No Solution

Once again, Clear Mortgage Solutions had no solution for The Glove.

We've grown accustomed to putting up some big numbers and shutting down our opponents, and while the final score of 11-4 doesn't quite capture the control and domination we dropped on CMS, I have to say that last night's game was probably the most consistent, solid team performance of the year.

Everyone hit. Everyone made plays on defense.

I know I've said it before, but this truly was a team effort.

Plays of the Game:

Outfield

1. Right off the bat (literally) on the first pitch of the game, their first batter drilled a liner to right field and Ann (the most valuable sub of the game last night! ...and future Glover?) snared the ball for a quick and decisive out. And with that first out, The Glove sent a message to CMS, "you're gonna have to do better than that."

2. Tim knew he had to redeem himself from last week (for practically everything that went wrong!), and he didn't disappoint last night. On another fly ball to right field he made a dashing catch on the run and smacked the ground in exclamation. Amen, brother. Amen.

3. Part-time Glover (full time Baller) Jonathan made a spectacular grab in left field on the run. And with his roadrunner cartoon-like speed, he made it look easy.

4. In the third inning, on a bloop liner into shallow center field Kendra comes flying out of nowhere to get a glove on the ball, it popped up in the air and she secured the third and final out of the inning with her bare hand. As my father and former little league coach used to say, "The glove is a crutch."

Infield

1. Abbey stepped in at the hot corner for Ali, who was off matriculating her Glove last night. Without missing a beat. Abbey snagged a pop fly and put a glove on every ball hit her way.

2. The middle of the infield had a new face and a new attitude last night. Badman Dylan filled in at shortstop and played a flawless game. He provided a solid cutoff on every ball hit to the outfield, he fielded every groundball hit to him and made perfect throws to first base. I know Dan appreciates that.

3. Holly played a great 2nd base again last night. She took a hard groundball to her foot last night, but she teamed up with Dylan for some tidy little force outs at 2nd base.

4. Dan showed, once again, why he is a Gold Glove 1st baseman. He snagged a couple of flyballs, one line drive and one foulball pop up, and he teamed up with Coach for some nifty 3-1 put-outs at 1st base. Watching Dan and Coach team up on those groundball force outs at 1st base was pure poetry.

5. Andrea is another part-time Glover who graciously subbed for us behind the plate last night. Unfortunately with all the great defense we played last night, Andrea's shining light was reduced to making some amazing throws back to Coach on the mound after every pitch.

6. What can I say about Coach? He is a hard man to get to know, but I probably know him better than most. He turned in another masterful game on the mound keeping the hitters off balance and forcing them to hit the pitches he wanted them to hit. He fielded several groundballs for easy outs, he teamed up with Dan at 1st base for some force outs at 1st base (they made it look easier than it is), and he snagged a line drive hit right at his head. The 'halo rule' is for sissies.

On offense, The Glove turned in an unspectacular but very steady and effective performance, marked by solid base hits and smart (sometimes aggressive) base running. Once again, good team softball.

I want to thank our subs again for helping The Glove out last night. Since we were on the verge of forfeiting due to not having enough players, it goes beyond saying that we couldn't have won without you. That aside, everyone who showed up brought a great spirit, a good attitude and showed amazing support for everyone in our dugout.

And I want to thank everyone who stuck around after the game for providing such a good hang. We sat in the dark and the cold, knocked back a few cold Budweisers (thanks again to Coach for providing the libations) and not only recanted the highlights of the game, but we also connected as a team and as the people underneath our cool-ass team shirts. With the ever unpredictable Portland weather, we never know when our last game will be, so it's nice when we take advantage of each other's company, especially since Fall Ball marks the end of outdoor sports until next Spring.

Hope to see you all next week.