Game Day Gazette
August 31, 2026
Before we get into today’s action, there are several updates that I wanted to share about upcoming changes in field location and our schedule:
· We will be playing a game next Tuesday, September 8th. We had not been scheduled to play on Monday, September 7th as this is Labor Day and the park will be closed. PARD has offered to let us “make-up” this Labor Day game on Tuesday, and we have agreed to do so.
· The schedule for Tuesday September 8th will be as follows:
8:00 a.m. (H) Blue vs. (V) Orange; Green umpiring
9:00 a.m. (H) Green vs. (V) Red; Blue Umpiring
Gray will have the bye, and their players will have priority in the draw
· Effective September 8th, we will be moving all games from our current location (K1) to a new field location (K6). I anticipate that we will finish out the remainder of the season in new field location.
· Our current “summer” hours will remain in place through Thursday October 1st. We will move back to our “regular” hours starting Monday, October 5, 2026.
Now back to the action… two games ending in identical scores and each following similar game scripts..
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Game 1 : Gray (3-2-0) vs. Green (4-0-0) 8:00 a.m. 8/31/26 |
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|
1st |
2nd |
3rd |
4th |
5th |
Total |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gray |
0 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
8 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Green |
5 |
3 |
5 |
2 |
X |
15 |
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Starting pitchers- Gray- Ray Pilgrim; Green- Luis Sanchez |
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Mercenaries: Gray- Patrick Schmidt; Green- Jim Foelker, Terry Thompson and Barry McRee. |
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Home Plate Umpire- Terry Watts |
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First & Second Inning Recap:
Gray- much anticipated matchup from the teams with the best records did not exactly live up to the advance billing.. P Luis Sanchez was extremely effective on the mound as he shut down the Gray lineup without a run in the opening two frames. Scott Wright laced a single to right to lead of the game. Mike Carroll bounced back to Luis, and he got the force at 2B for the 1st out. Gary Coyle slapped a single through the 5/6 hole to put runners on 1B and 2B. Louie Caputo hit into a fielder’s choice groundout to shortstop Jack Spellman for the 2nd out. Peter Atkins grounded sharply to 2B Tom Kelm for the final out. 2nd – Ray Pilgrim and Lynn Simpson started the 2nd with back-to-back singles. Jeff Broussard was retired on a flyball to Jim Foelker for the 1st out. Larry Coons hit into a fielder’s choice out at 3B for the 2nd out. Dave Safely lined out to Terry Thompson at 1B to retire the side.
Green– leadoff man, Paul Rubin, opened the inning with a single up the middle. Jack Spellman ripped a single to right to move Paul to 3B, and I scored on Luis Sanchez’ fielder’s choice out at 2B. Denny Malloy lined a single to right center and Mickey Poole followed with a walk to load the bases. P Ray Pilgrim forced in the 3rd run as he walked Robby Vickery. Tom Kelm drilled a single to center to drive in the 4th run. William Powell hit into a fielder’s choice for the 2nd out. Jim Foelker smacked a single to left center to plate Robby’s courtesy runner with the 5th run. 2nd– Terry Thompson singled to open the 2nd inning. He was forced out at 2B on Barry McRee’s groundout. Paul hit a sizzling grounder up the middle and Ray made a good stop on the Paul and got the force at 2B for the 2nd out. Jack singled and Luis walked to load the bases with two outs. Denny drove in the 1st run with a single and Mickey ripped a single to center to drive in two more runs before Robby hit into a fielder’s choice out at 3B to close out the frame
End of 2nd Score: Green 8 Gray 0
3rd Inning Recap:
Gray- down by eight, Gray started their uphill climb with a couple of runs in the 3rd. Patrick Schmidt bounced out to short on a nice backhand stop and strong throw by Jack Spellman. Scott and Mike followed with back-to-back singles to start the rally for Gray. Gary reached on an infield single to load the bases. Louis looped a single to right center to drive in two runs as Gray finally got on the board. Peter grounded sharply to P Luis and his throw to 2B beat Louie for the force and the 2nd out. Ray grounded out to short to retire the side.
Green– putting on a power display, the first three batters pounded extra base hits as Green put up another five-spot to pretty much put this one out of reach. Tom drilled a leadoff double and score on William Powell’s first home run of the season. Jim followed with a two-base hit to left center. Terry flew out to left for the 1st out and Barry walked. Paul grounded back to Ray for the 2nd time in the game with Barry being forced out at 2B. Jack and Luis came through with back-to-back RBI singles to complete the five-run inning.
End of 3rd Score: Green 13 Gray 2
Fourth Inning Recap:
Gray– continued to fight to get back into this one as Gray added three runs in the 4th. Lynn and Jeff opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Larry went down looking for the 1st out. David singled to load the bases. Patrick singled to drive in the 1st run. Scott finished up a perfect 3-3 day at the plate with an RBI single. Mike knocked in the 3rd run on his fielder’s choice groundout. Luis retired Gary on a comebacker to end the inning.
Green– with the clock running, home plate umpire Terry Watts limited Green’s turn at the plate once they pushed their lead out to ten runs. Denny and Mickey completed their respective perfect days at the plate with back-to-back singles to open the frame. Robby looped a single to right to load the bases with nobody out. Tom completed his perfect day at the plate with a clean single to center to drive in the 1st run. William, sporting a brand-new Senior bat provide by Morris Carter, ripped a single over Gary’s head at 3B to bring Mickey around to score. Knowing that the teams were going to flip flop once the deficit reached ten runs, pinch runner Jack Spellman kept going and was ultimately thrown out at the plate for the only out of the inning.
End of 4th Score: Green 15 Gray 5
Fifth “Open” Inning Recap:
Gray- refused to rollover and continued to battle at the plate on their way to another three-run inning. Louie and Peter opened the frame with back-to-back singles. Ray bounced into a fielder’s choice as Robby fielded his grounder to 3B and made an unassisted put out at the base for the 1st out. Lynn picked up his 3rd hit in as many at-bats to drive in the 1st run of the inning, Jeff reached on a single to load the bases. Larry lined a single to left to drive in Peter with the 1st run. David knocked in the 2nd run as Ray scored on his fielder’s choice groundout to 3B. Patrick lined out to short to end the ballgame with Green remaining undefeated in the 4th session.
Final Score: Green 15 Gray 8
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Game 2: Blue (1-4-0) vs. Red (2-3-0) 9:00 a.m. 8/31/26 |
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1st |
2nd |
3rd |
4th |
5th |
Total |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Blue |
4 |
4 |
2 |
5 |
X |
15 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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Red |
0 |
0 |
0 |
5 |
3 |
8 |
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Starting pitchers- Red- Terry Thompson; Blue-Tommy DeLeon |
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Mercenaries-Red- Jack Spellman, Terry Thompson, Adam Gordon and Luis Sanchez |
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Blue- NONE |
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Home Plate Umpire- Tom Kelm and Paul Rubin; Bases- Paul Rubin and Jim Foelker |
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First & Second Inning Recap:
Blue– coming off their worst offensive performance of the season (only one run vs. Gray) it’s hard to know which Blue team is going to show up on any given Monday or Thursday! Bad news for Red, the good Blue team made their presence known by putting up eight runs in the opening two frames. Tommy DeLeon and Mike Hill started things rolling with back-to-back singles to open the game. Tim Coles went to the opposite field for an RBI double to get Blue on the board. Raul DeLeon crushed one to left center for a bases-clearing two run triple. Donnie Janac lined out to 2B as Doc Hobar fully extended to make a fine grab for the 1st out. Don Roets walked and was forced out at 2B on Henry Flores groundball to short with Raul scoring on the play. Daniel Baladez grounded out to short to end the inning. 2nd– the bottom of the order came through in the 2nd without any help from mercenaries as Blue filled out their lineup card with only their own players in today’s contest. Dave Berra drew a walk to open the frame. Chris looped a flyball to shallow center for a single. Alex Valles did likewise to load the bases with nobody out. Lucky Hoffman fouled out for the 1st out. Tommy grounded to Luis at 1B and his underhand throw beat Alex to 2B for the 2nd out with Dave scoring from 3B on the play. Mike lashed a single to left center to drive in the 2nd run. Tim continued to go the other way with a two-run double to right. Raul ended the inning with a flyball out to center field.
Red- already down by eight, Red needed a fast start to get back in this one, but it wasn’t meant to be. Doc Hobar led off with a sharp single to left center. P Tommy DeLeon induced groundball outs from the next three batters to quickly retire the side. 2nd– he continued his mastery on the mound by shutting down the Red batters in order in the 2nd. Bobby Hawthorne led off the 2nd by lining a shot down the 3B line that Tim made a great backhand stab on for the 1st out. Gene Nelson grounded back to Tommy for the 2nd out. Patrick Schmidt fouled out to retire the side and complete the scoreless two inning frame for Blue.
End of 2nd Score: Blue 8 Red 0
Third Inning Recap:
Blue- extended their lead to ten runs with two more runs in the 3rd. Donnie and Don opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Henry worked a walk from P Terry Thompson to load the bases. Daniel smacked a single to left center to drive in two runs. Dave and Chris both hit into fielder’s choice outs as Terry tried to work out of a jam. He succeeded as he got Alex on a comebacker to retire the side.
Red- with the mercenaries scheduled to bat to open the inning, things were hopefully looking up for Red but again reality did not match expectations. Jack Spellman flew out to Don in center to start the inning, Terry lined out to shortstop Mike Hill for the 2nd out. Adam Gordon reached on a single to shallow center, but Luis flew out to Dave Berra on a nice running catch to close out the scoreless frame.
End of 3rd Score: Blue 10 Red 0
Fourth Inning Recap:
Blue- continued to rake at the plate as Blue put up a five-spot to pretty much put this one out of reach. Lucky bounced out to short to open the inning. Tommy laced a double to right and his runner moved to 3B on Mike’s 3rd hit of the game. Tim grounded into a fielder’s choice out at 3B for the 2nd out as the runner from 3B came home on the play. Raul smacked a double to bring in the 2nd run. Donnie followed with an infield single. Don smashed a drive to right center (well struck but not quite obliterated!) that split the fielder’s allowing him to cruise into 3B with a two-run triple, Henry finished off the five-run inning with a single to center.
Red- home plate umpire Tom Kelm stepped out, and I took his place behind the plate and Jim Foelker came in to umpire the bases. This was apparently the “good luck” charm that Red needed to wake up from their slumber. Down by fifteen and with nowhere to go but up, Red pounded out seven hits on their way to a five-run inning. Doc and John Flowers opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Butch Barber stroked a ground single up the middle to bring in Red’s first run of the game. Terry Watts lined a single to center to bring in the 2nd run. Bobby ground into a fielder’s choice for the 2nd out but Red was not yet done. Gene Nelson smacked a single to right center to load the bases and Patrick followed with a well-place drive up the middle to drive in the 3rd run. Jack drew a based loaded walk to force in the 4th run and Terry finished up the five-run uprising with a single to left.
End of 4th Score: Blue 15 Red 5
At this point, the two teams flip flopped and Red remained at the plate.
Fifth “Open” Inning Recap:
Red- trailing by ten, Red continued to battle and put up three more runs in the buffet. Adam led off with a double down the left field line and scored on Luis’ single to right. Doc completed a perfect 3-3 day at the plate with another single. John went down swinging for the 1st out. Butch bounced into a fielder’s choice and Red was down to their final out. Terry W. smacked a double to right center to score Butch as Dave Berra just missed making a diving catch to end the game. Bobby made the final out as he popped out to short to end the game.
Final Score: Blue 15 Red 8
Current 4th Session Standings:
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ASSL C league 2026 4th Session Final Standings |
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|
Win |
Loss |
Ties |
Win % |
Scored |
Given up |
Diff. |
Games Behind |
|
Green |
5 |
0 |
0 |
1.000 |
75 |
37 |
38 |
– |
|
Gray |
3 |
3 |
0 |
0.500 |
70 |
64 |
6 |
2.50 |
|
Orange |
2 |
3 |
0 |
0.400 |
38 |
66 |
(28) |
3.00 |
|
Red |
2 |
4 |
0 |
0.333 |
68 |
75 |
-7 |
3.50 |
|
Blue |
2 |
4 |
0 |
0.333 |
47 |
56 |
-9 |
3.50 |
Green appears to be hitting their stride as they remain unbeaten in the session, stretching their lead over Gray to 2.50 games.
Season-to-date Standings:
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|
ASSL C league 2026 Season to-date Standings |
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|
|
Win |
Loss |
Ties |
Win % |
Scored |
Given up |
Diff. |
Games Behind |
|
Green |
22 |
11 |
1 |
0.647 |
445 |
335 |
68 |
– |
|
Gray |
23 |
15 |
2 |
0.575 |
460 |
415 |
57 |
1.50 |
|
Orange |
18 |
16 |
1 |
0.514 |
369 |
358 |
19 |
4.50 |
|
Blue |
14 |
22 |
0 |
0.389 |
320 |
410 |
-86 |
9.00 |
|
Red |
11 |
24 |
0 |
0.314 |
324 |
400 |
-58 |
12.00 |
Gray extended their lead over Gray to 1.50 games with today’s head-to-head win. Orange in still lurking in 3rd but currently on a two-game skid.
Next Games: Monday September 3, 2026
Game 1 8:00 a.m. Gray (3-3-0) vs. Orange (2-3-0)
Battle to see which team will emerge as the primary challenger to Green in this 4th session. Orange looking to bounce back after losing their last two and Gray looking to start the climb to overtake the front-running Greenies.
Blue has umpiring duties for this one.
Game 2 9:00 a.m. Blue (2-4-0) vs. Green (5-0-0)
Which Blue squad will show up in this one? Can they get off to a quick start and take down the favored Green team? Can Green remain unbeaten and build on their season-long lead with a win on Thursday?
All will be revealed on Monday!
Gray will be taking on the umpire responsibilities in this game.
Red will have a bye on Thursday allowing their players to have priority in the draw and thereby potentially impact on the outcome of the above games!