B League Picayune
Often in error, never in doubt.
Volume 6, Issue 20 – June 10, 2024
$2.00 (Prices in Canada may be higher)
Weather: Another steamy, hot day: temperature was around 82 degrees at the start of the 10:30 game, and rose steadily, into the low 90s. Humidity was 85% and pretty much stayed there. Overcast early on, but that burned off. Games were played at Krieg 6, I’m not clear on why.
Games of Monday June 10:
10:30 a.m., Blue (4-7) at Purple (6-4):
1 2 3 4 5 6 BUFFET FINAL Blue 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 3 Purple 0 4 2 3 0 5 X 14 Pitchers: Blue – Joe Bernal; Purple – Jeff Stone. Mercenary: Blue – Scott Wright. Umpires: home plate – Jack Kelly and Mike Mordecai; bases – Gary Coyle and Tommy Gillis. Perfect at the plate: Purple – Gregory Bied (4 for 4 with a walk), Mike Velaney (3 for 3 with a walk), and Larry Young (4 for 4).
Purple won this on with pitching and defense. Jeff Stone shut out Blue over the first five innings, not even leaving runners on base in the first, third, and fifth – he started double plays in the first (1-6-3, Rick Jensen on the pivot) following Pat Scott’s game-opening single) and fifth (1-4-3, Mike Velaney pivoting) after David Brown’s lead-off single, and retired the side in order in the third. Blue got two hits and left both runners stranded in the second and fourth innings, unable to conjure two-out hits.
Joe Bernal kept Purple off the board in the bottom of the first, retiring three batters in a row after allowing lead-off singles to Gregory Bied and Peter Sundquist. But Purple put up crooked numbers in each of the next three frames, building a 9-0 lead. Tim Coles led off the bottom of the second with a triple to right field and Purple’s next five batters singled, Tim, Mike Velaney, and Tom Kelm scoring. Peter Sundquist’s sacrifice fly to left field brought in Rick Jensen. Blue almost ended the inning with a double play, as Pat Scott ran down Clint Fletcher’s fly to left-center and had Mike Velaney, running for Larry Young, dead to rights off second base, but the relay to the infield was mishandled and Mike got back to the bag. Didn’t matter, as Joe Bernal got Jeff Stone to ground back to the box to end the inning.
Tim Coles batting in this morning’s second C League game; Rick Jensen is umpiring. I owe Tim a picture in the Picayune for the home runs he hit – he’s our season leader so far – while I was wandering around the UK.
Five consecutive Purple batters reached base after Daniel Carvajal lined out to Jeff Fisher in right-center to start the bottom of the third, but only two runs came across, as one runner – either Tom Kelm or his pinch-runner – was cut down 10-6-2, Terry Thompson to David Brown to Billy Hill, trying to score on Larry Young’s single to right field. Joe Bernal escaped a bases-loaded jam when he got Peter Sundquist to line out to shortstop David Brown, who made a nice snag.
Purple got three runs in the top of the fourth on four singles and Tom Kelm’s RBI ground-ball force out, then did not score in the bottom of the fifth, which ended with Blue turning an inning-ending double play: Peter Sundquist was doubled off of first when left-center fielder Pat Scott ranged far to his left to run down Clint Fletcher’s fly, and made a strong throw to first baseman Dale Fugate.
Blue ended Jeff Stone’s shutout bid with two runs in the top of the sixth. Billy Hill drew a lead-off walk, but his pinch-runner was forced out at second on Jerry Mylius’s grounder to third baseman Tim Coles. Scott Wright singled. Pat Scott popped out to Daniel Carvajal in foul territory behind first base, Jerry (or his pinch-runner, I can’t recall) taking third. Singles by Joe Bernal and Jeff Fisher drove in Jerry/pinch-runner and Scott, cutting Purple’s lead to 9-2.
Purple won the inning, however, scoring five times on seven singles and Tim Coles’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth, and took a 14-2 lead into the buffet.
George Romo led it off with a double to left-center and, after David Brown flied out to Clint Fletcher in left field, scored on Dale Fugate’s line single to left. Terry Thompson followed with a fly to right-center that looked like a hit off the bat, but Gregory Bied got an excellent jump on it and tracked it down, then threw to first to double up Dale’s pinch-runner, completing Purple’s third twin killing and ending the game. Final score: Purple 14, Blue 3
11:30 a.m., Gray (7-4) at Red (7-5):
1 2 3 BUFFET FINAL Gray 1 5 5 2 13 Red 3 3 2 4 12 Pitchers: Gray – Jack Kelly; Red – Gil Delossantos. Mercenaries: Gray – Jack Spellman; Red – David Brown and Peter Sundquist. Umpires: home – Scott Wright and Tom Kelm; bases – Larry Young and Terry Thompson. Perfect at the plate: Gray – David Kruse (3 for 3 with a double and a triple), Johnny Lee (2 for 2 with a walk), and Jack Spellman (2 for 2); Red – Donald Drummer (3 for 3) and Adam Reddell and Boo Resnick (each 3 for 3 with a double).
I played in this game, and for the life of me I can’t figure out how we burned through 50 minutes while only completing three innings.
Red took the early lead, holding Gray to a single run in the top of the first – David Kruse led off the game with a triple to center field and, after catcher Donald Drummer made a nifty grab in front of home plate of Tommy Gillis’s short pop, scored on Gary Coyle’s single down the third-base side. Red got that run back with three consecutive one-out singles in the bottom half, then added two runs on two-out singles by Boo Resnick (on a looping ball misplayed by second baseman Jack Spellman) and Denny Malloy (line drive to left-center). Donald Drummer’s single loaded the bases, but Jack Kelly got out of the jam by striking out David Brown looking at a perfectly unhittable pitch that clipped the front edge of the mat.
Gil Delossantos retired Gray’s first two hitters in the second inning, Donnie Janac and Mike Mordecai, on grounders to shortstop and third base, but the next seven batters reached base and five runs scored: three singles; Tommy Gillis doubled; Gary Coyle walked; and Don Solberg and Johnny Lee singled in the final two runs.
Red’s first five batters hit safely in the home half, but a baserunner kill limited the damage. Peter Sundquist led off with a double and took third on Gil Delossantos’s single to center. Tim Bruton singled, Gil’s pinch-runner taking third, and Morgan Witthoft ripped a single to left field, about ten feet fair. Gil’s pinch-runner scored, but a strong throw by Don Solberg to third baseman Gary Coyle caught Tim trying for the extra base. Adam Reddell, defying the scouting reports, followed with a double to right field, Morgan scoring from first. Jack Kelly caught Hal Darman looking at a called third strike for the second out. Boo Resnick singled to left field, Adam holding up at third. Denny Malloy grounded a ball to second baseman Jack Spellman; I looked to throw to second for the force, but something about Denny’s footwork had caused shortstop David Kruse to move toward the hole, so I had to race Boo for second – I had a head start and managed to make it there first.
So it was tied 6-6 through two. Gray scored five times again in the third, the first six batters reaching base: Jack Kelly and Donnie Janac singled and Mike Mordecai walked, loading the bases. Mark Dolan walked, forcing in Jack’s pinch-runner. Jack Spellman singled, Donnie scoring. David Kruse doubled in Mike and Mark. Tommy Gillis hit a grounder to second baseman Boo Resnick; when Boo threw to first, Spellman broke for home and scored the fifth run.
Donald Drummer, David Brown, and Peter Sundquist singled to start the bottom of the third, Donald coming around to score. Gil Delossantos hit a sharp grounder to second base that resulted in a 4-6-3 double play, David Kruse making a really nice pivot on the play. Tim Bruton’s single scored David Brown, but the inning ended with Morgan Witthoft flying out to Don Solberg in left field.
Gray led 11-8 entering the buffet, and added two more. Don Solberg singled and Johnny Lee walked with one out. Jack Kelly hit a hard grounder down the first-base side that Hal Darman couldn’t get a handle on, Jack’s pinch-runner (David Kruse, I think) beating it out for a single to load the bases. Donnie Janac’s line single to center drove in Don and Johnny Lee’s pinch-runner and put runners on the corners with one out, but Gil Delossantos escaped the jam, retiring Mike Mordecai on a pop to second baseman Boo Resnick and getting Mark Dolan to hit a two-strike foul.
Red was chasing five, and very nearly managed to tie the game. The first five batters hit safely to start the bottom of the buffet: Adam Reddell and Hal Darman lined singles, Adam’s to right field, and what the heck, Adam, if you’re going to start spraying hits all over, how can we pitch to and defend against you? Boo Resnick rifled a double to left field, gapping the outfielders and driving in both runners, cutting Gray’s lead to 13-10. Denny Malloy singled to right, Boo scoring to make it 13-11. Donald Drummer’s single, his third in as many at bats, put the tying run aboard. David Brown squared up on a pitch and lined it, but Donnie Janac in right-center was able to run it down; Denny advanced to third. Peter Sundquist also barreled a pitch, but his liner was hit right at shortstop David Kruse, who squeezed it for out number two. Gil Delossantos singled to center, Denny scoring and Donald advancing to third. It was a one-run game with Tim Bruton up, looking pretty good for Red, but Jack Kelly has ice water in his veins (hence his ability to wear jeans in this heat and humidity), and he got Tim to hit a one-hopper back to the mound; Jack fielded it cleanly and snapped a throw to Johnny Lee at first for the final out. Final score: Gray 13, Red 12
12:30 p.m., Maroon (7-5) at Green (7-5):
1 2 3 4 5 BUFFET FINAL Maroon 3 3 0 0 3 2 11 Green 1 2 0 2 1 6 12 Pitchers: Maroon – Terry Thompson; Green – Tommy Deleon. Mercenaries: Maroon – Johnny Lee and Terry Thompson. Umpires: Home plate – Adam Reddell; bases – Donald Drummer. Perfect at the plate: Maroon – Jack Spellman (4 for 4 with a triple); Green – Paul Rubin (3 for 3 with a triple and a walk) and Ralph Villela (4 for 4 with a triple).
Checking in from his Hawaiian vacation, Green manager Jeff Broussard (who’s been getting a lot of sun and letting his hair grow), asked:
Answer: a resounding yes. This must-win game was full of strong pitching, clutch hitting, excellent defense, and weird bounces. Maroon led from the third batter of the game until the last one, but that was the one that mattered.
Maroon’s first three batters singled, Scott Wright scoring the first run of the contest on Jimmy Sneed’s hit. Tommy Deleon got Buddy Gaswint on a fly to left and James Chavana on a liner to David Pittard, who keeps reaching high and making grabs that height-challenged third basemen cannot. Joe Roche delivered the first two-out hit of the game, a double to right-center that scored both the runners.
Green got one run back in the bottom of the first on singles by its first three hitters – Ralph Villela, Paul Rubin, and Mike Hill. Paul took third on Mike’s hit, but Terry Thompson stranded him there, getting Jack Crosley to hit a foul pop to first baseman Johnny Lee, Mike Garrison to hit a two-strike foul, and Tommy Deleon to fly out to Alvin Gauna in right field.
Maroon scored three again in the second, all with two out. Marvin Krabbenhoft led off with a single, but Ralph Villela started a 6-4-3 double play, Mike Hill on the pivot, on Johnny Lee’s grounder. The next five batters singled, three scoring. Maroon won the inning by holding Red to two runs in the home half, these also coming after a double play had cleared the bases. Jack McDermott led off with a single, but was doubled off first on David Pittard’s liner back to the box, Terry Thompson making a good play to snag the ball at about knee height, then snapping a throw to Johnny Lee at first. Trey Wall and Daniel Baladez both singled, and then they both scored on Ralph Villela’s triple to center field. Paul Rubin walked, but the inning ended with Mike Hill lining out to Alvin Gauna in right field.
Neither team scored in the third. Singles by Johnny Lee and Terry Thompson loaded the bases with two out in the top half, but shortstop Ralph Villela was perfectly positioned to grab Scott Wright’s line drive to end the threat. Terry Thompson worked around Tommy Deleon’s two-out single in the bottom half.
Maroon didn’t score in the fourth, either. James Chavana’s single put runners on first and second with two out, but Tommy Deleon retired Joe Roche on a fly to Trey Wall in right field.
Terry Thompson looked like he would match that goose egg in the home half, as he retired the first two batters. But Daniel Baladez again extended the inning, knocking a single to center field. Ralph Villela also singled. Paul Rubin drove a pitch to the opposite field, gapping the outfielders in left; both Daniel and Ralph scored easily; third-base coach David Pittard waved Paul home, but I thought maybe Paul hesitated just momentarily rounding third; left fielder Scott Wright made a strong throw to shortstop Jimmy Sneed, and Jimmy made a quick throw home – not the most powerful relay, but right on the money to catcher Marvin Krabbenhoft, who stretched to make the catch just ahead of Paul reaching the line, for a key out, Maroon still leading by a run.
Maroon’s bottom-four hitters – Alvin Gauna, Marvin Krabbenhoft, and mercenaries Johnny Lee and Terry Thompson – singled to start the fifth, Alvin and Marvin’s pinch-runner scoring, Terry and James Chavana, running for Johnny Lee, winding up at second and third on the throw home on Terry’s hit. Scott Wright came up and hit a sharp grounder down the first-base side – Daniel Baladez made a nice play with the glove, fielding the ball cleanly, stepped on first for the out there, and then made a strong throw home to catcher Jack Crosley that beat James by a step for a huge double play. Maroon got one more run, on Jack Spellman’s triple down the right-field line, Terry scoring, but that was all, as Jimmy Sneed flied out to Paul Rubin in left-center to end the inning.
Green got a single run back in the bottom of the fifth. Mike Hill led off with a single, and was forced out on Jack Crosley’s grounder to second base. It was nearly a 4-6-3 double play, but Johnny Lee couldn’t get a handle on Jimmy Sneed’s low throw, and Jack was safe. That proved important, as Mike Garrison followed with a run-scoring triple to left field. Mike wound up stranded at third, as Terry Thompson retired Tommy Deleon on a soft liner to second and Jack McDermott on a line drive to James Chavana in left-center.
Maroon led 9-6 entering the buffet, and added two runs on four singles. The inning ended with Tommy Deleon making an excellent catch of Terry Thompson’s liner back to the box.
That left Green chasing five to tie, six to win. David Pittard led off with a triple to right field. (What is it with pull-hitting right-handers driving the ball to the right side today?) Trey Wall singled David in, cutting Maroon’s lead to 11-7. Terry Thompson finally retired Daniel Baladez, getting him to ground into a 5-4 force. Ralph Villela and Paul Rubin both singled to left field, Daniel coming around to score – Maroon now leading 11-8. Mike Hill lined out to Alvin Gauna in right field, the runners moving up.
Maroon needed one more out to win. But… A walk to Jack Crosley loaded the bases. Mike Garrison hit a wicked one-hop grounder right at shortstop Jimmy Sneed. The ball didn’t come up on the hop, and caromed off Jimmy’s shin and to his right; Jimmy retrieved it and made an off-balance throw trying to force Mike Hill, running for Jack Crosley, at second, but the ball sailed into right field. Alvin Gauna retrieved it and got it in, but Ralph Villela and Paul Rubin both scored on the play, Mike Hill wound up at third, and Mike Garrison at second. It was now 11-10 Maroon, the tying and winning runs in scoring position.
Tommy Deleon took a base on balls, loading the bases. Jack McDermott lined a clean single to left field; both Mikes were off on contact and scored easily, for a tremendous walk-off victory by Green. Final score: Green 12, Maroon 11
Standings – Session Two:
Games Runs Runs Run W/L
W L Win %: behind: for: allowed: differential: streak:
Gray 8 4 .667 — 143 128 +15 W2
Purple 7 4 .636 .5 145 112 +33 W3
Green 8 5 .615 .5 167 154 +13 W3
Red 7 6 .538 1.5 192 174 +18 L3
Maroon 7 6 .538 1.5 172 166 + 6 L1
Blue 4 8 .333 4 132 154 -22 L3
Orange 2 10 .167 5.5 124 187 -63 L2
Home Visitor Walk-off Extra-inning Flip-flop 1-run games
W-L: W-L: Wins: W-L: W-L: W-L:
Gray 3-1 4-3 2 0-0 2-1 4-2
Purple 4-3 3-1 0 0-0 1-2 0-1
Green 3-4 4-1 2 1-0 1-1 2-2
Red 2-3 5-2 0 0-1 4-0 1-3
Maroon 2-5 4-1 1 0-0 1-2 1-1
Blue 2-4 2-3 1 0-0 1-1 1-0
Orange 2-3 0-6 0 0-0 0-3 2-2
2024 total victories (read across) and losses (read down):
Blue Gray Green Maroon Orange Purple Red TOTAL
Blue X 1 1 1 2 1 1 7
Gray 2 X 2 1 3 0 2 10
Green 2 0 X 2 1 1 2 8
Maroon 1 2 2 X 2 0 2 9
Orange 0 0 1 0 X 1 2 4
Purple 2 1 2 2 2 X 0 9
Red 2 1 1 1 1 2 X 8
_______________________________________________________________
TOTAL: 9 5 9 7 11 5 9 55
Season home run leaders:
Tim Coles – 5
Gregory Bied – 2
Jimmy Sneed – 2
David Brown – 1
Ken Brown – 1
Tim Bruton – 1
Jack Crosley – 1
Jeff Fisher – 1
Clint Fletcher – 1
Buddy Gaswint – 1
David Kruse – 1
Denny Malloy – 1
Eddie Ortiz – 1
Dave Pittard – 1
Pat Scott – 1
Ralph Villela – 1
Morgan Witthoft – 1
Schedule for Monday June 17:
10:30 a.m.: Purple (7-4) at Green (8-5), Maroon umpiring
11:30 a.m.: Maroon (7-6) at Orange (2-10), Green umpiring
12:30 p.m.: Blue (4-8) at Red (7-6), Orange umpiring
Gray has the bye, with priority for its players out of the bucket.
Preview: These are the final games of Session 2, with the Session champion determined by the result of the 10:30 game: if Purple wins, they’ll finish tied for first with idle Gray; if Green wins, Gray will be the winner by dint of best winning percentage. At 11:30 and 12:30, Maroon and Red will be playing to finish above .500 for the session, and for whatever the bragging rights are worth for finishing, maybe, third. Orange and Blue will look to finish the session on a winning note. Will we remember in June 2025 who the 2024 Session 2 champion was? I’d be surprised, but one thing is certain: only time will tell.
Keggy’s Korner:
Mike Mordecai amends my repeating plug:
I will actually be PLAYING at the Elephant Room this coming Wednesday.
(On Mondays I play a little, but I act mainly as the host with about 30 musicians coming out to play each week.)
This Wednesday (for anyone who stay up late)…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tUshtAzxlM
At the Elephant Room
https://elephantroom.com/calendar
(If they text me at 512-477-777, I will put them on the guest list.)
Denny Malloy is organizing this event for the Austin Jazz Society:
Boo Resnick and Hotcakes will be at Donn’s Depot, 1600 West Fifth Street, on Saturday, June 15 from 9:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.