B League Picayune
Often in error, never in doubt.
Volume 6, Issue 41 – for September 5, 2024
B League president Anthony Galindo has some announcements:
1. Effective 9/23 we are returning to our regular time schedule of 10:30/11:30/12:30 and also limiting draws to 11 players. If a team has 11 or more roster players they can all bat, of course.
2. End of year banquet is set for 10/24 with the same caterer and buffet.
3. End of year tournament is the week of 11/18. Times and dates to be determined.
4. We have a couple of new rules to help speed up the games:
a. First, the under-1-minute rule that prohibits starting a new inning other than the buffet when the clock shows 59 seconds or less. The umpire will declare that time is up and the current inning will be followed by the buffet.
b. Second, the 12-run flip-flop rule is being eliminated so the standard 8 runs now applies when either team reaches that limit with one exception – the visiting team may choose to flip-flop with only a 7-run lead at the beginning of the buffet inning. Please refer to the Flip-Flop rules section in the attached document for details.
5. We also have a new rain delay policy that was proposed by the C League and adopted by our Board. Please refer to The Game rules section in the attached document.
That’s all for now, men, and good luck in the fall session.
Games of Thursday September 5:
10:00 a.m., Green at Maroon:
1 2 3 4 5 BUFFET FINAL Green 0 5 3 0 0 3 11 Maroon 2 1 0 3 3 3 12 Pitchers: Green – Tommy Deleon; Maroon – Chunky Wright. Mercenaries: Green – Eddy Murillo and Peter Sundquist. Umpires: home – Rex Horvath and Spike Davidson; bases – Jimmy Maloy. Perfect at the plate: Green – Jim McAnelly (3 for 3) and Paul Rubin (3 for 3 with a double and a walk); Maroon – Tom Brownfield (3 for 3).
Dave Berra’s weather report: Weather: 78 degrees, Heat Index the same, 84% humidity; breezy, cloudy, almost wintery.
Session Four opened with a close, hard-fought contest. Maroon won the first inning, as Chunky Wright held the Session Three champions scoreless in the top half, allowing a single and a walk but getting three ground ball outs – second baseman Tom Brownfield made a terrific play to his backhand of Mike Hill’s hard-hit ball, short-hopping it and getting a force at second. Maroon then scored two runs on four singles, but ran itself out of a bigger inning: Scott Wright, running from home for Marvin Krabbenhoft, took off for second after the relay to the infield following Marvin’s single to left field was thrown away, but was called out – B League’s rule now is that a runner from home cannot advance to second for any reason.
Green grabbed the lead with five runs in the top of the second, on four singles, doubles by Daniel Baladez and Ralph Villela, and a walk to Paul Rubin, while making just one out. Maroon got one back in the home half. Buddy Gaswint and Tom Brownfield led off with singles. Tommy Deleon fanned Alvin Gauna, then got Chunky Wright to ground to shortstop; Tom’s pinch-runner was forced at second, but the relay to first was thrown over Daniel Baladez’s head, allowing Buddy to score.
Green got three runs on five singles in the top of the third. Chunky Wright almost escaped the inning without too much damage. With two out, one run in, and runners on first and second, he got Jim McAnelly to hit a sharp grounder back to the box; Chunky knocked it down, then literally kicked it toward third base; Jack Spellman stretched for it and got it, but home plate umpire Rex Horvath, who had a good angle on the play, ruled that Phil Stanch had gotten his foot down on the line first and was safe. Peter Sunquist followed with a two-run single. Eddy Murillo put a good swing on a pitch, but his liner was right to Spellman at third and was caught for the last out. (Later I told Eddy it was an easy catch because it was hit so softly, but I sit on a throne of lies – the ball was smoked.)
Maroon did not score in the home half, hurt by another out on the bases. Jack Spellman and Anthony Galindo singled with one out. Jimmy Sneed’s grounder down the third-base side resulted in a force at third. Joe Roche lined a single to left field; Anthony rounded third and would have scored easily if he hadn’t stutter-stepped before the commit line; shortstop Ralph Villela wasn’t going to throw home, but when he saw Anthony hesitate, he reoriented; Anthony headed for home, but Ralph’s strong throw beat him easily for the third out.
It was a tough way to end an inning, and left Green with an 8-3 lead. But momentum isn’t really a thing, and Maroon pulled its act together, shutting Green down in the fourth and fifth while scoring three runs in each bottom half to go ahead 9-8. In the fourth, Chunky Wright allowed only one ball, Mike Garrison’s single to left field, to get out of the infield. Maroon got its three runs on five singles. (Alvin Gauna’s hit, hilariously, traveled about four feet down in front of the plate; no play was possible.) In the fifth, Chunky sandwiched two singles (including another single-digit-foot topper down the third-base line, this time by Anthony Galindo) around three ground-ball outs, and Maroon again scored three runs on five singles in the home half, which ended with right fielder Phil Stanch making an excellent, run-saving play to run down Chunky’s fly.
Green trailed by one entering the buffet, and scored three with two out. Chunky Wright got Eddy Murillo and Ralph Villela to ground out to the left side to open the inning, but Paul Rubin smacked an opposite-field double to left, completing a perfect day at the plate. Mike Hill singled Paul home with the tying run. Mike Garrison hit a sinking liner to left field that Scott Wright ranged in and to his left to get to, something I didn’t think would be possible as the ball came off the bat – going to his knees, Scott got his glove to the ball, but ball, glove, knee, and ground hit at the same moment, Scott wasn’t able to hold on, and Mike G. wound up with a triple that scored Mike H. with the go-ahead run. Tommy Deleon then knocked in Mike G. with a single to right field – in the dozen seasons I’ve played in B League, I’ve seen Tommy place this kind of hit to right field something like 500 times; it’s both incredibly impressive and deeply maddening.
Maroon needed two to tie, three to win. Tommy Deleon retired Joe Dayoc on a grounder to shortstop Ralph Villela to start the frame, but Maroon then loaded the bases on singles by Scott Wright and Jack Spellman (both going to the opposite field) and a walk to Anthony Galindo. Jimmy Sneed lined a single to left, Scott scoring. Joe Roche worked a base on balls, forcing in Spellman with the tying run. Marvin Krabbenhoft came up, with Scott Wright once again running for him from home. Marvin grounded to shortstop; Ralph Villela threw to second for the force there, and Mike Hill tried to complete the double play with a throw to first, but Scott beat it out, Anthony meanwhile racing home to score the winning run. It was a somewhat anticlimactic but effective way for Maroon to walk off the victory. Final score: Maroon 12, Green 11
11:00 a.m., Orange at Red:
1 2 3 4 5 BUFFET FINAL Orange 5 1 5 1 1 1 14 Red 4 5 2 0 2 0 13 Pitchers: Orange – Spike Davidson; Red – Eddy Murillo. Mercenaries: Orange – Jack Spellman; Red – Jim McAnelly and Scott Wright. Umpires: home – Mike Garrison; bases – Paul Rubin. Perfect at the plate: Orange – Fritz Hensel (4 for 4); Red – Tim Bruton (4 for 4 with a double and a home run) and Bobby Miller (4 for 4 with two doubles). Home run: Tim Bruton (3, inside the park).
Jack Spellman’s weather report: 77 degrees with 88% humidity. My (obviously inferior) weather app doesn’t give me a heat-index number. It was overcast and increasingly breezy, the wind coming from the north – into the infield – and making it hard on the outfielders.
Lots of scoring in the first three innings, then a defensive battle over the final three. All ten Orange batters came to the plate in the top of the first, five runs scoring on seven singles and Rex Horvath’s double. Run-scoring hits by Matt Levitt, Jimmy Maloy, and Jack Spellman came with two out. Red immediately responded with the first four batters in its lineup reaching base and scoring: Bobby Miller singled and scored on Tim Bruton’s double, Tim taking third on the late throw home; Donald Drummer walked; and Adam Reddell drove in both Tim and Donald with a ringing double to the fence in right field. Hal Darman drove in Adam with a two-out line single to left.
Orange scored one run in the top of the second, as Peter Atkins led off with a single, took third on Larry Fiorentino’s hit to right field, and scored on Rex Horvath’s force-out grounder to shortstop. Red then took the lead by scoring five times in the home half, as Scott Wright led off with an opposite-field double and six of the next seven batters singled. (Hal Darman’s rally-concluding hit was a drive to left-center that gapped the outfielders and would have been extra bases, but Hal had a runner from home and anyway the fifth run scored on the knock.)
Orange responded in its next at bat by putting across five runs on six singles, Rex Horvath’s walk, and Larry Fiorentino’s sacrifice fly, the visitors briefly taking an 11-9 lead. Red immediately tied the game. Boo Resnick led off the bottom of the inning with a single up the middle, but was erased on Jim McAnelly’s grounder to shortstop, Rex Horvath executing a picture-perfect 6u., 6-3 double play. The next four batters hit safely: Scott Wright singled; Bobby Miller’s double to left field scored Scott from first; Tim Bruton’s ground single just to the right of second base put runners on the corners; and Donald Drummer tied the game with a clean RBI single to left. Adam Reddell squared up on a pitch and lined it to right field, but Jim Maloy made the catch to end the inning.
Adam returned Jim’s favor in the next half inning. Orange loaded the bases on singles by Ray Pilgrim, Fritz Hensel, and Spike Davidson. Ray’s pinch-runner scored on Matt Levitt’s grounder to third, Adam tagging the base to force out Fritz’s pinch-runner. Jim Maloy then grounded to Adam, who tagged the bag and then threw across the diamond for a 5u., 5-3 double play.
Down by a run, Red got one-out singles by Denny Malloy and Hal Darman (Hal confounding the defense by going to right field), but Spike Davidson worked out of the jam, retiring Boo Resnick on a fly to Jim Maloy in right and Jim McAnelly on a two-strike foul.
Orange increased its lead to 13-11 with a single run in the fifth inning. Peter Atkins walked with one out, took third on Rex Horvath’s two-out single, and scored on Gary Kubenka’s single to right-center. (Gary drove in five runs in the game, knocking two-run hits as part of Orange’s five-run first and third innings.)
Red tied the game with two runs in the home half. Bobby Miller doubled with one out, his fourth hit in as many at bats and his second double of the game, and Tim Bruton followed with a drive to right field – Tim rounded third, hesitated for a moment, but when the relay wasn’t handled cleanly, raced home to complete a tying two-run inside-the-park home run. Adam Reddell doubled with two out, but Spike Davidson stranded him, getting Eddy Murillo to hit a two-strike foul.
Tim Bruton tied the game with a two-run inside-the-park homer in the bottom of the fifth. Here’s a file photo of Tim receiving a Pluckers coupon from a devilishly handsome fellow B Leaguer.
So it was tied at 13 entering the buffet. Fritz Hensel (completing a perfect day at the plate) and Spike Davidson opened the inning with singles. Matt Levitt hit a soft liner back to pitcher Eddy Murillo for the first out, and Jim Maloy grounded into a 4-6 force, Fritz’s pinch-runner advancing to third. Jack Spellman lined a single to right field to drive in the go-ahead run. Peter Atkins came up and lined a two-strike pitch down the left-field side – it landed foul by inches, blown to the left by the prevailing wind, so what would have been a run-scoring extra-base hit instead was an inning-ending out.
Red came up in the bottom of the buffet needing one to tie, two to win. Denny Malloy led off with an opposite-field single, finding a hole on the left side. Hal Darman and Boo Resnick both hit line drives right at Peter Atkins in left-center, Peter catching the balls for the first two outs. Jim McAnelly grounded a single to left field, advancing the tying run into scoring position. But Spike Davidson got Scott Wright to hit a short pop in foul territory down the first-base side, and Gary Kubenka was able to race in and make the catch for the final out. Final score: Orange 14, Red 13
Noon, Blue at Gray:
1 2 3 4 5 BUFFET FINAL Blue 1 5 1 3 0 4 14 Gray 0 0 5 3 1 2 11 Pitchers: Blue – Joe Bernal; Gray – Rex Horvath. Mercenaries: Blue – Adam Reddell, Jack Spellman, and Scott Wright; Gray – Anthony Galindo and Rex Horvath. Umpires: home – Eddy Murillo; bases – Hal Darman. Perfect at the plate: Blue – Jeff Fisher (4 for 4 with three doubles), Adam Reddell (3 for 3), and Jack Spellman (3 for 3 with a double).
Dave Berra’s weather report: 81 degrees (Heat Index 86), 76% humidity. Wind from the north, 12 MPH. Cloudy. Outfield play challenging.
Another close game – technically, Blue never trailed, but Gray was within a run entering the buffet.
Blue built an early lead while Joe Bernal held Gray scoreless over the first two innings, allowing three singles while getting five ground-ball outs and a foul third strike. Blue scored a single run in the first, the first of Jeff Fisher’s two opposite-field doubles to left setting up Joe Bernal’s sacrifice fly, and then five runs without making an out in the second, on five consecutive singles to start the inning and Jeff’s two-run double to finish it.
Blue made it 7-0 with a single run on two singles and an RBI fielder’s choice in the top of the third, but a base-running gaffe took them out of a potentially bigger inning. George Brindley ran from home for Billy Hill, whose grounder to shortstop resulted in Dale Fugate being forced at second; David Kruse’s throw to first sailed wide past Johnny Lee, allowing Richard Battle to score, but George took second on the play. He tried to sneak back to first, and Adam Reddell (hilariously) moved in front of home plate umpire Eddy Murillo, trying to block Eddy’s view, but no one was fooled, and George was called out just as Scott Wright had been in the 10:00 game.
Momentum is an illusion; Gray scoring five times in the bottom half had nothing to do with how the top half ended, everything to do with their knocking seven hits – six singles and a double by Ken Brown – the last two knocks, by Mark Dolan and Ivan Budiselic, coming with two outs to drive in the fourth and fifth runs.
That cut Blue’s lead to 7-5. Each team scored three times on five hits in the fourth. Blue’s first four hitters hit safely to start the top half, mercenaries Adam Reddell, Scott Wright, and Jack Spellman opening the inning with a single and back-to-back doubles. Terry Thompson’s single put runners on the corners with none out. George Brindley grounded to shortstop David Kruse, who turned a 6u., 6-3 double play; I held at third, remembering that the last time I ran on Johnny Lee, he threw my slow white ass out, easily, to complete a triple play. It proved the right decision, as Jeff Fisher delivered a run-scoring single, his third hit in a row to left field.
Joe Bernal retired Anthony Galindo and Rex Horvath on flies to Jeff Fisher in right-center to start the bottom half, Jeff making a particularly good pay on Anthony’s drive, but the next five batters hit safely, four singles and a double by David Kruse to right field, three runs scoring.
Still a two-run game entering the fifth. Blue went out in order, 6-3, 2-3 (nice play by catcher Ivan Budiselic on Dale Fugate’s topper in front of home plate), L-6. Joe Bernal got two quick outs to start the bottom half, then allowed consecutive singles to Anthony Galindo, Rex Horvath, and Ken Brown, Anthony coming around to score. David Kruse skied a ball deep to left field, but George Brindley was able both to make the catch and avoid a serious collision with Richard Battle, ranging over from left field.
Blue led 10-9 entering the buffet and added four runs. Adam Reddell singled leading off, completing a 3-for-3 game, and advanced on Scott Wright’s ground out to Johnny Lee at first. Jack Spellman singled through second baseman David Kruse, who’d switched positions with Mark Dolan but wasn’t able to handle the liner to his feet. That put runners on the corners. Adam scored on Terry Thompson’s sacrifice fly to left-center. George Brindley singled, Spellman halting at second. Jeff Fisher, at last getting a pitch he could pull, lashed his third double of the game, this one to right field, both runners scoring, for Jeff’s fourth and fifth RBI of the game. Joe Bernal hit a grounder to shortstop; David Kruse, having switched back with Mark Dolan, wasn’t able to make a play. Richard Battle then drove in Jeff with a double to right-center.
That gave Joe Bernal a five-run cushion entering the bottom half. The first four Gray hitters reached base: Gary Coyle walked, Donnie Janac singled, and Don Solberg doubled to right field, Gary scoring. Johnny Lee’s single past third base brought in Donnie, cutting Blue’s lead to 14-11, the tying run at the plate. But Joe retired the next three hitters. He got Mark Dolan to hit a two-strike foul. Ivan Budiselic grounded to second baseman Scott Wright, who threw to second for the force. Anthony Galindo hit a soft grounder to shortstop; Jack Spellman charged and fielded the ball and made a quick flip to Joe covering second for the game-ending force. Final score: Blue 14, Gray 11
Standings – Session Four:
Games Runs Runs Run W/L
W L Win %: behind: for: allowed: differential: streak:
Blue 1 0 1.000 — 14 11 + 3 W1
Orange 1 0 1.000 — 14 13 + 1 W3
Maroon 1 0 1.000 — 12 11 + 1 W2
Purple 0 0 — .5 0 0 0 L1
Red 0 1 .000 1 13 14 – 1 L1
Green 0 1 .000 1 11 12 – 1 L2
Gray 0 1 .000 1 11 14 – 3 L3
Home Visitor Walk-off Extra-inning Flip-flop 1-run games
W-L: W-L: Wins: W-L: W-L: W-L:
Blue 0-0 1-0 0 0-0 0-0 0-0
Orange 0-0 1-0 0 0-0 0-0 1-0
Maroon 1-0 0-0 1 0-0 0-0 1-0
Purple 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0-0 0-0
Red 0-1 0-0 0 0-0 0-0 0-1
Green 0-0 0-1 0 0-0 0-0 0-1
Gray 0-1 0-0 0 0-0 0-0 0-0
2024 total victories (read across) and losses (read down):
Blue Gray Green Maroon Orange Purple Red TOTAL
Blue X 3 1 4 4 2 3 17
Gray 4 X 3 3 4 0 4 18
Green 3 2 X 4 2 4 4 19
Maroon 1 3 4 X 4 0 3 15
Orange 1 2 3 2 X 3 3 14
Purple 4 2 3 5 3 X 1 18
Red 4 2 2 1 4 4 X 17
______________________________________________________________
TOTAL: 17 14 16 19 21 13 18 118
Season home run leaders:
Tim Coles – 6
Ken Brown – 3
Tim Bruton – 3
David Kruse – 3
Gregory Bied – 2
Larry Fiorentino – 2
Clint Fletcher – 2
Pat Scott – 2
Jimmy Sneed – 2
Ralph Villela – 2
Peter Atkins – 1
David Brown – 1
Jack Crosley – 1
Jeff Fisher – 1
Anthony Galindo – 1
Buddy Gaswint – 1
Tommy Gillis – 1
Doc Hobar – 1
Rex Horvath – 1
Denny Malloy – 1
Bobby Miller – 1
Eddie Ortiz -1
David Pittard – 1
Joe Roche – 1
Paul Rubin – 1
Morgan Witthoft – 1
Schedule for Monday September 9:
10:00 a.m.: Gray (0-1) at Orange (1-0), Red umpiring
11:00 a.m.: Red (0-1) at Green (0-1), Gray umpiring
Noon: Maroon (1-0) at Purple (–), Green umpiring
Blue has the bye, with priority for its players out of the bucket.
Preview: Gray (three-game losing streak) and Orange (three-game winning streak) will test my “momentum doesn’t exist” thesis at 10:00. One of Red and Green will get back onto the winning track at 11:00. At noon, Purple comes off consecutive byes to face a Maroon team that has won four of its last six games. Will I be able to find a buyer for my screenplay of a sequel to The Oath of the Sword featuring mecha, kaiju, and tsunami? One thing is certain: Only time will tell.
Keggy’s Korner:
Movie review: The Oath of the Sword
It’s 1914. Masao (above right), the son of a modishly dressed, too-cool-for-school teacher, leaves his childhood sweetheart and now betrothed Hisa, the very demure, very mindful daughter of a traditional and startlingly decrepit fisherman, to study abroad with ur-hippies at the University of California, Berkeley. Masao, who’s got serious Randall Park energy and rocks a boater, does great at Berkeley, as he turns out to be quite the jock, dominating the skinny white free-speech advocates at track and swimming competitions. As seen above, the college girls love him! Guessing he was born around 1894, probably didn’t have to serve in World War II, so he’s about 130 years old now, definitely eligible for B League.
Meanwhile, Hisa is left to care for her ailing old man and has a hard time coping with her solitude. On his death bed, pops administers to Hisa the Oath of the Sword, telling her, “If thou do sin, by this sword you must die.” Dude, what the hell, that’s how you say good-bye to your daughter? (Note to self: Don’t bequeath a sword to Keggy Junior.) But okay, Hisa’s devoted and a good girl, her brother’s at home, too, shouldn’t be an issue.
Speaking of, here’s Keggy Junior administering bug spray in front of the inflatable screen at Zilker Botanical Garden, shortly before the screening. No sword!
Welp, I spoke too soon. At a reception on Berkeley’s field day, Masao meets Captain Doane and his wife. Next we see Captain Doane boarding his ship and sailing out through the Golden Gate. The ship is wrecked by a typhoon, and Doane, by an incredible coinkydink, winds up floating around on debris within view of Hisa’s house and is rescued from by Hisa and her brother. Doane is taken to Hisa’s house, and while he convalesces they fall in love, Hisa evidently forgetting all about Masao – understandably, as he’s been too busy fending off the college girls to dash off more than an occasional two-sentence letter. Hisa’s brother doesn’t approve, but he’s a passive-aggressive little wuss and doesn’t do or say anything to prevent Hisa marrying Doane, who maybe has amnesia or just doesn’t care, but in any case he’s got a wife back in the Bay area. Dude!
Masao has finished his BA in straw hats and swimming and returns to Japan. Not knowing Hisa is married, he goes to her house, only to find her with a baby. Doane walks in, Masao recognizes him (great Wallace and Gromit, “It’s YOU!” moment, best thing in the film, honestly), and the accusations fly. Doane flees, for reasons unclear – dude married the girl, it’s his baby and his house, why should he be turning tail? Anyway, Masao follows him, they climb a rock outcropping over the beach, and they fight. Of course, Masao’s a serious athlete and he chokes Doane out and throws his body into the ocean. Dude, that’s not okay! Then Masao returns to Hisa’s house, only to find she killed herself with her dad’s sword, I guess for the sin of having been unfaithful.
But please: Masao disappeared for four years only to return TO MURDER SOMEONE, Doane’s a bigamist, kid brother could have told everyone to chill the fuck out, dead dad was a dumbshit, cool-teacher dad was nowhere to be seen, and Hisa, who got legally married and had a kid with her husband, is somehow the sinner? Why didn’t Masao just return to Berkeley and hook up with the college girls?
I rate this two out of five shipwrecked steamboats, for all the complaints above plus (as predicted by fellow cretin Jeff Broussard) there was no nudity and it wasn’t in color, not to mention trying to write this has delayed delivery of the Picayune. The visual storytelling is remarkably advanced for its era, however, the feel for the emigrant experience in America is excellent, and the new score commissioned for the movie, by Austin’s own James Tabata, is wonderful. Kudos to the Austin Asian American Film Festival for the presentation.