9/21/07 - Beers Win in Dramatic Fasion
BY ADAM SIVITS
BEERS' SPORTS WRITER
Down to his last strike, and just one day after his twenty-second birthday, Peter Darling lived up to his surname.
With two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh, and the Beers trailing by a run, Darling hit a walk-off double to the wall over the left fielder’s head, setting off a wild – if delayed – celebration at second base, as his teammates rushed him to pound on his helmet after the umpires conferred that the game was indeed over.
It almost was a lot earlier.
The Beers held a 5-3 lead going into the sixth, but gave up four runs to go down 7-5 and set the table for the climactic ending.
Jose Mercedes shut the Black Sox down in the top of the seventh, and then flew out to center to start the bottom half of the inning. Mike Nerenburg then singled and went to second on an error. Steve Rossi brought him in with a double to make it 7-6, and later went to third on a wild pitch.
George Webb, who earlier in the game continued his Craig Biggio-like streak of getting hit by pitches, walked and stole second. After a strikeout and a walk to load the bases, the stage was set for the Darling Limited, as his game-winning rocket nearly coincided with the Metro North trains that pass by feet from the field.
After a five-year-plus hiatus, Adam Sivits took the mound and looked decent, despite a shaky third inning where he walked four batters. He gave up two runs and left the bases loaded in that inning, and also stranded two runners in scoring position with no outs in the second. He finished with nine strikeouts and six walks in 5 2/3 innings. Mercedes got the win, striking out two in 1 1/3 innings of relief.
Adam Hill continued to be a lethally efficient OBP machine at the top of the order, going 3-4 with two runs and three stolen bases. He leads the team in both categories, with three runs and seven steals on the young season.
Despite Hill’s best efforts, however, the night clearly belonged to Darling, an apt moniker if there ever was one.
6/16/07 - Beers Take One from Bluesox June 16, 2007
Game 1 - The Beers kept it close in the first game of a double header against one of the top-ranked teams in the league, The BlueSox.
Game 2 - The Beers' 7-run 3rd inning proved to be enough insurance to defeat the BlueSox. The BlueSox threatened in the last inning with the bases loaded, but Justin came in to strike out the last 2 batters to notch the save and ensure the Beers victory.
One interesting blooper was caught on camera when there was a pop-up to 3rd with 2 outs:
Thanks to Peter for putting that little clip together. Good music choice :)
6/13/07 - Podcast Season 1st Half Recap June 13, 2007
A lot has happened since the last update. Well, not that much I guess... We got new Jerseys thanks to Mike N, we lost a weekday game to the Downtown Bulls, we split a double-header against the NY Storm last Saturday. I'm hoping Mike N covers all of this in his first podcast of the season (I haven't had time to listen to it yet). You asked for it, so here it is! From what I remember, the first game against the Skyline was a very well played game with NO ERRORS! Woohoo! For the 2nd game we didn't have a pitcher, so it was a team effort and several of us made our pitching debuts with varying amounts of deficiency. Also, in the 2nd game, Mike N broke up the no-no in the 6th. None of us realized that it was a no-hitter though until Peter did the stats about a week later. Anyway, enjoy the podcast...
DISCLAIMER: The opinions, rants, and raves expressed in the Podcast do not represent the views of the Beers' organization as a whole and are solely those of the individual.
DISCLAIMER 2: The Podcast is for entertainment purposes only and if you are offended by anything it is recommended that you not listen. Or maybe you should listen and then send a nasty email to Mike N because I'm sure he'd love that. Maybe he'll read YOUR letter on the air!
Click here if the player doesn't work for you. For some reason, if you're using IE, it'll play a bunch of stupid songs instead of the actual podcast. It's working fine in Firefox. Please bear with us while I figure this out...
6/4/07 - Adam at the Bat June 4, 2007
The following is the game 1 summary as told by Beers third baseman Adam Hill:
The outlook wasn't brilliant for the Beerville nine that day:
The score stood five to one, with but four innings left to play.
But then when Justin settled down, and the fielders did the same,
The Skyline were held scoreless for the duration of the game.
A straggling few got up to go in deep despair. The rest
Clung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast;
They thought, if only the team could get some hits -
We'd put up even money, now, whatever's in our mitts.
But since George's monstrous triple in the second,
There had been no runs, it seemed that the reaper had beckoned;
Then three outs in the fourth preceded any run,
And the same rang true for the fifth, this wasn't any fun;
But Nigel drew a walk, to the wonderment of all,
And Simon, the much despis-ed, tore the cover off the ball;
And when the dust had lifted, and the men saw what had occurred,
There was Boston safe at first, and the Aussie a-hugging third.
Then Justin infield singled, and Mike D valiantly took a walk.
Mike N followed with a blast, that put 2 runs up in chalk;
Then Mike N came around to score, but I don't remember how,
Because Peter won't send me the damn inning summary, I'd like to punch him right in the kisser, POW!
The inning ended and the runs tallied, the Beers had come alive!
The score now was more even, all tied up at five.
All they needed was one more run, and to hold the enemy at their bat;
Did the team have a hero amongst them? In the hole is where he sat.
Then from all 12 throats and more there rose a lusty yell;
It rumbled through the valley, it rattled in the dell;
It knocked upon the mountain and recoiled upon the flat,
For Adam, mighty Adam, was advancing to the bat.
There was ease in Adam's manner as he stepped into his place;
There was pride in Adam's bearing and a smile on Adam's face.
And when, responding to the cheers, he lightly doffed his hat,
No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Adam at the bat.
Twenty four eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt;
Twelve tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt.
Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip,
Defiance gleamed in Adam's eye, a sneer curled Adam's lip.
And now the leather-covered sphere came hurtling through the air,
And Adam stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there.
Close by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped-
"That ain't my style, ya'll" said Adam. "Strike one," the umpire said.
From the benches, barren with people, there went up a muffled roar,
Like the beating of the storm-waves on a stern and distant shore.
"Kill him! Kill the umpire!" shouted someone on the stand;
And its likely they'd a-killed him had not Adam raised his hand.
With a smile of Jewish charity great Adam's visage shone;
He stilled the rising tumult; he bade the game go on;
He signaled to the pitcher, and once more the spheroid flew;
He couldn't ignore this one, and his swing was hard a true!
A solid crack was heard all 'round that South Shore heap,
Off Adam's custom Viper(c) bat the wondrous ball did leap!
They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain,
It looked as though the fielder had it, he was moving like a train.
But wait! What's this? He had meticulously misjudged;
While charging and celebrating, the play had been completely fudged.
The ball flew past his head, and headed for the fence,
Adam was now raging past first, the crowd's roars grew more intense.
Adam rounded second, with thoughts the day was won;
But George Bush had a different plan, and tried to stop Adam-son;
He placed his banjo down by Adam's feet, who fell face first in the grass;
But Adam jumped back up and said, "GW, kiss my ass!"
Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children roam;
For there is joy in Beerville - mighty Adam had run home.
* Please note the exact timing and personnel involved of everything in the 6th inning may not be correct, in fact I know some of it is wrong. You can blame this on Peter for not giving me the essential tools to do my job, as noted in the poem that I made up all by myself from scratch.
Some notes that I couldn't fit into the poem:
George's triple was truly a shot, one of the hardest hit balls this year. I stole a couple bases (although apparently 1 was a balk, but let's not get into specifics here). Justin stole another base to bring his team leading total to 8, including the second game. Mike N thieved one as well.
I'm told George gunned another runner, but the stats don't reflect it, and that's pretty much my torah. Also Justin picked off another runner or 2.
Justin really pitched a great game, striking out 4, while scattering 6 hits and 6 walks over 7 innings and allowing only 2 earned runs, earning him his first W of the season. Plus he plunked 3 guys, which is awesome.
And yes, I will be exploiting this homerun forever.
The Beers finally got their first victory, and did it easily, beating the Dinosaurs via the mercy rule in 6 innings. The bats finally woke up on Saturday and the 12 runs they scored were more than enough behind starter Rich Cupolo's strong performance. In the first inning, with runners on base and 2 outs, George Webb hat yet another dropped 3rd strike which (thanks to an overthrow) scored the 2 runners and led to a 4-run first. The Beers never looked back and padded their lead over the next 5 innings. Simon Rucker hit a walk-off, bases loaded 2-run single to induce the mercy rule win. Rich Cupulo gave up 1 earned run off 3 hits in 5 innings to earn the W.
However, the Beers couldn't complete the sweep. Down by 3 going into the bottom of the last inning of game 2, the Beers were able to get a run in and put 2 runners on but ended the game on an ill-conceived sac fly attempt. Mike Darling continued his hot hitting, going 3/3 with an RBI triple, raising his average to .593. Justin Daniels extended his RBI streak to 5 games, while Steve Rossi and Simon Rucker also driving in a run each.
4/15/07 - False Alarm - Game Postponed April 15, 2007
The Beers were ready to get this season started against the NY Empire on Saturday, but Grover Cleveland High School had other plans. Apparently, they had no record of the game so refused to unlock the gates to the field. Despite efforts from the league, they said there was nothing they could do (or would do). So all of the players headed over to Juniper Park for a nice, relaxed scrimmage.
The league hasn't given a make-up date yet.
On top of that double-header being postponed, The Beers' Monday night game against the Bulls has been rained out. So looks like we'll have a few makeups in the near future. Stay tuned...
4/13/07 - ON Season! April 13, 2007
Opening Day is this Saturday!
9/28/06 - Off-Season September 28, 2006
After some talk of joining the NYCMBL for its fall season, we have decided that it would be better to spend the off-season training. Great players are made in the off-season, as the old adage goes. This will also give me time to clean up this front page of the website. Wow, it's big. Glad none of our visitors are on dialup. Let's all keep in touch and think about how we can improve for next season. There is also the possibility of attending some NABA tournaments this fall or winter. So don't put those gloves in storage or anything.
Comments --- 2006 Stats
8/5/06 - 2 Tough Losses
These games were pretty much must-win for The Beers for them to have any hope of an unlikely playoff appearance. The Midnight Express were able to take both games (although they were both very close).
In the first game, The Beers jumped on the Midnight Express' starting pitcher early. Nigel Stephens hit a long leadoff HR to left and Andrew Pobuda followed a few batters later with a 2-run shot over the Right-Centerfield fence. The owner of a Chrysler minivan was not so happy about it. Ozzie went 2-3 with 2 RBI. Jay pitched with the lead and pitched well. But an error, a hit batsman and a few timely hits from the Midnight led to a big 6th inning that the Beers couldn't rebound from (despite having a couple chances).
Game 2 saw more good chances going to waste. Andrew was in a groove allowing only 1 run until the 5th inning when the heat got to him. After a quick break and 2 italian ices he was feeling better and back in the game as EH. Tom came in and pitched a great rest of the game. He also was a HR short of the cycle. In the bottom of the 7th, Peter Darling was able to drive in the Beers' only run on a fielder's choice, but he ended up being stranded as the winning run with the tying run on 3rd.
7/29/06 - Short Handed Beers Able to Take One From Mad Dogs
The Beers only had 8 players at the games (even though 9 confirmed as of last night) but the Mad Dogs were nice enough to lend us a player so that we could field 9. We lost the first game, despite yet another solid outing by Andrew who gave up only 1 earned run. Final score was 2-1.
The Beers' bats came alive in the 2nd game. Their 8 runs were enough for first time starter MA to record his first complete game win. Defense was very solid for both games including 3 double plays, and nice work at 1st by Pete. In his first at bat, Adam was hit in the face by a pitch but walked it off and then promptly stole 2nd base (unlike Pete last year who was a baby and went to the hospital). Mike D went 3-4 with 4 RBI and Steve had a big RBI-Triple. MA put on the safety squeeze with runners on 1st and 3rd and everyone was safe.
Beers Podcast - Episode 12: (click here if the player doesn't work for you)
7/15/06 - Beers take 1, Express take 1
The first game was a classic pitcher's dual which has been pretty rare in this league, and especially on the Beers. But Jay came through and was dominant in his first start of the season giving up only 3 hits for the complete game win. The defense behind him was strong as well. The Beers' 2 hits and 5 walks were good enough for 2 runs and to secure the win.
Tom made his first start in the 2nd game and looked good despite the fact that this was his first time pitching in a while. He kept us in it for half the game and Andrew came in for the 2nd half. It was all tied up until the bottom of the 8th when the Beers intentionally walked one of the Express players with a man on 3rd but the next batter got the game-winning hit. Nigel had a good game at the plate as well as behind it going 2-3 with a walk and a run scored. The Beers struck out 8 times in the 8-Inning game.
Beers Podcast - Episode 12: (click here if the player doesn't work for you)
7/8/06 - Beers get swept by Warriors
The Warriors, a team not known for their speed, had 28 stolen bases on the day (even though the majority of these should be scored defensive indifference). The Beers did not put up much of a fight in the first game managing only 1 hit (a nice double by Simon). They got a lot more baserunners in the 2nd game but only were able to plate 2.
The Beers look to rebound against the NY Express (7-7) this Saturday 7/15 at 12:00 PM at South Shore HS. To see who's going to be playing check the Attendance thread.
7/1/06 - Beers End Slide
The day started with a predictable rainout of our morning game at 145th St against the Renegades. Because this rainout was so predictable (to everyone except the Renegades apparently), we made sure to schedule an afternoon game in Marine Park. It was well worth the effort by everyone who came. The Beers got a much needed win against one of the top teams in the Division. Starter Andrew Pobuda was able to keep the Skyline's hot bats at room temperature and get the "W". Behind him, The Beers' defense had a notably strong day highlighted by a full-body diving catch by Simon at 2nd to save a run. Offensively, The Beers not only were able to get hits when needed, but they also demonstrated great fundamentals laying down some perfect sac bunts to plate important runs. Clark pitched a strong 7th inning to notch the save and ensure the win.
Comments --- Box score
Beers Podcast - Episode 10: (click here if the player doesn't work for you)
6/25/06 - Another Washout
It always seems to rain on the weekends. Especially if we're supposed to be playing in College Point. At least the game was called before we went out there.
Anyway, moving forward, we have a makeup for the Week 3 rainout against the Renegades (1-16) this Saturday at 9:00 AM @ 145th St. It will be a 9-inning game.
Sunday (7/2) is the All Star game @ College Point. It will include a HR Derby, All Star game, catered food and everyone is invited. Representing The Beers in the All Star Game will be
Andrew and Chris will also partake in the HR Derby and as we have seen during the season, they both have a good chance at winning the pot. So come support your teammates, have some food and have a nice Sunday full of baseball. :)
Beers Podcast - Episode 9: (click here if the player doesn't work for you)
6/19/06 - Another Week, Another 2 Losses
The NY Skyline took both games this weekend. They continue to be hot and are now riding a 7-game winning streak. The Beers made some improvements from last week's debacle against the A's, but still have a long way to go to start competing with the better teams of the league. Clark Buccola had this to say about this weekend's games: "I just had a much better vibe about these games than last weeks' games. The first game, there were some errors made. And that's honestly not the problem. We're going to make errors. With our team, it's just something I've come to accept. The second game, there were a few errors as well. I thought we actually had a chance in that game. We kept it close for a pretty long time. doubled our run production from last week"
Highlights included an awesome diving catch by Adam in Center who covered a lot of ground to even get to the ball. Adam also had 2 RBI. Pete had a nice rip to left, and Lou followed with another. We actually had a decent amount of baserunners, but could only plate one each game.
There was a scary moment before the game when Mike S had to be taken away in an ambulance. We all hope Mike S has a speedy recovery. Podcast coming soon...
Beers score 1 run over the weekend!
The Beers lost another 2 by terrible scores. Some positive things to point out: Andrew had a good game going 2 for 2 with the only RBI of the day and raised his average to .300. Lou made a nice relief appearance. I've noticed that we don't throw the ball around anymore. That's one area of improvement. Now if we can just work on the hitting, we'll be able to contend. We're not out of it yet. So everyone has 2 days to learn how to hit :)
Also, just wanted to remind everyone that the All-Star game is on July 2nd at College Point. It's going to have food, festivities, a HR derby and should be a good time. Mark it on your calendar.
*UPDATE: Due to terrorist threats, the podcast has been taken down. While it is not our policy to negotiate with terrorists, it is worth it in this case to appease them with this final demand if it means never having any further contact with them.
Quick reminder: this is an amateur baseball team. Thanks.
6/9/06 - Game Time!
After 2 weeks of inactivity, The Beers are anxious to get back out there and play. And they will get their chance tomorrow because the weather seems much better and the game is on a turf field. Was the 2 weeks off enough time to get back to their winning ways? We'll see tomorrow against the Gotham Athletics.
Rain Ruins Return
Rainouts the last 2 weeks will mean lots of make-up games in the upcoming weeks. We should try to stay ready for our next game which is Saturday 6/10 at Lafayette Field against the Gotham A's.
Week 7 Results
The Beers lost both games to the Clippers. Andrew took a no-hitter into the 9th and The Beers seemed to be in control of the first game until a couple key errors allowed the tying run to score.
Week 7 podcast: (click here if the player doesn't work for you)
Week 6 - Beers fall to 4-6
The Beers dropped to 4-6 this weekend at a less-than-playable Colonel Charles Young Field (the good Colonel would turn over in his grave if he knew what his name now represents to the NYCMBL players). After an hour of field maintenence in which both teams were very helpful, we got underway. The Beers had a rough 1st inning and had to play catchup the rest of the time, falling just short of a full comeback. In Game 2, The Warriors put an exclamation point on their sweep by hitting an RBI single which, because of an error, cleared the bases and allowed the batter to score as well.
Game 2 Boxscore - Game 2 was less exciting with the Beers losing pretty badly.
Week 6 podcast: (click here if the player doesn't work for you)
Beers Split Nail-Biting Double-Header May 7, 2006
The Beers split the double header against the Queens Red Sox this past weekend. Both games came down to the wire, and The Beers showed a dramatic improvement from last week. Game summaries and box scores will be up shortly.
In the meantime, check out Mike N's Podcast: (click here if the player doesn't work for you)
First-place Knights sweep Beers April 30, 2006 - 08:00 PM
The Knights swept the Beers this weekend. The Beers' first error was made by manager Mike D who was late along with some others so The Beers had to start with no manager, lineup, equipment, or warmup time. Once the games got started, The Beers couldn't navigate the Knights' pitchers only managing to collect 6 hits in the 2 games. They also had their troubles in the field (a whopping 7 errors in the 1st game and 4 in the 2nd).
The Beers struck out 12 times in the first game, but only had 5 Ks in the 2nd game showing some improvement in putting the ball in play.
Special mention goes out to Adam and Andy who were on the DL this week. Adam was in a cab accident on the way to the game and had to be observed but is fine now. Andy had ear surgery (?) but will be ready to play this week.
Mike N's Week 4 podcast: (click here if the player doesn't work for you)
Simon has contributed some pictures from the game: Check them out
Water not good for baseball playing
After very nice week, it was raining dogs and cats for whole weekend. It was too wet for games of baseball. The famous Beers will play some other sunny day.
Week 2 sees plenty of action (Beers split double header)
Week 2 Podcast (running time = 15:12 - just push play):
Everyone did a great job getting to the field early, but this is what greeted us:
CARNIES! Ferris wheels! There was a bouncy castle on 2nd base! Needless to say, nobody wanted to wake up at the crack just to see a game get "PPD (Carnival)". So, with the help and cooperation of the Umpires, the Skyline and the Commish, we all hopped in our cars and started a caravan to College Point. The transition from 145th St to College Point was super smooth except for when Ozzie tried to follow Steve's car through the EZ Pass lane on the Triborogh. Aside from that snag, we were ready to play in about 35 minutes. Which brings us to Game 1....
Andrew started game 1 and was in near perfect form. He took a no-hitter into the 3rd and allowed only 1 earned run in his first complete game win. While The Beers only had 3 hits, they managed to walk all over the Skyline's pitchers drawing 10 base-on-balls. In the last inning, trailing by 1, The Beers put on a risky play where Eric stole 2nd to draw a throw and Lou dashed home. Then Simon reloaded the bases with a walk. And Chris (who currently leads the league in walks with 6) showed his patience once again and came through with the game winning walk.
Game 2 was a completely different story. Maybe it was the heat, maybe the trip out to queens had gotten to some people, or the exciting 1st game, but for some reason The Beers did not look so good out there. A few glass-half-full observations: Andy was the only one who didn't strike out, Chris made his first mound appearance in relief and looked healthy which is a good sign. Simon got a hit.
The Skyline's pitcher threw a 1-hitter with 13 K's in 5 innings.
Despite the 2nd game, which shall hereby never be spoken of again, The Beers are looking good at 3-1. We've got a solid team and things are coming together nicely. Next game is Saturday at 3:30 PM in Marine Park against the Renegades. This week, we're going to have a cage session Wednesday evening and practice Friday. Stay tuned and stay loose!
Beers Sweep Opening Day Doubleheader! April 10, 2006 - 08:00 PM
The Beers set the right tone for the start of the season by beating the Mad Dogs twice on opening day. The score of the first game was 9-7, and the second game was a more lopsided 13-5. Lou was excellent in the first game, allowing only 3 earned runs in 5.1 IP with 6 K's. He ran into some trouble in the last inning, but Adam came in and got the last 2 outs (both K's), nailing it down for the save. Andrew hit an absolute bomb to centerfield, over the scoreboard, for the Beers' first homerun of the season. Mike Nerenburg went 2/3 with an RBI and 2 runs, and Chris Adamo hit a clutch RBI double.
Andrew started and finished the second game for the complete game win. He ran into some control problems (7 BB) but battled through them for a solid outing. Offensively, Adam was 2/4 with 3 runs and a stolen base, Steve Rossi was 2/3 with an RBI double, and Chris Adamo was 1/1 with 3 walks and a run, showing excellent plate discipline.
Let's try to get similar results at next week's games.
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Opening Day - SUNDAY April 6, 2006
We will get there at 12 to hold a pregame practice. Preperation and focus are the keys!
Directions to South Shore are here: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=6565+Flatlands+Avenue,Brooklyn,+NY&iwloc=A&hl=en
Directions by train/bus:
Directions to South Shore by train/bus: L train to "Rockaway Pkwy - Canarsie" Station, Exit near intersection of Rockaway Pky and Glenwood Rd, then get on the B6 Bus (towards Bath Beach) and go past 10 stops and get off at Flatlands Av and E 76 St. Walk West on Flatlands Ave
I've heard that it's not the best neighborhood, so if you're taking a train, the easier, quicker, safer method would be to take a cab from the Canarsie subway station. If you're in a group of 4, it should cost next to nothing per person.
Again, anyone who hasn't handed in the fee, waiver, and player registration form will NOT be able to play. Bring these to the game and you'll be able to play. I'll have extra forms there or you can get the waiver, and registration forms in the handouts section of this site.
Updated Schedule March 28, 2006 - 06:00 PM
2 New teams have joined the NYCMBL and therefore the schedule has been revised. This is good news for us because it means that we have more games at the nice fields and less in the public fields. This also means that our opening day has changed from Sunday April 9th to Saturday April 8th. The "Official Schedule" link to the left links straight to the league's official schedule (filtered to only show our games). So if there are any further changes, that schedule will be valid.
IMPORTANT NOTE! The way the schedule worked out, we get 2 8:00 AM games right off the bat (April 8th and April 15th). 8 AM is very early, so we will try to have set lineups for these games. That way only those in the starting lineup will have to be there early and the rest can come for the 10:00 AM game while the early guys take a nap.
Preseason game vs. Red Sox Saturday March 27, 2006 - 04:00 PM
The Beers will play the Queens Red Sox this coming Saturday, April 1st at 12:00 PM at Juniper Valley Park. Our scouts have done their homework on the Red Sox and found that they are a good team. Three of their pitchers combined to 1-hit the Clippers a couple weeks ago. They are 3-1 in the preseason so it should be a good game.
