Manning, Stauffer cement 10-inning win...literally

Teams exchange screwjobs in 4th

SAN JOSE -- It's definitely not 2005 anymore.

14--fourteen--men gathered to play the 2nd-to-last game of the 2006 season (barring an unlikely doubleheader) on Sunday, Aug 27. The season-ending exhibitions of 2005 never drew more than 12 (once); 10 was the total usually scraped together. The surprising, but pleasant, turnout bettered last week by 3 and led to a full catcher's rules exhibition game.

All the rage in the last two weeks was the discovery of Miller Field--the field scheduled to host today's match. However, at gametime league reps were preparing the outfield grass for soccer and it wouldn't be available for 2 hours. As 5 members scouted out nearby Calabazas Park, 9 others waited at Hathaway Park--a softball field with a hilly outfield and a basketball court representing medium-deep right field (balls hit on that court were ruled to be homers).

Eventually, everyone met up at Hathaway; Chowdhury and Stauffer were selected as captains as the only two present players to never play at Miller.

In the 1st, the Tokers threatened immediately with their first two hitters reaching--one courtesy of 3B Davis completely puking on DaRosa's routine pop behind the bag. Two hitters later, Davis redeemed himself by turning a Yow grounder into a 5-3 DP--not easy to do with that speedster.

With the score 1-1 in the 3rd, Simas' 2-run double helped the Bombers to a 4-1 advantage going into the 4th. That's when all hell broke loose.

With DaRosa on base, one in and two down, Yow stepped in the box. He ripped a hard liner to the deepest part of the park that rolled all the way to the fence; DaRosa scored easily as the outfield finally got to the ball. Simas recieved the relay and fired it in to home, where Yow was sprinting. Chowdhury recieved the throw cleanly and to Chowdhury, Davis and several others--including two fans watching, BAB discovered later--Yow was a dead duck, in large part because of his failure to slide. The other Tokers did not agree, and a long argument ensued. After a good 5-minute delay, Yow was declared safe much to the Bombers' chagrin, and the score was tied.

The very next hitter, Trinh, got a hold of one and sent it a long way to left field. Matsui appeared to step on the fence--which was laid down today instead of hammered in-- before leaping in the air to snag it and landing on the opposite side! No one else but CF Sacramento had any kind of view, so yet another long argument took place as several vets recited the official BAB rulebook's stance on such plays. Finally, after a shorter but louder discussion, Matsui's catch stood, Trinh was denied a homer, and the score remained tied.

In the bottom of that 4th, the Bombers scratched out two more runs to retake the lead. There was little scoring over the next 4 innings, and the Tokers trailed 8-5 going into the 9th.

Manning, who was carrying an oh-fer, tripled to lead off the inning. After Yow drove him in with a base hit, Trinh crushed a homer that Matsui nor anybody else could catch to tie the score!!! Later, the Tokers had the go-ahead runs on 1st and 2nd, but DaRosa popped out to end the threat; he was so frustrated he threatened to quit a la Davis. The Bombers went 1-2-3 in the 9th to send things to extras.

Manning creamed a homer to left-center to lead the 10th off, and though it turned out it would be all the Tokers needed, he later hit another one to RF off the basketball court, as did Stauffer with two on for good measure. With help from DaRosa's nifty running catch, the Bombers went 1-2-3 in their half to end it.

GAME NOTES:

• BAD ASS of the Day went to Trinh, who finished 4-for-8 with the HR and 4 RBI. Minor, Yow and DaRosa earned Gold Gloves, and Davis--who went 0-for-6 with 3 K's--deservedly took Small Penis. Davis now leads BAB with 13 K over the absent Brandon Hamilton's 12.

• Simas drove in the first 3 Bomber runs and finished 5-for-7 with 4 RBI.

• The aforementioned fans actually sat through over 5 innings of action.

• Bernal took a lefty AB in the 1st, with an unimpressive result, before switching back to his natural side. The Bombers didn't take his approach seriously--he had to declare "switch" three times before any defenders moved.

• Former BAD ASS Mondo visited the league early in the game, and chilled in the dugout for the duration. Could his presence have affected Davis' poor play? It is Mondo whose career record for K's was broken by Davis last year.

• With controversial Miller Field's halo suddenly tarnished, it remains to be seen how well it will figure into the league's 2007 plans, now that it's clear BAB would have to share it with a soccer league--one that has a permit, no less.

• Chowdhury, playing his first game since July 23, didn't show any sign of rust, lacing several hits and staying pretty alert behind the plate. One thing he didn't do was assign positions--players gravitated towards their natural turf, which is how Davis ended up at 3B. It was either there or CF.

• Bombers' CF was manned by Sacramento...eventually. Distracted by his Fantasy Football draft, it took serious effort to pry Sac away from his phone and to his position at the game's outset. He also was late to the plate a couple of times. This likely played a role in Sac beginning the game 0-for-6--were it not for his 10th inning infield hit, he like Davis would have suffered an oh-fer.

• After Ledee's incredible game last week, he failed to come close to the fences today...though he did hit a popup so high DaRosa commented it looked like a peanut in the sky.

• For some reason, SJPD rolled past the park at least 5 times during the game.

• Before the game, Simas and Flores took turns attempting to hit the stretching Davis in the nuts with a ball.

• After the game, two moths in the dugout appeared to be stuck together by some type of small string--or somehow mating; no one knew for sure. As the remaining BAD ASSes watched them struggle, Minor smashed them with his foot, forcing the survivor to drag its late companion onto the infield dirt towards parts unknown. You had to see it to fully appreciate it.

• Next week will be the final Sunday of the 2006 season, at Goodson Field. Matsui has opened his home to host the Awards Banquet two weeks later. JD

* Players of the Week *

BAD ASS of the Day

Alvin Trinh, Tokers

clutch 2-run HR in 9th

Gold Glove

Greg Minor, Tokers

great catch in 2nd

Leland Yow, Tokers

several fine plays

Ed DaRosa, Tokers

excellent game-ending catch

Small Penis

Skillz Davis, Bombers

0-for-6, 3 K