baseball, football and o-feel-ya

We had our first actual baseball practice on Saturday, and I was very much surprised and relieved. We got some talent behind all that modesty at the first meeting. On the flip side, the youngster didn't make the advanced ball team. The coach was supposed to call everyone and let them know but never did. Our clue was Sunday after church, his old coach asked him if he wanted to practice with his team, which is the next age group up, so we went. On the next field over, the advanced team (that he obviously didn't make because he wasn't on the field) was practicing. Nice way to find out. The youngster just stared in disbelief, looked at me and said, "I was one of the better players there." I did sent an e-mail to the baseball commissioner for his league complaining (not about not making the team, but about not being told), and got an immediate response. He agreed with me, and said he'd take it up with the coach. As for whether or not he should be on the team, I honestly don't know, but I do know that there are politics involved dealing with parents of kids who have always played advanced ball. If a boy played last year, he and his parents expect that he'll be playing again this year, and explanations aren't fun. I think displacing one of those kids isn't a matter of being a little bit better. It's a matter of being so obviously better that the coach sees he has to deal with the parents and make the switch. Oh well. Life ain't fair. I told the youngster, all you can do is play your best on the team you do play for, and show those other coaches what they're missing. He seemed OK with that. Last night he was wanting to do sit-ups with the medicine ball again, which we haven't done in weeks (and is far from the most fun way of getting better, but he knows it's helping him get stronger), so I think he'll take the whole episode as a challenge. It's either that or he's taking to heart the words of his coach for lessons who started him on the sit-ups with a medicine ball drill, "Dude, chicks dig the six pack."

College football from my point of view: Rutgers 38 - Villanova 6. That's it. You know you're scraping bottom when you're Rutgers' bitch.

The Jaguars still have trouble getting into the end zone, but they beat the Seahawks, so I'm not complaining too much. (Still, you go +5 in the turnover ratio, you should be blowing someone out.) They did some interesting things with Matt Jones, so it could be a fun season. There were a ton of surprises in yesterday's games, but that's the way it ought to be. Keep it interesting. Next for us is Indy on the road. Nobody will expect much out of the Jaguars....except the Colts. We were the only team to win in Indy last year, and I'm sure they'll be gunning for us. If they'd only believe their press clipping for a week, just for me.

O-feel-ya is on her way to the Carolina coast. I'm so hoping you folks get by with a bit of rain and nothing else.

as a p.s. - I told the youngster I sent that e-mail and that the commissioner agreed with me. Ever the optimist, he asked, "Does that mean I might still get to play advanced?" I had to tell him, "No, I don't think that'll be an option after I said the coach showed a complete lack of class. I don't expect that we're on his good side." In the catching more flies with honey than vinegar vein, I have learned once you piss in someone's corn flakes, you effectively lessen the probability that they want to be your buddy or do you favors.