Pre-Season

In the last week our team had three pre-season games scheduled.  The kids really have been working hard and these games were exactly what they needed in order to help them better understand how the game is played.  Yes, in the past couple of weeks we did have a few scrimmage games that were set up by our coaches but in those games there were no umpires officiating the games nor were there any dug outs. 

Each of our pre-season games was held on a different field and each field had it's own unique qualities.  Our first game against the Hawks, which was scheduled for Tuesday March 22, 2011 was played at Paschall Park on Field 3.  This game was our confidence booster.  As the kids began to arrive first thing that amazed them was the fact that they had a dugout just for their team where they could sit down when not playing.  It's funny to think of how amazed and thrilled they all were by something so simple but I have to say that they were really excited.  Now the game was scheduled to begin for 6:15pm and I will say that the only downfall for us that night was the fact that the field itself was facing the sunset.  So those of us watching the game as well as the catchers and batters were eventually blinded by it.  Now I'll save you all of the details about the game since you can click on the link and watch a video montage I put together of all of the plays. So now instead of having to sit through over an hour of game time filled with all of the breaks, pauses, and mishaps you can now see everything in just a matter of about 20 minutes. Our final score for this night was Hammerheads-23 Hawks-3.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/video/video.php?v=211483875530194&notif_t=video_processed

Our second pre-season game was scheduled for the night following our game against the Hawks.  We would be playing the Dragons over at Paschall Park but this time we would be over on field 1.  The perks to this field were that we were adjacent to the concession stands and restrooms, the sun was at our backs and for some reason the dirt on the diamond here seemed much cleaner and smoother.  During this game, as parents, we discovered just how undisciplined and behind in training our kids truly are.  The Dragons came out fully suited up and ready to win.  Each time their pitcher was to "pitch" the ball he would yell out "ready" to the rest of the team and await their response before "pitching the ball."  Every time the ball was hit their catcher was like a little dragon with ninja skills.  All in one motion his helmet was off and he was standing on top of the home plate.  Their kids could catch, they could throw to one another and they could hit.  Even their coach didn't spend a lot of time telling them where to stand or how to swing.  Unfortunatley for our kids this game went much like the previous night's game against the Hawks, however we were on the loosing end of the points.  Our kids did a great job staying in the game and not giving up.  The final score was Hammerheads-5 Dragons 20.

http://www.facebook.com/#!/video/video.php?v=211500158861899&notif_t=video_processed

Our third and final pre-season game was scheduled for Monday March 28, 2011against the Raiders and was to be held at Hanby Elementary.  This field was surrounded by a fence, the entrance to the dugouts was only accessible from the field and the kids of course were just in awe with the "commentators box".  The dirt on this field was very different from the previous two in that here the field was filled with a sort of red gravel.  It wasn't long before the game had started before the kids learned that this field was slippery, the balls didn't roll very well in it and they could pile it up.  While we did eventually loose this game in overtime it was a much better mach up of skills between the two teams.  The final score of the night was Hammerheads-14 Raiders-22.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/video/video.php?v=210457068966208