Mod Squad 10, PC Bricks 5

"I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it."
--Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States

"It's a funny thing. The more I practice, the luckier I get."
(After listening to critics claim he had as much luck as skill.)
--Ben Hogan, professional golfer

The Mod Squad outplayed us in just about every phase of the game. If the past month hasn't convinced this team it needs to practice in order to play well, I don't know what will. This is the last you will hear from me on this subject.

Two Fantastic Games

Those who made it out to Nicholl Park today were treated to their choice of two stellar games. I chose to sit in the warm sunshine at Seawright Field and watch the Terminal Digits play the Master Batters rather than shiver in the cold shade of Nicholl Park #2 where SWAT was playing Richmond.

Preparing for the Mod Squad (Not!)

We've lost two of our last three games. The only win in those three games was a lucky one in which we put out our worst effort of the season.  With all that, we had six people show up for practice today. The six who were there put out a great effort. There's not much else to say except that if we play another sloppy game and lose, we'll deserve it (again).

Master Batters 12, PC Bricks 10

We had some good moments today but we were too mistake prone to pull out a win. The MB's took advantage by combining some timely hits with our charity to come away with the victory. They played like they wanted to win and frankly, we didn't.

Master Batters Up Next

This week we have our second matchup of the season with the Master Batters. Last time we played without Lawrence and this time we'll go without James. I believe Dale and Chiniqua are still unavailable because of injuries and Nancy will likely have to miss the rest of the season because of other commitments.

PC Bricks 12, Outlaws 11

I don't know that I've ever experienced a win that felt so much like a loss. I'm struggling to find the words to properly describe how ashamed I feel about being a part of the selfish, undisciplined display of softball we put on today.

Preparing for the Outlaws

This week's game is with the Outlaws. I'm sure Brandon and James will be getting an earful from their colleagues in the TSC all week. After a slow start, the Outlaws have been coming on strong and they're now in third place with a record of 3-2-1.

It would be nice to have a good turnout for this week's practice. Only about half the team showed up last Tuesday. I'd like to think the Independence Day holiday preceding it was the reason. We definitely need the practice. Today will be a good test of our commitment.

Game With Untouchables Postponed

Once it was learned the verdict in the Johannes Mehserle trial would be announced at 4:00 PM yesterday, many of our employees had to leave work early. It was expected there would be more rioting in downtown Oakland after the verdict was read so BART commuters and those with kids in Oakland child care facilities were urged to make themselves scarce before things got out of hand.

Should We Continue Practicing On Mondays?

We need to make a decision about our practice schedule. At the beginning of the season, I agreed to come out Mondays and Tuesdays because it was clear we needed some extra work and there were some who weren't able to practice on one day or the other. I think this schedule has outlived its usefulness.

SWAT 12 PC Bricks 10

SWAT outplayed us. We certainly weren't sharp defensively and we ran ourselves out of two inningss with critical baserunning errors but our ultimate flaw was our hitting. SWAT played with only eight people, leaving the right side of the field virtually wide open for us and we simply refused to take advantage of it. Success breeds arrogance and that's what we showed yesterday. We played as if all we had to do was show up and we would win. SWAT played smarter than we did and they earned their victory playing shorthanded. There's not much else to say right now except that I expect everyone to be at next Tuesday's practice at 5:00 sharp.