Full Tank

I feel like we are finally catching our breath. Before the start of yesterday's game we had practically 24 hours of rest which really allowed us to recharge our batteries. And it showed last night, easily winning the game 7-1, making the series 2-3. Going into yesterdays game we had to win three and Xalapa only needed one win to advance. It reminded me of the "Tiawanese Little League World Series".
This is the greatest game ever. I use to play it with my dad in the huge field next to our house when I was a kid. It went like this. My dad would hit me a ball, either a grounder or a pop up. Sometimes he would hit it hard. Sometimes he would hit it soft. Sometimes to my left and sometimes to my right. He would even occasionally hit it over my head. As soon as he hit it, he would start counting down from 10. "10, 9, 8 ,7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1," and if I made the play and threw it back to him in time it was considered an out. It took me three outs to score one run. Now the tricky part was if I made a mistake and didn't make it back to him in time the other team would score. So, it took me three correct plays to score a run and only one mistake for them to score. This is the same game I'm having to play with Xalapa. Thanks for preparing me so well Pop. haha.
We have off today, which will allow us to be even fresher going into tomorrow's game. It's do or die right now and I can feel us really digging deep to stay around. We are the better team in this series, but haven't had the juice to play like we can. I have good feelings about the next two games. We leave tonight for Xalapa and play tomorrow night. We'll be playing with a full tank tomorrow, it should be exciting.

A Much Needed Breather

It's been a while since I've had a chance to write about life or baseball. We finished off Mendoza and have advanced to the quarter finals against Xalapa. We started the series on Wednesday in Xalapa and lost 15-4. Then we turned around today and played a two o'clock game and lost 8-6. After playing Mendoza so hard and not getting a day off we had limited energy in these two games. Our pitching staff was shot and our hitters were tired. The good news is we have a day off tomorrow which will hopefull allow us to catch our breath and recover. This series is the best of seven with the next two here in Cordoba. When I get more energy I'll share more. Have a Merry Chirstmas and enjoy each other.

Rain Out!

We've been rained out the last three games and it's not looking too good today. Last night we watched AVATAR at the cine. It was a good time. Hopefully we'll get these playoffs going again. I hear everyone is out of school. Enjoy the holidays.

Playoff Dinner

Man! We just finished up an awesome pump up dinner before the start of the playoffs. The owners, manager, coaches, players and everyone involved in the team was present. After grubbin' on some ribs, chicken, lasagana, vegetables, fruit, and drinks we passed the mic around the table and everyone stood up and said a little something about themselves. It was a good experience. I felt like the team came together tonight, different than it has been in the past. Everyone had a little something special to add and afterwards we all celebrated when they told us each round we advance the salary goes up. If we win the championship we get a whole months extra pay. We'll see how well it works. We play Mendoza starting tomorrow. The series is best of five. I'll keep yall posted.

Can't Give Up

We got swept last series and won the first game last night against Veracruz. The series in San Andres was rough, we really didn't have much going for us, but last night we played much better. I figure the only way to go about the last part of this season is to play hard and give it all I got. I've really been trying to pick the team up. I just can't give up and I'm doing my best to help the team get up and play hard. The good thing about the playoffs is you never know what can happen. It's a whole new ball game. I was talking to Felix Jose yesterday and he said that it was better to be cold now than in the playoffs. He's so right. We're gonna keep fighting.
The playoffs are going to be interesting because of the six team bracket. Out of the six teams entering the playoffs, three will advance because they won their series and one one team will lose the first round and still advance to the next round. Haha! CRazY! As much as I would love to enjoy the holidays with everyone I gotta let everyone know I'm gonna give it my all and probably won't be seeing you guys for the holidays. Gotta go finish up these last two with Veracruz.

Christmas Miracle?

Mendoza. They always play us extra hard and dirty. The first two days, freezing. The third day, scorching. Always a challenging series.
Game one we tested out the new players and ended up coming back in the ninth down by four to win it 7-6. After the game I was thinking this was the push we needed.
Game two was hideous. Errors, injuries, bad pitching, and not much offense. I got smoked in the head with a grounder right above my temple and had to come out of the game. Both seasons down here I've gotten hurt when playing in Mendoza. Last year it was the ankle. I came out of the game and just took it easy.
Game three I didn't go to because of the blow to the head. Instead I went to probably the weakest doctor's visit of my life. He asked a few questions, took my blood pressure, weight, listened to my heart, then pushed on my head where I got hit, sat back down and started writing a prescription. No tests and I was out the door. I was expecting that kind of treatment. I got the prescription and rested in my room the rest of the day. When the team got back they told me a little about the game, it didn't sound too pretty.
So another series lost to Mendoza , putting us in third place for the second half. We have one more week of the regular season. We start with San Andres tomorrow, the best team in the league, and finish with Veracruz, probably the worst team in the league. Hopefully we can have a good week and build some momentum heading into the playoffs.
I am usually very optimistic about playoffs and championships, but through the years I have learned to be more realistic. As of now I don't see the team having that urge to fight for a championship. We don't seem very close, because of late additions and roster changes. We've been treated poorly by the ownership. And the holiday season is around the corner.
On one hand I am excited to think of being home for the holidays and ending another challenging season. On the other, I think of the awesome playoff spirit and atmosphere. Who knows what the playoffs will bring, maybe a Christmas with the family or maybe a Christmas Miracle.

Slow fade or can we get up?

The series with Minatitlan was a bust. We played the first game hard, had a 2-1 lead going into the ninth and blew it. We ended up loosing 5-2. The next day we tried to play an hour late because of rain and then got rained out after the first two innings. And then yesterday we waited for three hours at the park to start the game and then they decided to call it.
So not much baseball the last couple of days really allowed me to catch up on some much needed rest. I've been reading, eating, and resting. We pick things up today with Mendoza, our rival. We got some new players in last night, an ex big leaguer, Felix Jose and a guy I know from the Can-Am League, Jeremy Acey. We'll see how these additions affect the team. Right now the team doesn't seem to be playing together. In my opinion we need to find something to play for as a whole. It seems like most are getting tired of the season. Hopefully we can come together and make a strong push in the playoffs and find the right motivation to keep us playing. Last years team kind of fizzled out at the end also. The Holidays cause some of these feelings, people want to be home with their families. I would love to be home for the holidays, but will welcome playing just as much. Either way I'm gonna keep enjoying the challenge. Hope all is well.

Good and Productive Week

It's been a while since I posted last. Last week was full of good baseball, busy days, good food, and a lot of rest. We played Xalapa early in the week and finished with Cosomaloapan. We took 2 of 3 from both series. I hit a homerun on Thanksgiving day against Xalapa, and tried to steal home against Cosomaloapan. The homerun was big because it was game three of the series, the rubber match, and we were tied 5-5. The homerun put us up 8-5 and we never looked back. Stealing home was awesome! I just felt it and luckily had a veteran player at the plate that protected me. I had been paying close attention to the pitcher all game and noticed his slow delivery to home when he went form the wind up. I started walking, walking, walking, and then he stepped back to start his wind up and I was off. I was movin and I knew I had it. My eyes were fixed on homeplate and all I could see was the ball crossing the plate. I couldn't believe the ball was crossing the plate so quick. But then out of nowhere I saw Macias stick his bat out, putting down a beautiful bunt. I slid headfirst into home. I was safe and so was Macias at first. It was a blast. I couldn't stop laughing after it happened because I knew how crazy and fun it was. Everyone was looking at me with excitement and suprise in their faces. I started asking what happened, and the guys told me the pitcher sped up his wind up and just kind of threw the ball home real quick. They told me the first base umpire called a balk. The play ended up working all the way around, even though it probably wasn't the best time to do it. We still needed another run to win the game, but things like that get you remembered. Hopefully it will help my chances for this summer.
Just like stealing home I have really been trusting and accepting my feelings. I go through a wide range of feelings and emotions through the games and life. Sometimes I feel great, ready, and locked in. Other times I feel tired, out of it and hungry. Occasionally I feel like taking a huge swing. During some AB's I don't feel like swinging. Last night I stayed up till three looking at Graduate schools. I read what I want when I want. This week I have really been in my Bible and listening to the life of Einstein. Even reading a little of Mother Teresa, MLK, and LBJ last night. I am trusting where I am at each point and letting life turn out like it is supposed to. Just becoming who I am supposed to be. It seems to be working. Overall last week was very productive for the team and myself and I can feel it transitioning into this week. It seems things are going well back at home also. Gonna go head to lunch and start another series against Minatitlan in Cordoba. We have about two weeks of the regular season left and then the playoffs start. As of right now we are in first place in the second half. We'll see how the last four series go. We lost Murphy, the big league middle infielder yesterday and are going to be getting some new players. We'll see how the change affects the team. Time to finish strong. See yall in about a month.