HURTIN' UNITS HAVE A DUSTY, GRUESOME, GRISSLIE, RUSTY, BEERY, TAPPING, MASTERFUL, WOODY, INGLORIOUS, DODGIE, DOGCATCHERISH, SLIDERISH, SONNY, GAME AGAINST THE DRAFT KINGS.

HURTIN' UNITS VS. THE DRAFT KINGS.

Game # 25 - August 25, 2016

Hurtin' Units win 15-3

Team Record - 14-11

Keogh Park- Back on June 14th, in game # 9 on the season, the Hurtin' Units and the Draft Kings met for the first time. The game was actually quite close, within 3 runs at the end of the 6th inning. In the end the Units could not string enough hits together to pull out a win. Here is how I described the final 3 innings of that game back then. ( I don't know why this first part is red again, it happened last time we played the Draft Kings, it's a Draft Kings thingie).

In the top of the 5th inning, the Draft Kings continued to pound the baseball around the diamond. And again they would score another 7 run inning. In the bottom, the Units would fight back with 3 runs. The score at the end of 5 complete innings- Draft Kings 16, Hurtin' Units 8. 

In the top of the 6th inning, the Units would shut down the Draft Kings and in the bottom of the inning, the Units would score 5 runs. The score at the end of 6 innings- the Draft Kings 16, Hurtin' Units 13. 

In the 7th (open inning) the Draft Kings would tack on another 3 runs. In the bottom of the inning, the Units were only down by 6 runs, but the Draft Kings would shut the door and the Units would be defeated by a score of 19-13

Coming in to our second game with the Draft Kings, I was a little nervous. The Draft Kings were in first place, they could clinch the league title with a win and they were defending for the Beer Cup. This was pretty strong motivation to come out strong. 

After our game on Tuesday night vs. the Master Batters, I wasn't certain how the Units would respond when up against the league's power house. The Units responded like I hoped they would. We have had a bit of a rough patch recently (not sure why) but we needed a good showing going in to the playoffs. And we did. 

There were a few setbacks on the night, but they didn't play in to the final outcome. I forgot my shin pads and my phone at home for this game. I played without the shin pads (really didn't want to) and because I forgot my phone, I could not take a picture of the game sheet. I did managed to scribble down a boxscore from this game. Going old school.

Shin Pads:

Yes, that is a huge lump on my leg. 

Last season, just before the playoffs started, the Units decided to have a practise. During the practice, my teammate Scott P. hit a ball back to the pitcher's mound (is there really a mound?) and the ball hit me just above my shin pad. 

In the first game of the playoffs, I had to wear a hockey shin pad to protect the injured area. Let me tell you this, it's really difficult running the bases in a hockey shin pad and with a big boo boo.  

This injury was very painful and I had a flush of bad memories when I realized I had forgotten my shin pads on Thursday night. Fortunately, I managed to my glove in front of most of the balls, coming back to me, on the mound, on this night.  

Game Time:

The weather for this game was hot. During the day the temperature was up around 29 degrees, but the humidity was really the issue. At game time the heat and humidity were still around and I was feeling it. The shirts we have this season have been great, but on this night my shirt was drenched with sweat and there was one point in the early innings, I thought I might pass out from being so hot.  

At game time we had 10 Hurtin' Units players dressed in team shirts (yes, everyone was in the 2016 team shirt). Missing on the night were Gord D. and Mark B. 






Inside the Game:

• I forgot my shin pads and phone at home. "I never play without shin pads, I'm sure nobody will hit up the middle, right"? 
• I had 4 plays with balls hit up the middle (it's like they knew I wasn't wearing shin pads). There were 2 ground balls and 2 line drives, probably the most action, in a game, I've seen all season.
• This game was being played for the Beer Cup and the Units would become the defenders for the next game.
• Clayton was scheduled to play the outfield for 2 innings, but came to me and offered to play the entire game, since this game was so close. That's a team player!
• I smudged the bats before the game and it seemed to work. Also smudged my glove, this was the first time I've ever done this, seemed to work there also.
• Ingo made a couple of nice plays at third. 
• In our first game vs. the Draft Kings, Chuck was missing.
• Chuck and Jimmer made a "jug of beer" bet before the game (Beer Cup thing), Chuck wanted to bet for 2 jugs, but I wanted 5 to 1 odds since they were the #1 team. It didn't happen. Chuck is awesome!
• This win guaranteed the Units a .500 record or better for the season. This will be the 2nd time in the last 2 seasons the Units will finish over .500. Nice job guys.
• Clayton made a nice throw to home from left field, with Chuck running home, almost got him. Safe!!
• Jon made a great throw to Robert, at home plate, for a big out.
• The Draft Kings could have clinched the league title with a win. Not tonight boys!
• There was one inning when the ball was hit to Clayton in left field, next batter hit to Pete in left center field and the next batter hit to Ted in right center field. Change them up boys.
• I was unable to take a picture of the game

  

  Bookends.

  sheets because I forgot my phone.
• I had the first ball of the game hit back to me at pitcher (David P.) and I had the last ball of the game hit back to me (Wayne C.) in this game. Book ends. 
• Jon had a solid game at shortstop chasing down balls that look like they were going to drop in. On one hit, Jon caught a ground ball that looked like it going through the infield, fell down, got back up and made the throw to first for the out. 
• Pete made 2 awesome over the shoulder catches in left center field.
• Al was the only outfielder to not make a fly ball catch, made a great effort on one ball hit to right field. Nice try Al.
• I moved myself up in the lineup for the first time this season. I followed Jim R. in the order, back to back JIMMERS. 

The Hurtin' Units next game (final game of the season) is Tuesday August 30th at 8:15pm. 

I'm puttin' a worm on a hook and he says to me "CHAMP...YOUR A MASTER BAITER".

HURTIN' UNITS VS. THE MASTER BATTERS. 

Game # 24- August 23rd, 2016

Hurtin' Units lose 20-13

Team Record -13-11-0

Coventry Park- Back on June 19th the Hurtin' Units and the Master Batters played each other for the first time this season. The game, back then, was game #10 for the Units and the Units would play a strong defensive game and come away with 10-4 win. It would also give the Units a 5-5-0 record and put them at .500 for the season. 

Game Time: 

The weather for this game was again hot, really has been a hot summer. The temperature was around 25 degrees for this 7:00pm game. 

The sun was a problem in the 3rd and 4th innings, shining in the faces of most of the players on the field. It got so bad that we needed a 10 minute stoppage to let it set a bit before resuming. 

I forgot to take a picture or get a boxscore or any information from this game, so this posting will be mostly the score and that's it. 

Over the past weekend a couple of big events took place worth a mention. 

Golf Tournament:

The first event was the HTKP golf tournament. The tournament was held at Bond Head golf course. A beautiful golf course, but it lacked shade trees and took over 5 hours (closer to 6 hours) to complete the round. It was hot and sunny on the Saturday and there were not a lot of shade trees, which meant we were roasting on the course. 

The clubhouse and dining facilities were awesome and dinner was very good. There were draws, silent auction and some great prizes. 

I played with Hurtin' Units teammates Peter H., Ted B. and Pete's brother Tom H. We finished the best ball round with a -5. A great day on the course with the exception of the heat and the length on time to play the round. In the clubhouse, after dinner, the organizers put the Tragically Hip concert on the big screen. 

Tragically Hip:

The Hip was playing on the big screen, but the sound was turned off during the prize portion of the golf tournament. The Hip was still playing when things wrapped up at Bond Head. 

When I got home I remembered that Keogh Park was showing the Tragically Hip concert on the big screen. I threw on my Vanhalen shirt (don't have a Hip shirt) and headed over. There were probably 600+ people at the park watching the show. It was like actually being at a concert. The show was great, the energy and emotion on this night was incredible. I'm glad I decided to stop by. 

I had PVRed the concert and watched it on Sunday. I must say that CBC did an awesome job with this show. The camera work (in HD I might add) was fantastic and with no commercials it was worth watching again. I am a huge fan of the Tragically Hip and I'm grateful to have seen this final concert by this Canadian icon. Thanks Guys.

The weekend was great, but the Units had a rough time with the Master Batters on Tuesday night. The Units kept pace and had several chances to get back in the game, but in the end the bats were not firing on all cylinders. I will smudge the bats before the next game. 

The Hurtin' Units next game is Thursday August 25 vs. the first place team the Draft Kings. 

INGLORIOUS BATSTERS BATTLE THE UNITS.

HURTIN' UNITS VS. THE INGLORIOUS BATSTERS.

Game # 23 - August 17, 2016

Hurtin' Units win 20-9

Team Record - 13-10-0

Keogh Park- Way, way back on June 7th, in game # 8, the Hurtin' Units and Inglorious Batsters fought each other and the Units came away with a 26-15 victory. The win gave the Hurtin' Units a .500 record for the first time in the season and since that win the Units have played some good baseball. 

There was a recent blip on the radar, when the Units went on a 3 game losing streak going down in defeat to Sons of Pitches (40-12), Dogcatchers (31-30) and Hottub Woodys (17-11). This game vs. the Inglorious Batsters is hopefully the start of a good run to the end of the season. The Units only have 3 games remaining on the season, the playoffs are only a few short weeks away. 

For this game, I was away. I don't miss many games, but once in a while I will take a game or two off. Pete was in charge and based on the results, he did a great job. 

I don't really know the weather for this game, but if it like anywhere else in Southern Ontario, it was still hot and muggy. A 7:00pm game at Keogh would have had sun in the eyes of the right fielders, first and second bases.

In this game we were missing Jimmer, Mark and Gord. We picked up Pulley and apparently he did a good job pitching. When I texted for a sub, I was actually looking for an outfielder, Pulley indicated he would play the outfield, but Pete and Jon discussed it and made the decision to pitch him. Good call boys.

So since I was not at the game, I really can't talk to much about the win. I can tell you this, the Hurtin' Units needed a win to get back on the right track going in to the playoffs. The Units have 3 tough games coming up in the next two weeks. These 3 games will be a good test for the Units to end the season. 

The Hurtin' Units next 3 games are against the Master Batters, Draft Kings and Sliders.  

The Hurtin' Units next game is Tuesday August 23rd, 2016 at Coventry Park at 7:00pm. 

WOODYS COME OUT HARD AND CAN'T BE BEAT.

HURTIN' UNITS VS. THE HOTTUB WOODYS.

Game # 22- August 15th, 2016

Hurtin' Units lose 17-11

Team Record- 12-9-0

Keogh Park- As I started this posting, I realized we are already in the middle of August and we only have 4 more regular season games left. Where did the summer go?

Way, way back on June 2nd, the Hurtin' Units and the Hottub Woodies played for the first time and the Units would come away with a 19-7 victory. June 2nd doesn't seem like that long ago, but the game back then was only the 2nd home game of the season and it was played almost two and a half months ago. Again, where did the summer go?

GAME TIME:  

The weather for this game was hot and muggy. When I first arrived at the game I thought it wasn't all that bad out, but 2 minutes in to warm up throws and I could feel the sweat running down my back. The temperature was around 27 degrees at game time, very little wind and high humidity. 

At game time we had 11 guys dressed and ready to play. Mark was the only missing body. 

After the week we had last week, I was definitely in favor of forgetting the Bizzaro World experience and moving on to a new week. Unfortunately, there was still a bit of lingering residue and this game became another defeat in the win/loss column. Only the second time this season that the Units have lost 3 games in a row. 

The Hottub Woodys hit the ball hard and they hit it in the places that we were not. The balls that were hit near or close to the Units' defense were played well and there were signs we were starting to play better than we did the week before. No real errors, no bobbles and no balls thrown away in this game. Steve L. hit a grand slam homerun, can't defend against this. The Woodys really hit the ball well...give them some credit. 

Where the Units looked like they were struggling was at the plate. The Units' bats were weak on this night and even though we scored 11 runs, I thought we were really swinging at bad, short pitches, popping up and making it easy for the Woodys to get us out. Our game before, with the Dogcatchers, I thought our bats were hitting well, but unfortunately in that game, our defense couldn't get the Dogcatchers out. 

The Game sheets tell the story.

Inside the Lines:

• It seemed like we were starting to come out of Bizzaro World; our bats were not great, but our defense was much better than it had been the previous 2 games.
• Steve L. (Hottubbers) hit a grand slam homerun that really broke this game open.
• This game was closer than the final score would indicate, the Units actually had the lead after 3 innings of play.
• The Hurtin' Units were the visitors in this game.
• Roman D. was the umpire of record
• Steve L. (HTW) scored 4 runs in this game.
• Nobody on the Units had a perfect night batting, someone usually does in most games.
• The Units offense was not hitting well, we left multiple runners on base.
• There were definite signs that we were coming out of our funk and hopefully by next game we will be playing like we have most of the season. 

The Hurtin' Units next game is Wednesday August 24th at 7:00pm. 

HURTIN' UNITS CAN'T ESCAPE DOGCATCHERS.

HURTIN' UNITS VS. THE DOGCATCHERS.

HURTIN' UNITS FIND THEMSELVES IN BIZZARO WORLD.

Game # 21 - August 9, 2016

Hurtin' Units lose 31-30

Team Record 12-9-0 

Coventry Park- The Hurtin' Units have found themselves in Bizzaro World.

I'm not sure how we ended up in this world, but I'm not liking it. I think it all goes back to the game against the Sons of Pitches (on Monday night), when a couple of different things happened to send us in to Bizzaro World. 

The first thing that happened was Jimmy R. showed up with his shirt on inside out and the second thing was I drove my car to the game, (I have never done this, bad carma) I always drive my van. These things are enough to send us in to the world of the opposite....BIZZARO WORLD!

Coming in to this week the Hurtin' Units were on a 4 game winning streak, they had the second best runs against in the league and were sitting in fourth place in the standings. The Units have now been thrust in to Bizzaro World. 

On Monday night, the Hurtin' Units played the Sons of Pitches and when the diamond dust settled, the Units found themselves on the losing end of a 40-12 loss. 40 runs scored against us, the highest number of runs scored against a league team this season. 

In the 4 games prior to this SOPs loss, the Hurtin' Units had only given up 38 runs in total, less than 10 runs per game on average. And to make things a little more bizarre, I pitched the first 3 innings and gave up 20 runs and then Peter came in to pitch (2016 pitching debut) and he gave up exactly 20 more runs. Bizarro World. 

In this game vs. The Dogcatchers, the Units defense looked like they did against the Sons of Pitches. The difference in the two games was that the Units bats were actually hitting the ball. How many games are there, in this league, where a team scores 30 runs and loses? I'm willing to bet, with not even looking, that there is not a game this season where a team has scored 30 runs and lost. I can guarantee that the Dogcatchers have not been in one. tHIS IS DEFINITY bIZZARO wORLD!!

Game Time:

The weather for this game was good, the temperature was hovering a 25 degrees and with the humidity it felt like 28. The sky was mostly clear and there was a light breeze. 

At game time we had 9 Hurtin' Units players dressed and ready to take on the Dogcatchers. Missing on the night were Peter, Gord and Clayton. We picked up Hags (in a black Hurtin' Units shirt, bad karma here) as a sub. 

INSIDE THE LINES.

• Maybe we were in Bizzaro world to start the season also. In our first 6 games of the season we had 5 visitor games and 1 home game. A record of 2-4-0 to start the season, ending with the Dogcatchers. In our final 6 games we are the visitors again 5 games and a home team in 1 game, all starting with the Dogcatchers this time. I hope the record is a little better this time around.
• When it comes to baseball, most of us have little superstitious quirks that help us or hurt us throughout the season (one of mine is the Hurtin' Units' black shirt, which Darrell was wearing for this game. Hurtin' Units black shirts era was not a good one). Some guys will not wash their shirt or change their socks (stinky). Most of you have heard me talk about bat smudging, something I do when we are not batting well or if other teams have use our bats. I have some superstitions and when things are not going well and usually I'll change things up. Jimmy R. has suggested we have a shot of Sambuca before the game next week, so let's give it a shot (pun intended). I will definitely not bring my cars to the game and I'm sure Jimmy will not wear his shirt inside out again this season. 
• The Hurtin' Units bats were back in this
  
  game, but the gloves were still having a difficult time. Our defense has been stellar this season, it doesn't just disappear over 2 games.
• The Unit's offense seemed to pick up steam as the game progressed, in the last 3 innings we scored 22 runs. We're coming back...
• Ingo and Brad were both hitting the ball well. 
• Ingo made a nice line drive catch at third.
• I knew this was going to be a tough night. No team gets beat 40-12 without losing some confidence.
• Going in to the bottom of the 7th inning, the Hurtin' Units had an 8 run lead...and couldn't get 3 out. The Dogcatchers sent 11 batters to the plate, 9 would score. 
• The playing surfaces, for the 2 games this week, were awful. The lack of rain has turned Keogh and Coventry diamonds in to an incredibly hard surface. On Monday evening, I recall several hard hit ground balls bouncing over the heads of infielders. We need some rain. 
• The Units defense is fighting the ball this week, the offense started to come around in this game, next week the defense will be back.  The banner and Sambuca on Monday night. 
• Rarely does a team score 30 runs and lose a game. Get us out of Bizzaro World!!!
• Al F. and Jon D. both went 6 for 6 in batting.
• Mark went 5 for 5 in batting. 
• Jimmy R. and Brad both went 5 for 6. batting. 

The Hurtin' Units next game is Monday August 15th, 2016 at Keogh Park at 7:00pm.

REVENGE IS A DISH BEST SERVED AFTER 9:30.

HURTIN' UNITS VS. THE SONS OF PITCHES.

"It ain't pretty, after the show,
it ain't pretty when the pretty leaves you
with no place to go" - INXS.

Game # 20 - August 8th, 2016

Hurtin' Units 40-12

Team Record -12-8-0

Keogh Park- This game was so bad that I don't even want to talk about it, but I'm going to anyway. We have had bad game before (I've never seen a perfect season) and we'll have bad games again. 

Coming in to this game again the SOPs, our two teams were only a point a part. The Hurtin' Units had a single point lead on the Sons and a game in hand. The Units had the second best runs against with 231 and a plus/minus of 84. Over the previous 4 games the Units had a 4 game winning streak going and had only given up 38 runs in total over the those games. So what the heck happened????

I think it might have been bad Carma (I know the spelling of Karma, but in this case I will spell it Carma). On Monday evening, I had all my baseball stuff (yes, even the wagon) in my car, I was supposed to pick up a parcel with my van, so I just switched the stuff to my car as a temporary storage spot. I drove my van to work, but did not pick up my parcel. When I got home I went down for a nap and when I got up for our game, I decided to just take the car instead. I always bring the van; it was bad Carma to bring the car. I jinxed us with the car. 

The second bad Karma thing might have been that Jimmy R. wore his team shirt inside out to the game. I saw Jimmy walked to the park and said to myself " what's this shirt Jim is wearing, just a green shirt?" I realized that his name was spelled backwards and he had no logo on the front. Welcome to Bizzaro World.  

This game vs. the Sons of Pitches was the second meeting (actually the third meeting) of the season. In the first meeting, on May 17th, 2016, the Sons would defeat the Units by a score of 17-15 in a close well played game. In the HTKP tournament the Sons of Pitches and the Hurtin' Units would meet in the finals. The Units would defeat the Sons by a score of 27-9. If ever there was a reason to get revenge on the soft spoken, gentle, good natured, fun loving Hurtin' Units, this might be the reason. In the second regular season game, the Sons took the Units out behind the woodshed and laid a beatin' on them, a defeat the Units will not soon forget. 40-12 is a revenge best served after 9:30 pm. 

Game Time:

The weather for this game was hot. The temperature during the day was around 30 degrees and at game time it had come down, but it was still hot and humid. The sky was dark and there was a slight breeze. This was a scheduled 9:30 pm game. 

Roman was the umpire of record for this game. Welcome back buddy. 

At game time we had 9 Units players dressed in Hurtin' Units shirts and hats. Jimmy had changed his shirt from inside out to out...that's better. We picked up Cliff Tucker as a sub for the night. 

This game had so many runs that I don't even want to get in to any play by play at all. I will post the game sheets and whoever wants to figure this thing out is welcome to it. 

Inside the Lines:

• Pete made his 2016 pitching debut after I had given up 20 runs in 3 innings. 
• I played left field and had a few misses, first time I've been in the field in years. 
• Jimmy R. wore his shirt inside out to the game.
• I drove my car to the game, always bring my van ( bad Carma doing this). 
• "The Amazing Mr. Hicks". Todd played for the Hurtin' Units last season and was one of the best players on our team. In this game against the Units, he went 5 for 6 and hit a homerun out of the park to left field. Great teamate, great player.
• We allowed only 38 runs in our previous 4 games, less than a 10 run average, in this game we gave up 40 runs...Holy shit snacks!
• This was the Units worst loss of the season. 
• Dave and Paul (Sons of Pitches) would score 6 RUNS each.
• Pete and Jon both went 5 for 5 in this game. 
• This game was the highest number of runs, by a team, this season. 
• 
  

Hurtin' Units next game is Tuesday August 9th, 2016. 

DUSTY CLEATS WERE LACED BY UNITS.

HURTIN' UNITS VS. THE DUSTY CLEATS.

Game # 19 - August 3rd, 2016

Hurtin' Units 25-16

Team Record -12-7-0

Keogh Park- Back in game # 5, on May 26,2016, the Hurtin' Units were defeated by the Dusty Cleats by a score of 11-8. The game was the fifth road game in a row (to start the season) for the Units. 

The Units would start the season playing 5 consecutive road games and would have a record of 1-4-0 to begin the season. In those 4 losses, the Units never lost by more than 3 runs. In 2 of the games, the losses were by a single run, in another game by 2 runs, and the game against the Dusty Cleats by 3 runs. How different the standings might look if the Units could have even rallied to win in half of those losses. Since the loss on May 26th, the Hurtin' Units have a record of 10-3-0 and the Dusty Cleats have record of 9-2-1. 

The May 26th game with the Dusty Cleats was our first meeting, but it was not our last. During the Help the Kids Play tournament the Dusty Cleats and the Hurtin' Units met in the round robin. If anyone can recall this game, it was a rain drenched afternoon, everything was soaked including the shirts on our backs, the field was slick (Mark and Brad found themselves in the mud, Brad 2x) and the Hurtin' Units were on route to their second win of the tournament. The Hurtin' Units would defeat the Dusty Cleats by a score of 15-9. 

We have had two very close games, the two teams are very close in the standings and both teams have been on good run since game # 5 on the schedule. This should be a good game.

Game Time (8:15pm).

The temperature during the day was around 30 degrees and with the humidity it felt like 34. By game time the temperature had dropped to around 26 degrees, but it still felt muggy. There were a few clouds in the night sky, but for the most part it was clear. 


At game time we had 10 players wearing Units baseball attire and warming up. The missing players, on this night, were Robert and Clayton.

The Units batting was very good in this game. In one of the 7 run innings, the Units scored 7 runs on 7 batters without an out. This game was not the most defensive that we have played lately, but we still made some awesome plays. I have been busy since the game and this posting of the blog will have to let the game sheets do the talking. 

• In this game we had three fly balls missed in the outfield, 1 by Mark, 1 by Ted, 1 by Peter. Al was perfect. Funny stuff.
• I made a perfect overhand throw to first base, for the first time this season. 
• No Brooksy, we supplied the catcher, I'll make this trade off any game. 
• Dusty Cleats scored runs in every inning but one. 
• Dan Rutledge was tagged in a sensitive area when running to second base. 
• Al was perfect and consistent in right field. 
• Jimmy R when playing catcher for the Dusties, had
  
  three plays at home, all were safe.
• In the third inning the batting order went perfect. Gord, Ingo, Jimmer, Ted, Al would all hit single base hits, Jon would hit a grand slam and that would be the seven runs in without an out in the inning. 7 runs, 7 batters and no outs. 
• I struggled with my pitching, I had a hard time finding the rubber, I remember on several occasions getting behind and having to battle back. I think I only walked one batter and that was Brad Y. 
• Brad Y. hit 2 homeruns in the game. 
• Oh no!!!!!! Hag's got thrown out at home plate while trying to stretch out a double? Triple? 
• Jon threw to Jimmy R., back to first for a double play. 
• Jon knocked down a hit and from his knees threw to first for a great play. 
• Everybody hit well in this game.The bottom of the order it really well.
• 
  
  

The Hurtin' Units next game is Monday August 8, 2016 vs. the Sons of Pitches.