Twelve Happy Men.

 The 2023 Playoff Run. 

Playoff Game # 1 - September 12^th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. The Dogcatchers

Hurtin' Units win 18-11

Playoff Record 1-0-0

COVENTRY PARK - The weather for this game was comfortable, almost a little muggy, the temperature was in the mid-20s, and there was a breeze rustling the leaves on the trees at C #3 for our 8:30 game. There was a sky full of clouds and early in the day, we had a lot of rain. There was a chance that the games could be cancelled and made up on Wednesday or Thursday. We got them played. We were the visitors in this game.

At game time, the Units had 12 guys ready to take on the Dogcatchers. For only the second time all season, we had all 12 guys in uniform.

I did not get a picture of the game sheet, but I can tell you the Units got off to a good start in this game and kept it going throughout the entire game. Solid bats and stellar defence. Les and Ingo made some big catches and everyone had a solid night batting. The top, the middle and the bottom of the order all contributed it this game. Nice win Units.

The Units' next game is Friday night at Coventry #3 vs. The Gruesome Devils.

Scary Good Team

Playoff Game #2 - September 15th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. Gruesome Devils

Hurtin' Units go down big time. - 22-5

Playoff Record 1-1-0

COVENTRY PARK - The weather for our final 3 games was fantastic, the Friday night was comfortable, with plenty of sunshine and the games on Saturday, we could not have asked for more perfect weather for our season-ending run.

At game time, the Units had 12 guys ready to take on the Gruesome Devils.

This game was a rough one. The Units kept pace in the early innings, but the strong bats of the Gruesomes were too much to contain, the Grusomes hit hard and often. The Units' bats could not get anything going against these guys, we are not going to win very many games scoring only 5 runs.

The Gruesomes are my dark horse to be in the final four teams on Sunday. They have so many big hitters, I think they could win it all.

They Spin You Round and Round.

Playoff Game #3 - September 16th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. Tottenham Twisters

Hurtin' Units play a better game but come up with another loss. - 15-8

Playoff Record 1-2-0

At game time, the Units had 11 players, Corey was the only missing body, he was playing in another tournament, and he was back for game # 4.

The Twisters are one of my favourite teams to play against, I really like their captains and the rest of the team are just good guys. Anthony is my physio buddy (see him at physio every week), Joe, Brad W, and Dan S are all Hammell Toe teammates and Rico and Jerry M were on the 2022 Hurtin' Units team. That's the great thing about this league, there is always a past connection.

In this game the Units played, solid baseball, we were in this game, at one time we even had the lead, but some big hits widened the gap and the Twisters started to pull away.

On Tuesday night, the Units bats were on fire ( not literally), to the tune of 18 runs and a win. In the last 3 games, in the round-robin, we scored 20 runs in total. We had 3 games with single-digit scoring, we're not going to win too many games with those numbers.

The Twisters have a good squad, but I honestly don't think it's enough to beat a couple of the other teams left in the final eight.

The Kingdom of Brew.

Playoff Game # 4 - September 16^h, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. Draft Kings

Hurtin' Units go down King Charles and his royal Stikeness - 15-7

Playoff Record 1-3-0

The Draft Kings are another team I like playing against, Chuck and Stike are classy guys (classy, really Jimmer?) and they always seem to be in the thick of it. They lost their title of most jugs this year but still managed to drink down a few beers at the Legion. It seems to me that year after year they are always at the top of the standings, they must be doing something right.

Coming into this game, the Units' record was 1-2-0, and there were numerous teams with the same record, we would need a win to have a chance at Sunday games. The Draft Kings record was an impressive 3-0-0, they had not lost in the round-robin.

This was another close game in the early innings, the Units kept pace and had some great shutdown innings, but with bats like Chuck, Fordy and Franco, it was only a matter of time before they started to widen the score gap, and basically that's what happened. Going into the final inning, we were down by 8 runs, we came out and “shit the bed”, we went down Fast and Furious, and the Units season had all but come to an end. We needed a win to even have a chance to get in, we didn't do that.

The 5 to 8 teams in the final 8 teams remaining all got in with a 2-2 record. Missed it by that much.

It would not surprise me to see the Draft Kings in the final again this Sunday, they were bride's maids last year, could they be brides this season?

This was not the Hurtin' Units season. We had good games, we had a great team, we just couldn't put it all together this year. I can't complain too much, over the last two seasons, we have had a good run. Last season was the championship, and in 2021 we won the league and keg party.

I would like to thank the Hurtin' Units players for a fun season, we didn't win very much, but everyone was great on this team. I would also like to thank all the people who follow this group, I enjoy telling everyone about the happenings of the Units, it's fun for me and I hope you keep following. Go Units!!

Cacophony Nights at Keogh Park.

"Always remember, if you ain't first, you're last." - Ricky Bobby

Game # 24 – August 31th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. The Gamblers

Hurtin' Units lose 14-8

Team Record – 5-18-1

On Wednesday night, we had a captain's meeting at the Legion, after the meeting I stopped by Coventry Park to watch a little baseball, I stopped by all 3 diamonds and watched a little bit of every game. The one thing I noticed about all of the games was there seemed to be a lot of anger in the air. It was a strange feeling, the tension on diamonds 1 and 3 was almost uncomfortable to watch, this was supposed to be a fun league, playing a fun game played with fun people. That's pretty much the mandate of the league.

The first line of our constitution is :

The mandate of The Tottenham Old-Timers Slo-Pitch League is to provide recreational baseball in a manner that promotes the ideals of sportsmanship and friendship while minimizing the potential for injury.

This mandate line should be printed on every scoresheet, every lineup and at the top of every e-mail sent to every player.

Topic Change:

So I thought to myself, on Wednesday night, what the heck was going on here and I came up with a couple of thoughts. My first thought was maybe it was the Blue Supermoon, it was happening that night and we had a pretty good view of it in the sky. It was cool. I found this on the interweb, computer thingie. Who knew? Other than the guys at NASA.

What is the blue moon in August 2023?

The whole Earth will witness the Super Blue Moon 2023 on the night of the 30th and 31st of August 2023. You should know that a Super Blue Moon occurs when the Red Wavelengths do not the earth and air particles cause refraction due to which it looks Blue.

Maybe this was the reason for the tensions I felt around the diamonds. My second thought was maybe we all know that the season is coming to its conclusion and we are sad about this and expressing it through anger.

The season ending does mean that winter is not too far away and it will be a long stretch before we get back on the field.

This game was the final regular season game for the Hurtin'Units. We only had one rainout all season and it was quickly made up a week later when both the teams only had one game and there was an open time slot. Next week, I counted 8 makeup games (that's a lot of mascara, blush and lipstick), it's almost a normal week of games, in the league.

Topic Change:

Last season, I decided to change my shirt number. Up until last season, I had always worn the number 93. I was a Doug Gilmour fan in the nineties and that was my number ( I think Woody used to wear 93 also, then he switched to 81 for Phil Kessel or some guy on the Eagles, I think it was Kessel ). 

Last season I changed to the number 13 ( not for Sundin, really disliked that guy, and screwed my Leafs over), but because in many places the number 13 is very lucky. Last season was very LUCKY for the Units. Last season was technically our 13th season in the league, but Covid wiped out a season. This season is our 13th season playing in the league. The number 13 is all around us and it could be another LUCKY playoff for the Units.

The LUCKY number 13 is coming up all around the Units. I mentioned this is our 13th season playing in the league, the Units finished 13th in the standings, we have had 13 players on our roster this season and I wear the number 13. The moon and the stars are aligning and from last night the Units were 13 days away from the start of the playoffs.

Topic Change:

If you have never watched the movie 13 Days with Kevin

Costner, I highly recommend it. All about the Cuban Missile Crisis, good movie.

Topic Change:

The weather for this Hurtin Units game was comfortable, temperature was around 13 degrees ( just kidding, it was about 23 degrees), with a light breeze and for most of the day it was beautiful with plenty of sunshine. We had an 8:15 pm start time, on Keogh for only the 7th time this season. . The Units were the visitors. The official start time was 8:25 p.m.

At game time, the Units had 10 guys ready to take on the Gamblers, and 8 of their players. Missing from this game were Roman, Corey, Nick and Ingo. We picked up Russell M and Craig P. Thanks, guys.

Tonight, Pete had pitching duties, so I took the night off from pitching and played second base. I have been dealing with a few injuries and pitching might make them a little worse.

This was only our 7th game at Keogh all season. I like playing there, it's a very intimate setting to play in and I look forward to going to the Legion after the games. In this game, I was expecting to go to Keogh, feel the calm of the setting, listen to the leaves rustling in the trees, birds chirping, the sound of fans cheering, the crack of the bat on the ball, the whole baseball park experience. What we got was an evening of loud noise coming from Bandshell. Holy Crap!!! It was so loud that it destroyed our final game and the fun times of playing against the Gamblers. Nobody could hear anything going on, the outfielders were almost deafened and had no clue as to counts, outs or batters. Who books a band on a Thursday night? 

The most enjoyable part was when the trains went by and drowned out the band. My Keogh experience was not enjoyable.

I don't have any information about the game, I know we lost and finished in 13th in the standings. I'm good with that, we now know our schedule and can get everyone set up for the playoffs. I can tell you the Gamblers look good (baseball playing), they have a strong team and they could be the last team standing at the end of the playoff run. I can also tell you, don't rule out LUCKY # 13. We probably bought 13 jugs of beer this year... can you say “Keg Party Winners”.

Let the games begin.

GRUESOME AND BEAUTIFUL AT THE SAME TIME.

Game # 23 – August 29th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. Gruesome Devils

Hurtin' Units win 17-11

Team Record – 5-17-1

Our last game was really depressing. We were badly beaten by the number 1 team in the league by a score of 29-7. We did enjoy that game and the frustration showed on most of our faces. It's been a struggle this season. We have had a fun season, but for the most part, winning is more fun than losing. Tonight was a lot more fun than the game we played last week, we started off slow, but we played some good baseball as the game went on. It was like we all lined up and got a shot of confidence tonight.

The weather for this Hurtin Units game was comfortable, around 23 degrees, with a light breeze and for most of the day, the weather was beautiful with plenty of sunshine. We had a 7:00pm start time, on C#2. The Units were the home team.

At game time, the Units had 10 guys ready to take on the Gruesome Devils. The Units had 9 of their own players. Missing from this game were Roman, Corey and Jamie. We picked up Kevin Moore as a pitcher/ RCF for this game.

Tonight, Pete and Kevin shared the pitching duties, I took the night off from pitching and played second base. In 2009, I played on the Banshees and was a P2 on the team. Frank Laird was the P1 and this was my first taste of pitching in this league. In 2010, the Hurtin' Units came into the league and I played second base for the entire season, we did win the league that season. Our pitcher in 2010 was Jerry Wallace. In 2011, Bill Jonkman was the Units pitcher, and I was again the P2 for the team. Sometime during the season, Bill forgot his cleats and when running to first base, took a spill and got injured (cracked or broken ribs and arm, I think). Bill was going to be out for a bit, I got my opportunity to pitch. I liked it, but I also liked playing 2^nd base, the following season I decided to become a P1 and that is how I ended up pitching for the Units. I became a P1 for the Units and have pitched every season since.

So over the last little bit, Pete has asked me to pitch a little bit more, and because I want to develop more pitchers in this league, I am happy to have him pitch. I have also tried to get other guys pitching in our league. As a part-time sub-controller, I have asked other guys (who are not P1s) to pitch, Nimmo, Tiny, Peter H and Brian R. are all guys who have subbed as P1s this season and have done really well. These guys have really helped us out when P1s are not available (Tuesday nights are bad) and there have been several pitchers injured this season. i.e. Scotty, Roger. These subs have stepped up and have been there when we needed them. Thanks go out to these guys for helping out.

The Units needed a sub tonight, I texted Kevin M. (another go-to guy for pitching and subbing anywhere on the field) needing an outfielder (RCF), Kevin agreed and then Peter (the class act that he is) decided to share the pitching duties with Kevin. I played second base for the first time in 11 years and enjoyed it. I enjoy playing anywhere on the infield, recently I subbed 2 games for the Tap Masters at 1^st base, totally enjoyed that also.

Game Time: I mentioned that the Units were the home team, thanks go out to Brad Young for putting in the bases for us. In the first inning, the Gruesomes came out hitting well, they would score 5 runs and shell-shock the Units. In the bottom of the inning, the Units sent 4 batters to the plate, and the inning ended quickly.

In the top of the second inning, the Gruesome was stopped quickly by the Units' defence. In the bottom, the Units scored 7 runs and the bottom half of the lineup was on fire. In the third inning, the Gruesome would score another 3 runs to make the score a little closer. In the bottom, the Units would keep the batting going and score 4 more runs. The score after 3 complete innings was 11-8 for the Units.

In the fourth inning, the Gruesome went down quickly, with no runs. In the bottom, the Units were not much better, only scoring a single run. In the fifth inning, the Units' defence was tight, the Gruesome would only score a single run. In the bottom, the Unit's bats would continue their hitting ways, and score 3 more runs. The Gruesome would go down quickly in the sixth inning, with no runs. In the bottom, the Units would score 2 more big insurance runs and keep the Gruesome in the rearview mirror.

In the top of the seventh inning, the Gruesome would score 2 more runs, to make the game a little closer, but the Units shut the door and go on to win the game. The final score was 17-11 for the Units.

The Units would also score their first home run of the season (the first of the season), and Justin would hit an in-the-park homerun in the 3^rd inning to end the homerun drought. Kevin would also hit an in-the-park homerun, but if he was our sub it would not show up in the stats.

The Hurtin' Units are back at it, in our final game of the regular season vs. The Gamblers. Last game, holy smokes, where did the season go?

And Then There Were Two.

"Like the Lotus Flower we too have the ability to rise from the mud, bloom out of the darkness and radiate into the world."- unknown.

Game # 22 – August 22th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. Inglourious Batsters

Hurtin' Units lose 29-7

Team Record – 4-17-1

Whoa!! I can't believe we are already at game 22 of the season. It seems like we just had a draft day and now we are on the cusp of the playoffs. Where the hell (yeah, I said it Roman, no devil reference) did the season go? I'm not going to miss this season, but I am going to remember it as a Wild and Crazy ride, with a bunch of fun and quirky teammates.

If we do nothing in the playoffs, I won't be too disappointed, we will give our best and if we get knocked out, I will remember this season as I did last season and the season before that. I will remember it for different reasons, but it will definitely not be forgotten. Pete and I still talk about teams we had before COVID-19, teams during COVID-19, the ups and the downs, players we had and lost, highs and lows, even team jerseys. This season will be no different.

We have milked the last two seasons pretty well, 2 seasons ago we got jackets for winning the league, last season we got jackets for winning the championship, we also bought engraved shot glasses for every player, we bought championship hats for everyone, with some financial assistance from our sponsor Tottenham Physiotherapy, we had hoodies embroidered for our supporters Kelly and Nicole and we reunited for the August Tournament. You don't win very often, milk it well you can...the next season you may finish in last.

Tonight we took on the # 1 team in the league, a powerhouse in my opinion, the team that I am predicting will win the Championship this season. They just have too many weapons and their defence and offence are very well-balanced, there will be challengers, but if I were a betting man, I would put my money on the Inglorious Batsters to win it all.  Perhaps we should do a playoff pool. Tonight the Hurtin' Units were trying to win the Beer Cup from the hands of the Batsters.

The weather for this Hurtin Units game was comfortable, around 25 degrees, with a light breeze and for most of the day, the weather was beautiful with plenty of sunshine. We had a 7:00pm start time, on C#2. The Units were the visiting team.

At game time, the Units had 10 guys ready to take on the Batsters for the second time this season. We were missing 4 of our own guys, Wayne, Jamie, Roman and Justin were missing from our lineup. We picked up Lorne D. and Dave F as subs on the night.

I did not take a picture of the scoresheet, but I can tell you it was not a pretty picture anyway. Move along, nothing to see here.

This was a frustrating game, and it really showed on the faces of the Hurtin' Unit players. We did not have a good night on the field. Our defence was out of sorts, and our offence could not string anything together. We had innings when the bases were loaded, nobody was out, and we would not score a run. One inning bases were loaded, Lorne screamed a line-drive down the first base line, Will caught the liner and doubled up Tommy at first, went from big inning to runners on 2^nd and 3^rd with 2 outs. The Units' defence was fighting the ball all night, with very few clean plays and balls off gloves everywhere on the field. The Inglorious actually pulled back on the reins later in the game, runners only moving base to base. Classy move by the Inglorious. They could have scored more on this night.

I can't make excuses for this game, we were beaten by a good team, and we were missing 4 players, but that's not an excuse. It's been a tough season, we are now down to 2 games left on the season and then on to the playoffs, where anything can happen... especially with a full team.

The Units last 2 games are next week. 

The Wild and Crazy Ride

 

“Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes” - Jim Carrey

Game # 21 – August 16th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. Beer Bros.

Hurtin' Units lose 21-6

Team Record- 4-16-1

This has been just a messed up and crazy season. I'm loving it!! It has really been a fun season, there is just something that has been hanging around this team all season, not the Devil (as Roman seems to believe I made a deal with last season), not a killer, win-at-any-cost attitude, not a mysterious spirit that shows up at our games, it's really just a funny, goofy, feeling with this team. Show me a team that can go winless in 13 games and everyone is still laughing, show me a team that loses 17-0 and we still joke about it, show me a team entrenched in last place and we don't seem to be fazed by it. This is definitely a different type of season for the Units. No pressure, no expectations, just go out and have some fun.

The weather for this Hurtin Units game was comfortable, around 25 degrees, with a light breeze and for most of the day, the weather was beautiful with plenty of sunshine. We had an 8:15pm start time, on C#2 (not a fan of C #2), the Units were the home team.

At game time, the Units had 12 guys ready to take on the Beer Boys for the second time this season. And a full team for probably the first time all season. We even got a team picture. Next week we are back to having a shortened bench. We will need a sub or two next week.

I did get a picture of the game sheets. I will say we were not as bad
as the score would indicate. Let's just say the Beer Bros hit well and the rest is history. I will be meeting Al Bales and Pete for breakfast this morning and I'm sure Al will be giving us the business about the game.

The Game: A quick rundown of the game and we can move on. In the first inning, the Beer Bros got off to a good start scoring 5 runs. In the bottom, the Units would send 4 batters to the plate, and Wayne would get to 3^rd, but that was it. In the second inning, the Bros would tack on another 3 runs and the Units would counter with 1 run. The third inning, saw the Units' defence slow the Beer Boys down, allowing only a single run to score, but in the bottom, the Units would go down 1,2,3. In the fourth inning, the Beer Boobs would score another 4 big runs, bashing the ball around the park. The Units bats would come to life a little, in the bottom, scoring 4 runs to make the game a little more respectable. The score at the end of 4 complete innings was 13-5 for the Beer Buds.

In the fifth inning, the Beer Buggers would score another frickin' 5 runs. The Units would send 5 batters to the plate and score nothing, leaving Ingo on third base. In the sixth inning, the Beer Bashers would score another 3 runs. The Units would send 4 batters up and score no runs. The seventh inning (open) was not looking good for the Units., the Beer Beetles were up 21 to 5, and we needed 16 runs to tie, 17 to win. In the top of the inning, the Units took down the Beer Boners in order, 1,2,3. The Units were determined to come back, Corey led off with a single, Justin got on with a single, Roddy hit into a fielder's choice and got Justin' out at second and himself at first. 

Crap!! The comeback will all have to be with 2 outs. Corey had advanced to 3^rd base, and Jimmer would hit a single, scoring Corey and keeping the inning alive. They are down by 15 runs now. So you're saying there's a chance. Ingo, the next batter would ground out and that was the ball game. The Beer Boogers won 21-6.

The Hurtin' Units are back at it next Tuesday night vs. The Inglourious Batsters. I believe we will be challenging for the mighty Beer Cup. It's our time to shine Hurtin' Units.

Let's get Flippity in Piper's Pit.

 

Game # 20 – August 16th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. The Bat Flippers

Hurtin' Units win 12-7

Team Record- 4-15-1

Okay, so after the last game, when we saw the Units probably hit the lowest point in the season (17-0 loss to the Master Batters), we were able to forget about what happened quite quickly, because on Friday night the August Tournament had started and guys were playing for other teams for the weekend. The Hurtin' Units (2022) 2.0 tournament edition was reunited for a nostalgic weekend of the ball. It was great getting back with the guys and we looked good in our first game. Actually, we looked pretty good the entire weekend but fell short in a couple of the games. We did still get to play a Sunday game but lost to the Gruesome by a score of 14-13. As for 2023 Hurtin' Units, I did see some guys playing on other teams. Nick, Justin, and Tommy were spread out over a couple of teams.

I thought the tournament was a great success, it was well run, the weather was pretty good (we did have a rain shower), most teams were competitive and there was some good baseball played. The guys (and gals) running the show did a great job, thanks should go out to Anthony, Rose, Dave, Rob and all the volunteers who made this a fun tourney.

The weather for this Hurtin Units game was comfortable, around 22 degrees, again with a soft breeze and for most of the day, the weather channels were calling for rain. Roman would remind me to say that we did have a few sprinkles during the game. I looked out my window at 5:30 pm and it was still dry. We got the game in. We had a 7:00pm start time, on C#3. The Units were the visitors.

At game time, the Units had 11 guys ready to take on the Flippers for the second time this season. Ingo was the only missing body on the night. I sent an email out to the team earlier in the day, saying this was going to be a playoff preview, it kinda was with a few more aches and pains from the weekend tournament.

I did not get a picture of the game sheets, so I can't really get into details. I guess the best thing I can do is tell you what I know about the game and what silliness came from it. I did learn about Piper's Pit, there was an inning when Roman was coming off the field babbling about the Piper's Pit, I actually thought it was Brad Pitt's brother. Apparently, it's a wrestling thing to do with Roddy Piper, I did not follow the wrestling circuit and really didn't have a clue what Roman and other guys were talking about. I guess you do learn something new every day.

There was also an inning where Pete was playing left field and made a spectacular catch, but I thought it was Tommy. Tommy is Pete's doppelganger or Pete is Tommy's doppelganger and when they are on the field they look similar. I never noticed this until last night. I guess you do learn something new every day.

I also learned that Marie Harris just secretly shows up at our games and then fades away into the darkness. Or was she really even there? Mysterious Girl in the Bleachers.

The other strange thing about this game was that we won. Let's not gloss over this Hurtin' Units win thing, it's only our 4^th win all season and Piper's Pit gets the headline. How sad is this? The good thing is, we are not talking about that 17-0 loss from last week.

The Hurtin' Units are back to it on Wednesday evening vs. The Beer Bros., what crazy shit is in store for us in this upcoming game.

 Coming off the Rails.

“ Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”

Game # 19 – August 10th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. The Master Batters.

Hurtin' Units lose 17-0

Team Record- 3-15-1

So it seems that the Hurtin' Units season just got a little wackier, what the deuce is going on this season? On September 4, 2018, ( based on information from the statistician) the Master Batters played the Rusty Rebels and The Master Batters would come away with a 19-0 victory. That was the last time (officially) that a team has been shut out in the T.O.T. league. Almost 5 years ago. Last night, the Hurtin' Units were defeated and deflated by the Master Batters by a score of 17-0. I'm here to say that history has repeated itself. “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” - Winston Churchill

Tannerville - This game was our second on a 2 game road trip. The first
game saw the Units beat the Sons of Pitches, in their own park, by a score of 24-14. That win ended the Hurtin' Units winless streak and made the train ride into Tannerville a little bit sweeter. Coming into this game, the Units only have 6 games remaining and of those 6 games, the Units are Ridin' the Rails for 4 of them. After this game, the Units will jump back on the train and head for Tottenham where some of the Unit's players will be playing in the August Tournament and the All-Star game.

The weather for this game was comfortable, the temperature was in the mid-20s, there was a soft breeze, and the ground was still a little damp from rain earlier in the day. The rain was so hard before noon that I really didn't think we were going to play. The Units were the visiting team in this game. 8:20 start time.

At game time, the Units had 9 guys ready to take on the Sons of Pitches for the second time this season. Jamie, Nick and Roman were the missing bodies in this game. Roman had a show and Jamie was away again, Nick got caught up at work. I scrambled to find a player for a sub, and I ended up getting Nimmo K ( Mr. Reliable) for our game.

On Tuesday night we had a very impressive night with our bats. We were crushing the ball around the diamond and we came away with a fantastic win. This game vs. The Batters was a little bit different. The Units batting came off the rails in this game, some people would even say we left the bats on the train.

I won't go into details today, all I can say is the bats need a good smudging and we need to shake this game off. We had a bad night at bat, we did have chances to score, but could not get them across. Kevin Moore pitched a great game, Dave Fleming was a vacuum at first, and almost everything we hit was in a glove. Let's just say this was one of those history-making nights.

I thought the Units' defence actually played quite well, Roddy was great at 3^rd, Corey was really good at first, Wayne and Tommy made some stellar catches in the outfield, the game was close in the early innings, and the Master Batters had a 7 run inning that deflated us a little, but there real were no blow out innings. Heads high Units.

I will include the game sheets just for shits and giggles.

When the Gales of August Turn Friendly.

My favorite tournament of the season is finish and is in the books. This tournament was a little different for me, I decided to put last year's championship team, the 2022 Hurtin' Units back together for the final reunion tournament. In previous years, my street would put a team in called the Hammell Toes, but this year I chose to go in a different direction. The Hammell Toes still put in a team, but I was labelled a traitor ( jokingly and in jest of course) and I went on with the Units.

The Hurtin' Units 2.0 the tournament edition played 4 games on the weekend. It was really a good time getting back together with a bunch of guys who played together all last season and won the championship. We will always have that bond. We also picked up Craig Pattison, from the Beer Bros. and he did not disappoint in our games. Thanks for joining us, Craig.

I won't go into detail about the games, but I will record the scores for future reference
and the Units' history.

Game One: The Units had Lava Lamps ( Sambuca and Tequila Rose) before every game, something we started last season, just before playoffs. The Units would go on to defeat the Double Ds in the first game by a score of 16-11.

Game Two: The Units had 13 players for this game. Darrell (Hags), played for the 2022 Units, but had entered a team in the tournament and was going to play a game single nostalgia game will the tournament team. The Units would be defeated by the Funky Shorts by a score of 11-7.

Game Three: Between games 2 and 3, Pete Hollmann and I would have the honour of captain/coach of the White All-Star team in the Chris Larkin Memorial All-Star game. The White team would go on to victory vs. The Chuck and Stike-coached Blue team. The final score was 16-9 for the White team. I would also work the BBQ for 2 hours in between games 2 and 3. When the Units finally got back on the field, we would be playing the Shrank Shredders. The Units would lose another close game to the Shredders by a score of 17-13. It wasn't looking good to miss playing at 5:00pm, but as luck would have it, we got into Sunday and would be playing at 10:15 Sunday morning.

Game Four: In our 4^th game we looked pretty good as we took on the Gruesome Crue. The game was close all the way through and in the final inning, we had a chance to tie or take the lead but fell just short. In fact, we had the tying and lead runs on base, but just could not score them. The final score was 14-13 for the Gruesome.

This weekend was fun, as it usually is, the finals in the SPN division and the T.O.T rec division were both exciting baseball. Russell Mabee would cut his hair for charity, the weather was great (a little bit of rain never hurt anyone), and the Funky Shorts would go on to defeat the Stallions in the final by a score of 17-3. All in all, I would say this weekend was a success.

It's Been A Long Time Running.

 

Game # 18– August 8th, 2023

Hurtin' Units vs. The Sons of Pitches.

Hurtin' Units win 24-14

Team Record- 3-14-1

COVENTRY PARK - The weather for this game was comfortable, the temperature was in the mid-20s, there was a soft breeze, and the ground was still a little damp from all the rain we've been experiencing. Usually, about this time in the summer, the grass is dry and in desperate need of watering, not this year. The Units were the visiting team in this game. 8:20 start time.

At game time, the Units had 10 guys ready to take on the Sons of Pitches for the second time this season. Jamie and Roddy were the only missing bodies in this game. Jamie was a no-show, but for some reason, I think he might have told me he was going to be away.

Game Time: This has been a long time coming, we have not won a game since back in May. The Units have played well, but we were the recipients of some bad luck and it took this long to Git R Done.

In the top of the first inning, the Units came out crushing the ball, hitting probably the
hardest I've seen all season, we went through the lineup and when the dust settled, we had scored 6 runs. The bats weren't the only thing working on this night, the defence also came into play, the Units would shut down the Sons, with only 4 batters going to the plate. The 2nd inning was almost a carbon copy of the 1^st, the Units put up another 6 runs, starting from the top of the order again, and the defence shut the Sons again. The score after 2 complete innings was 12 -0 for the Units.

In the 3^rd inning, the Units were slowed down by Sons, the top of the inning started off strong, but fizzled out quickly, but the Units still managed to score 3 more runs. In the bottom of the inning, the Units' defence stopped the Sons for the 3^rd inning in a row. In the 4^th inning, the Units went down quickly, 4 up, 3 out and in the bottom of the inning, the Son's bats came to life, the Sons would put up 7 runs on the board, 5 with 2 out already. The score after 4 complete innings was 15-7 for the Units.

In the 5^th inning, the Units tacked on another 3 runs and the defence set down the Sons in order 1, 2, 3... change 'em up, boys. The sixth was a little bit of a nail-biter, the Units would 3 more runs, but the Sons of Pitches came storming back with 5 more runs. The score after 6 complete innings was 21-12 for the Units.

In the open inning (7^th) the Units came back out and scored 3 important insurance runs. The Sons of pitches would threaten a little bit in the bottom of the inning, scoring 2 more runs to make the final 24-14 for the Units and end the 13-game winless streak.

The winless streak ends and the guys were crushing the ball in the early innings. Wayne went 4 for 6 with 4 runs, Nick went 6 for 6 with 6 runs scored ( Nick joked about how many steps he had done since arriving at the park), Roman went 6 for 6, with 4 runs scored, I (Jimmer) went 5 for 5, spraying the ball around the field, and everyone else batted and defended very well in this game. I know it seems like such a small victory, but let me assure you this streak was “ A Long Time Running” - The Tragically Hip and the Monkey is off our backs.