Scott's 2009 AL team names

Scott East
Otsego Myth - With Team East, I go back to baseball history, a la King Kelly and the Zany Rubes. Baseball lore says that the game was invented on the shores of Lake Otsego in Cooperstown by a man named Abner Doubleday. However, that is no more true than it is to say that the game was invented in the back yard of 105 Plum Street in Tipton, Iowa by a young man named Scott Norris.
In truth, the game evolved over the course of many years, kind of like the way our league has evolved - from the house across the sheep pasture in Downey all the way to Cooperstown and on to Pittsburgh with many interesting stops in between.

• Suggested three-letter abbreviation - OMY, just like the signature call of former Iowa basketball television broadcaster Bob Hogue who used to yell "Oh, my!" after Vince Brookins hit a shot from the deep corner or Ronnie Lester made a nifty drive to the hoop or Steve Krafcisin made a gentle dunk. But I digress ......

Scott West
Freeze Frame - You know I can't go without a reference to 80's music. So, combine a great hit from that era with my interest in capturing peak-action moments and there you have it. I will also make this the theme song as my closer enters the ninth to "freeze the frame." Come to think of it, I can't believe no MLB team has adopted this catchy little tune to do just that. Or have I missed it?

• Suggested three-letter abbreviation - FZF. Any team with a "Z" in the initials has to be good. Take Zany Rubes for example. Oh, wait....

Come on cards, get here! Please!

Steamrollers Fall To 0-6 Versus Cougars

The Army of Steamrollers luck against the Harrison Cougars didn't improve any in the teams' second meeting of the year, as Norris dropped one absurd game and two tough ones to Biv's first-place East squad.


Game 1: Harrison 9, Army 4
W-F.Rodney (2-0), L-B.Wolfe (0-2)
The first six innings between starters Daisuke Matsuzaka and Jeremy Bonderman were scoreless, but things got out of hand in the bottom of the 7th. Trailing 2-1 with two outs in that frame, the Cougars went into a rage against Steamrollers reliever Jeremy Accardo. Five consecutive batters reached base, including a two-run homer from Magglio Ordonez along with back-to-back blasts by Sean Casey and Jhonny Peralta. The 8-run outburst was enough for Fernando Rodney, who couldn't finish the game but earned his second win.

Game 2: Harrison 5, Army 4 (10 innings)
W-R.Villone (1-0), L-B.Wolfe (0-3)
Army got to Harrison closer Rafael Perez with a game-tying RBI double off the stick of Carlos Guillen in the 9th, but some extremely cheap action in the bottom of the 10th got the Cougars its second victory of the series. After Jacoby Ellsbury and J.D. Drew both succeeded with single 1-5 rolls, a passed ball put the winning run at 3rd with nobody out. Jhonny Peralta then rolled flyball-b with the outfield in to win the game.

Game 3: Harrison 1, Army 0
W-D. Cabrera (6-0), L-A.Sonnanstine (1-2), S-R.Perez (12)
In a game uncharacteristic of #5 starters, only one mistake occurred all day -- a 6th inning homer by J.D. Drew off the pitcher's card. Daniel Cabrera walked only one batter on his improbable run to 6-0, tying Army's Jeremy Guthrie for the league's highest win total. Rafael Perez tossed the final 1 2/3 to earn his league-best 12th save.

Next up -- BLOCK 3 INTERDIVISION:
Harrison Cougars (20-10) vs. Hawaiian Organ Donors (15-15)
Army of Steamrollers (15-15) vs. Huge Mistakes (11-13)*

Round 5 AL East: Cougars Sweep Steamrollers

In a Sunday/Monday split series, Scott couldn't string enough together with his East team as his Army of Steamrollers dropped a series to Biv's Harrison Cougars.

Game 1: Harrison 1, Army 0
W-D.Matsuzaka (2-0), L-J.Bonderman (1-2), S-R.Perez (6)
With one out in the 8th, Placido Polanco doubled home Pudge Rodriguez, and that's all the offense there is to talk about in this game. Daisuke produced his third quality start for Harrison but was nearly outmatched by Army's Jeremy Bonderman, who got no run support in a complete game five-hit outing. Carlos Guillen had three hits for the Steamrollers.

Game 2: Harrison 8, Army 4
W-F.Rodney (1-0), L-D.Wheeler (0-2)
A tie game was broken open by Harrison in the 9th when Steamrollers reliever Dan Wheeler not only couldn't get anybody out, he got himself injured. The game was untied when Wheeler allowed a two-run single to pinch hitter Timo Perez, and it was on this pitch that the righty hurler was damaged for 3 games. On came reliever Al Reyes, who promptly surrendered a two-run bomb to Matt Stairs. This game marked Harrison's seventh win of the season and the team's first victory which was not saved by Rafael Perez.

Game 3: Harrison 10, Army 8
W-D.Cabrera (3-0), L-J.Litsch (1-2), S-R.Perez (7)
Sean Casey's second consecutive four-hit game was accentuated by a single and two long balls from the bat of Cougars SS Jhonny Peralta. A late rally by Army was once again quelled by Rafael Perez, who recorded the final two outs for his league-leading 7th save. Placido Polanco also had four hits for Harrison, who totaled 19 base knocks on the day.

Next up -- GANZA
Harrison Cougars (8-7) at Finer Things Club (8-4)*
Army of Steamrollers (5-10) at Bob Loblaw (10-5)

AL East Round 4: Biv Gets First Series Win As Harrison Takes 2 From Long Ball

The two teams currently bringing up the rear in the AL East battled on Saturday afternoon and after two hitfests won by the Cougars, Larry salvaged Game 3 behind a pitching masterpiece.


Game 1: Harrison 5, Long Ball 3
W-D.Cabrera (2-0), L-Z.Miner (0-1), S-R.Perez (4)

Daniel Cabrera constantly escaped trouble in this one, but recorded just enough outs around the 7 free passes issued to become Harrison's first two-game winner. Zach Miner couldn't get out of a bases-loaded jam in the 7th as Jhonny Peralta, Ivan Rodriguez, and Matt Stairs strung together three straight RBI. Peralta recorded three hits on the day while his counterpart at SS, Asdrubal Cabrera, also had three hits for Long Ball.

Game 2: Harrison 6, Long Ball 3
W-A.Burnett (1-2), L-S.Kazmir (0-3), S-R.Perez (5)
Among the 27 combined hits in this game, things got ridiculous in the 6th frame when Harrison pounded five straight two-out hits off Larry starter Scott Kazmir. A successful double 1-2 or flyout roll from Ivan Rodriguez was immediately followed by Peralta getting a double 1 or flyout foll, which drove in what turned out to be the decisive run. Jason Michaels had three hits for the Cougars while Troy Glaus was 4-for-4 for Larry.


Game 3: Long Ball 1, Harrison 0
W-C.Wang (1-2), L-J.Shields (0-2), S-J.Papelbon (1)
Larry's 8 hits resulted in only one run courtesy of a 4th inning single from Asdrubal Cabrera which scored Bob Abreu. It was all the offense that was necessary behind Chien-Ming Wang's seven innings of spectacular pitching, as the Taiwanese hurler allowed only three hits. Jonathan Papelbon came on in the 8th to work a two-inning save, his first of the season.


Quick notes:

• Harrison's offense continues to play below expectations, as the Cougars average a meager 3.4 runs per game. As a microcosm, top pick Magglio Ordoñez is batting only .227 and has grounded into a league-high seven double plays.
• Rafael Perez has saved all five of the Cougars victories.
• DH Johnny Gomes has struck out an incredible 15 times in 25 at-bats. With J.D. Drew scheduled to come back from injury for Round 5, Biv is complementing sending the windmill down to AAA Speaker City for the remainder of Block 1.

Next up:

Harrison Cougars (5-7) at Army of Steamrollers (4-5)*
Finer Things Club (4-2)* at Long Ball Larry (4-8)

AL East Round 3: Army of Steamrollers pitch their way to 2 wins over Long Ball Larry

I did get a lot of favorable rolls. I admit that. Many a ballpark single came out on the positive side for me. A 1-3 roll for a grand slam went my way. I was never caught stealing. I terrorized his left side of the infield with many an "x" base hit. But to raise Greg's ire to a level seen only a few times before, I sent my runner home on a 1-19 chance with an 8-0 lead. All-in-all, Greg took it graciously with comments like: "F**k this!" "I would throw the next pitch at your earhole." "Can I just get one *** *** roll? Seriously. Just one." He added curses wishing bad karma on this club and hoping that I never, ever again win against a Chad-coached team - something I normally can't do anyway. That said, there were some noteworth events in the three games:

Army 11 - Larry 0 (W-Guthrie, L-Weng)
Jeremy Guthrie was again Orel Hershiser-like and gave up no runs for the second straight game to raise his scoreless streak to 17 innings. Chien-Ming Weng was charged with 11 runs for the loss. Curtis Granderson accounted for 5 RBIs and was a homer away from the cycle.


Army 13 - Larry 1 (W-Bonderman, L-Clemens)
The Steamrollers jumped out to a quick lead and tired out two pitchers before 5 innings had past. This is the game that Brendan Harris hit the afore-mentioned grand slam. Army colected 21 hits in all with Nick Markakis grabbing four of those to go along with 3 RBIs. Sizemore also notched his 9th stolen base of the season. Troy Glaus was 2-2 for Larry before being plunked and sent to the DL. Pinch hitter Corey Patterson came in to grab the first RBI of the series for the Larrys in the 7th inning.

Army 1 - Larry 6 (W-Marcum, L-Robertson)
Shaun Marcum came up big in a complete-game effort. He gave up just 5 hits and 1 run to muffle the Army offense. At the plate, Bobby Abreu was unstoppable collecting 3 hits and 3 RBIs. He also hit one of 3 triples for Larry on the game. Heads up to the next team Marcum faces as he is quoted in the post-game report: 'I've been working on a few things in my delivery, and I think I'm hitting a good groove. I'm ready to start another game tomorrow!'

Next up:
Army (4-5): Brian East
Larry (3-6): Biv East

AL East Round 2: Bob Loblaw takes 2-of-3 from Army of Steamrollers

While the phones at the Bob Loblaw Law Office continued to ring off the hook, his strat team went to work, going 2-1 against Scott's Army last night. Two notes: Manny Delcarmen may save every game and Erik Bedard may strike out 300 this strat season.

Game 1: Bob Loblaw 5, Army of Steamrollers4
W: J.Tavarez (1-0), L: B.Wolfe (0-1), S: M.Delcarmen (3)

Bob led 4-1 going into the bottom of the 6th and looked to be cruising to victory...then Army broke out the lumber. Nick Markakis' solo HR (2nd) in the 6th was followed by solo HRs by Derek Jeter (1st) and Melvin Mora (1st) in the 7th to tie the game 4-4. The mood on the Steamroller bench quickly faded, however, as Travis Hafner led off the 8th with a HR (1st) to provide the eventual winning run. Alex Rodriguez hit is 3rd HR of the season and Brian Roberts went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles for Bob, while Melvin Mora was unstoppable for Army going 3-for-3. Markakis, Jeter and Curtis Granderson added 2 hits apiece.

Game 2: Army of Steamrollers 3, Bob Loblaw 2
W: J.Litsch (1-0), L: J.Towers (0-1), S: B.Seay (1)

Derek Jeter and Aubrey Huff had RBI singles and Grady Sizemore stole 3 bases to help Army hand Bob their 1st loss of the season. The matchup of #5 starters turned in a pair of solid pitching performances. Winner Jesse Litsch gave up 6 hits and 3 walks while striking out 2 over 8 innings, while loser Josh Towers went the distance giving up 6 hits and 3 walks and struck out 7 Steamrollers. Kevin Youkilis and Delmon Young each had 2 hits for Bob.

Game 3: Bob Loblaw 5, Army of Steamrollers 3
W: CC Sabathia (2-0), L: E.Bedard (0-2), S: M.Delcarmen (4)

Erik Bedard matched the 15 strikeouts he had in his opening start, however he also matched the loss as well as Bob Loblaw was able to get wood on enough of Bedard's pitches to win the rubber match. Manny Ramirez's RBI double in the 3rd broke a 2-2 tie. Brian Roberts and Delmon Young added RBI singles in the 4th and 5th innings to puch the lead to 5-2. Army pulled one back on a Franklin Gutierrez sac-fly in the 8th but could get no closer. Grady Sizemore continued to run wild, stealing his 7th base of the season and he, Gutierrez and Nick Markakis all had 2 hits. C.C. Sabathia struck out 8 as he went 7.1 innings for his 2nd win of the season.

AL East Round 1: Bob Loblaw sweeps Long Ball Larry

Game 1: Bob Loblaw 2, Long Ball Larry 1
W: CC Sabathia (1-0), L: S.Kazmir (0-1), S: M.Delcarmen (1)

The AL East opener for both teams was pitcher's duel that saw CC Sabathia and Scott Kazmir battle back-and-forth. Manny Ramirez's RBI single in the bottom of the 8th snapped a 1-1 tie and Manny Delcarmen sailed through the 9th to provide victory for Loblaw. Kevin Youkilis had 3 hits and an RBI and Delmon Young had 2 hits for the winners while Dustin Pedroia had 2 hits and Bobby Abreu notched the only RBI for the losers. The real stars, however, were Sabathia and Kazmir. Sabathia gave up 4 hits, walked 2 and struck out 8 over 8 innings in notching the first win of the season. Kazmir was the hard-luck loser going the distance while giving up 6 hits and 3 walks while also striking out 8.

Game 2: Bob Loblaw 12, Long Ball Larry 8
W: C.Schilling (1-0), L: C.Wang (0-1)

Game 2 was the exact opposite of Game 1. Curt Schilling was fatigued before he got out of the 1st as Long Ball hung five runs in the 1st then added another in the 2nd to lead 6-0 quickly. Bob scored a pair in the 3rd before swinging the momentum their way, scoring nine in the 5th (where Bob batted around before the 1st out was recorded). The offensive stars were many: Dustin Pedroia had 3 hits and Gary Sheffield had 4 RBIs for Long Ball. Sheffield and Carlos Pena also hit their 1st HRs. For Loblaw the honor roll includes Delmon Young going 4-for-4 with a HR (1st), 2 runs and 2 RBIs; Alex Rodriguez went 2-for-4 with a HR (1st) and 4 RBIs; and Vernon Wells went 2-for-4 with a HR (1st), 2 runs and 2 RBIs.

Game 3: Bob Loblaw 4, Long Ball Larry 2
W: T.Wakefield (1-0), L: R.Clemens (0-1), S: M.Delcarmen (2)

Loblaw scored a pair of runs in the 1st and another pair in the 3rd to stake Tim Wakefield to an early 4-0 lead, then hung on for the win. Alex Rodriguez went 1-for-2 with a 2-run HR (2nd), 2 runs, and 2 walks while Miguel Tejada added 2 hits. Bobby Abreu both Long Ball RBIs and Gary Sheffield had 2 hits. Wakefield went 7 strong innings, scattering 5 hits and walking 2. Manny Delcarmen did give up a run before closing the game out for his 2nd save.