Scituate 9U Baseball Team Travels to Sandwich

Scituate 9A Summer Travel Baseball team traveled to Cape Cod in its annual Sandwich Summer Blast Tournament.  Scituate tried to reverse the trend of challenging performances that previous 9A teams faced in the annual Cape Tourney over the past couple of years.

June 27, 2013.  Scituate 13 Cohasset 3.

In a game held under the lights at the Sandwich AL1 field, Scituate's J. Garrett and J. Kinsley combined to toss a no-hitter as Scituate easily handled its cross town rival, Cohasset 13-3 to start its run in the Sandwich Summer Blast Baseball Tournament.  Garrett struck out 8 in just 4 innings of work while Kinsley saved the game in a tense 5th inning.  Scituate's pitching was not the only story though, as the mighty Sailors smashed 9 hits including ringing doubles from G. Harris (2 hits and 2 RBIs) and C. Smith (1 hit and 1 RBI).  With the win, Scituate immediately put itself in prime contention for a high seed in the Tournament playoff. 

Game balls.   Garrett, Harris, Kinsley.

June 29, 2013.  Falmouth 9 Scituate 3

After rain dampened the Sailors' game against Martha's Vineyard in the morning session (a tie that ruined a 2-0 lead in the process), Scituate gathered itself together to face a tough team from Falmouth in the afternoon session at Sandwich AL2 Field.  Despite some rough seas through the first 3 innings that saw 6 walks and 3 errors, Scituate staved off a mercy rule ending through the final 2 innings with exceptional pitching from H. Gates.  Faced with an uphill battle in the 6th inning to get back into the game, the Sailors made the game interesting with RBI singles from J. Adams and J. Sannella to close the gap to 6 runs.  Unfortunately, it wasn't enough as Falmouth beat Scituate 9-3.

Game balls.  Gates, Sannella, Sullivan.

June 30, 2013.  Norwell 6 Scituate 5

After garnering the 6 seed in the tournament with a 1-1-1 record, Scituate faced a feisty team from Norwell to open the tournament playoffs.  Dodging storms throughout the weekend, the day appeared to brighten as Scituate made it way down to the Cape.  After jumping to a quick 4-1 lead through 4 innings, Norwell battled back with 5 runs in the 5th and 6th inning to win the game 6-5.  J. Garrett again sparkled as he threw 5 innings and struck out 9.  The Sailors were paced with 2 hits a piece from J. Kinsley and J. Adams and a 2 run double by C. Smith. 

Game balls.  Garrett, Kinsley, Adams, Smith.  

For box scores of the three games, check here.  Regular season play starts on Sunday in Rockland!

Blackhawks, Bruins and Conflicts

It wasn't that long ago that I declared, after the Hartford Whalers stole any joy that I derived from hockey, that the Chicago Blackhawks were going to be my favorite team.  But that was back in 2011, and I have to admit that I have not really been keeping up with the Blackhawks since then (Before the Stanley Cup Finals I could only name Kane and Hossa as Blackhawks); I have been content letting hockey disappear from my life.

And I took this tact for the first 5 games of the epic Blackhawks-Bruins Finals.   I didn't really care that much, only watching snippets of highlights if I happened to catch them on Sportscenter the next day.  Meanwhile friends have been up in arms about this series, even more so than back in 2011, when I didn't care that much then. But now, after Game 5 in which I was forced to watch the game with Bruins fans, I am now interested in this series.  I'm not going to be rooting for the Bruins, mind you.  You gotta be kidding me.  But I will root for an exciting game.

To get me into the series, G has been secretly whispering to me "Here we go Blackhawks."  He likes the Whalers even though he was born 7 years after they left Hartford.  While I laughed with him, DLG and C looked at me with serious looks.  Neither of them like hockey (probably because of me) and didn't like the inside jokes.

In the aftermath...

I started writing about the game.  I went period by period hoping for an epic collision between two long time teams.  I laughed at Jaromir Jagr and wondered if Patrice Bergeron was really hurt.  And then the last 90 seconds of the Third Period happened and I deleted all of that.  It just made me nostalgic for some good hockey in the Nutmeg State and I was not going to go there.

So I erased that recap.  Instead, I simply say "Nice job.  Good effort." 

Time for baseball anyway.

Vince Lombardi By the Quotes - A Message

"You are a confident person and with the right tools, the right attitude and the right focus, you can do anything you want and succeed." 

Sounds like Vince Lombardi, right?  But its actually me channeling Lombardi with my message to you.  In honor of Lombardi's 100th birthday celebration on June 11, I have compiled a list of my favorite Vince Lombardi quotes for you.  Now I have never seen Lombardi's sales movie from the 1960's - and trying to buy the DVD now will run over $1,000.00 - but my favorite Lombardi quotes really have nothing to do with football.  They apply to everything you do.  The roots might be sports-related, but winning, confidence and internal strength have applications in everything you do - on and off the field.

“If it doesn’t matter who wins or loses, then why do they keep score?"

My favorite quote.  Kids always look at me and cheer when I say that.  Now the baseball league we belong to dictates that winning doesn't matter, everyone makes the playoffs and everyone should play every position.  I agree that everyone should try every position, but winning and losing is very important, because if you lose every game, yeah you make the playoffs, but the kids are demoralized and you end up facing the team with the two best players in the league.  The result -you get your butts kicked.  How is all of this good for your confidence?  What good habits do you form from this?  If a score is kept, you have to try your hardest to win because that will lead you to practice the good habits that will allow you to succeed.  If a score is not being kept, then you have to relax.  Once you realize the difference, you can have fun and be successful. 

"Winning is not a sometime thing…it’s an all the time thing. You don’t win once in a while…you don’t do the right thing once in a while…you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit."

Winning takes a lot of forms.  It might be winning on the field or on the court when you look at the score board.  What I think this means though is that to be successful, you have to try your hardest and practice everything you do to get into good habits - because good habits only lead to success and good things.  I could be in sports, definitely.  But this also means winning in school and at work.  If winning at a pursuit becomes a habit, it's a tough habit to break.  

“Confidence is contagious and so is lack of confidence, and a customer will recognize both.”

Clearly a quote from the Lombardi sales movie referred to above.  But it applies everywhere you turn in life.  You are trying to win in everything you do.  It might not be a win in the conventional way, but it s a chance to succeed.  Maybe its sports, but its more likely in school and at the workplace.  If you are confident (or you lack confidence), it will be recognized and remembered.  You can succeed in life if you believe in yourself.  But just as easily, you can fail if you don't believe in yourself.  

“The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender.”

One of the worst things that you can do is to quit.  But giving up and quitting is not a simple concept to understand.  Giving something a try and failing to succeed no matter what you try is not quitting if you decide to move on.  Simply stated, not matter what you try, work as hard as you can and if you cannot get it to work, then find something else that you can succeed in.  Confidence is not built by trying as hard as you can to do something that you cannot do indefinitely.  Once you learn the difference and know your limits, the better you will become. 

“The spirit, the will to win and the will to excel – these are the things that endure and these are the qualities that are so much more important than any of the events that occasion them.”

An over-arching theme of Lombardi's entire life.  Another way to look at it is thinking about it using a different metaphor.  Success is derived not from the destination, but from the journey getting there.  Habits leading to excellence and practicing the right things to increase your will to win are so much more important than the individual win.  And it leads to more success.



“Perfection is not attainable. But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.”

No one is perfect. And there is nothing you will ever do that will require perfection.  It is the essence of being human to be imperfect.  The interesting part about life is figuring out a response to the imperfections you will face in your life.  But if you practice good habits and you practice willing yourself to succeed, you have a great chance to be successful at whatever you try to do.  That's all I can ask.

Tepid Tim Tebow Joins the Patriots

Tim Tebow has joined the New England Patriots!  I was flabbergasted when I heard the news, what with Bill Belichick calling Tebow out as a terrible football player just days ago. Really, Tim Tebow seems like a curious choice to join the three time champions.  Some in the family would agree with me.

"Really, Dad, he stinks!" My 11 year old texted me.

"Why did they sign him, they have Tom Brady!"  My 8 year old stated.

"Who's Tim Tebow?" DLG asks me, not really sure what all of the commotion was about.

Huh?

Now over the last 24 hours, pundits have theorized why Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and Robert Kraft signed this guy.  It was a favor to Urban Meyer.  It was a favor to Josh McDaniels.  It was a ploy to increase interest in the team prior to camp starting next month and to increase sales and attendance at preseason games.  It was a shot at the Boston Herald for reporting that Belichick hated Tim Tebow just a couple of days ago.

Who cares?  The simple reason the Patriots signed Tebow was because he comes without risk.  He signed a non guaranteed contract.  He's a hard worker and will likely be motivated to excel in any capacity that the Patriots find for him.  Personally, I think that he would be the third string quarterback but will also play a lot of special teams with his religious teammate Matthew Slater.  A good, hard-nosed player playing special teams is what every team is looking for.

All-in-all, I think it is a good signing.  We might not agree with it using the playing field as a barometer.  And all of the local columnists are crying that the signing will bring the circus to town.  But so what?  If there is a team that is adept at dealing with circuses, it's this one.  Remember, Albert Haynesworth, Randy Moss and Chad Ochocinco were also considered side shows when they came to Foxboro.  Some succeeded some did not, but they all managed to fall into the Patriot way.  It was not that big of a deal then, and I doubt this will be a big deal now.

So let's hope that this works out.  I like the heady play and the leadership that Tebow can bring.  I like the spirit and locker room presence he can lend, and I like how he can take some of the media pressure off for a Patriots team that is entering is 9th season of the Brady era without a Super Bowl.  Maybe Tebow will win that elusive starting job somewhere after he leaves the Patriots.  I think it is worth a shot to see if he can do it.

Lackey's Coming Around for the Red Sox

Amidst the Bruins playoff chances (yawn) and all of the little league and AAU baseball games (hello sunburn), one thing that has got Red Sox fans excited is the re-emergence of John Lackey as a force on the Red Sox starting rotation.

It's not a reach to think about Lackey's comeback.  He was a 19 game winner back in 2007, finishing third in the Cy Young Award balloting.  But after a forgettable 2011 campaign that was marked by controversy and Budweiser, and a 2012 season spent on the shelf, it was still refreshing to see Lackey come out somewhat strong to open the 2013 season.  Despite his 1-4 record.  I was so confident in Lackey's come back that I even picked him as my player to watch in my preseason journal.

Fast forward to today's game against the Minnesota Twins.  The threat of rain was present and it would have have been nice if Lackey could finish off the sweep and bring the Red Sox to within half a game of the Yankees.  Lackey started strong in the First

After Middlebrooks' Home Run made the game 1-0, I was starting to get my hopes of a sweep.  I wouldn't vocalize my thoughts, however, as C and G were milling around while I was watching the game.

As the second and third innings passed by and Lackey still hadn't given up a hit, I started to think more than a win.  I started to think about a no-hitter.  Still the rain was coming, and Lackey hadn't given up a hit through 4.

As Napoli hits a bloop single to Center field to make it 3-0 in the fifth, I wanted the inning to be over so we could get in a complete game.

And just as I think it, the rain starts to come down.  Maybe, Lackey can get this no hitter shortened by rain.  He can join Buchholz and Lester as the Red Sox starters who have thrown no hitters.  Lackey comes out with a determined look on his face as he starts the fifth inning.  And just like that the no hitter is over, as Trevor Plouffe razors a double to left field.  Lackey, unflustered then gives up a hit batter (that did not look like a hit batter) and then an error by Pedro Ciriaco brings in the Twins first run.

Now in Lackey's first two years, I would have expected him to start blowing up, barking at his fellow players and generally let his body language speak for itself.  But this is the new John Lackey.  The one who is confident and not a dolt.  He gets out fo the fifth with no more damage and mows the Twins down in the Sixth.

And then the rains came.  2 hours and 55 minutes of rain.  Why do they insist on resuming this game almost three hours after it was stopped for rain? I don't get a say, however, as the game restarts at 7:30 in the bottom of the 7th inning.

I look at C and G who rejoin me before they go to bed.  I think at this point I'm going to bed too.  I hope the Red Sox and Lackey win this one.