Red Bat Competition

Two weeks ago the little red bat, let out its final yelp with Erin McGuire at the plate. As she hit the ball somewhere into the outfield, the bat hit a sour note. Back in the dugout she inspected the bat, long a favorite of Slugs women and some men. There was a crack, a big clear one. The little red bat was no longer legal to play.



Which leaves a question...

What should we do with the little red bat?

Should we get it bronzed? Perhaps dipped in copper? Could it be an award...to the player with the best hitting record this season?...to the player who goes to the cages the most? Should it be awarded each week to the player with the best hit, or the worst?

Slugs, please leave your ideas here by posting comments. The person whose idea is chosen by the coaching staff gets a free Jaeger shot after our next win (if you're into that kind of thing).

Copper Thieves Strike Tahoe Park

I was going to write up a full report on the copper theft at Tahoe Park - but it seems Slugs outfielder and Sacramento Bee reporter Ed Fletcher beat me to the online presses. I won't speculate about whether he got a tip from last night's game announcement e-mail...but let's just say Ed is all over this story. When I went to google to find more information about the copper theft problem, Ed's story was one of the first to come up (see below).

I did speak with league director Ron today who said he was hoping the lights would be back up and running in time for this Thursday's game...but I must say he didn't sound entirely confident. He said he would call me on Thursday to let me know for sure. But for now Slugs please plan to be at Tahoe Park on Thursday at 7, rain or shine. If the lights still aren't working we should have a good 30-40 minutes of daylight/dusk to throw the ball around before heading to Luigi's.

Copper wire theft puts pause in softball season

By Ed Fletcher (courtesy without permission of the Sacramento Bee)

The latest victim of local copper thieves is coed "D" league softball. The thieves didn't steal the ball. They stole the copper wire from the field lights at Tahoe Park's softball field. No lights, no games.

And so, Tahoe Park's Luck Dragons will have to wait in their quest for perfection.

"We started the season with two victories and are riding an eight-game winning steak," said Brian Brokaw, a member of the reigning Tuesday night champions. "We're hopeful that these crooks won't steal our momentum."

The theft occurred sometime last week between the Tuesday evening games and Thursday night matchups, said Hindolo Brima, a spokesman for Sacramento's city parks department.

He said the field should be game-ready by Thursday. Replacing the wire and fortifying the access panel will cost up to $12,000, Brima said.

For a complete story, see Tuesday's Bee.

Practice Makes Perfect...

6 hearty Slugs braved confusion last Thursday and found the Sandlot batting cages, nestled between distribution centers and other nondescript warehouse buildings in West Sacramento. Once there, the Slugs burned through 15 tokens, showing the automatic slow pitch softball pitching machine who's boss. Katherine brought her new bat. It's pink, which thrilled Coach Tam and caused former Coach Kepley to grumble something like "grrr, pink shouldn't be allowed in softball."

Slugs Practice, Slugs Lose, Slugs Practice More

Thanks to global warming, it was an unseasonably warm March afternoon when the Slugs gathered in Tahoe Park for their first practice of the year. It was a joint practice with the Solid Gold Hits and and the Luck Dragons...but if attendance determines success, the Slugs kicked butt. And, in fact, in a scrimmage game with the Slugs vs everyone else, the Slugs dominated.



If only the Slugs could have kept the magic flowing when they took on Majority Rules a week later. It turns out the Majority did rule in this case. The Slugs looked a little rusty out there. They missed a few easy outs and their bats were tepid at best.

And then in the ultimate insult, Majority Rules showed up at Luigi's fine pizza establishment...the Slugs' official post-game hang out. There was almost a rumble but thankfully Luigi (not his real name) had reserved a table for his beloved Slugs. The Amber Bock and Bud Light were cold, the pizza was incredibly hot and the pain of defeat quickly faded.

The Slugs have a bye this week, but they won't be idle. The Slugs are heading to the indoor batting cages in West Sacramento for some serious batting practice.

The Managers Meeting...and a snap analysis of our schedule

Wednesday night's mandatory managers meeting featured the typical detailed explanation of league rules from Ron, the league director. Actually, he read the rules word for word, occasionally asking us if we had questions. Mostly there were a lot of blank stares.

But, Ron got really animated when directing our attention to Rule 6 in the banned bats guide. It is illegal to alter a bat. Who knew softballers were so serious. Apparently some people try to used banned bats by painting them to look like other bats. Or they open up the bat and put stuff in it, or take stuff out. Clearly this is a level of sophistication well beyond that ever attempted by the Slugs.

Well, Slugs, let me tell you...don't even try it. Ron told us a story about an altered banned bat that happened last year over at "the complex." A female batter went up to the plate with an altered banned bat. It was perhaps painted or taped over. She swung and hit the bit exceedingly hard straight into the face of the poor pitcher, who Ron says "broke every bone in her face. She's still going through surgeries and will be disfigured for life." And as if the guilt wasn't bad enough, the batter was banned from softball for 2 years. Not just Sacramento softball, ALL softball. The owner of the bat got an even stiffer sentence: 10 years. Can you imagine being banned from softball for a decade?

The next 3 months...a snap analysis.

Our schedule looks pretty darned good. There are actually quite a few bye weeks - more time for us to practice, or compete at eating dollar hot dogs at Rivercats games. Also, I believe we have just one 6:30 game, which means we should have excellent attendance all season long.

We only face the SoCal's Force once in the whole season. That means we have to beat them straight out of the gate if we want those league champion fleeces we've heard so much about. We take on the Bad News and Review Bears twice. They're good. We shouldn't take them for granted. We also face a team called Majority Rules. I haven't seen them before, but based on their number on the phone list and their name, I surmise they work in the Assembly.

Start stretching out those arms now Slugs. Try running to improve your cardio...and make sure to do whatever it takes to avoid serious injuries of any kind.

Spring Season Schedule

Slugs - please bookmark this page. Better yet, plug all these dates and times into your Outlook, blackberry, PDA, trapper keeper, or little black book right away.

All games this season are at Tahoe Park...and as always, we're playing on Thursdays.

03/13/08 - 7:30 Majority Rules V Slugs

03/20/08 - Bye

03/27/08 - 7:30 Loose Change V Slugs

04/03/08 - 9:30 Slugs V SoCal's Force

04/10/08 - Bye

04/17/08 - 9:30 Slugs V Beer:30

04/24/08 - 7:30 Slugs V SN&R Bears

05/01/08 - Bye

05/08/08 - 6:30 Loose Change V Slugs

05/15/08 - 8:30 Slugs V SN&R Bears

05/22/08 - Bye

05/29/08 - 8:30 Beer:30 V Slugs

The outdoor temp is above 60...it must be time for softball

It's that time of year again. Coach Tam just got the letter in the mail from the league announcing it's time to sign up for the next season of softball. The Slugs will be playing on Thursday nights again. No word yet on potential opponents, or the exact start date of the season.

If you are a Slug and not just a casual reader of this blog (there are probably about 3 non-slugs readers), please immediately send Coach Tam your address and cell number.

There's a lot to look forward to this season. The "Ultimate Weapon" will be back for a repeat appearance, coach Tam acquired a pink bat bag, and many Slugs have been seen training, swimming to strengthen their shoulders and running to work on speed and agility.