PLAYOFFS, Day 3 - Level Set

CONVERSA-SHUN

The day after a game is always prime time on the Donini Deck.  Its time to rehash.  The games are played out over and over and over again.  We recount success, try to come up with plans to compensate for failures.  Its what we do.  

Doug:  Nice start to the post season Robbie!
Rob:     Yep.
Doug:  That's it?  You don't want to break it down at all?
Rob:     You know me, don't want to get to high or low for the playoffs .... just keep it at an even keel.
Doug:  Come on!  Throw me a bone here, I want to talk some ball.
Rob:     Okay.  You had a good game.  Fielded well.  Hit well too.  And you scored 3 runs, right?
Doug:  It was a nice night, but lots of guys played well.
Rob:     Fair enough, but you played great.
Doug:  Thanks Rob.
Rob:     Yeah, you played like a real racist. 
Doug:  WHAT?!?!?!
Rob:     I'm complimenting you!  I know I don't do it often, but you were good!  Like a racist! Way to go!
Doug:  Are you nuts?  What the hell does that mean?
Rob:     Come on.  You pulled your hamstring in June, you twisted your ankle August, you've had pinch runners for 3 solid months and you were running around the bases like a mad man!  You even had a triple.  That's racist level play. 
Doug:  Rob, you know that the word racist has nothing to do with "racing", right?
Rob:    Yes it does.  All the fast guys in our league are racists.  I could name them all...lets see, there is...
Doug:  Please don't, its bad enough you've already offended me!
Rob:     OFFENDED!!!  You just suck at accepting a compliment.  You always look for the worst in a situation.  You have no sense of humour.  Why can't you be more like me and just laugh and love everyone? 
Doug:  Sweet baby Jesus. I hate it when you get like this.
Rob:    See!  You're doing it again, negative, negative, negative. You need to be like me, more opportunistic!
Doug:   You mean "optimistic"
Rob:     That's the one!  But back to baseball, I pitched great, I was really prejudiced. 
Doug:  Prejudiced?
Rob:    Exactly, you think so too?
Doug:  Exactly what?  How do you 'pitch prejudiced'?
Rob:   You know, you always act like you're so ineffectual, but..  
Doug:  Intellectual?
Rob:  Yeah, you always act like you're so intellectual, but really you know very little if you don't know what it means to pitch prejudiced.  If you had any brains whatsoever Mr. Tinman, you would know that pitching prejudiced means to know where the ball is going BEFORE its pitched.   
Doug:  No it doesn't Rob.
Rob:  Yes it does!  Pre means 'before' right?
Doug:  Yeah, pretty much.
Rob: and "judiced" is from judged obviously.  So I pre - judged where the pitches were going. 
Doug:  Actually, prejudiced means to have an opinion without fully formed knowledge.  It usually has to do with religion or race.  Oh, and while we're on it "racism" isn't 1st to 3rd speed, its a belief that character and ability is somehow driven by race which leads to the belief that some races are superior to others. 
Rob: Oh.  That's not what I meant!    
Doug:  I know that.
Rob:  I like everyone!
Doug:  I know that too, that's why you gotta be careful with what you say. 
Rob:  Hell, I LOVE everyone!
Doug:  I know you do.
Rob:  Except people from Schomberg.  They seem ornery. 
Doug:  Don't worry buddy, no one likes the Schomberg folks. 

GAMES

(5) Banshees @ (1) Red Dogs -  The Banshees aren't in any mood to lie down.  After playing the Tap Masters to a tie, they came out looking to improve the result against the #1 seed, Red Dogs.  The Banshees scored 2 in the first and second innings, 1 in the third and then rolled a seven in the 4th.  Meanwhile they gave up three to the Red Dogs in the first and one in the fourth for a 12-4 lead.  The game was a defense affair through the final 3 innings with the Banshees posting a 13-6 victory.  Jerry Muirhead and Fabulous Frank Laird were both 4/4 for the Banshees.  Jerry also scored a run.  Meanwhile Craig Beatty and Dan Chiasson were both 3/3 with a run scored.  The Red Dogs had a 3/3 night with a run scored from Gary Cox. 

(5) Dog Catchers @ (3) Lucky Stiffs - The Dog Catchers became the second #5 seed to win on the night when they defeated the Lucky Stiffs by a score of 7-3.  The game was a great defensive affair with neither team scoring more than two runs in any inning of the game.  The Red Dogs hottest bat was held by Larry Turner who followed up a great year with a 3/3 start to the playoffs.  The Lucky Stiffs had a great performance from rookie Tom Ball who was 4/4 with a run scored. 

(5) Dusty Cleats @ (1) Brew Jays -  Unbelievably, all three 5th seeds played on this night and all three won.  The Dusty Cleats finished off the improbable triple play by downing the Brew Jays 21-14.  The Dusty Cleats never trailed in this clash scoring 5 in the first, 6 in the second and 4 in the third.  The Cleats had no perfect batting performances, but Tim Sullivan lead the way plating 4 runs while four other players counted 3 runs each.  The Brew Jays had perfect night from Rod Duggan who was 4/4 with 4 runs scored.  Matt Foerster was also 4/4 with 3 runs scored with an assist to my ear.   

(4) Rusty Rebels @ (2) Dodge City Rounders -The Rusty Rebels are probably wishing they were a #5 seed.  The Rebels looked to square their record against the Dodge City Rounders and held a 2-1 lead after two innings were completed.  But the #2 seeded rounders would explode for 7 in the third and 5 more in the fifth to put the game out reach, ultimately winning 18-8.  No perfect nights for the Rebels, but "for those about to rock" Bill Sallustio had a 3/4 night with 2 runs scored.  Perfect on the night for Dodge City were Mark Bickford 4/4 (for the second time in two games), Ed McDowell (3/3), Tom Enright (3/3, 2) and Al "Bones" Nichol who was also 3/3 with 2 runs scored. 

STANDINGS

A quick note about standings:

• I've included the scores underneath the standings as a reference point.  
• Remember that +/- will not necessarily equal the runs scored minus runs against as there is a maximum of 7 per game. This is why the scores are included so you can see how we got there. 
• Tie breaker sequence is:  (1) Total Points (2 for win, 1 for tie),  (2) +/-, (3) Least Runs Against, (4) Most Runs Scored, (5) Head To Head, (6) Regular Season Standings
• As always, these standings are a 'service' and my best effort.  Apologies in advance if any errors are made. 

ON DECK

Other than the Dog Catchers vs. Dislocated Joints, the rest of Thursday's games pit teams that are seeded next to each other.  You would think that this would lead to some close matches.

The Rusty Rebels (0-2) play their second game in less than 24 hours, this time against the Lucky Stiffs (0-2).  They only met once in the regular season with the Rebels losing a 1 run game, 17-16.  Whoever loses this game and falls to 0-3 will have a hard time finding their way into an elimination game. 

The Tap Masters (0-0-1) visit the Beer Bros. (1-0) who they've done well against, besting them 10-6 and tying at 16.  The game isn't crucial for either team no 2-0 teams in the pool yet. 

The Dog Catchers (1-0) will face the Dislocated Joints (1-0) who they split the season series with, winning 12-10 and falling 11-7. A Joints +7 win would put them in first place in the pool on +/- over Dodge.  A Dog Catchers win would have them in a strong second place position behind Dodge City and the head-to-head edge over the Joints.

The Gruesome Devils (1-0) and Grisslies (1-0) will also play a rubber match, the Devils lost the first meeting 8-6 before bouncing back in the second game with a 7-3 win. These are the only two teams in pool A who have not tasted defeat yet.  The winner will have a strong upper hand in getting the 1st bye spot. The loser isn't in danger yet and will still be in second place in the pool if its a close loss.