Dying a Hero and No-No's during a No-No!"

Danny and I experienced our first home game this past Sunday against Dortmund, and it was a whopping 36 degrees when we got to the field. I forgot what it was like attempting to warm up and get loose when it is that cold. Growing up in Reno, Nevada there were plenty of times when it was snowing or well below freezing during baseball. I learned to deal with it at a very young age, and playing college ball in Portland wasn't always easy wither. Trying to hit with a metal bats in that temperature feels like you are swinging an icicle, and with wood you just don't want to break your stick by getting jammed or hitting it off the end. Not to mention the terrible "bee sting" feeling you get when either of those things happen with any type of bat, especially in the cold.

In my first at-bat of the day I came to the plate with a brand new maple bat. Maple is the best type of wood, usually the strongest and the hardest to break, so I figured I was safe. (They usually cost about $70-90 per bat) Danny was generous enough to let me have this bat since it was 33 inches, and he uses a 34. For the past 3 weeks I had been using an ash bat that feels great but started to flake due to overuse. I had to tape the barrel, which means I cannot use it during a game. (Baseball rules) I had not even taken a swing outside of the on-deck circle with my new stick when I came to the plate with runners on second and third, no outs. As a lefty hitter all I could think about was pulling the ball hard toward right field in order to score a run or two and give us an early lead. I took the first pitch for a ball, and with a 1-0 count, sitting dead red fastball, I took a big hack and hit a dribbling grounder right past the pitcher to the short stop. I was waaaaaay out front and although I should not have swung, I committed to the swing and made contact. The shortstop threw me out easily, but I got an RBI as the runner from third scored on the play.
Even though I got an RBI, I was really pissed! Not only should I have not swung at a 1-0 change-up (I was being way to aggressive) I BROKE my bat on one swing! "S.O.B. threw me a 1-0 change; one swing and the bat is done!" I got back to the dugout and was congratulated by a few guys for the RBI and others laughed because they knew what had happened. All I could say was, "Well, at least he died a hero. He got me an RBI on his death bed." I would have preferred to see another pitch or two and drive the ball, but like the old saying goes, shit happens! The bat is sitting proudly in my room, as the crack was not too bad, I may use it for soft toss and front toss.

On a positive note, I got a 2 RBI single in my next at-bat and went 1-3 with 3 RBI's and another hit-by-pitch in the game. (I got hit in a much better spot this time so I wasn't complaining as much to Danny this week.) Danny went 4-5 as the left fielder had a hard time with all the back spin and top spin he put on each ball hit to left. It is really funny to see outfielders react to most of the balls Danny hits to them. Mostly, it looks likes a golf fan trying to get out of the way of a Tiger Woods 4 iron because they are hit so hard. I am usually not running as fast as I can when I am on base because I am laughing really hard. The best part of the day was the wind blowing straight in from center. Danny hit a ball that would normally hit the Mango Hunt Center at UP (which is about 500 feet from home plate in Portland) but the Gail force wind put it softly into the center fielders mitt for an out. Neither of us got a hit in the second game which was disappointing, but we ended up winning both games. (15-5 and 6-4.) Danny pitched stellar in game two and only gave up a couple of real cheap Texas League hits.

For all you savvy baseball fans, (and even novice fans who want to learn something really, really important about baseball) see the video below, there is a great story which you will love...... One of the many "No-No's during a No-No!"