September 28-30

Friday evening: the football team at McCaskey was scheduled to play at home but the midweek rains reeked havoc on the playing field at the stadium, in mid-afternoon the game was postponed and rescheduled for Saturday night. JPM has only four home games in 2018 thanks to a scheduling snafu, apparently the first game of the season was supposed to be at home but it was played on the road. I'm told we'll get that game at home in '19 and have six at home overall to make up for it. Had my usual weekend visit with Jenny on Saturday morning, in the evening I was at the game. Neither school's band was there since Saturday is a big night for band competitions, we played the pregame anthem from a cell phone. JPM head coach Eric Spencer told me the field was a swamp on Friday afternoon, the ground was so soggy it was almost impossible to stand up on it. This was a matchup of teams who have struggled thus far, the Red Tornado entered at 1-4 and visiting Penn Manor was 0-5. Manor had been outscored 200-20 through their first five games but on this night you would have never known it, they raced out to a 21-0 lead midway through the second quarter. JPM got on the board on a touchdown pass from Isaiah Thomas to Christian Vasquez but another PM score made it 28-7 at the half. The only score after the intermission belonged to McCaskey, Thomas found Noah Santiago for a touchdown but it meant little as JPM lost 28-14. The program has not been strong in recent years but quite frankly this is a loss that may very well be rock-bottom, at this point there cannot be any other way to go except up. The next home game is on October 12 when Hempfield visits for the Homecoming game. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 24-27

Monday night at Reservoir Park for the start of the autumn dek hockey season. The workday actually began at 3:00 when Don called, he and a friend were delivering the new Billy-Goat. The old one finally bit the dust, I took the opportunity to run the new machine around and get the feel of it since the rink surface needed the attention anyway. We had just one game scheduled on opening night, the Hammerheads defeated Risky Business (the league's new club) in a good competitive contest. We had three games each on the docket for Tuesday and Thursday but much as she did during baseball season Mother Nature reared her ugly head. On Tuesday we had an all-day rain, on Thursday we got hit in late afternoon and it stayed all night. I had actually been at the rink after lunch to do some cleanup even though I knew that we were facing a bad forecast, had we played it would have been worthwhile. I was able to work all six games into open spots on Mondays, it just means that the teams involved will have a three-game week when their turn comes up. Week #2 starts on Monday the 1st with two games, one scheduled and one makeup. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 20-23

The Barnstormers season ended in extra innings on Sunday night in Sugar Land. The series had gone "deep in the heart of" even at 1-1, after winning game #3 the Stormers lost the last two. The Sunday game was one for the books, the Stormers led 4-0 early and 5-2 in the ninth before the Skeeters rallied to tie and force extras. In the tenth the Barnstormers went up 6-5 only to see Sugar Land tie it and walk it off on a game-ending grand slam. The Skeeters meet Long Island for the league title and I'd be for them to win it because I've always felt there's no shame in losing to the eventual champ. There was little else going on outside of seeing Jenny for our usual lunch date on Saturday. On Thursday Don and I firmed up the format for the new dek hockey season, the Club Division has seven teams with the addition of one new club. We play three games each on Tuesday and Thursday with one oddball game (which is necessary because of the odd numbers of teams) on Monday evening. We plan to run a Draft Division again if we get enough interest, those games would help to fill in the open spots on Mondays and we can also play any makeups we get on that night as well. Each Club Division team plays three games against two opponents and two games against the other four, the season starts Monday the 24th and runs through November 8. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 17-19

Tuesday and Wednesday nights at the ballpark for playoff baseball, the Barnstormers hosted the Sugar Land Skeeters in the first two games of the Freedom Division championship series. Long Island and Somerset were meeting in the Liberty Division series, the Patriots won the first-half title and the Ducks took the second half. The Skeeters won both ends of the Freedom, the Stormers earned their spot as the lone wild-card entry by posting the best overall mark among non-division winners. The first two games of the Stormers-Skeeters series were a study in contrast. There were eleven total runs scored with the Barnstormers posting the first five and the Skeeters the next six, when the smoke cleared the series was tied 1-1. In the Tuesday opener the Stormers went up 1-0 in the second when newcomer Conrad Gregor (most recently in the Boston Red Sox organization) singled and scored on Trayvon Robinson's RBI double. In the third Tyler Bortnick drew a walk and rode home on Blake Gailen's two-run home run to make it 3-0. The Stormers added single runs in the fourth on a Vladimir Frias RBI single and in the fifth on a solo home run from Gailen to carry a 5-0 lead into the ninth. The Skeeters put together a three-run rally but Kevin Munson was able to put out the fire and save the victory for winning pitcher Nate Reed. Reed went eight innings allowing just two hits and striking out seven. In game #2 on Wednesday Sugar Land took a 2-0 lead in the first and added an insurance run in the ninth, that was all there was as the Skeeters evened the series. The Barnstormers were held to just five hits (all singles) and never mounted a serious threat of any kind. Jonathan Albaladejo started and worked seven innings, took the loss and deserved a better fate. The rest of the series (which is now essentially a 2-of-3) is in Texas over the weekend, the winner hosts the first two games of the league championship series on the 25th and 26th. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 14-16

The Atlantic League's regular season ended over the weekend, the league's as-needed travel team literally reached the end of its road as well. When the Bridgeport franchise dropped out at the end of 2017 the Road Warriors were activated for the first time since 2011, their odyssey began on April 27 and over 13,000 miles later it ended on this weekend in Lancaster. The team existed solely to balance the schedule, it wasn't built to be a contender and it wasn't the least bit surprising to see it post the league's worst record at 29-97 but there is much more to the story than just that. Every man on the roster is a consummate professional who understood what the circumstances were, as a group they are much better than any win-loss record could ever indicate. High Point, North Carolina is expected to join the league in 2019, if all goes as planned the Road Warriors will go dormant again until The Next Time. The games in this series were utterly meaningless in the final standings, the Barnstormers won all three rather easily by scores of 14-1, 11-1 and 13-5. The Stormers finish at 74-52, the second-best mark in the league behind only first-round playoff opponent Sugar Land. Before the game on Sunday afternoon the organization announced its end-of-season award winners, relief pitcher Garrett Granitz won the club's Community Service award and Ryan Casteel (team-leading .321 batting average) was voted by the fanbase as team MVP. Blake Gailen's 28 home runs and 91 RBI led the league, Blake was also the only ALPB player to appear in every game his team played. Darian Sandford topped the circuit with 82 stolen bases, Rico Noel was second with 53. On the mound Nate Reed's 13 wins led the league, Brooks Hall also won in double digits with 11. The ballclub hosts Sugar Land for the first two games of the Freedon Division championship series on Tuesday the 18th and Wednesday the 19th. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 10-13

The dreary weather conditions were still around on Monday morning, I saw on the Internet where the 11:00 start time for the doubleheader at the ballpark was in an indefinite delay. I went by around 11:00, there were a few people standing outside but the field was covered and the gates were not open. On my way back into town after lunch I went by the ballpark once again and it was deserted. Found out later via the worldwide web that the games had been transferred to a local college facility with a turf surface, they were getting started at 1:00 which was just about the time I was learning the news. Under the circumstances I decided to bag it and stay in largely because it was simply a very unpleasant day. During the afternoon I saw photos posted by the hearty folks who were there, the general consensus was that it was one of the stranger experiences most of them had ever had. The Barnstormers earned a split of the doubleheader with a game #2 victory, the game was actually called due to darkness once it became official since the facility had no lights. The lousy weather lingered into the middle of the week, I had planned on one final trip to York on Wednesday but the forecast was very discouraging. Going to the ballpark here in Lancaster is one thing, if they don't play it's only a one-mile trip home but York is a different matter altogether. If I lived equally distant from each city I'd probably visit each more equitably but obviously that is not the case. The Barnstormers were in New Britain for three games in midweek, on Wednesday they clinched a postseason berth for the first time since 2015. The Stormers could meet either Sugar Land or Somerset in the first round of playoffs depending on who the fourth qualifier is, Long Island and York are in close contention for the last spot. The season's final weekend will settle the issue, the Barnstormers finish at home with a three-game set against the Road Warriors. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 8-9

Overnight into Saturday the weather changed markedly, the day began cloudy and breezy with much cooler temperatures. At the football game on Friday it had been much warmer and there was virtually no wind at all, I was continually wiping my eyeglasses because the lenses were fogging up from watching the game through my binoculars (it's how I identify the players, I could never work a football game any other way). On this day there would have been no such issues, daytime highs never got out of the 60s. Had lunch with Jenny and her mother in the morning, later in the day we were all at the ballpark. The Barnstormers began a series with the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs on Friday with a 4-3 win, on this night the clubs played a doubleheader. The last time the Stormers were in Waldorf two games were lost to weather, they were reset as back-to-back doubledips in Lancaster on September 8 and 9. We were sitting on the hill in left field as usual, about fifteen minutes before game time it began to rain lightly. We moved into the grandstand under the roof and stayed there for the duration, despite the rain the first game started on time at 5:00. The Stormers broke on top early, in the first Blake Gailen reached on a fielders choice groundout and scored on Ryan Casteel's two-run home run. In the fifth back-to-back singles by Gailen and Casteel put runners on the corners, Trayvon Robinson's sac fly RBI plated Gailen to make it 3-0. K.C. Hobson's solo home run in the sixth wrapped up the scoring, Nate Reed worked six innings for the 4-0 win with Huascar Brazoban providing last-inning relief. The second game didn't start until after 8:00, with the rainy conditions we decided not to stay much longer. Saw online where game #2 wasn't over until after 11:00, the Blue Crabs earned a split with a 6-5 win. The rain stayed around in earnest into Sunday, the afternoon doubleheader never got started. Since both teams had an off-day on Monday the games were reset for that day at 11:00. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 6-7

The nightcap at the ballpark on Wednesday night started shortly before 9:30 and wasn't over until almost 11:45, the Barnstormers won 3-2 to earn a split of the evening's activities (and on a side note I'll just say what I've said many times: I lived this life for thirty-five years and I don't envy anyone involved under those circumstances). On Thursday we were back in the heat and humidity for the series' rubber game, the visitors from northern New Jersey took a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Ryan Casteel hit a solo home run in the second, in the fourth Trayvon Robinson walked and scored on a wild pitch to tie the score. Somerset responded loudly with a five-run fifth inning to go up 7-2, the Stormers got two back in the sixth on Rico Noel's two-run double scoring K.C. Hobson and newcomer Stephen Perez (formerly of the Washington Nationals organization). The Patriots added an insurance run in the eighth and won it 8-4, John Anderson was the Stormers' pitcher of record. On Friday the homestand continued but I was in another stadium about a mile away for the start of my 31st year on the mic at McCaskey. The Red Tornado hosted Reading High in a non-league contest, the 2017 game in Reading was one of JPM's two victories. There was lightning in the area, by rule we were required to wait until all was clear. Once the teams were allowed on the field there was some rainfall during the warmups but by kickoff at 7:15 (fifteen minutes late thanks to the delay) it was all gone. JPM trailed 7-0 at the quarter but a three-touchdown salvo in the second gave the Home Team a 21-10 lead at the half. It was 21-17 after three, two more JPM touchdowns in the fourth put away a 34-17 win. Returning wideout Jamiere Gray was the game's #1 star with four touchdowns, three on receptions from quarterback Isaiah Thomas and the fourth on a 100-yard interception return. Running back Isaiah Jackson rushed for a touchdown and kicker Sam Hershey added four PATs (the fifth attempt failed due to a bad snap from center). The boys improve to 1-2, the next home game is on the 28th against Penn Manor. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 3-5

Monday was the annual Labor Day holiday which I have always considered the unofficial end of summer. Around here most of the schools have been back in session for at least a week, in my day we always went back the day after Labor Day. The daytime temperatures continue to be unseasonably hot, several schools in the area have been dismissing early because of the excessive heat. On Tuesday evening we had the captains meeting for the Fall dek hockey season at the rink, if all goes well we may be starting on the week of the 17th. Saw Jenny on Wednesday for lunch, in the evening I was on North Prince Street as the Barnstormers returned home for the first time in ten days. The Somerset Patriots had been the most recent visitor, on this night they were back for a scheduled doubleheader. Every team had two scheduled home twinbills in 2018 thanks to the shorter schedule, the Stormers had their other one in July against York. In most years there would be very few of these because the weather would necessitate enough doubledips of the makeup variety. Game #1 began at 6:00, the Stormers broke the ice in the bottom of the second when Ryan Casteel walked and scored on Josh Bell's RBI double. Back-to-back walks loaded the bases for Rico Noel, he was hit by the pitch forcing home Bell from third to make it 2-0. Blake Gailen's solo home run in the third upped the Stormer lead to three, in the top of the fifth the visiting Patriots rang up three of their own to tie the game. In the bottom half the Barnstormers replied with another three thanks to five consecutive walks and just one hit. Darian Sandford, Tyler Bortnick and Gailen all reached base via the free ticket, Casteel walked to plate Sandford and Bell's walk scored Bortnick. The next two batters were retired before Carlos Garcia's RBI single brought Gailen home making it 6-3 Stormers. Somerset had the final say with four runs in the seventh inning (the last inning of regulation) to take the opener 7-6, Huascar Brazoban was the losing pitcher in relief of starter Joe Gardner. It was almost 8:45 by the time the game ended, with an announced start time of 9:20 for the nightcap I decided to head home, get a shower and spend the rest of the night in the comfort of air conditioning. Take care, thanks for reading.

August 27-September 2

The last week of August felt more like the middle of July, daytime highs for the most part were in the 90s. Summer dek hockey continued on Tuesday evening with what would have been the final games, Gold met Orange and Blue played Green. Thursday night was the official end of the season with the makeup games from the 21st, Blue vs Orange and Green vs Gold. Each team played nine games, a total of forty-eight players participated in the eighteen-game schedule. The month ended on Friday with week #2 of high school football season, I was planning to go to McCaskey's game over in York but the weather didn't cooperate. There were massive thunderstorms all over the area, in the afternoon I was monitoring the Internet and postponements were being announced all around due to the rain. There were reports of flooded roads including a ten-mile stretch of route 30 in York County but there was no immediate word on the status of McCaskey's game. Shortly after 4:00 I got a telephone call from old acquaintance Steve Polonus, a former assistant basketball coach and athletic director at McCaskey. These days Steve is the AD at Hempfield, their game was postponed to Saturday morning and he asked if I might be available and willing to work it since their regular PA guy couldn't do it. I've known Steve since 1988, he was in a bind and there really wasn't any reason I couldn't so under the circumstances I wasn't going to turn him down. The game kicked off at 10:00 which in itself was a bad flashback for me, before McCaskey had lights at the stadium our home games were always on Saturdays at 10:30. When I arrived and touched base with Steve he was with Danny Walck, Hempfield's head basketball coach and another guy I have history with (Danny was the AD at Lancaster Catholic who brought me aboard to work their football games back in 1996). During the course of the day I got a few "Frenchy, what are you doing here?" reactions from those who didn't know I was just there helping a friend out (although nobody seemed to be particularly upset about it either). The game was over by 12:15, I made my way from Landisville to Jenny's place for a later-than-usual lunch (she was aware I was working football and might run late). Saw on the Internet where McCaskey lost in York, that game was played on Saturday at 11:00. The boys stand at 0-2 with a pair of road non-league losses, JPM plays its first home game on September 7. Take care, thanks for reading.