Before our first game this season, Jennifer found a lucky penny in our dugout and told me to keep it. I've never taken it out of the back pocket of my kickball jeans, which I haven't washed either, because, well, if I wash the pants I'll lose the penny.
Are we just incredibly lucky? Or does it take a little more than luck to survive three straight games like these? I lean toward the latter, but we're sure getting our share of miraculous comebacks.
Yet another low-scoring nailbiter for both sides. Yet another last-minute come-from-behind rally. Yet another opponent in scoring position before the final out.
Or maybe that's just our trademark now: We're just holding our triples and doubles back until the final inning. You know, to make it interesting.
Make no mistake, we are in an offensive slump, at least compared with our gorgeous performance in Game 1. We had way too many soft pop-ups. We scored only once through seven innings and had nearly-fatal one-two-three innings in the sixth and seventh. I haven't been on base since August, and I forfeited my right to critique anyone else when I executed a sacrifice RBI with Scott on third in the fourth inning -- with TWO OUTS! I thought there was one. I may have cost us the win right there.
Ctrl/Alt/Del set the table with bunts and got a few of those runners home (but they stranded a lot of runners too, including in scoring position). Meanwhile we struggled for scoring opportunities. In the third inning, Amy led off with a single and took second on a bad throw. Mike singled her over to third base and Jennifer sacrificed her home. Ctrl/Alt/Del 2, Muskies 1.
That was all we had for seven innings, but fortunately we made it such a fast game that we had time for an eighth. After two consecutive hitless innings, we were down 3-1 and we had to dispense with the little pop-ups and start to blow them away, or else we would lose first place. Fortunately, Scott, Jenny and Dave were due up.
And it happened almost the same way as last week: with a triple -- this time a screeching liner from the foot of Scott, which I think the right fielder dropped. Jenny popped out, but then Dave smacked a textbook double up and over the right field line to make it 3-2. I was next, and the pitcher wrongly accused us of going out of order. They were rattled. But I hit a nice hard liner that went straight to the right-side shortstop. Two outs.
There was no more room for outs. Liz and Geoff each singled to load the bases. Finally Amy came through with an RBI single to score Dave and make it 3-3. And again, like last week, we survived runners in scoring position in the bottom of the inning to shut them down.
So we didn't win, but since a tie was all we needed to keep Ctrl/Alt/Del from taking our top spot, I'm very happy. Presuming we can beat last-place Fire Escape next week (and I would never presume anything), or at least hold them under four runs, we should be a lock for number one going into the playoffs. Yay!
Hits: 13-for-37 (.351)
Runs: Amy, Scott, Dave
Left on base: 10 (again)
Player of the game
She put us on the board with the first run, and she brought us back to life in the eighth with the game-tieing RBI -- the last of three improbable two-out singles. That's why Amy gets this week's honors. Thanks, Amy!
Defensive hilites
If you can't score, then you need defense, and I could scarcely be happier with everyone's play in the field. Several great pop-up catches by Geoff, Scott, Scotty, Liz and others. Sarah continued to force 'em and tag 'em in the hot corner. Pitcher Dave threw out a guy who overran third base for a key third out. (It was okay to throw at point-blank range, although Dave probably could have just run him down, since he was way off the basepath.) Dave and I completed a clean 3-1 putout at first base in the first inning. And I added a new favorite play to my scrapbook: I went on my knees to field a roller up the first-base line, then tagged the speeding runner. I held onto the ball, but when I got up the guy was on his back behind first. I was like Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown. I think he was okay though.
About the only major defensive shortcoming we've had has been beating the bunt. More on that later.
After the game Dave confronted some of the other team's hecklers. Better after the game than during, I guess. Good-natured heckling is part of MUSA kickball, but some of them may have gone too far. One guy's reply was that he was still bitter about that time in June when we hit 10 straight singles to their pitcher -- as if it's our fault that their pitcher couldn't field 10 straight ground balls! I thought I was the only one who actually remembers stuff like that!
Anyway, we made peace, which is good, because they're a good group, and we might face them again in the playoffs. Let's worry about our game, not other people.
Sorry (and thanks) to those who sat out a bunch of innings because we had 14 players. Before the game I had a sit-out schedule worked out, but it fell apart because three people came late due to Bob Dole in town or something. We shouldn't have anymore 7 p.m. games this season, so it shouldn't be a problem again.
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