Spring Nationals Championship: Big Blue 17, Mavericks 8

One of the hallmarks of a tough team is the ability to bounce back from adversity. Quite honestly, Big Blue hasn't had many opportunities to show that type of toughness, because they typically don't face much adversity. But they responded well to an early 3-1 deficit against the Mavericks (Wayne Co.), storming back to outscore the opposition 16-5 over the final five innings to claim the Top Gun Spring Nationals title with a 17-8 victory.

The Mavericks used their magic bat to plate three first-inning runs, and when Big Blue managed just one in the bottom of the inning, it marked the first time this spring that our heroes had trailed after a complete inning. The response? They shut out the Mavericks in the top of the second, then came back to post seven runs in the bottom of the frame (the run limit allowed them to catch up, then score five more runs) to take a lead they would not relinquish. They weathered a five-run Maverick fourth and closed the game with seven unanswered runs to clinch the title.

The win meant something new for this group: being sized for championship rings.

It's hard to pick the most impressive statistic from the weekend, but one of them would have to be that Big Blue scored at least one run in every inning in the tournament except one (the sixth against Rocky Mount). And while because of stats like that, the offense will get plenty of attention, it was once again defense that probably separated Big Blue from the rest of the tournament field. In a one-day tournament, the Blue defense got at least two outs from every position in the infield (including home) and saw the outfield alone make eight outs.

It must be incredibly frustrating to have to play against Big Blue; even a ball that looks well-struck and surely ticketed for a gap somewhere can often end up as an out. And there simply aren't many--if any--of the multiple-base errors that characterized some of the opposing defense on Sunday. Overthrow first? No problem, the right fielder is there to gather in the ball. Get two runners on and hit it in the infield? Big Blue is going to gather the ball and get the lead runner. While other teams are turning singles into triples, it takes at least two or three clean hits strung together to plate a run against Big Blue. Oh, and they did it all without having practiced together as a team since October.

The next tournament is uncertain, but will likely/hopefully come sometime in May, which will not be soon enough.

Title game Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
Bryce led off with a single. Gavin's single caused some problems in the Maverick outfield, allowing Bryce to hustle all the way around to score.
Score after one inning: Mavericks 3, Big Blue 1

Second inning
The biggest inning of the weekend started with a single from Jake. Ben hustled to beat out his grounder to shortstop. Timmy's single loaded the bases, and Elias drove in two with a double to left. Asher's fielder's choice scored another run, and Trey's single scored Elias. Bryce reached on a shot to third, and JT pounded an RBI single to right. Bryce scored on Gavin's hit to shortstop, and then Chace's line drive sacrifice fly scored JT and invoked the five-run rule to Coach Sean's great surprise ("We got how many runs?").
Score after two innings: Big Blue 8, Mavericks 3

Third inning
Mason led off with a single, then moved to second on Jake's single. Two successive fielder's choices scored Mason, and then Elias singled home Timmy.
Score after three innings: Big Blue 10, Mavericks 3

Fourth inning
In a situation where Big Blue needed to answer the five-run Maverick top of the fourth, Trey led off by slicing a ball down the right-field line and then turning on the Gooch jets to race all the way around for an inside-the-park home run. Blue got one more run when JT went the opposite way for a one-out single, moved to third on Chace's single and then took advantage of a Maverick error to score the inning's second run.
Score after four innings: Big Blue 12, Mavericks 8

Fifth inning
It was another five-run inning--the fifth of the tournament in just 16 opportunities. It started with three straight singles from Jake, Ben and Timmy, resulting in one run. Elias smacked his second two-run double of the game, moved to third on a fielder's choice from Asher and scored on Trey's single. Back-to-back singles from Bryce and JT scored Trey and triggered the five-run rule.
Score after five innings: Big Blue 17, Mavericks 8

Title Game Web Gems

• Big Blue threw home to attempt to nail a runner steaming home in the top of the first. The runner was safe, but Asher fielded the throw and then snapped a throw to second, where Gavin was waiting to slap the tag on the hitter trying to take an extra base, ending the inning.
• Timmy made an acrobatic, leaping catch on a ball crushed over his head in deep center in the second. 
• Elias made the play of the tournament in the third. With two outs, the bases loaded and the Mavericks threatening to cut into Big Blue's 8-3 lead, the hitter sliced a liner towards the line in left that looked destined to score at least two. But Eli went racing over and backhanded the ball out of the air almost on the line to end the inning.
• JT showed toughness in the fifth, hanging in against a sliding Mavericks runner and getting the force out on a throw from Gavin.
• Timmy made a subtle solid play in the sixth, backing up first base from his right field position. That put him in position to grab an overthrow and prevent the Maverick hitter from taking an extra base.
• Big Blue picked up its third double play in as many games to end the game. With a runner on first and one out, the Maverick hitter cranked a liner at Chace at first, who calmly fielded the ball and stepped on first to end the game and clinch the title.

Title game line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Mavericks	3	0	0	5	0	0	8	16
Big Blue	1	7	2	2	5	X	17	20

Spring Nationals Game 2: Big Blue 19, Rocky Mount Elite 7

There were two stars of the 19-7 game two win: the Big Blue offense, which pounded out a tournament-high 19 runs and 23 hits, and Coach Eric's pinpoint control on the mound, which was especially noticeable in contrast to the Rocky Mount pitcher, who had some struggles, especially on one particular pitch.

Big Blue scored in its first five offensive innings, running the streak to 10 consecutive innings in the tournament with at least one run before the string was snapped in a scoreless sixth. Everyone in the lineup got at least one hit, and even more impressively, everyone in the lineup drove in at least one run--the first time this spring the Big Blue offense has turned that trick.

Included among the day's heroes was Coach Biscuit in the third-base coaching box, who made a decision to hold JT at third on a play that might have loosely been scored a home run in the fifth. This prompted a shout of, "Thank you, Coach Sean!" from the bleachers, where Giovanna has apparently promised amazing riches to JT if he hits a home run. After the game, JT and Coach Sean were heard negotiating an agreement in which Coach Sean agreed to wave JT at all times as long as JT shares 20 percent of his earnings.

With the win, Big Blue moved into the tournament championship game against the Mavericks.

Game 2 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
It took Big Blue only eight hitters to plate the run limit of five runs. Bryce led off with a triple. JT, who was on his way to an incredible 4-for-4, seven-RBI game, scored him with an RBI single, then raced home himself on Gavin's double. Gavin moved up to third on the throw, where he scored easily on Chace's double. Mason made it three straight extra-base hits and four extra-base hits in the first five hitters with an RBI double. He moved to third on a fielder's choice, then scored the fifth run on Timmy's single.
Score after one-half inning: Big Blue 5, Rocky Mount 0

Second inning
Elias and Asher started the inning with back-to-back singles. Trey's double scored Elias. Bryce's pop fly to the left side wasn't handled, and Asher raced home. JT's double scored Trey and Bryce.
Score after one and a half innings: Big Blue 9, Rocky Mount 0

Third inning
Jake led off with a single, but was still on first base with two outs. Elias promptly tripled him home, then scored on Asher's single. Trey and Bryce had back to back singles that loaded the bases, and then JT smacked a two-run single.
Score after two and a half innings: Big Blue 13, Rocky Mount 2

Fourth inning
Mason powered a one-out double, then moved to third on Jake's single. With runners at the corners, Ben singled home Mason.
Score after three and a half innings: Big Blue 14, Rocky Mount 2

Fifth inning
Asher and Trey opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Bryce's hot shot to third loaded the bases for JT, who cleared the bases with a single. Gavin thumped a double that scored JT, then moved to third on Chace's grounder. Jake's sacrifice fly scored Gavin with the inning's fifth run to invoke the run limit for the second time in five innings.
Score after four and a half innings: Big Blue 19, Rocky Mount 2

Game 2 Web Gems

• On the first play of the bottom half of the first, Bryce ranged to his right, gathered in a ball smacked up the middle, and threw to Chace for the out.
• Big Blue turned in a textbook relay on a ball smacked to the fence in the third inning. Elias retrieved the ball and hit his cutoff man, Gavin, who turned glove side and threw a strike to JT at third, who caught it and placed the tag in one motion to nail the runner trying to sneak an extra base.
• A slightly unconventional 5-4-3 double play ended the fourth. With a runner on first, JT fielded a grounder and threw to Bryce at second for an out. Bryce spun it to Chace, just a step too late to get the force. But when the runner made a move toward second, Chace slapped the tag on him and ended the inning.
• Trey ended the game with a nice stab at pitcher and solid throw to first.

Game 2 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	5	4	4	1	5	0	19	23
Rocky Mount	0	2	0	0	2	3	17	13

Spring Nationals Game 1: Big Blue 14, Blue Sox 1

After approximately 87 emails from Coach Adam, Big Blue was mightily relieved to finally take the field on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. and finally get on the field, where they could not receive email and therefore didn't have to open another message that read "Schedule change!"

The day's first opponent at the Top Gun Spring Nationals were the Blue Sox. Big Blue jumped out to four quick first-inning runs (in seven spring games together, the team is averaging 4.4 runs in the first frame) and never looked back, scoring in every inning and rolling to a 14-1 victory.

The victory set up a winner-take-all second game for the pool play top seed. The winner of the Big Blue-Rocky Mount game would play the winner of the opposite pool for the tournament title.

Game 1 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
JT reached on a one-out fielder's choice. Gavin singled back up the middle and stretched it all the way to third when the Blue Sox outfield bobbled the ball. Chace singled in Gavin for the game's second run. Mason rapped a single to left that was again too hot to handle, and Chace came in to score while Mason raced to third. Jake doubled to center, scoring Mason to complete the scoring.
Score after one inning: Big Blue 4, Blue Sox 0

Second inning
Elias and Asher started the inning with back-to-back singles. A fielder's choice advanced Elias to third, and then Trey's RBI fielder's choice scored him.
Score after two innings: Big Blue 5, Blue Sox 0

Third inning
JT hit a line drive to right that he turned into two bases when it slipped through the Blue Sox outfield. Gavin drove him in with a single, then moved to second on Chace's single. A fielder's choice left runners at first and second with one out. Jake singled, and some aggressive baserunning by Chace plated another run. Timmy's single scored Mason with the inning's third run.
Score after three innings: Big Blue 8, Blue Sox 0

Fourth inning
Suitably enraged after allowing the Blue Sox to score a run in the top of the fourth, Big Blue posted the five-run limit in the bottom of the frame. It all happened with two outs, as Gavin had a two-RBI double that scored Trey and JT and moved all the way to third on the throw. Chace's single scored Gavin, and a Blue Sox outfield misadventure put Chace on second. He moved to third on Mason's shot to shortstop and another hustling baserunning play allowed him to score while the Blue Sox tried (unsuccessfully) to get the out at first. Jake's double scored Mason and ended the inning because of the five-run rule.
Score after four innings: Big Blue 13, Blue Sox 1

Fifth inning
Once again, it happened with two outs. This time, it was Joey's double to right that scored Elias with the inning's only run.
Score after five innings: Big Blue 14, Blue Sox 1

Game 1 Web Gems

• In an omen for what was to come later in the day with Big Blue's solid outfield play, Elias raced over to the line in left field to cut off what looked like a certain double, fielded it and fired it in to limit the hitter to a single.
• Big Blue turned the first of multiple unconventional double plays in the fourth. First, Gavin scooped up a grounder and fired to Timmy for the out. Then, Timmy came up throwing and zipped it home to Jake, who slapped the tag on an overeager runner trying to score from third on the fielder's choice.
• JT made a sprawling catch in left-center in the sixth.
• Jennifer made a textbook two-hand catch of a foul pop in the stands. However, she also received a 15-yard celebration penalty for her overexuberance after the catch. Spiking the ball in Giovanna's face and yelling, "In your face, Taylor!" while pulling out a Sharpie to sign the ball was probably a wee bit over the line. 

Game 1 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Blue Sox	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	7
Big Blue	4	1	3	5	1	X	14	16

Western Spring State championship: Big Blue 12, Garnet Crush 4

Big Blue wrapped up its trip to Mooresville--which included four games in 24 hours--with a 12-4 five-inning victory over the Garnet Crush. The championship game was played on Mazeppa Park Field 2, which evidently has very large first-base dugouts, because the Crush dugout was able to contain both a really cool sign listing all their players and also still evidently have room for Coach Ken's whaaaaaambulance.

The game began on an entertaining note, as the Crush wanted a ruling on what would happen if one of their fielders ran into Coach Eric (keep in mind those four games in 24 hours means Coach Eric pitched 16 innings in 24 hours), obviously not realizing who they were dealing with on the mound in terms of dexterity. Luckily, Big Blue was able to solve this problem by simply hitting every ball past the pitcher, thus helpfully making sure the Crush wouldn't have to worry about such serious concerns.

Big Blue began the game with the type of airtight defense that was commended by the tournament director, who said, "Your team's defense is better than some of the 14-year-olds out here." That defense caught a fly ball to the outfield, a grounder in the infield and a line drive in the infield to set the Crush down 1-2-3 in the top of the first.

That set the stage for a quick five-run Blue explosion in the bottom of the frame that gave the tournament's top seed a lead they would never relinquish. In fact, Big Blue played 17 innings in Mooresville...and led at the end of all 17 innings. They went scoreless in just two of those 17 innings, while holding the opponents scoreless in 11 of 17 opportunities.

Due to the run rule, Big Blue did not play the full six innings in any of their tournament games, and ended the championship game in five, which resulted in the team being presented with the championship trophy:

The next Big Blue practice is...well, who knows, but probably not soon enough. The next Big Blue tournament is...well, who knows, but guaranteed to be closer than Mooresville (sound of loud applause from parents).

Championship Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
Bryce led off with a single and moved to second on JT's single. Gavin picked up the first RBI of the day with a single to center. With one out, Mason ripped a single to left that scored JT. Jake lined an RBI single, then raced all the way to third while Mason scored on some defensive misadventures in the outfield. Timmy ended the scoring in the five-run first with an RBI fielder's choice.
Score after one inning: Big Blue 5, Crush 0

Second inning
Asher led off with a single and hustled to second to beat the throw on a fielder's choice. That put him in position to score on Bryce's single. With runners on first and second and no outs, Big Blue got another aggressive, hustling baserunning play; this time it came from Trey, who moved to third on JT's single and kept on trucking all the way home when the Crush didn't realize that third base coach Sean "Biscuit" Gallaher was waving Trey in. Gavin cracked a triple that scored a pair and crossed the plate himself when the throw from the outfield skipped into the dugout.
Score after two innings: Big Blue 10, Crush 3

Fourth inning
Big Blue picked up two runs with two outs. JT started the rally with a single...that turned into much more, as his hustle ended up bringing him all the way around to score on an errant throw. Then Gavin lined a single to center that zipped past the outfielders, putting Gavin at third, where he scored on Chace's single.
Score after four innings: Big Blue 12, Porter Ridge 3

Championship Web Gems

• Chace made a sprawling catch of a line drive at first base in the first inning, capping a 1-2-3 top of the first for Big Blue.
• Mason speared a line drive at pitcher in the fourth.
• On the very next hitter, with a runner on second, Bryce caught a line drive at second, then fired to Gavin covering the bag to double off the runner and end the inning.
• Big Blue finished the weekend with just six errors in four games; not bad, considering virtually everyone on the field was playing a position they hadn't played or practiced since last October.

Championship line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Crush	0	3	0	0	1	X	4	7
Big Blue	5	5	0	2	X	X	12	14

Western Spring State Semis: Big Blue 16, Porter Ridge 8

The Big Blue coaching staff generously gave the players a one-hour time limit on the pool between Sunday morning's pool play win over the Mooresville Legends and the first bracket play game at 2:30 against Porter Ridge. Of course, not everyone had time for such foolishness, as this shot of a trio of ripped Big Blue players in the hotel gym will illustrate:

Oh, wait...uh, that's the wrong picture! Never mind! Big Blue does not support Ivan Drago's training methods at all. Let's see...OK, here's the correct photo:

For some reason, Joey, Bryce and Asher were heard to mutter, "I must break you," as they took the field for the semifinal rematch against Porter Ridge. Reports from the tournament director indicated that Porter Ridge had lost just one game during the entire fall 2012 season, and Big Blue had already ten-run ruled them on the previous day. As you can imagine, they were just a little excited for the rematch.

That excitement turned to dismay, however, as Big Blue put up the seven-run limit in the very first inning, then followed it with six runs in the second. This time, the game took five innings, but it eventually had the same outcome--a run-rule victory, this time 16-8 for Big Blue.

The win moved the visitors--and trust me, you could tell Big Blue were the visitors, no matter which dugout they were occupying--into the championship game against the winner of the NC Snipers-Garnet Crush contest.

Semifinal Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
Bryce led off with a single and moved to third on JT's single. Gavin drove in the first run of the day with a sacrifice fly to left-center, and then Chace drove in JT with a double to left. With two outs, Big Blue piled on five more runs--Jake doubled in Chace, Joey tripled in Jake, Timmy singled in Joey and then raced all the way to third on a misplay in the outfield, Asher's grounder through the right side scored Timmy and then Trey ended the scoring with a single back through the middle. Big Blue batted all the way around in the inning and scored the full run limit of seven runs for the second straight first inning of the day.
Score after one inning: Big Blue 7, Porter Ridge 0

Second inning
For the second straight inning, Big Blue batted around. Bryce's hot shot to third scooted into the outfield and put him on second. JT singled, and Bryce scored on Gavin's grounder to the left side. With two on, Chace singled to load the bases. Mason smacked a two-run single, scoring JT and Gavin. With one out, Chace made a terrific baserunning play, scoring all the way from second base on Joey's grounder to second. But Big Blue wasn't done, as Timmy singled in Mason. Timmy moved to third on Asher's single, then scored on a single from Elias.
Score after two innings: Big Blue 13, Porter Ridge 2

Third inning
Bryce led off for the third time in the game, and reached base for the third straight time. He would also eventually score for the third straight time, as JT singled him to second and then Mason drove in both of them with a two-out, two-RBI double down the left field line.
Score after three innings: Big Blue 15, Porter Ridge 7

Fifth inning
Needing just one run to win the game, Elias led off with a double to left-center. He moved to third on Trey's fielder's choice, then scored on Bryce's walk-off single that invoked the run rule.
Score after five innings: Big Blue 16, Porter Ridge 8

Semifinal Web Gems

• Joey hauled in a fly ball in left-center in the first, likely preventing at least two runs.
• The play of the day, tournament and possible millennium was made by Elias in the second. Porter Ridge had scored two runs and had a runner on second when the hitter lofted a long fly ball down the left field line. With Coach Sean humming "Eli's Coming" in the dugout, Elias raced over to the line, laid out and grabbed the ball one-handed while careening towards the fence to end the inning. The play must have made a big impression on the local people of Mooresville and the surrounding area of Hopewell, because apparently one of the local papers decided to do a story on Elias, as you can see from the below headline (check the top right):

• Bryce stopped a line drive at second base leading off the fifth and final inning.

Semifinals line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Porter Ridge	0	2	5	0	1	X	8	12
Big Blue	7	6	2	0	1	X	16	18

Western Spring State Game 2: Big Blue 19, Mooresville Legends 0

In an unbelievable display of courage, heart and toughness, the visitor from Raleigh persevered through a tough 9 a.m. start against the homestanding Mooresville Legends.

But enough about Coach Eric. Big Blue also managed to get the win, 19-0, in the final game of pool play.

The game was shortened to three innings due to the run limit, but even in the shortened time frame, every player on the roster got at least one hit. Even more impressively, Big Blue managed to hit for the cycle in the first inning--Bryce homered, Gavin tripled, Joey doubled and pretty much everyone else singled. Even with the run limit, everyone also scored at least one run.

But the main storyline was the incredible heroism of Coach Eric. He sustained a ghastly injury on his pitching hand. Perhaps unwisely, the umpires did not choose to check his glove to see if perhaps the sandpaper he keeps in there had caused the cut.

As you would expect, Big Blue immediately rallied around their fallen coach, showing the heart, compassion and sportsmanship you would expect from such a fine collection of upstanding individuals. Basically, it was just like Louisville when Kevin Ware was hurt. It included:

• In true West Raleigh fashion, Coach Sean and Coach Kevin took a knee to show their concern for their injured teammate.
• Coach Ken kindly offered, "Do I need to call a whaaaaaaambulance?"
• The loyal Big Blue rooting section was heard to yell, "Can you stop talking about the cut and start pitching?"

It was truly a hearwarming display. But even more valiant was the toughness showed by Coach Eric, who never missed a single pitch on the way to his second straight complete (well, kind of) game. In terms of incredible sports comebacks, I would rate it just slightly ahead of the Michael Jordan flu game and just slightly behind Curt Schilling's bloody sock. If you missed the webcam broadcast, you can probably best picture it with this scene from the Karate Kid, except instead of, "Daniel LaRusso's going to FIGHT?" the crowd was shouting, "Coach Eric is going to PITCH?"

The win secured the top seed for Big Blue. The next game will be at 2:30 against the winner of Porter Ridge-Carolina Havoc. The winner of that game advances to the championship game at 5:30.

Game 2 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
Bryce started the scoring with a homer to deep left. Gavin followed with a triple to center, then scored on Chace's single to left. Ben singled Chace to second, then Mason drove in Chace with a single. Jake singled to load the bases, and then Asher punched a single up the middle that scored Ben. Timmy ripped a shot off the machine that moved everyone up a base and scored Mason, and then Joey blasted a drive to deep right that scored two, invoking the seven-run rule.
Score after one-half inning: Big Blue 7, Mooresville Legends 0

Second inning
If Big Blue ever starts getting the leadoff man on base, they might really do some damage. With one out, Trey tripled to center. Bryce's single scored him, and then Gavin doubled in Bryce. Chace picked up an RBI single, Ben ripped a shot to third that put runners on first and second, and Mason smoked a bullet to the right side that eventually scored two and allowed Mason to go all the way to third.
Score after one and a half innings: Big Blue 12, Mooresville Legends 0

Third inning
Timmy decided he had had enough of not getting the leadoff man on base, so he singled. Joey tripled him home, then scored on Elias's single. Now moving base-to-base, Trey, Bryce, Gavin and Chace put together four consecutive singles. Ben, Mason and Jake collected the final three RBI of the inning, once again enabling Big Blue to reach the seven-run limit.
Score after two and a half innings: Big Blue 19, Mooresville Legends 0

Game 2 Web Gems

• In the second, Chace made a nice scoop of a low throw to get the force at first.

Game 2 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	7	5	7	X	X	X	19	22
Mooresville Legends	0	0	0	X	X	X	0	0

Western Spring State Game 1: Big Blue 12, Porter Ridge 1

After the quick trip from Apex, Cary, West Raleigh and points inbetween, Big Blue reassembled in Mooresville for the Western Spring State. Just to make things more exciting, the Bees and Thunder decided to play eight innings in the afternoon's late game in West Raleigh, meaning Joey, Jake and Trey arrived just in time for the first pitch.

But once everyone arrived at the field, it was like Big Blue had never missed a beat. The first opponent of the tournament was Porter Ridge, which won the Western North Carolina state title in the summer of 2012 (the western version of the Eastern championship won by the West Raleigh All-Stars). But Big Blue got hits from 10 different players, outhit Porter Ridge 18-4, and flashed very solid defense, setting down Porter Ridge in order in two of the four innings. Just one Porter Ridge runner reached third base all night, and only three Porter Ridge runners reached second.

Coach Sean celebrated the game by losing his mind and declared--only after close consultation with Head Coach Adam, of course--that players could hit the hotel pool as long as they were in bed by 10 p.m. I was able to snap a quick photo of the Big Blue parents when he made that proclamation.

Big Blue will be right back on the field Sunday morning. The last pool game is at 9 a.m. against the Mooresville Legends, and bracket play will begin at either 1 p.m. or 2:30 p.m.

Game 1 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
With one out, JT singled through the left side. Gavin drove him in with a double to deep right-center, and then Chace singled home Gavin.
Score after one-half inning: Big Blue 2, Porter Ridge 0

Second inning
Again, it started with one out. Asher singled. Elias ran for Asher (the catcher) and motored to third on Joey's deep drive to right-center. Jake hit a sacrifice fly to left that scored Elias, and then Trey picked up a two-out RBI with a single to right. Big Blue picked up another two-out RBI when, after Bryce's single put runners on first and second, JT singled to center to score Trey.
Score after one and a half innings: Big Blue 5, Porter Ridge 0

Third inning
Chace led off with a double. With one down, Mason ripped a shot back through the middle that had Coach Eric doing some Matrix moves, scoring Chace. Asher picked up a two-out RBI with an opposite field single that scored Timmy.
Score after two and a half innings: Big Blue 7, Porter Ridge 1

Fourth inning
For the fourth straight inning, the scoring started with one out. This time, it was Trey who ignited the biggest inning of the game, ripping a single to right. He moved to second on Bryce's single, and then JT loaded the bases with a single. That set up Gavin for an epic at-bat, battling Coach Eric for nine pitches before eventually crushing a triple to right-center that cleared the bases. Chace drove in a run with a shot to left-center, Ben singled hard to left, and then Mason finished the scoring with an RBI double.
Score after three and a half innings: Big Blue 12, Porter Ridge 1

Game 1 Web Gems

• In the second, Jake snagged a fly ball in right field and very nearly hosed the runner tagging up at third trying to score.
• Bryce made a diving catch on a sinking liner in right-center leading off the third.
• Virtually the entire Big Blue infield made a heads-up play in the third. With a runner on first, the Porter Ridge hitter singled to center, apparently putting runners on first and second. But Porter Ridge tried to get too aggressive on the bases when the throw looked like it was going to squirt through the infield. They didn't count on Timmy backing up the play, grabbing it near first and throwing across the diamond to JT at third to nail the lead runner.
• Chace made a nice play backing up on a pop fly over shortstop to end the third.
• Ben ended the game by perfectly tracking a fly ball into right-center, going deep to make the play look easy.

Game 1 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	2	3	2	5	X	X	12	18
Porter Ridge	0	1	0	0	X	X	1	4

Winter World Series championship: Big Blue 19, North Wake 6

We could talk about the dominating 19-6 win over a red-hot North Wake team in the 2012 Top Gun Winter World Series championship game. We could talk about the big hits, or the amazing defensive plays (and we will talk about all of that, eventually). We could talk about the five great coaches...but I think we all know they are insufferable already.

So instead, to provide the perfect picture of the fall Big Blue season, let's go to the second inning of Sunday's championship game in Wake Forest. North Wake had built a 6-5 lead going into the bottom of the inning, with Ben due to lead off. He blasted a ball to right field that rolled all the way to the fence, and by the time North Wake got the ball back anywhere close to the infield, he was already crossing the plate.

When it became obvious that it was going to be a home run, I turned around to the Big Blue cheering section to try and find his parents, to enjoy how happy they would be. I couldn't find them--because literally every person in the stands looked like Ben's parents. I saw brothers and sisters of his teammates standing up, rattling the fence as he rounded the bases. I saw mothers and fathers of his teammates standing and looking every bit like it was their son flying around the bases. I never did see Ben's parents, although I'm guessing they were happy. And by the time I turned back around, Ben had already crossed the plate and was making his way to the dugout.

Or rather, trying to make his way to the dugout. He couldn't quite get there, because all of his teammates had poured out of it, and were banging him on the back and smacking him on the helmet. You know for sure Ben is never going to forget that--and what made it so much fun was that it looked like no one else wearing a Big Blue jersey would ever forget it either.

That's the kind of fall (and summer, for that matter) that it's been. What makes this group a really good baseball team is that they are impressive baseball players. They finished 12-0 this fall, outscoring opponents by 189-42. Averaged out, that's roughly 16-4 per game--and keep in mind that many of those innings and games were shortened by the run rule. For example, in the four games in this weekend's World Series, 11 of Big Blue's innings were cut short by the five-run rule. So roughly 30 percent of the time the offense came to bat, the umpires were the only people who could stop it.

So that's pretty impressive. But what carries it beyond being just a really good baseball team is what really good kids--and families--they are. For whatever reason, this group just works together perfectly. I have heard other coaches say they've had trouble with problem parents, and have been around some on previous teams. But I've never heard any of that on this team, and because the parents are setting the example, I never heard the kids complain about the batting order or their defensive position. (Let me take this opportunity to be the first, and say that I really felt all season that Asher should be hitting cleanup, and if Coach Kevin would've just put him there, we probably could've won the Winter World Series title.)

It's just a really fun group that we're so lucky to play with. We have friends who play on other teams, and it's not unusual to hear them talking about how their coach messed up something, or one of the kids on the team is a pain, or they don't want to go to practice. And they give us that look like we're supposed to commiserate and there's not really anything we can say, because every time we play or practice, it always ends up being one of the best parts of the day.

I was thinking about all of that after the 19-6 win. The teams had shaken hands and it was time to clean out the dugout. As usual, the last player in the dugout was Asher, because he was still trying to wedge everything into his bag. He carries approximately enough equipment to stock a Dick's Sporting Goods outlet store, so it takes a while. I was starting to wonder if he'd ever finish, so I walked into the dugout to see if I could speed things along. He had his back to me and couldn't see me coming, and I realized he was talking to himself. And sometimes, seven-year-olds just say it perfectly. Because as I walked up, as he tried to wedge his catcher's mitt into his bag, with no one else around him, this is what he was saying:

"Whooooo! Man, that was fun!"

Championship Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
Bryce led off with a sharp double down the third base line. He scored on JT's single, and JT alertly moved up to second on the throw. He moved to third on Gavin's single, putting runners on the corners. Chace singled home JT, and when the ball wasn't handled cleanly, Gavin also hustled all the way around and Chace raced to third. That put him in position to score on Jake's fielder's choice RBI. With the bases clear, Mason started the rally again with a single. Joey doubled him home to plate the fifth run of the inning and invoke the run rule.
Score after one inning: Big Blue 5, North Wake 2

Second inning
Ben led off with a home run. Ho-hum. Oh, wait a second: BEN LED OFF WITH A HOME RUN! It was blasted to right and wasn't even close at the plate, sparking a wild celebration from his Big Blue teammates. Ben was so excited that he cracked a half-smile. Coach Kevin would like to point out that the homer came on the second pitch of Ben's at-bat, which is roughly 34 fewer pitches than he had in his at-bat at Thursday's practice. Timmy and Elias followed the homer with back-to-back singles, and Asher sacrificed them to second and third. Trey's fielder's choice scored Timmy, and then Bryce singled home Elias. JT's long triple scored Bryce.
Score after two innings: Big Blue 9, North Wake 6

Third inning
Chace singled to the left side of the infield. With one out, Mason ripped a triple to center that scored Chace. Joey doubled home Mason.
Score after three innings: Big Blue 11, North Wake 6

Fourth inning
Elias led off with a single. Asher reached on a fielder's choice that saw Elias forced at second. Trey singled to left. Bryce singled home Asher, and JT singled home Trey. With two outs, Chace's opposite-field single scored Bryce.
Score after four innings: Big Blue 14, North Wake 6

Fifth inning
In a fairly incredible offensive display, especially considering it was the middle and bottom half of the order, Big Blue needed just six batters to score the five-run limit in the bottom of the fifth. Mason and Joey led off with back-to-back singles. Ben singled home Mason and sent Joey to third. Timmy's grounder to short was unplayable, scoring Joey. Elias laced a single to center that scored Ben, and when the throw came home, both Timmy and Elias moved up a base, putting them at second and third. Asher's single to center scored them both and invoked the five-run rule. Fittingly, in the last inning of the season, Big Blue did not record a single out before plating five runs.
Score after five innings: Big Blue 19, North Wake 6


Championship Web Gems

• On the second hitter of the game, Gavin made a tough stop of a hard grounder. His throw to Bryce to try and get the force short-hopped the second baseman, but Bryce dug it out to get the out.
• Big Blue got its third out of the weekend at the plate in the second, as Mason fielded a bases-loaded grounder and threw to Asher for the force at home. 
• What may have been the momentum-turning play of the game happened in the third. With one out and Big Blue holding a fairly narrow 9-6 lead, the North Wake batter hit a hard shot to Elias in right field. In fact, it may have been too hard, because Elias fielded it on the hop, never hesitated, and threw a rope to first base. That's where Timmy was waiting, keeping his foot on the bag while stretching to grab the throw and record the out. That's when you could first see the North Wake mood shift from, "We can do this," to, "They even get us out when we get hits!"
• Mason came flying out of the pitcher's circle in the fourth, scooped up a ball rolling down the first base line with his bare hand, and fired to Chace at first for the out.
• In the fifth, the leadoff North Wake hitter ripped a hard shot down the third-base line that looked like a sure double. Except that JT was already standing there, and snatched it out of the air for an easy out.
• Jake ended it as only he could, running over to grab a fly ball, then alertly firing in a throw to first to double off the unsuspecting runner and end the game and clinch the Winter World Series championship.

Championship line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
North Wake	2	4	0	0	0	0	6	13
Big Blue	5	4	2	3	5	X	19	25

Winter World Series Semifinals: Big Blue 22, Southern Pitt 5

Sometimes you overhear things at the baseball field. Like the two Southern Pitt coaches who were having this conversation near the batting cage on Sunday morning:

Southern Pitt coach 1: "I think we've got a good chance against them. They're going to play good defense, we know that, but they've never seen a team that hits it like we do."

Southern Pitt coach 2: "As long as we don't tell our boys that these same guys are the West Raleigh team from this summer, we should be OK."

That strategy didn't work, and neither did the inventive scorekeeping strategy of trying to persuade the umpires that ground balls should count as outs, as Big Blue moved into the championship game of the Winter World Series with a 22-5 victory over Southern Pitt. It was once again a complete offensive effort, as every player had at least one hit, 11 different players scored at least one run, nine different players had at least two hits, and Big Blue pounded out six extra-base hits.

The game was never any doubt, as Blue plated three quick runs in the first on the way to building an eventual 19-0 lead before Southern Pitt got a runner to third base.

Game 3 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
JT reached on a liner to right-center. With one out, Gavin singled. With two on and two out, Jake got a huge clutch double to drive in the first runs of the game. Mason's single drove in Jake.
Score after one-half inning: Big Blue 3, Southern Pitt 0

Second inning
Timmy led off with a single and hustled to second when the ball wasn't handled cleanly. Elias followed by smoking an RBI double. Asher singled back through the middle to drive in Elias. With one out and Trey on first, Bryce singled the other way. After a fielder's choice, Gavin doubled deep to right-center to score Bryce. Chace invoked the five-run rule with a two-run single to left.
Score after one and a half inning: Big Blue 8, Southern Pitt 0

Third inning
Jake led off with a single to right, and eventually came around to score on Timmy's two-out RBI single.
Score after two and a half innings: Big Blue 9, Southern Pitt 0

Fourth inning
Asher and Trey led off with back-to-back singles, and then Bryce drove in Asher with a single back through the middle. JT crushed a double that scored two. Gavin's hard hit to shortstop turned into a defensive adventure, with JT coming all the way around and Gavin motoring into third. Jake's double scored Chace and invoked the five-run rule yet again.
Score after three and a half innings: Big Blue 14, Southern Pitt 0

Fifth inning
Mason and Joey led off with back-to-back singles. Ben picked up an RBI single with a line drive to left. Timmy smacked an RBI single, and Elias earned an RBI on a grounder to the left side. Timmy came home on Asher's grounder to first. With only one out, Bryce ended the inning due to the five-run rule with an RBI single.
Score after four and a half innings: Big Blue 19, Southern Pitt 0

Sixth inning
JT led off with a single. Gavin hit a rocket to center that turned into an RBI triple. With one out, Jake had an RBI single. After Mason's double, Joey cracked an RBI single to right-center.
Score after five and a half innings: Big Blue 22, Southern Pitt 5

Game 3 Web Gems

• Leading off the second, Chace knocked down a short-hop throw at first base. The overeager hitter was used to a normal eight year-old first baseman, and just assumed the ball would go to the fence, so he made a turn towards second. Bad move. Chace picked up the ball that he had knocked down and made the tag for the first out of the inning.
• With two outs in the second, the Southern Pitt hitter ripped a shot up the middle that looked like a sure single. But Mason never even blinked behind his Terminator sunglasses and speared the ball in the air to end the inning.
• With Big Blue starting to shuffle the defense in the fourth, Chace made a good play to knock down a hard-hit ball in the fourth, then flipped it to Mason covering second to end the inning.
• Trey snuffed a potential huge Southern Pitt inning in the fifth, fielding a tough chance at pitcher and throwing to JT at third to record the force.
• Did you wonder what all those Big Blue coaches were doing wandering around in the infield before the game started? Mostly, they were just trying to look useful, since everyone knows Big Blue players are so good they don't really need coaching. But while trying to look useful, they also found just a few rocks:

And that's just one handful! Of course, Big Blue defense is not subject to rocks, snow, heat, astroturf or hail.  

Game 3 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	3	5	1	5	5	3	22	28
Southern Pitt	0	0	0	0	5	0	5	7

Winter World Series Game 2: Big Blue 23, Edenton Bulldogs 5

After an uneven first game--albeit a solid win--Coach Kevin challenged Big Blue to play a more complete game in the second half of the doubleheader. It's safe to say they responded.

How thorough was the domination in the second game, a 23-5 win over the Edenton Bulldogs? On offense, Big Blue pounded out a season-high 29 hits, with every player on the roster getting at least one hit, 11 different players collecting at least two hits, and 10 different players scoring at least one run.

And that wasn't even the most impressive part of the game. That came on defense, where Big Blue ended any Edenton dreams of an upset right away. The Blue defense retired the first eight Bulldog hitters in a row, setting a fall record for the most consecutive hitters retired (if you're wondering, the team-wide record is 14 hitters in a row retired against the Efland Hawks back on June 17 in Wilmington--you might remember that as the game when the pitching machine was on the fritz, and eight of those outs were via strikeout). Making it more impressive, all eight of the Edenton hitters put the ball in play, and all were handled cleanly.

By the time Edenton had its first baserunner, Big Blue had already built an 11-0 lead. That continued a trend--over the course of the fall, Blue has outscored opponents 40-7 in the first inning, and that figure would be considerably larger if it were not for run limits.

The Edenton bats did eventually find some holes, and the four runs they pushed across in the bottom of the sixth gave the Durham Indians the top seed in Sunday's bracket play. That means Big Blue is the second seed and will open against Southern Pitt at noon on field two. The winner of that game advances to the Winter World Series championship game at 3 p.m.

Game 2 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
It didn't take long to get the limit of five runs. In fact, Big Blue did it without recording an out for the only time of the day. Bryce and JT teamed up for back-to-back singles leading off, and Gavin drove in a pair with a deep double to left-center. Chace singled in Gavin. Jake reached on an error, and then Mason singled home Chace. After a single from Joey, Jake crossed the plate with the inning's fifth run on a single by Ben.
Score after one-half inning: Big Blue 5, Edenton 0

Second inning
Elias singled and was sacrificed to second by Asher. Great baserunning by Elias enabled him to hustle all the way around on Trey's single to the right side.
Score after one and a half inning: Big Blue 6, Edenton 0

Third inning
Just like the first inning, it took just eight at-bats for Big Blue to plate five runs. JT led off with one of his four hits for the game and moved to second on Gavin's fielder's choice. Chace singled to put runners on the corners, and Jake beat out a single that scored JT. With two outs, Joey lined an RBI single. Ben's grounder up the middle wasn't handled, scoring Jake and moving Joey to third. Timmy ended the inning (due to the run rule) with a two-RBI single to center.
Score after two and a half innings: Big Blue 11, Edenton 0

Fourth inning
Once again, it took only eight at-bats to hammer out five runs. With one out, Asher singled through the middle. He moved to second on Trey's single, but then Trey was forced at second on a fielder's choice. That gave Big Blue runners on the corners with two outs, but the inning was just beginning. JT hit what looked to be a single to left...but then turned into three runs, as JT hustled all the way around the bases. Gavin started the rally again with a triple to the fence in right-center, and scored on Chace's grounder. Jake ended the inning with a long double to left-center.
Score after three and a half innings: Big Blue 16, Edenton 0

Fifth inning
Mason and Joey led off with back-to-back singles. With one out, Timmy drove home Mason with a single. Then, with two down, Asher went the other way for an RBI single that plated Joey.
Score after four and a half innings: Big Blue 18, Edenton 1

Sixth inning
Seven straight batters reached leading off the inning, which eventually turned into the fourth five-run inning of the day. Bryce was the first Big Blue hitter on base, and then JT and Gavin cracked a pair of singles. Chace drove in two with a double, and then Jake drove in Gavin. Joey's single scored Chace, and then Elias earned the last RBI of the day with a single to left.
Score after five and a half innings: Big Blue 23, Edenton 1

Game 2 Web Gems

• JT and Chace teamed up on a terrific play to end the first. JT fielded a hard-hit ball down the third base cleanly, then threw all the way across the diamond. That's where Chace was waiting, as he showed some nifty footwork to haul in the throw while maintaining contact with the bag to end the inning.
• The Bulldog batter hit a shot leading off the second, but Mason was there in the pitcher's circle to stab the ball out of the air, then calmly toss to first for the out. Mason and Trey combined to play a flawless 12 innings at pitcher on the day.
• Gavin made a leaping catch of a looping liner over shortstop leading off the third.
• Chace made another great stretch leading off the fifth, doing a near-split to retire a speedy runner by a half-step.
• Elias covered a ton of ground in the fifth, ranging all the way from his normal left field position to left-center to grab a fly ball.
• Big Blue got another out at the plate in the sixth, and again it came from right field. This time it was Jake fielding a hard-hit Bulldog ball and firing into Bryce as the cutoff man. The Big Blue second baseman turned (glove side, of course) and threw a strike to the plate, where Asher was waiting to catch the throw and apply the tag on a leaping runner. 
• The bionic Coach Eric pitched both games of the doubleheader and was absolutely crushed--which is great news.

Game 2 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	5	1	5	5	2	5	23	29
Edenton	0	0	0	1	0	4	5	8

Winter World Series Game 1: Big Blue 22, FVAA Bengals 6

Here's how spoiled Big Blue has made its fans and coaches during the course of the fall 2012 season: they won the 2012 Winter World Series opener 22-6, never trailed in the game, pounded out 24 hits...and it felt like just an OK performance.

Part of that was due to some occasional struggles defensively, with Blue uncharacteristically committing seven errors, including at least one in every FVAA offensive inning, which prolonged several Bengal at-bats. But Big Blue played through those problems, and the game was never really in doubt. The 22 runs scored temporarily set the mark for the most runs scored in a single game this fall.

The victory moved Big Blue to 1-0 in pool play. Seedings for the next day's bracket play would be set following the day's second game, an immediate turnaround matchup against the Edenton Bulldogs.

Game 1 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
The Big Blue offense started fast. Bryce and JT led off with back-to-back singles, and JT stretched his to second base when it went unhandled in the outfield. Bryce, running hard, came all the way around to score. Gavin drove in JT with a double, and then Chace singled up the middle to put runners at the corners. Jake made it 3-0 with a single to the left side, and then Mason completed the scoring with a single up the middle.
Score after one-half inning: Big Blue 4, FVAA 0

Second inning
Elias picked up a one-out single and moved to second when Asher reached on an error. With runners on the corners, Trey slapped an RBI groundout to first.
Score after one and a half inning: Big Blue 5, FVAA 2

Third inning
For the first time in the game, Big Blue hit the five-run limit. JT doubled to left-center and hustled around to third, taking advantage of some confusion in the outfield. With one out, Chace knocked another RBI single, and then Jake singled to right. Mason's hard-hit ball to the left side turned into a single and scored Chace. Big Blue pushed across two more runs with two outs, as an error in the FVAA infield allowed Timmy to reach, brought home Mason, and moved Ben to second. Elias's shot to third was too hot to handle and sent Ben scampering home to crack the run limit.
Score after two and a half innings: Big Blue 10, FVAA 2

Fourth inning
The game was completely broken open in the fourth, and all of the damage came with two outs. With one out, Trey reached on a grounder to third, but then was forced at second. That put Bryce on first with two down...but the inning was just getting started. JT beat out a single to the right side, and then Gavin ripped the ball off the shortstop, scoring Bryce. Chace drove in a pair with a bullet single to center. Jake was safe when he hustled out a grounder, and then Mason sent Blue to the run limit with a deep drive to left-center.
Score after three and a half innings: Big Blue 15, FVAA 2

Fifth inning
Joey led off with a grounder to short, then moved to second on a two-out single by Elias. Asher singled and then moved up to second, with Joey crossing the plate, when the Bengal infield had some issues. Trey ripped a two-run single to score Elias and Asher.
Score after four and a half innings: Big Blue 18, FVAA 4

Sixth inning
JT singled and moved to third on Gavin's double. Chace made it a 5-RBI day with a two-run single to left. Jake singled, and with one down, Joey's liner to right-center scored Chace. Elias finished the game's scoring with a single to center that scored Joey.
Score after five and a half innings: Big Blue 22, FVAA 5

Game 1 Web Gems

• Bryce showed good range up the middle in the second inning, stopped a hard grounder, and threw to first to get the out.
• Jake caught a popup at catcher to end the third.
• Big Blue got the first of the day's two outs at the plate in the fourth. With two on, the batter hit a shot to right field. Bryce cut off the throw, turned, and fired to Jake, who made the tag to cut down the Bengal runner.

Game 1 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	4	1	5	5	3	4	22	24
FVAA Bengals	2	0	0	2	1	1	6	8

CBC Fall Classic Game 2: Big Blue 10, Blue Sox 2

After a quick tour of Boshamer Stadium, Big Blue was back on the field for a 12:30 game against the Blue Sox. The roundrobin format meant the winner of this game would also be the CBC Fall Classic champion.

As they have done frequently lately, Big Blue started fast, scoring four runs in the first inning. Blue has now scored 31 first-inning runs this fall, and has scored at least two runs in the first frame in every game except one. To put those 31 runs into context, consider that in eight games, opponents have scored a grand total of 20 runs in all games combined. After the second tournament this summer, Coach Sean talked to the team about being prepared to play from the very beginning of the game. That was a struggle in a couple of the early tournaments. It's safe to say that lesson has been learned.

The 10-2 win over the Blue Sox wasn't all about offense, however. Big Blue also played a completely error-free game, the first such game this fall. In fact, it was the first error-free game since the July 5 win over Wayne County, and just the second completely error-free game out of the 30 this group has played together in the summer and fall. And they did it in a full six-inning game not shortened by the run rule, and against a Blue Sox team that was putting the ball in play--they had just one strikeout in the game.

The victory gave Big Blue a second straight weekend championship and meant it was time for Coach Kevin's favorite part of the day: pictures.

Note the trophies on the ground serving as placeholders for Ben and Trey, who were playing in a West Raleigh tournament game.

Good luck to everyone playing in West Raleigh postseason games this week, and we will see you at practice on Tuesday at Ephesus at 4:30. As it starts to get darker, we will need to give 9U the field a little earlier, so keep in mind that practice could end as early as 5:45 (which means we need to try especially hard to start at 4:30).

Game 2 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
Big Blue jumped on top early. With one out, JT crushed a double to left. Gavin reached on a grounder to shortstop that was too hot to handle, and JT came all the way around to score. At around that same point, Chace was just stepping into the phone booth to change out of his church clothes. He sauntered to the plate with both shoes untied, no warm-up swings and his jersey just barely buttoned. So you know what happened: he doubled to left, driving in Gavin. Jake followed with a single that put runners at the corners, and then Mason and Joey had back-to-back RBI singles.
Score after one inning: Big Blue 4, Blue Sox 0

Second inning
As usual, Asher had to provide all the power while everyone else was hitting little infield singles, so he led off with a double to right-center, advanced to third on Bryce's fielder's choice, and then scored on Gavin's fielder's choice.
Score after two innings: Big Blue 5, Blue Sox 0

Third inning
Joey reached on a one-out fielder's choice, then advanced all the way to third on Elias's grounder. That put him in position to score on Timmy's RBI grounder to short.
Score after three innings: Big Blue 6, Blue Sox 0

Fourth inning
For the second time in the game, Big Blue sent nine batters to the plate. It started with the leadoff man, Bryce, who singled up the middle. As part of his five-hit day, JT had a single that moved Bryce to second, and then a fielder's choice put runners at the corners. Chace's double to left scored a pair. Jake's  line drive to left allowed Chace to score and sent Jake to second. Mason's grounder was misplayed, scoring Jake and plating the last Big Blue run of the day.
Score after four innings: Big Blue 10, Blue Sox 1

Game 2 Web Gems

• Elias made a hard-hit fly ball look easy in the second, setting under it in left field for the second out.
• Bryce showed a ton of range against the leadoff man in the third inning. The ball was grounded back through the middle, and Bryce sprinted far to his right from his second base position, fielded the ball, then made a strong and lengthy throw to first to retire the hitter.
• Moved into the outfield in the fourth inning, Bryce went down to one knee to gather a sinking line drive to end the frame and strand two Blue Sox runners.
• Playing with just 10 players, with everyone playing multiple positions, Big Blue got terrific defense up and down the lineup. Even the grouchy old scorekeeper couldn't find a way to charge anyone with an error, meaning Big Blue played its first completely error-free game of the fall.

Game 2 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Blue Sox	0	0	0	1	1	0	2	6
Big Blue	4	1	1	4	0	X	10	15

CBC Fall Classic Game 1: Big Blue 17, Elon 1

Sunday's tournament began bright and early in Chapel Hill, where of course everyone was delighted to be around so much blue. It didn't seem to bother the players, however, as they turned in another solid all-around effort, posting a 17-1 win over Elon. All eleven players in the order had a hit and nine different players scored a run.

The other story of the game was the Big Blue defense. Even with the coaches shuffling some players to different positions, the gloves were airtight all the way around, with minimal errors. Elon sent just 20 batters to the plate in the five innings of play.

The win meant the Big Blue-Blue Sox matchup in the 12:30 game would be for the tournament championship. Upon hearing that Bryce wanted to see Boshamer Stadium, where the Carolina baseball team plays, the entire squad decided to take a field trip. They were, of course, suitably impressed by the multimillion dollar facility, including the following high-dollar highlights:

1. Chasing foul balls.
2. The Gatorade machine near the UNC dugout.
3. The fact that the Tar Heel players get a lot of shoes.

Carolina's appeal was so incredibly overpowering that Mason was heard to rave about it, saying, "I guess I wouldn't mind going here." Even Bryce was heard to say that Carolina might not possibly be the worst option in the entire country. He was last seen getting into the car and being handed a book by Coach Kevin.

Game 1 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
Bryce reached leading off the game, then dashed to third on JT's single. Gavin collected the first RBI of the game, a single to right that moved JT to third. JT's baserunning turned out to be important, because it enabled him to score on Jake's fielder's choice.
Score after one-half inning: Big Blue 2, Elon 0

Second inning
The biggest inning of the game began with back-to-back singles by Elias and Ben. Timmy's grounder to first scored Elias and moved Ben to second. Asher singled back through the middle, and Trey's infield single scored Ben. Bryce and JT smacked back-to-back singles that scored Asher and Trey, and then Gavin's deep triple cleared the bases and invoked the run rule.
Score after one and a half inning: Big Blue 8, Elon 0

Third inning
Jake led off by crushing a triple to deep right-center, then scored on Mason's sacrifice fly. Joey singled and Elias beat out a grounder, and then Ben singled to load the bases. Timmy, Trey and Bryce drove RBI singles to complete the scoring.
Score after two and a half innings: Big Blue 12, Elon 0

Fifth inning
Big Blue once again put up the five-run limit in the fifth. Timmy led off with a single and moved to second on Asher's single. Trey's hard-hit ball to left turned into a fielder's choice at third on a nice play by the left fielder. With runners on first and second, Bryce drove in a run with a single. JT's single scored Trey, and then Gavin singled to load the bases for Jake. Using the new bat, he drove in a pair with a two-run double. Mason's single scored Gavin and ended the inning with five runs and just one out.
Score after four and a half innings: Big Blue 17, Elon 1

Game 1 Web Gems

• JT ended the first inning with a double play, spearing a line drive at third and then firing to Timmy at first to double the runner off and retire the side.
• Gavin made a nice sliding play in shallow center for the second out of the third inning.
• Timmy smoothly caught a fly ball in left to end the third.
• Timmy also ended the fifth--and the game--with a good play at first base. On a hard-hit line drive straight down the first base line, he moved to his left and made a diving snag.
• NOT A WEB GEM: Jennifer LaMattina was in perfect position to catch a foul ball for the second weekend in a row, but some other selfish parents jumped in front of her. The good news is no nails were lost this weekend.

Game 1 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	2	6	4	0	5	X	17	24
Elon	0	0	0	1	0	X	1	3

Clemmons Super Regional Game 4: Big Blue 20, King Kryptonite 2

After spending the 90-minute break between games eating, running through the woods, and having some sort of in-depth game on the t-ball field, Big Blue reassembled at 2:30 for the final game of the weekend, against the King Kryptonite. The round-robin format meant that if Big Blue could win this game, they'd win the weekend championship. A King win would've required Big Blue to hang around and see the outcome of the day's final game.

Instead of waiting, however, they broke out the big bats immediately. The run limit (seven runs) crossed the plate in the first inning, giving Blue an early cushion they would not relinquish. The offense pounded out a fall-high 25 hits. For the second game in the weekend, every player on the roster had at least one hit. Eleven different players scored at least one run and nine different players drove in at least one run.

The victory meant the trophies could be awarded immediately after the game.

Coach Kevin gathered the team down the right-field line and underlined one of the weekend's points of emphasis--the four H's (hustle, heart, humble, home). "I'm very proud of the way you played," he told them.

By the way, have you ever wondered what it's like to be a member of Big Blue 8U? It means constantly dealing with paparazzi.

With the victory secure, most members of the team cleared out as quickly as possible. However, not without first making sure their loyal head coach, Coach Kevin, was taken care of and had a ride home. Um...

The good news is that it looks like he has a pillow, so he won't be uncomfortable sleeping in the parking lot tonight. If anyone is passing through Clemmons before Tuesday, can you stop and give Coach Kevin, Bryce and Gavin a ride home?

Big Blue will practice Tuesday from 4:30-6 at Ephesus. Thanks to everyone, players and parents (that's where the "home" part of the four H's comes in, in case you were wondering) alike, for a fun weekend.

Game 4 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
For the second time in three games, Big Blue put up the run limit (seven runs) in the very first inning. Bryce led off with a single to left. JT doubled, sending Bryce all the way around to score. Gavin's grounder to short was unplayable, scoring JT. Chace blasted a double to left-center that scored Gavin, and Jake's grounder to the right side scored Chace. Mason singled to put two runners on base, and with one out, Ben loaded the bases with a grounder to third. Timmy scored Jake with a single, Elias's single scored Mason, and Asher's opposite-field single scored Timmy to invoke the run limit.
Score after one-half inning: Big Blue 7, Kryptonite 0

Second inning
JT reached on a two-out fielder's choice, setting up a big two-out, four-run rally. Gavin's thunderous double scored JT, and Chace picked up an RBI for the fourth straight at-bat with a single to left. Jake's double to right moved Chace to third, and then Mason scored a pair with a single back through the middle.
Score after one and a half innings: Big Blue 11, Kryptonite 1

Third inning
With one out, Elias and Asher had back-to-back singles. Then another two-out rally started, this time good for five runs. It began when Bryce doubled home Elias and Asher. JT's single drove in Bryce, and Gavin's long triple to right scored JT. Chace ended the scoring with a double to left that brought Gavin home.
Score after three and a half innings: Big Blue 16, Kryptonite 2

Fourth inning
Mason led off with a double. Joey ripped an RBI single the opposite way, then moved to second on Ben's single. Timmy singled back through the middle and raced to second when it took an extra second to get the ball in from the outfield. Elias drove home a pair, making it a 3-RBI day for him. Asher singled...and then the umpires just kind of decided to stop playing. The run limit hadn't been reached, there was still some time left before the time limit, but, well, they were apparently ready to be finished.
Score after five innings: Big Blue 20, Kryptonite 2

Game 4 Web Gems

• Coach Kevin made a crucial coaching decision in the bottom of the third, sending Chace to right-center and Timmy to first base. The results? The other eight Big Blue defenders stood around and watched as Chace retired the first two hitters on fly balls, and Timmy snagged a pop-up to end the inning.
• Hardy Dail made a running snag of a foul ball off the bat of Gavin, then immediately hit the cutoff man to get the ball back into the infield. The Big Blue cheering section had an incredible weekend defensively on both days.

Game 4 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	7	4	5	4	X	X	20	25
Kryptonite	1	1	0	X	X	X	2	2

Clemmons Super Regional Game 3: Big Blue 10, Carolina Havoc 5

Something that hadn't happened since June 17 happened on Sunday in Clemmons: this particular team trailed at the end of an inning. The last time it happened was in Wilmington against West Raleigh 8U, a stretch of 14 straight games without trailing at the end of an inning. That's an incredible statistic.

In Sunday's first game, it was the Carolina Havoc that built a lead, holding a 4-3 advantage at the end of three innings that they eventually stretched to 5-3 going into the bottom of the fourth. The Havoc did it with defense, as Big Blue was crushing the ball offensively, but a Havoc defender was always there to make a play.

Coach Kevin gathered the hitters after the third inning and had a simple request: "Keep hitting the ball." That's exactly what they did. The hits eventually found holes in the fourth, as five runs crossed the plate to wipe out the deficit. Big Blue tacked on two more runs in the fifth while playing very solid defense to hold on for the 10-5 win.

"I was very proud of you," Coach Kevin told the team afterwards. "A couple things didn't go your way, and you picked yourself up and played Big Blue baseball. We did the little things, and when we do the little things in a game like this, it's going to work out for us."

Many of those little things were subtle defensive plays that wouldn't necessarily show up in the box score, but might have kept a force out in order or prevented an extra base. As you might expect, the game's Web Gems listing is lengthy.

The victory meant Big Blue could clinch the weekend championship with a win over King Kryptonite in their final game of the day.

Incidentally, loyal readers will remember that the Charlie Daniels Band was staying at the same hotel with the team. Have you ever wondered what a night out with Charlie Daniels might look like? Coach Kevin snapped this photo of an unidentified morning-after victim with an incredibly vicious case of bed-head that might explain it:

Game 3 Big Blue scoring plays
Second inning
With one out, Jake knocked a single the opposite way. Mason followed with a double to deep center that scored Jake. With two outs, Ben came through with a clutch double that scored Mason and tied the score.
Score after two innings: Big Blue 2, Carolina Havoc 2

Third inning
Elias led off with a single and was sacrificed to second by Asher, where he was scored by Trey's double to right-center.
Score after three innings: Carolina Havoc 4, Big Blue 3

Fourth inning
The biggest inning of the game began with Gavin's double to deep right-center. Chace ripped an RBI single to left and moved to second when the ball was too hot to handle. That enabled him to score on Jake's single to right. With Jake on third and two outs, Ben's grounder scored Jake, and then Timmy's single put runners on first and second. Elias doubled home Ben and Asher singled home Timmy to finish the big five-run inning.
Score after four innings: Big Blue 8, Carolina Havoc 5

Fifth inning
Bryce and JT went back-to-back with doubles to score a quick run. With one out, Chace's double to left-center scored JT.
Score after five innings: Big Blue 10, Carolina Havoc 5

Game 3 Web Gems

• Elias started the game by grabbing a fly ball in left field from the Havoc leadoff hitter.
• With a runner on first later that same inning, the Havoc cleanup batter crushed a ball to deep center field. Timmy scampered back to field it and fired it into second base, where Gavin was waiting to receive the throw and slap the tag on, nailing the hitter trying to stretch it to a double and ending the inning.
• Gavin showed incredible toughness in the second. After taking a bad-hop grounder off his head, he stayed in the game and then ended the inning with a diving play on a sinking liner in the hole to his right.
• Bryce came barreling in from third base on a bunt with two runners on in the fourth, scooped it up, and then fired hard to Chace at first to get an out.
• With one out in the fifth, the hitter drove a ball deep to left-center. It looked certain to be extra bases, but Joey cut it off and limited the batter to a single. That turned out to be very important, because...
• The very next hitter slapped a ground ball up the middle, where Gavin scooped it up, stepped on second, and threw to first to record the inning-ending double play.
• Ben earned style points plus web gem points by waiting until the last second to leap and haul in a hard-hit liner to right center in the sixth.
• NOT A WEB GEM: Jake was minding his own business in the bushes behind the Big Blue dugout, where he was, ah, you know. He didn't have time to go deep in the bushes because he was the third hitter of the inning. Gavin accepted the challenge and fouled off a ball that missed Jake, who had his back to the field (thankfully for all of us), by perhaps a foot. Jake did not make the play, and no one wanted to touch that particular foul ball.

Game 3 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Havoc	0	2	2	1	0	0	5	12
Big Blue	0	2	1	5	2	X	10	14

Clemmons Super Regional Game 2: Big Blue 16, SW Colts 1

With the temperature rapidly dropping, Big Blue used their crafty rule-breaking strategy of standing near the front of the batter's box to defeat the SW Colts, 16-1. A rough estimate determined that the score if all Big Blue batters had been standing in the middle of the batter's box would have been...16-1. The game was limited to four innings by the 10-run rule.

The second game of the day saw a fall-high 23 hits from the Big Blue offense, with every player in the batting order picking up at least one base hit, 10 different players scoring a run and 10 different players driving in at least one run. "You did a great job of playing as a team," Coach Kevin told them as they gathered in the dugout after the game.

The tournament format is round-robin. Big Blue faces Carolina Havoc at 11:30, then plays King Kryptonite (the day's other 2-0 team) at 2:30 to complete play in Clemmons.

On a side note, it should be noted that the Charlie Daniels Band is staying at the Big Blue hotel tonight, so if no one spots Coach Ken by 12:30 or so, he is probably getting fiddle lessons and/or proposing that "Big Blue Went Down to Clemmons" has just as catchy a ring as "Devil Went Down to Georgia."

Game 2 Big Blue scoring plays
First inning
Bryce led off with a single and raced around to score on JT's hard-hit double. Gavin lifted a fly ball to right-center that moved JT to third, and when the Colts couldn't find the handle, JT came all the way around to score. With the bases clear, Chace and Jake lined back-to-back singles, and Mason followed with an RBI single. Joey's single scored a pair, and then Timmy singled in Joey. Trey drove in the final run of the inning with a hard-hit ball to the right side that invoked the run rule.
Score after one inning: Big Blue 7, SW Colts 0

Second inning
With one out, JT singled. Gavin blasted a double to deep center that one-hopped the wall. Two runners in scoring position was the perfect scenario for Chace, who doubled them both home. Jake lined an RBI single back through the middle, then moved to second on Mason's single. After a fielder's choice moved Jake to third, Timmy scored Jake with a grounder to short.
Score after three innings: Big Blue 11, SW Colts 0

Third inning
Bryce began a two-out rally with a grounder to the left side. JT singled to right-center, and then Gavin lined an RBI single to center. Chace singled home JT to finish the scoring.
Score after four innings: Big Blue 13, SW Colts 0

Fourth inning
With one out, Joey beat out an infield single. After Timmy was robbed on a liner back up the middle, Elias crushed (right?) a single to right that put runners on the corners. Asher singled through the left side to drive in Joey, and Trey and Bryce drilled RBI singles to score the final Big Blue runs of the evening.
Score after five innings: Big Blue 16, SW Colts 1

Game 2 Web Gems

• Elias made a solid play in right field leading off the third, as he made a sprawling catch to limit the leadoff Colt to a single rather than letting the ball roll into the gap for extra bases.
• Joey fired out from behind the plate, pounced on a bunt, and threw a rocket to Timmy at first to retire the next batter.
• Suitably inspired by Joey, Chris Overton made a one-handed snag of a high foul ball, robbing John Walsh on the first row of the Big Blue cheering section. Unlike Mama Lama in game 1, he did not break a nail.
• Playing shortstop with a man on first in the fourth, JT ranged to his left, gobbled up a grounder, stepped on second for the force, and then threw to Timmy at first to complete the double play.

Game 2 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Big Blue	7	4	2	3	X	X	16	23
SW Colts	0	0	1	0	X	X	1	3