. It was really great to see the ball park all a buzz with tournament participants and there was finally a feel that summer had arrived. 

There was a lot of great ball played this weekend and the tournament was a success when it comes to raising money to help the local kids get an opportunity to play sports.

Congratulations go out to the Draft Kings for their win in the T.O.T division. 


One of the things I like do when the Hurtin' Units play a tournament is bring out the Sambuca as a little traditional perk. For this tournament I brought out the black Sambuca and on Friday night we added a shot of Tequila Rose to make the shots in to Lava Lamps. Sometimes the Sambuca gets the team going, but that was not the case for this tournament.   

Game # 1-Friday July 3, 2015

Hurtin' Units vs. Beer Bros.

Hurtin' Units win lose 19-8

Coventry Park- C#1 - Our first game of the weekend got off to a rough start on a couple of levels. At game time we were missing our Daves. I knew Dave Mil. would be iffy (more important stuff to take care of) and Dave Mc. was rushing to get to the park. When we submitted our lineup we had to put Dave Mc. to the bottom of the order, I think this messed with the chemistry that we have had going for the last little bit. These things happen and there is nothing we can do about it. It's a fun tournament and we can't take this too seriously.  

Don't get me wrong, I want to win, but I would rather see everybody having a good time instead, hence the Sambuca shots prior to our games. 

In the first inning, the Units scored 4 runs and we were looking good. But from this point on the bats went ice cold scoring 2 runs in the 4th inning and only 1 run in the 6th inning. The real back breaker for the Units and probably the turning point was when the Bros. scored 7 runs in the bottom of the 3rd inning. 

The Beer Bros. were a tough team on this night and the Hurtin' Units could not bring their level of play up to make a game of it. 

Heading to Dodge City...

Game # 2 - Saturday July 4, 2015

Hurtin' Units vs. Dodge City Rounders

Hurtin' Units lose 9-4

Coventry Park- The Hurtin' Units second game of the tournament was on C#2  and it was actually a close game. 

The Hurtin' Units would have a full squad for this game, although Darrell was running a bit late and we had to put him at the bottom of the order. 

The Hurtin' Units bats were as cold as I have seen them this season and this was really the difference in the game. It really is amazing, to me, that a whole team can stopping hitting at the same time, you would think that maybe one or two guys would go cold, but a whole team? 

Defensively, I thought the Units had a really decent game against a team that has a reputation for scoring a bunch of runs. 

Game # 3 - July 4, 2015

Hurtin' Units vs. Sons of Pitches

Hurtin' Units lose 9-5

Keogh Park- With two losses under our belts, the chances of getting in to the Sunday games seemed a little slim. But for the 1-1 Sons of Pitches, a win could possibly squeak them in on Sunday. So this wasn't a nothing game to the Units, we could be a spoiler with a win. 

I decided to start Darrell as the pitcher in this game, I really like to play second base and this gave me an opportunity to do so. Darrell had a good game pitching only allowing 9 runs in the game (even though the game was shortened) and I had a decent game at second. 

The Hurtin' Units bats were still on vacation for the game, nobody was hitting well and it showed up on the scoresheet. 

I really felt bad for talking Todd in to going in the homerun contest. I really think I messed him up, I pitched him in the contest and he probably fouled out 5 of his 10 permitted hits. I noticed the same type of hitting in the game against Sons of Pitches, it could have been the pitching, by the Sons pitcher, but I think some of it was caused by me. CRAP!! 

Even though the Units weren't hitting well, we did manage to keep the game close with some good defense. If it wasn't for a 7 run inning by the Sons, the outcome might have been different. The Units bats were not as hot as they have been over the last 5 games, but I guess it was just not meant to be this weekend. 

Winner, Winner, Beer Dinner.

When it finally came down to the finals the two teams would have great finish. None of the teams the Units faced, in the round robin, would make it to the finals (the Beer Bros. made the semis). The Master Batters and the Draft Kings were the finalists in the Oldtimer division and the Draft Kings would win in the bottom of the 7th inning by a score of 10-9. Congratulations to the Draft Kings on a great tournament.