How Bout Them A's?

Morning A’s,

And what a beautiful, if oppressively muggy, morning it is!  If ESPN had any sense, they would have been replaying our extraordinary victory 5 times an hour on SportsCenter last night instead of that boring basketball game.  Despite not having our best offensive or defensive outing of the season, the A’s pulled through in grand fashion last night

After settling on a shaded clearing just south of the Ellipse, one with the bonus of having a giant tree to trip up opposing center fielders (and of not having belligerent futbollers), the A’s took to the field against the Blue State Digital Online Tools at the prompt starting time of nearly 7 o’clock.  Things were looking bleak early; assailed by determined gnats from all directions, a subpar defensive effort from the A’s left the Tools up 4 going into the bottom of the first.  But these A’s don’t just lie down for any old Tools.  We came back strong early, with the first five hitters all getting on base, four with singles.  Four A’s got across the plate to even things up going into the second.

The second inning came and went with just 6 batters total.  The Tools scored one in the top of the 3^rd, which despite a few more singles, the A’s couldn’t match in bottom frame.  As the A’s defense steadily improved throughout the game, we held the Tools scoreless in the top of the 4^th, when Sandy “the Fulton of Swat” led off, followed by the meat of the order.  Rabbi Bossman Sanderson reached first on our 896^th single of the day.  2^nd MVP Bill “Slugging Percentage” Smith hit a bomb nearly out to Constitution Ave and turned it into a 2-run homer, and the A’s were sitting much prettier heading into the 5^th with a 6-5 lead.

But these pesky Tools just wouldn’t go away.  Employing the A’s strategy of super-small ball, they managed a run in each of the next two innings to reclaim the lead.  The A’s continued to struggle a bit with the power hits, but we scored one in the bottom of the 6^th, on singles of course, to tie the game and send it into extra innings.  Both Ds held firm in the 7^th, and the A’s couldn’t get anything done with two more singles in the bottom half.  But as Theresa would say, this was OUR TIME.

The Tools went on the offensive in the top of the 8^th, scoring one.  Then Sandy, of the Pinder variety, got things going for the A’s in the bottom of the 8^th with her second single through the gap, bringing her average on the day to .667.  Will “The Hammer” Horowitz followed with a monster triple to left-center field and Sandy scored to tie the game again, with one out.  Stepping up to the plate and tapping his cleats, Alex Moore was determined to win that MVP Beer.  He worked the opposing pitcher for 7 pitches before finding one he liked.  With a deep drive to left field, Alex watched his ball sail off into the sky, and then into the outfielder’s glove.  Hope seemed to have left the A’s this day, but then came the break we were looking for.  After some confused yelling from Ole Skip here, the left fielder tried to throw home and the ball went skipping past the catcher, giving The Hammer all the room he needed to run home and let the MVP and the A’s walk off the field in a dramatic 8-7 victory.

We have now jumped out to a perfect 2-0 on the season, putting us in 14^th place in the Congressional Softball League.  We continue our historic season next Tuesday against the least offensive part of the Koch dynasty, their softball team, “Atlas Slugged.’ (I know, I know…).  The game will begin around 6:30, assuming they don’t punk out on us, and will probably be played at or very near the field we played on last night.  I’ve got a beer sponsor and I’m pretty sure I don’t need any more volunteers to help carry stuff to the field, so just come on down ready to play.  But please let me know if you plan on playing.  We might have a pretty big turnout so I want to gauge who I’ve got.  Also, if you owe me money for registration or a jersey, or want to pay me in advance to sponsor beer for a week, please bring that with you.

That’s about it for now.  I can’t promise I’ll send another reminder before Tuesday of next week, so Wes, put it on your calendar now.  If you have to come out in a suit again, I want to see you there next week.

Effing A,