Game Day Gazette
October 1, 2026
Based on the gloomy weather forecast all week (I know we need the rain!) no one expected us to be playing ball on Thursday! But Mother Nature provided us with a brief window sans rain, and we were able to get both games in under cloudy skies with temperatures in the 80’s. Unfortunately, we got off to a late start as we did not get confirmation from PARD until 6:50 a.m. that the fields were ready for play. Once notice went out to all the players, there was no way to have everyone in place for an 8:00 a.m. start time so we pushed back the opening pitch to 8:30 a.m. Good thing as we finally had enough players at the field by 8:15 a.m. (including seven mercenaries for Orange and three for Blue) to finally get things started at 8:23 a.m.
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Game 1: Orange (6-6-0) vs. Blue (4-8-0) 8:00 a.m. 10/01/26 |
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1st |
2nd |
3rd |
4th |
5th |
6th |
Total |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Orange |
0 |
0 |
1 |
4 |
2 |
0 |
7 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Blue |
3 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
X |
10 |
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Starting pitchers-Blue-Tommy DeLeon; Orange-Terry Thompson |
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Mercenaries: Blue- Ken Brown, Paul Rubin and Patrick Schmidt; Orange- Jack Spellman, Scott Wright, |
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John Flowers, Bobby Hawthorne, Larry King, Mickey Poole and Tom Kelm |
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Home Plate Umpire-Morris Carter |
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First & Second Inning Recap:
Orange- with only four of their regular players available for this game, Orange would have to rely on the contributions from their seven mercenaries to overcome the men in Blue. Adam Gordon led off with a fly to shallow left field that he was able to stretch into a double. Terry Thompson lined out to Raul DeLeon at 3B for the 1st out. Barry McRee reached on an infield single as Adam was held at 2B. Bubba Barnett fouled out for the 2nd out. Jack Spellman reached on an infield single to 2B to load the bases. P Tommy DeLeon then got Scott Wright to fly out to left to retire the side. 2nd – John Flowers looped one down the right field line and hustled into 2B with a leadoff double. Bobby Hawthorne grounded out to short as John moved to 3B. P Tommy D. proceeded to strike out both Larry King and Mickey Poole to close out the 2nd consecutive shutout inning for Blue.
Blue- Tommy DeLeon proving he could contribute on the mound and at the plate, led off with a single up the middle. Mike Hill lined a base hit to right center to put runners on 1B and 2B. Raul DeLeon lofted a two-strike flyball to deep right field that got over Tom Kelm’s head for a three run inside the park home run. Donnie Janac kept things rolling with a clean single to left center. Henry Flores bounced into a fielder’s choice for the 1st out. Dave Berra flew out to left for the 2nd out and Daniel Baladez popped out to short to end the frame. 2nd– P Sal Lopez retired the first two batters in the 2nd, getting Chris Hurst to pop out to short and Johnny Neville on a grounder to 1B. Ken Brown laced a two-out single to center and Paul Rubin followed with a ground single to left center. Sal then got Patrick Schmidt to ground into a fielder’s choice (4-6) to retire the side.
End of 2nd Score: Blue 3 Orange 0
3rd Inning Recap:
Orange- broke through with a run in the 3rd. Tom Kelm led off with a sharp single up the middle. Adam reached on an infield single to put runners on 1B and 2B. Terry T. flew out to right as both runners advanced on the play. Barry followed with a fly ball to left center that was deep enough to allow the runner from 3B to score. Bubba went down on strikes to end the inning
Blue– the top of the order came through with four consecutive hits to spark a two-run outburst to extend Blue’s lead to four runs. Tommy and Mike got things started with back-to-back singles to right field. Raul’s single up the middle loaded the bases with nobody out. Donnie ripped a single to left to push across the 1st run. Henry’s flyball to left allowed Mike to score from 3B with the 2nd run. Sal avoided any further damage by getting Dave to pop out to 2B, and Daniel to ground one back to him to close out the frame.
End of 3rd Score: Blue 5 Orange 1
Fourth Inning Recap:
Orange– finally broke through with a four-run outburst to knot the score at 5-5. Jack flew out to right on a nice catch by Dave to open the inning. Scott followed with a double to left center. John grounded a single past Henry at 2B, and Scott attempted to score from 2B, but Paul’s one-hop throw from right center was caught by Chris Hurst for the out at the plate. Not to be denied, the next four batters reached for Orange. Bobby and Larry reached on back-to-back infield singles. Mickey knocked in the 1st run with a line single to center. Tom K. stepped up and crushed one to left field that soared over Patrick’s head (no throwing his glove in the air out of desperation on this one!) for a bases clearing three-run triple. Adam flew out to center to end the threat.
Blue– with the game now tied, Blue responded with three runs of their own to keep Orange at bay. Chris drilled a leadoff single to left center to open the frame. Johnny grounded a single to right to move up the runner. Ken smacked a single to right center to drive in the 1st run. Paul grounded sharply to short, and Jack was able to knock the ball down but not make a play to load the bases. Patrick got the 2nd run in with a grounder back to the mound. Tommy followed suit as Ken scored from 3B on his comebacker to Sal for the 3rd run. Mike was retired for the 1st time as he flew out to right center to end the inning.
End of 4th Score: Blue 8 Orange 5
Fifth Inning Recap:
Orange– narrowed the lead to one run after putting up a couple of runs in the last five-run inning. Terry slapped a single to left to open the inning. Barry flew out to left for the 1st out. Bubba grounded into a fielder’s choice for the 2nd out. Jack followed with a deep fly over Donnie’s head in left center for a run-scoring double. Scott punched a single to right to plate Jack with the 2nd run. John kept things going with a single, but Tommy retired Bobby on a pop fly to 3B to end the frame.
Blue– bounced back with two runs on their own to push the lead back to three runs. The first five batters all reached to key the rally. Raul and Donnie led off with back-to-back singles. Henry singled to left to load the bases with nobody out. Dave knocked in the 1st run with a line d=single to left. Daniel followed with a hard single to center to bring in the 2nd run. Chris bounced into a fielder’s choice (6-4) for the 1st out. Johnny grounded one to 2B and Doc made a strong throw to 2B for the force and Ken completed the inning ending double play to keep the lead at three runs.
End of 5th Score: Blue 10 Orange 7
Sixth “Open” Inning Recap:
Orange– chasing three runs, Orange threatened but could not complete the comeback. Larry was retired on a nice play by Chris on a foul tip for the 1st out. Mickey and Tom followed with back-to-back singles to bring up the top of the order. Adam hit into a fielder’s choice as Mike threw to Raul to get the force at 3B for the 2nd out. Terry flew out to CF for the final out and a hard-earned win for the boys in Blue!
Final Score: Blue 10 Orange 7
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Game 2: Red (6-6-0) vs. Green (7-5-0) 9:00 a.m. 10/01/26 |
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1st |
2nd |
3rd |
4th |
5th |
6th |
Total |
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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Red |
2 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
6 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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Green |
1 |
5 |
2 |
0 |
4 |
X |
12 |
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Starting pitchers- Green-Luis Sanchez; Red- Sal Lopez |
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Mercenaries-Green- Terry Thompson and Ray Pilgrim |
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Mercenaries-Red- Scott Wright, Donnie Janac and Daniel Baladez |
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Home Plate Umpire- Johnny Neville |
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First & Second Inning Recap:
Red– the last two times these teams have faced off, the Red team has emerged victorious. Green has lost four out of their last five games and was desperate to turn things around and hold off Gray for the session title. Leadoff man, Doc Hobar lined a two-strike pitch just foul down the right field line for the 1st out. Patrick Schmidt singled to left to get things going for Red. Micke Mordeca, so good to see him back on the field, bounced back to Luis, who got the force at 2B just ahead of the speedy Patrick barreling into 2B. Ken Brown lined a double to right center as Denny Malloy had some trouble picking up the ball to bring in the 1st run. Bobby Hawthorne drilled a single to left to knock in the 2nd run. John Flowers and Sal Lopez had back-to-back hits to load the bases. P Luis Sanchez was able to get Morris Carter to hit one back to the mound and Luis tossed one to Larry King at 1B for the final out. 2nd– very quick inning for Luis as he made an outstanding stop on Scott Wright’s sizzler up the middle for the 1st out. Donnie Janac followed with a base hit to left but he was erased on Daniel Baladez’ double play groundout to short (6-4-3) to end the inning. On the play, Daniel did not run from the plate so Larry appeared to be unsure of what to do once he made the catch of Jack’s relay throw. After a beat and some “coaching” from his teammates, he touched the base to complete the play.
Green-Paul Rubin laced P Sal Lopez’ first pitch to left for a leadoff single. Luis Sanchez, batting in the two-hole singled to right as Paul advanced to 3B. Jack Spellman bounced back to the pitcher and Sal got the out at 2B for the 1st out of the inning, Denny Malloy ripped a liner to short and Ken Brwon made an exceptional leaping catch for the out. On his throwback to 1B to attempt to double off the runner, I took off from 3B and scored the only run of the inning. Just to confirm, I did go back and tag before heading home! William Powell had two well-struck balls that both drifted into foul territory for the final out. 2nd– Tom Kelm opened the 2nd with a sharp single to center field. Robby Vickery worked a walk to put runners on 1B and 2B. Mickey Poole smoked one to center to drive int eh 1st run of the frame. Larry King was able to work a walk to load the bases. Terry Thompson then scorched a single to left to bring in the 2nd run. Green’s other mercenary, Ray Pilgrim, hit a slow roller that went between short and 3B allowing two runners to score. Paul finished up the inning with a flyball to the gap in left center to bring in the 5th run.
End of 2nd Score: Green 6 Red 2
Third Inning Recap:
Red- put up three runs to get themselves right back into this one. Doc singled to open the frame and moved to 3B on Patrick’s double. Mike drew a walk to load the bases with nobody out. Ken drilled a single to center to drive in two runs and Red was off and running. Bobby was retired on a pop fly to 3B for the 1st out. John hit one back to the box and Luis made the throw to 2B for the force as the runner from 3B scored on the play. Sal smacked a single, but Luis was able to get Morris on a line out to 2B to close out the frame.
Orange- the first five batters reached base as Green put up two runs to keep a three-run advantage in the game. Luis and Jack opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Denny reached on an infield single to load the bases with no one out. William hammered a single down the 3B line to bring in the 1st run. Tom Kelm popped a ball to shallow right field that Doc just missed making a circus catch on allowing Jack to score the 2nd run. Robby hit a low liner to 2B, and Doc snared it a few inches above the ground. The runner from 1B (me) was caught going on the hit and was easily doubled off for the 2nd out. Mickey then ground one back to the pitcher to end the inning.
End of 3rd Score: Green 8 Red 5
Fourth Inning Recap:
Red– Scott led off the frame with a drive to right field but William made a great running catch for the 1st out. Donnie singled to left but could only advance to 2B as Daniel flew out to center ahead of Doc’s single to right and Patrick fouled out to retire the side
Green- P Sal shut down the Green attack in the 4th allowing a single hit and no runs in a very quick (think it was four pitches) inning. Larry popped out to short to open the inning. Terry drilled a single to left but Ray grounded into a 4-6-3 double play to end the scoreless inning.
End of 4th Score: Green 8 Red 5
Fifth Inning Recap:
Red– Luis continued his dazzling performance on the mound, only facing three batters in the scoreless 5th. Mike popped up to short to lead off the frame. Ken laced a single through the 5/6 hole and hoping for the element of surprise, tried to stretch it into a double. I was able to get to the ball quickly and my throw to Tom K. at 2B beat Ken by a few steps for the 2nd out. Bobby grounded out to 3B as Robby made a fine throw to 1B for the final out.
Green- was able to put up four runs to extend their lead to seven runs heading into the buffet. Paul led off with an infield single, just beating Ken’s throw to 1B. Luis fouled out for the 1st out, but Jack and Denny delivered back-to-back hits to bring in the 1st run. William singled to bring in the 2nd run before Tom hit into a 4-6 fielder’s choice for the 2nd out. Robby lined a single to right to drive in the 3rd run. Mickey wrapped up the scoring with an RBI single to left center. Larry popped out to 3B to close out the frame.
End of 4th Score: Green 12 Red 5
Sixth “Open” Inning Recap:
Red- hoping to ignite a rally to close the seven-run gap, John swung at a two-strike pitch that was probably a foot outside to open the inning. Singles by Sal, Morris and Scotty brought in the 1st run but that was all Red could muster. Donnie was retired for the 1st time all day on a fielder’s choice grounder to 2B and Jack Spellman made an incredible running catch of Daniel’s flyball to left to end the ballgame.
Final Score: Green12 Red 6
Final 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 |
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Green |
8 |
5 |
0 |
0.615 |
159 |
125 |
34 |
– |
|
Gray |
7 |
5 |
0 |
0.583 |
148 |
126 |
22 |
0.50 |
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Orange |
6 |
7 |
0 |
0.462 |
119 |
144 |
-25 |
2.00 |
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Red |
6 |
7 |
0 |
0.462 |
152 |
156 |
-4 |
2.00 |
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Blue |
5 |
8 |
0 |
0.385 |
113 |
140 |
-27 |
3.00 |
Congrats to manager Tom Kelm and the Greenies for taking the crown as champs in the 4th session in a hard-fought battle with Gray!
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 |
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Gray |
27 |
17 |
2 |
0.587 |
538 |
477 |
57 |
– |
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Green |
25 |
16 |
1 |
0.595 |
529 |
423 |
68 |
0.50 |
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Orange |
22 |
20 |
1 |
0.512 |
450 |
436 |
19 |
4.00 |
|
Blue |
17 |
26 |
0 |
0.395 |
386 |
494 |
-86 |
9.50 |
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Red |
16 |
26 |
0 |
0.381 |
408 |
481 |
-58 |
11.00 |
Idle Gray saw their slim lead shrink to .50 games with Green’s win over Red. Orange is still lurking in 3rd with Blue and Red fighting to stay out of the cellar.
5th and Final Session begins on Monday 10/5/26
Next Games: Monday October 5, 2026
Game 1 8:30 a.m. Red (0-0-0) vs. Orange (0-0-0)
Heading into the stretch run with fifteen (15) play dates and only twelve games to be played by each team (not counting rainouts!) Who will get hot and who will not, remains to be seen,
Gray will be taking on the umpiring responsibilities in this game
Game 2 9:00 a.m. Gray (0-0-0) vs. Green (0-0-0)
Battle of the Titans to see which team will take the lead in the race for the crown. Stay tunes this should be must see viewing!
Red will be taking umpiring the late game on Monday.
Blue will have a bye on Monday allowing their players to have priority in the draw.
Other News and Notes:
1. Starting this Monday (10/5/26) all games will be starting at 8:30 a.m. or 9:30 a.m. Draw times will be fifteen minutes prior to the start of the game so if you want a chance to play in an extra game, come early!
2. The annual luncheon catered by Lupe Tortilla will be held on Monday October 26, 2026. We will try to get an earlier start so C leaguers that don’t play in B league will not have to hang around quite as long to get fed. There is no cost for players, but guests will have to pay $25.00. We are also going to have a mini awards ceremony before we eat (think ESPY’s without all the glitz and glamour) so we hope to see you there.
3. Finally, last year Terry Thompson organized a raffle to help support the Central Texas Food Bank. We had such a good response that we are going to do it again with more prizes (Senior softball bat, bat bag, turf shoes and a custom walking stick). Stay tuned for more details from Terry.