It has been a long-known fact that the Lords and Ladies are a fair-weather team, and they perform best when given with the best conditions. In fact a full decade of L & L stats support this. So with May 29th bringing with it 'perfect fair weather' for a ball game, the crowd was excited and there was almost a stampede to obtain tickets for what promised to be a thrilling match. Too bad the Stub-Hub Internet bots had bought-out all the seats in the first 1.2 seconds of the tickets being available. Regardless the temperature was moderate, the humidity was low, the sun was shining, and the wind was non-existent. A field closure from the City of Pickering due to damaged drainage on PARC East relocated the Lords and Ladies game to the perfectly dry and goose-poo free PARC West field. Even the John-Deer tractor raking guy spent extra time making sure the field was perfect. Everything was lined-up for a solid game.
So with Acu-Poke Brian back in the line-up, and heavy-hitter Paul fresh out of the Operating Room ready to slug some balls, the team was in for a big game against the mighty 'Up and Atom'. During warm-up surveillance Up and Atom was observed to have some fresh talent of their own, with a gazelle playing in the field, and a fielder/back-up pitcher with new-tech bright red 'Power-shorts' and matching shoes. To try and throw-off and confuse the 'Ladies fielders, Up & Atom dressed their heavy-hitter and light-hitter in matching neon-blue shirts too. Obviously they new that L&L was a force to be reckoned with.
Thus in the top of the first the Ladies were up to bat. With Brandy at lead-off she pulled-through with a powerful hit and made it on the bag. Safe! Wade as number 2 delivered a slug-hit, followed by Pete. Acu-Poke Brian showed he had been training during the off season and performed a mighty-sprint to first base. Then Up & Atom pulled their act together, getting-out Denise, Brendon, and Kate. 2 runs L & L, almost as many as their total runs in the previous game! The bottom of the first led to 2 runs from Up and Atom, and the game was tied.
The second inning showed that Up and Atom had game. The gazelle made a few flying leap catches, and Andrew, Tim and Paul were all quickly up then out. Only newbie Margo made it safely to first base. With Up and Atom gaining three runs in the second for a score of 5-2, the crowds started to worry.
Then in the third inning L&L learned that they had to work for it. Five solid runs were delivered (Brandy, Wade, Pete, Brendon, and Brian), and only 2 runs were let-in. Unfortunately for the Ladies, one of those Up & Atom runs was a 'bounce the ball off the top of the fence' out-of-the-park home run, showing that the opposing team could really hit. Tie game 7-7 going into the fourth. Now the excitement starts!
The fourth inning delivered five more runs for the 'Ladies (Paul, Brandy, Pete, Denise, Brendon), and the gazelle proved yet-again that it was capable of flying-leap catches of every ball that Tim put out into the field, no matter where it was placed. Fortunately the 'Ladies got their fielding together to stop any Up & Atom runs, bringing them ahead. The secret power of the Moe-K8 combo at pitcher/first was beginning to deliver. Brendon at left-field made a big catch too, and everyone else also had great fielding! 12-7 for the Ladies, going into the fifth. Were they going to make it?
In the 5th Up and Atom made a big come-back, only letting in 1 run (Paul), while gaining 4 runs themselves. Close game, 13-11 for the Ladies.
This just fuelled the 'Ladies fire for the 6th, who knew they had what it would take to win. Brendon started the 6th off with a huge over-the-fence home run, showing Up and Atom that they were quite capeable of hitting out of the park too. Andrew, Tim, Margo and Paul also made it into home before Up and Atom got their third out. Then in the bottom of the inning, L&L prevented any more Up & Atom runs. Wade did his position-dance around the field so people could take turns sitting-out and took third base, putting Brian into his former back-catcher role for an inning, so he could call a few extra 'balls' with a smile. L&L pulled-ahead for a score of 18-11.
Going into the 7th, L&L knew they almost had it, barring any disaster. Fortunately none came, except for Brendon's big stumble at first when Brian's hard-drive was caught by the pitcher and in the same action almost thrown in a Zeus-like lightning bolt throw to first. Nice stumble and recovery flying-leap back to the bag with your finger-tips touching Brendon! A single run was delivered. At the bottom of the 7th, the Lords & Ladies did what they had done twice before. No runs were let in, with a final big-win score of 19-11, as expected for a fair-weather L&L game. The crowd went wild, and new manager Wildman was taken off probation and given full-time status.
To celebrate their first big win of the 10th anniversary season, the Lords and Ladies hit-up the Courtyard patio, who rewarded their victory with a free platter of greasy but oh-so-yummy eats. Next time we're going to ask for peppermint teas and blankets instead, along with propane heaters.
Next game is Tuesday June 3rd at 5:00pm on PARC West. See you then!!! :)
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