1st Annual Hardball Heaven Trip



First Row:  Mark Porcher (Baseman), Randy Stovall (Halfway Hardballers)
Back Row:  Juan Torres (Blind Squirrels), Michael Jones (Ageless One), Tommy Coleman (Tennessee Hitters)

 Here are the band of brothers that made the trek for the 1st Annual Hardball Heaven trip to Cincinnati.  What a monumental day this was after 9 years of Hardball Heaven being in existence!  We can only hope that more of us can get together in the future as even a deeper bond is established.  No longer is there the virtual relationship among men, but the opportunity to see what great guys we truly do have in this league.  I have to reaffirm with Juan and Randy that once we met each other in person for the first time, it was like a brotherhood in that it seemed we knew each other for years.  What a great time!  Yes, I am truly hoping more of us can meet up next year.  It would be a trip that wouldn't be forgotten.

Anyway, let me share some of my moments at Great American Ballpark.  First, my dad and I got to the park at 2:00 with gametime being 4:10.  Randy, Tommy, and Mike were to meet us out front at that time as I picked up the tickets at WillCall.  Never did I think that it would have been best to mail the tickets to each person ahead of time, but hindsight is 20/20.  The reason I say this is that my dad and I got an up close and personal view of about everyone entering the main gates for about 2 hours in 90+ degree heat with high humidity.  I kept looking for Randy and the rest of the gang, but no luck.  I even went up to a couple of people who I thought looked like Randy as I was grasping at straws at that point.  So, I called my wife to get Randy's number from my computer at home.  I thought what a bone headed move by not putting his number into my cell ahead of time.  She did manage to give me the number and after calling Randy that is when I found out the boys got stuck in construction.  Thank God for the team shop to go cool off in as it had air conditioning.  I think I was so delusional due to my blood sugar dropping out of hunger that I almost bought an autographed Jay Bruce bat for $600!  No, not really, as I still had some sense!  Instead I went for the $100 sweat stained Edison Volquez game worn hat. 

So, it came down to 4:00 before I spotted Juan, who made the 7.5 hour drive from Buffalo with his buddy who so graciously drove.  Spotted him right off when I saw him and is Juan ever an easy going conversationalist.  One of the nicer guys you will ever meet.  Whenever a guy gets off work and makes that long of a trek with no sleep, you know he was excited to make the trip.  That was awesome! 
At about 4:15, we spot Randy, Tommy, Mike and Tommy's son and two boys.  The team was now assembled and ready to watch some ball. 

It was unfortunate we all didn't have more time to hold conversation as was planned as it was hard to talk to everyone as much I wanted, but due to the unfortunate circumstances on the road, that is how it went.  In addition to Juan, I really enjoyed my time with Tommy, Mike, and Randy.  Got to know them even better a little more and make connections.  All the guys are great and funny in their own way.  We did like ribbing each other about fantasy players on the field that day! 

The day was one I will never forget, and would love meeting more of you in this great league if ever possible!  Improvements can be made to maybe where we spend a little more time with each other, but I think we all walked away fulfilled with personal memories. 

Here's to our 2nd Annual Trip next year!  Details coming in the future.

BASEMAN

...and ANOTHER slice!!!

Lady Patriot State Champions !!!

A season late for my Raissa, but not a moment too soon for all the wonderful, talented players that preceded them.

For the 1st time in the history of our small, rural community, a "team sport" has brought home the State Title. It is only fitting that it be the Lady Patriots fastpitch softball team. No single sport has represented the school better or more consistently through the years.(click the link and read the story)

Raissa was right there rooting for them all the way. Fortunate to have been a part of the 2009 4th place team and the 2010 3rd place team, she along with every other girl who had ever donned a Lady Patriot uniform, was right there on the field with them in spirit. This victory can not be contained by just the players on the field. It must be shared with every player who preceded them, who helped build the winning tradition at Allen Co-Scottsville High. 14 consecutive District Titles. 6 Region Titles since 2000. 2-3rd's, a 4th, 5th, and 7th place finishes in the State.

And now a #1 !!

It was a classic "big school" vs "small school" showdown at the end as Ballard (from Louisville, Ky enrollment 1700+) came in as the #1 ranked team in the state. Ballard entered the tournament with a 35-4 record and had not lost to any team in the state of Kentucky all season. With the double-elimination format of the State Tournament, they left with a record of 39-6 both losses coming to the Lady Patriots. The Lady Patriots finished the season 41-4-1

I watched these girls from coach pitch all the way up. As I look back, much credit must be given to one dedicated parent who assembled a traveling team at the 10 and under stage. His vision was to get a group of the most dedicated local girls and help prepare them to have a shot at making the highschool team. In his dreams he wanted to see some of them get a chance to play at the college level. He challenged and encouraged the girls. He constantly had them playing up in age group. He would often say winning a tournament wasn't much of an accomplishment if you weren't learning and improving your skills. The traveling team name was Southern Ky "Pride". As I looked on the field during this State title run it occurred to me there was a lot of "Pride" on the field. No less than 8 of them had played for the "Pride" traveling team at one point or another.

As for the girls who donned the "Pride" uniform over the years..... at least 10 of them ... including Raissa .... are or will be playing at the college level.

I can't help but think of our very own Juan (Blind Squirrels) at this moment as he has coached girl's soccer over the years. Juan you may never know how much the time and effort you put in to helping young kids out will impact them through the years. My hat is off to you as well as all volunteer youth coaches.

The pride of a whole community rode to the State Tournament with these girls, as it had so many times before. This year they showed the whole state why.

So as we all return to our simple lives here in little ole Scottsville, Ky, we will all take a moment and reflect. Things sure feel a little cheerier here in Allen Co.

sorta like a little slice of heaven...........

Hardballers

A Slice of Heaven..........

Saturday, June 4th... A day that will live in my memories forever!

For good reasons and bad...

For Tommy and I as well as all the others who were able to make the trip it was a dream come true to actually get to meet and fellowship with fellow members of the Hardball Heaven league. Baseman, Blind Squirrels, Ageless One, Tenn Hitters and Halfway Hardballers. Mark, Juan, Mike, Tommy and Randy.

I guess it is true that nothing good happens without a little effort and there were some yeoman efforts put in to make this happen. 1st there was Mark. Mark arranged to get the tickets so we would all be sitting together. He patiently waited outside the park from 2pm till game time (and a little longer) to meet up with the rest of us and see that we all got our tickets and we marched in together. 

Then there was Juan. After working a full shift on Friday night and getting off at 6:30am Saturday morning, he hops in the car with friend Lee and embarked on a 7 1/2 hr drive to Cincinnati. Then after getting some extra innings in the game.... they embarked on the 7 1/2 hr return trip home.

Then the trio of Mike, Tommy and Randy. We left Bowling Green, Ky around 9am completely comfortable with the notion that we would be arriving a good hour and a half to two hours before game time. We were in 2 cars as Mike was continuing on to Minn after the game to do some research on his family tree. 16 miles from the park  and 2 hours before game time, we stopped and grabbed a sandwich. Taking our time and completely unrushed we ate, stretched and then loaded up for the last leg to park.

That is when things started heading south. Less than 2 miles up the interstate we started running into road construction. 5 lanes were reduced to 3..... then a couple more miles reduced to 2.... .then 1 and all the while we were moving at a snails pace. A slow snail. Then as we finally reached the park area we watched as pedestrians went zooming by us headed to the gate as we inched (literally) our way to the parking garage. Some numb nut stopped in the middle of the road at one point in front of the park to haggle with a ticket scalper and I thought Mike was gonna get out of the truck and kick some ass right there on the spot!

FINALLY over an hour and a half from the time we left Burger King, we walk to the front of the ticket area and meet up with Mark and Juan. Tired, frustrated, stiff yet ecstatic to finally meet our fellow Hardball Heaven comrades.

After an abbreviated minute of introductions we made our way to our seats and things started turning for the better. We quickly identified all the players that were owned on league teams. Mark had both pitchers in the game. Mike was hoping for a possible S from Cordero. Mark had J Bruce although he had opted to sit him for the day. Juan was intently interested in the performance of Drew Stubbs.  In true Hardball Heaven fashion there was a lot of good natured ribbing as we watched the the game and the updates from around the league. Juan was able to keep us updated on the league scores on his iPhone.

The day was hot. Temperature was in the low 90's at game time but our seats were shaded and it was really very pleasant under the conditions. Great American Ballpark is a beautiful place and from our seats we had an excellent view of the field and were also able to look out over the Ohio River and see Kentucky on the other side. The crowd was very enthusiastic right up to the point where Kemp hit a grand slam that tied the game. (Stars immediately came to all of our minds at this point and the discussion quickly led to the pending trade)

I am convinced that it would take a week to recap all the details and nuances of the whole experience. For those that made it the event was priceless. For those of you that could not...... all I can say is you missed out...big time. We have decided however to make this an annual event and will look to move the meeting site around so hopefully others can find it easier to attend. As great as the whole experience was... there are lots of things that we would change for next time. So start saving your nickels and dimes now and make plans to attend next year when we decide where and when to meet.

As Tommy and I recapped the experience on the way home one thing that we both had noticed right away was how comfortable everyone was when we met. Here we were meeting people for the first time but yet it seemed as though we knew each other well. Totally comfortable and natural feeling.  We also couldn't help but feel a little proud of how far our simple idea of assembling a group of active, dedicated fantasy managers had come.

It certainly was a slice of heaven....

Week 9 Roto Standings

Things are starting to heat up a little in the hitting categories. Lowest AVG for any team this week was .262.

Take a good look at the roto standings compared to the league standings. There are definitely some teams that are over achieving with their #'s.

Tenn Hitters would not be one of those teams as he is challenging Baseman in all offensive categories.

Pujols actually played like a 1st round pick this week!!!




There is a lot to be decided as the league is really jammed in the middle as usual. I look for all teams to have a shot at the playoffs before this is all over.

Have a good week.

Seeing friends at Great American Ball Park

Fantasy baseball often can lead to harsh feelings or misguided feelings in leagues with strangers.I tend to doubt that could ever occur in Hardball Heaven after a fine Saturday night with some of our league members at the Ball Park in Cincinnati ,Ohio. I was amazed at how easy it was to connect with four other guys I had previously only known through written words on a message board,some great fellas that made me feel quite comfortable with their friendly welcome.
Meeting Randy I came away feeling like I was meeting an old friend and that is nothing but a compliment for he was very outgoing and wanted this to work out which it did as it was a great success.I liked the man immediately,felt very comfortable and would think if we had to choose someone to guide this league we couldn't do any better. Michael I joked with about an old request I made many years ago for a picture of him that he reluctantly declined,his name of Ageless made me think he had hunch back or something.He has a tremendous sense of humor and seemed easy to get along with the kind of person you would like to know for many reasons. He joked about a Reds pitcher that was having a horrible time getting Dodgers out,he kept telling Randy that it must be one of his pitchers,lol.The poor young man pitching had a nightmare outing so it was indeed very funny commentary.
Mark Porcher was the man who found me out of a sea of humanity and extended his hand in a warm welcome prior to the start of the game.I am grateful he could recognize me as it was a hot day and we were getting frustrated trying to locate folks we never saw except for Facebook pictures.I can't express what a great time it was to meet these folks and how happy I actually was to realize that the greatness of this league is a byproduct of the greatness of its members.Mark and his Dad were really informative and also made the trip worthwhile with their easy going and kind hearted approach to this adventure.
All in all a great time was had by all and plans are in the works to maintain this excursion as an annual event.

Team Spotlight on Uticans and Fear the Beard

Ok, finally finishing out the rotation.  Thinking of doing a couple of teams a week for something new this season.  I think the Week in Review may have been getting stale for me and I just needing some new material to write about. 

Utica Tried and Tested:  This is not a typical Uticans team.  Compared to teams of the past, this is Utica's best overall staff.  Lots of ERA's in the 2's and lots of K's.  Ogando looks like the real deal in Texas.  This is not a team to sleep on.  Good pen also with Papelbon and Rodriguez.  If Thornton can regain his form as he seems to be doing, then Uticans will be tough to beat in pitching.  One looks at the offense and it really looks pretty good as well and for the most part it is decent, but there are some holes.  The loss of Mauer has definitely hurt.  That's the risk one takes when grabbing a catcher so early.  Who would have thought Berkman would be tearing things up at 35 years of age like he is.  I thought he was damaged goods honestly, but not Kerm!  Great production there and from Hunter Pence (a Kerm favorite!).  Also, I can't forget Adam Jones who is steady but not spectacular in his overall numbers.  There is production for Cargo, but not like last year and he has to be a disappointment so far as is Justin Morneau.  The team will get plenty of hits and hit for good average, but lacks pop and speed.  Kerm should stay in the race with this current team, but it will be a struggle and may just be on periphereal fringe all the time.  Some holes will not allow for consistency each week.

Fear the Beard:  I really like Timmy's name on this one and will stick with it.  Very original!  FTB has had a rough go of it this season, but the last 2 weeks have really shown the bats coming to life.  Look at the team's numbers this week and WOW!  Timmy also has been doing all he can to pump some life into his team and I respect that!  The man works at it and doesn't throw in the towel.  Now, can this team keep it up?  There is definitely ground to make up and W's have to be done regularly from here on out with the losses being close.  Let's start with some positives and you have to begin with Matt Joyce from Tampa.  He's only hitting .356 with 10 dingers, 35 runs, and 31 RBI's.  Great production from someone that not many people even took note of on draft day.  Also, the pickup of Eric Hosmer has worked out well.  A certain player to covet in the very near future with that swing.  Brian McCann is doing his usual top tier stats from the catcher spot as well.  Crawford has been a disppointment to say the least, but is coming on strong, but not even coming close to playing like a first round pick.  I know I got on Timmy for that one, but the numbers don't lie.  That could change though the rest of the season.  McCutcheon's numbers are pretty good, but one would have thought to be better.  Heyward is on the DL.  What looked like a sleek and shiny outfield has really let Timmy down as the OF was going to need to be heavily relied upon.  Like I said before the team has come on of late, but I believe it is asking too much to continue.  Not enough power in the lineup and outside of Felix Hernandez and the resurgence of Josh Beckett (can that continue?), the pitching staff is to put it bluntly.....not very good.  Justin Masterson has been a nice surprise, but he is coming back down to earth.  I applaud how Timmy is working his team to find the right combinations and he is succeeding to some degree, but the slow start is going to be too much to overcome as this team doesn't have all the horses to get back in the race.

Team Review Spotlight for 1st Third of the Season: Sultan of Swat and Zonk

Ok, I promised you the remaining teams and that you shall get.  So without further adieu......

Sultan of Swat:  The league newcomer, Chad, has had to deal with a lot in his first go around.  First it was the draft, next has been the enormous amount of injuries.  Yet despite all that, his team is right in the thick of it all.  There have been bounce back seasons from Eithier, Granderson, and Lind (before he got hurt).  This team has some pop in Fielder, Phillips, Tulo, and Upton as well.  Lots of RBI's and speed, which is a rare combination.  Pitching is a little weak as Sultan really could use Josh Johnson back in the rotation.  Gallardo is back on track.  Now Latos needs to pick it up.  Very little relief pitching to speak of, hence the pickup of Lidge.  This team can compete for a playoff spot, but needs to be totally healthy to do so.
Hopefully Chad is liking the league and I'm sure the league would like to hear some more from him on our message board.  I know Chad has some trash talk in him!

Zonk:  Another team right there in the thick of it and could be in the playoffs as well when all is said and done.  The league is really bunched and this team is one of the many that can emerge.  The pitching has been a pleasant surprise for Steve's team, especially Jurrjens and Correia.  Jurrjens only has a 1.51 ERA.  Now I would be shocked if Correia can hold it all together as he has pedestrian stuff and didn't pitch particularly well even in Petco Park.  Needs Soria to get his act together and Bailey coming back healthy for a dependable bullpen, which right now it is not.  The offense really isn't bad.  Could use some more speed, but can just explode some weeks.  Would love to have Joey Votto, but who wouldn't!  Like a lot of teams there are questions marks.  Can Grady Sizemore continue his resurgence?  Can Nelson Cruz stay healthy enough or Aramis Ramirez?  Will Ichiro hit more like his old self?  This team has the pieces and should be a playoff contender all season!

OK, I have to do the last two teams a bit later. Hopefully tonight!  Am on vacation right now and the day beckons.  Sorry to Timmy and Kerm right now!

BASEMAN