rocky laber

Sean Oliver called me tonight as I was coming home from Mary Ann’s ballgame.  “I just got out of a league meeting where they announced the all-league selections. Of the nominated pitchers selected, one lives at my house, one lives at yours. Unanimous decision.”

How cool is THAT??!!

I’m brimming with pride.

The CPS softball team finished their league season in 1st place, as far as I know, that’s never happened before.  My understanding is that back when the Schimmel girls played there, they had pitching, but not a whole lot else.  They were also playing some pretty tough teams (Berean).  Nevertheless, to come as far as they have is remarkable, and the feeling is more good things are on the way.

The program nearly folded three years ago when only 7 girls showed interest in being on the team.  Enter 2 sophomores, Haley R. and Rachel.  Green as they can be, never having played the sport, they were persuaded to join and the team received a breath of life.  Players of modest ability, they showed up consistently, worked hard and improved their skills over the years.

Tuesday was Seniors day, and coach Sean honored Haley, Rachel, and Haley G. by giving each an inning to pitch against California School for the Deaf in the Cougars’ final game of the regular season.  Without hesitation or complaint, 3 girls who had never pitched took the circle that day.  Having already secured a 1st place finish, Natalie pitched the 1st 2 innings, followed by Haley G., Haley R. and Rachel.

It got a little ugly in the third and we were looking at a 7 run deficit.  But it wasn’t without highlights, Haley R. threw a total of 4 pitches, caught a pop up, benefited from a gem of a double play (3-4-5: Sadie scooped a grounder, fed to Lisa ccovering first, fired to Helen at third as the lead runner tried to advance), and retired the side 1-2-3.  Haley G. has been outstanding all season. She’s a great kid with a lot of determination, and a real team leader.  Her pitching, well, let’s not go there.  Rachel gave up 1 run on 1 hit, showed genuine enthusiasm when she threw a called strike, and almost got the win, since we tied it up during the home half of her inning.

Characteristic of this group of girls is their unwillingness to concede.  The bench was on their feet and very vocal as contributions came from up and down the lineup. A 6 run rally in the 5th, 2 more in the 6th, and we have a tie ball game.  And hope. With Natalie back on the mound, the game remained a 9-9 tie through 7 innings.  An error led to a run in the top of the 8th, and CPS their chance to answer.  Down by 1, they answered, as the middle of the order took charge.  Helen and Lisa were patiently selective, and both walked.  With 1 out, Natalie punched an 0-1 pitch to right, singling to drive in her 3rd run and tie the game at 10.  With runners on 2nd and 3rd, Sadie scorched one up the middle, scoring Lisa and closing out a 13-1 season.

Next up: playoffs and NCS.

Both kids made me proud this week with their skills on the diamond.  Wednesday at Chabot, in a scoreless tie with the Tigers and runner on 2nd, Eric fielded a hard single to right.  He’s played just long enough, and seen other kids make incorrect decisions regarding their throws.  Fielding the ball, blocking from a knee-down position, he popped right up and delivered a strike to the cutoff, freezing the runner at 3rd.  Textbook.  He also had a 2-out bases loaded single the previous game.

On Thursday Nat’s team faced their league rival and one of the top 3 pitchers in the BCL (ahem). She battled at the plate with a pair of 2-strike hits, an RBI and a run scored in a 6-5 victory.

The lesson: practice what you’re expected to do, do it well when it matters.  The priority list: play well, have fun, win.

Over the course of the last 7 days I’ve experienced some highs and lows, almost all highs, but one notable low.

Last Sunday night, after a weekend full of Little League baseball (Eric’s team won twice, I umpired a well played game Sunday afternoon), the surf band recorded a 5 song demo for our myspace page.  The performance was VERY crisp, great energy, great comeraderie with John Santos, a musician friend and bandmate of Danny’s in Braindozer.  John was patient, accommodating and altogether very generous with his time and effort.  I think he really busted his ass for us, by Tuesday he’d finished mixing and mastering the demo.  Gene dropped off a CD made to look like a vinyl 45 – very cool (one of John’s touches).

The week progressed, work went well, Nat’s team won 2 of 3 games, Eric had his practices, Friday night we enjoyed a great meal at Nama, a relatively new Japanese restaurant on Fruitvale.  Another weekend of baseball, Nat had a strong pitching workout Sunday morning.  Eric’s team, the Angels, after losing a sloppy game Saturday, came back to beat a usually strong Rangers team Sunday afternoon.  Home made pizza for dinner, I’m off to my weekly Sunday night rehearsal.

Gene greets me at the door and asks if I’ve spoken to Danny recently. “I have some really bad news,” he tells me.  In the ensuing second, a couple things run through my mind: did something happen to Danny or someone in his family? Was the house broken into and gear stolen? Is the surf band kaput? Is someone quitting? Then he tells me that John Santos died in his sleep day before yesterday.  Now, this is not someone that I’d known very well, or was necessarily close to, but we’d just been in close contact with him and the weight of the news was a little bit crushing.  Just 32 years old, John had treated us incredibly well, and we were looking forward to spending more time with him, away from recording and playing, him being part of our circle was something that was going to happen.

John, thank you, you’ll be with us all the way.  We won’t forget your easy going demeanor, your kindness and generosity.

It’s (likely) my last year of involvement in Oakland Girls Softball League, at least from a board member perspective.  I really like the fine vounteers I’ve had a chance to work with all these years.  Yesterday was Opening Day Ceremony and Carnival, and I couldn’t imagine it going any beter than it did.  Coolest part? I got to catch the opening pitches from Kristina Thorson.  She’s cool (she took it easy on me)

Ah, the rites of spring are upon us, baseball and softball are gearing up.

Natalie is one of 5 freshmen playing on the College Prep varsity softball team.  OK, it’s a small school, and there is no JV, but at first glance, they’re bound to do well. Stacked with pitching, they coasted to a win in their opener, Nat and Sadie combined for a one-hitter over Holy Names. (MaxPreps.com)

It was a very lopsided win.  Nat started and struck out the first 2 batters on 6 pitches.  I don’t think Holy Names had seen consistent fast pitching until then.  The third batter lifted a fly ball to center which was easily tracked down for an out.  Sadie pitched the 3rd and 4th, and whatever inkling of fear Natalie put into the opposing lineup, Sadie turned it into a nightmare with her devastating fastball.

Eric is back with the Angels, we watched their practice last night before the rain came in.  Where he got speed is a mystery to me, Eric has got to be the fastest on his team.  The difference between last year and this is remarkable: even though he was fast last year, this year I see him gliding around the bases in a much smoother stride.  He’s also great at turning out to straighten his path as he rounds bases.

My thing this year is umpiring in NOLL SOLL, I hope to do as many games as possible at the Holy Names field, walking distance from home.

I’m not big on new years resolutions (at least not at the moment). I never made it an official resolution last year, but in 2008 I started riding my bike to work.  I’d like to continue that trend in 2009, and to keep things in motion, I had the bikes tuned up and adjusted.   Went for a nice ride Saturday morning, beside running in to friends along the way, I stopped on Skyline near Keller to take in a magnificent view of the bay area when the air was clear as can be. Maybe I’ll ride with a camera next time.  I still hate riding up Redwood!

now that my daughter is out of the league, time for me to move on.  But as to not leave them high and dry, I put together an easy-to-manage wordpress site.  www.ogsl.org

I’m coaching JV softball at Bishop O’Dowd this year. It’s a good bunch of kids, I enjoy doing this, and believe me, it’s for the love, not the money. Practice on Monday was difficult, kids were lacking energy and focus, and a couple kids were sick, so they didn’t show up. We have a very tough opponent in Castro Valley scheduled for Thursday, so I’m trying hard to get them prepared.

OK, Monday not so good, let’s see what happens Tuesday.

We have a zig-zag throwing drill that involves throwing, running, and synchronization. Typically I have to call out the order where someone runs, but I decided to sit back and watch. They did it about 95% correctly without me saying a thing, best they’ve ever done – and I told them how pleased I was. Between some other drills and Dale throwing batting practice, they took a couple of water breaks. I have about 3 or 4 brief encounters with Brenda, it goes something like this:

#1
Brenda: Coach I gotta tell you something.
Me: What’s up?
Brenda: No I can’t tell you now
Me: scratching my head

#2
Me: Hey Brenda, what’s up?
Brenda: I can’t tell you.
Me: What do you mean?
Brenda: She’ll kill me if I say anything

#3
Me: Is it someone on the team?
Brenda: Yeah

#4
Me: OK, who is it
Brenda: (sheepishly) It’s Adrianne
Me: Is it me? Is it personal?
Brenda: Yeah

Adrianne is a nice kid, but for her, becoming a great softball player is neither an ambition nor a priority. At least once per practice (or so it seems) I have to repeat something because she’s having a side conversation with another kid about who knows what.

Brenda: She’s leaving the team, but you can’t let her parents know the real reason.
Me: OK, I’ll talk to her

Ugh! She must think I hate her, she’s miserable because I have to go out of my way to correct her, sometimes on technique, more often on behavior. Now I have to confront her and the latest drama. Is she going to lose it?

Batting practice continues, Adrianne is due up second. I try to clear the dugout, with limited success. My opportunity arrives to take on the situation.

Me: Adrianne, can I get a word with you?
Adrianne: Sure
Me: So what’s on your mind?
Adrianne: Uh, nothing.
Me: I mean with the team. Are you cool with everything that’s going on?
Adrianne: Uh, yeah, what do you mean?

Then ands there I realize I’ve been had.

Me: Is this Brenda’s idea of an Apirl fool’s joke?
Adrianne: Uh, yeah, I guess so.
Me: Dang, Adrianne! You had me cold! All you had to do was tremble or cry or something! you had me smoked on that one!

Anyway, it was fun and funny, I admire the way Brenda put it together. Even coach V was in on it. When we huddled at the end of practice he told me of the original plan, which was tha Adrianne was pregnant and had to leave the team.

I never did take the time to write about my tournament team from summer of ’07. We had a really great group of kids, they showed a level of dedication and love of the game that impressed me deeply. My most sincere thanks to my assistants, Maria Morris and Lauren White, all the parents and families that were involved, and OGSL – all of whom supported this cause all the way. Here are among my recaps:

We got dusted in San Ramon, went 0-3-1, tying Alameda in a late inning rally that kept the weekend from being an entire bust. I knew this would be our most challenging tournament, my approach was to give the girls a jolt of reality and see how they responded…

---

Next up: Carmel, June 30, July 1.
wow.
this was a weekend I will long remember – I think we all will. I was hoping to have played 2 more games by the time it was over, but we walked away with a lot to be proud of. Contributions from every player up and down the roster, the support of families, great setting, great weather, a great Saturday night get-together – I wish all tournaments were as much fun as this one. The win over the Valley Magic was a game to remember all in its own. Ask me some time in person.
Saturday:
Oakland 9, Belmont 5; Oakland 3, Valley Magic 1; Oakland 12, San Carlos 9
Sunday:
Oakland 4, San Anselmo 2; Almaden 6, Oakland 4

---

San Jose – Wess Jones Memorial
this was a fun tournament, and the kids really gave it their all. We finished 2nd, lost the championship game by a single run. Ouch (but not THAT painful)
Natalie pitched all or parts of 6 games. Home runs by Callie, Lexi and Kera. Very proud of all our girls!
Official recaps

---

Benicia, August 10-11
Our season has come to a conclusion this weekend in Benicia, and I’m glad to tell you all that we fought our way once again to the championship game. But alas, bridesmaids again: we were soundly defeated by a very strong Redding team. It seems as though they had the philosophy “we’re not driving 4 hours down highway 5 to not bring home the big hardware!”
We played pretty tough all weekend though, we consistently jumped out to leads in every game we played. Our batteries were outstanding, especially Natalie (she makes me so proud) and Erin (our team MVP, catcher and leadoff hitter), they worked 5 complete games together. Haley also pitched very well with Alexis catching. We played some great D on and off, and it seems we learned from a couple of key mistakes, then turned similar opportunities into big outs in the field.
In Sunday morning elimination play, we went back and forth with Santa Rosa, scrapping for runs after blowing a 5-2 lead. We’re playing defense and up 8-6 in their last at bat. With two out and a runner on second, there’s a single hit sharply to our left fielder. In the previous inning our left fielder Kera had tried to play a single back to the infield and thrown poorly, missing the cutoff and allowing 2 runs to score. Naturally, the third base coach remembers this in the next inning and sends his runner home, only to see her get HOSED!!! at the plate to end the game. A very strong throw to the plate and our catcher had her pegged by 15 feet. YEAH!! Winning on Sunday, baby, that’s all that matters! (thank you Al Davis – hey, we’re Oakland, right?)
3 weeks ago we lost a close one to Lamorinda in the championship game in South San Jose. Well, this weekend we exacted some sweet revenge. In Sunday’s semifinal, we sent them home as we advanced with a 6-3 victory. Nursing a lead coming into the bottom of the final inning, Nat strikes out the leadoff batter, then gives up a hit and a run on an error. One out later, but with the momentum clearly on their side, Natalie goes to her change up to induce a game ending ground out by their slugging catcher. A 13-year old girl in an 18-year old’s frame, she blasted a triple in the first inning. With Erin calling pitches brilliantly, Natalie kept her off balance the rest of the game, retiring her on a pop up and the aforementioned ground out to Alexis at short.
In the championship against Redding, we could only manage to spread out 5 hits, while the Rapids parlayed 5 hits and a number of errors into an 8-run second inning. One of our theories: Redding is a warm weather town, and as our girls looked to be withering in the 80+ degree sunshine, the (perceived) heat hindered the Rapids not at all.
So there you have it, my summer coaching girls softball. Our record: 12 wins, 9 losses, 2 ties. Combined with our league’s 10 and under team coming away with a second in Half Moon Bay and a first in Rohnert Park, we’re making great strides in travel ball. Gone for now are the 3 hour practices and the hauling of equipment, trading keys to Owen Jones and getting booted from Flood without permits. Time for me and the family to get a little R&R – aloha, peeps!

go VIPERS!!!