Mother's Day weekend is here and the Giants have their Official Opening Games scheduled... and the boys are in full uniform too! There was a delay with the Park permits for the Toronto fields so all 4 games are being played on the George Taylor Field in St. Catherines, Ontario. The last time we were here, the Cardinals lost the Semi's to Bulletproof...the team we are facing this weekend (with maybe a few different players)! That was the Cardinal's last game for 2016, and the final game as a team.
It's been a crazy few weeks for us as a family with all the stuff we have going on. There are simply not enough hours in the day or days in the week, to get everything done! Andy and I didn't get home until 1:00 a.m. on Saturday morning and then we (well just me) were up at 5:30 a.m., to get ready to head out to St. Catherines. Since there was some rain during the week, we weren't sure the fields would be playable so I was kind of quietly hoping the field would be too wet to play...but no such luck! I always want to see the boys play but I could barely keep my eyes open and felt like I was getting a sore throat.
Aaron had been down with the flu all week and barely had any strength left in him, but this is one kid who wouldn't let a little cold stop him from throwing a few balls!!!
The drive is just over an hour from home and the traffic wasn't too bad, so we made it to the field just after 9:00 a.m. In time for Aaron to join the team for the warm up. Andy and I ran a few errands before coming back to the field to catch the games.
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| A "little flu" will not stop this ball player! |
Saturday, May 13, 2017 - Game 1
As the Giants were the visiting team, they were up to bat first. The Giants only got one on base before the inning ended with no runs.
Bottom of the first and Aaron is sent out to cover Centerfield (not sure why), as the Giants take the field. BP's first batter walks and the next 2 both strikes out. The runner on base is already at third and ends up stealing home to score the first run in this game. Our Pitcher tries to cover the home plate and injuries his foot! He continues pitching but he is clearly hurting. The next 2 batters both walk and one tries to steal home but is tagged out.
Top of the second and all 3 batters get caught...leaving Aaron in the hole!
By this time the sun is really hot...and it's only 10:25 a.m. I can feel the heat just burning my arms! The Giants sends out the same defence for the bottom of the second. I lost track of the score (if any) when someone distracted me. I knew time was called at one point to change the pitcher and there were 2 outs before the final batter got caught. I really hate it when people distract me from the game!!!
Aaron starts us off for the top of the third. He is thrown 3 balls, 1 strike and then a ball, so he walks over to first base. He wastes no time in stealing second. When the next batter hits, he scores the first run for the Giants. His brand new WHITE pants are no longer white. It's a good thing he does his own laundry now! The third batter strikes out; the fourth walks; the fifth hits and breaks his bat...and the base are loaded with only 1 out. The next batter hits and is safe and our second run is scored, but the runner is out at second. The final batter is caught at first. I am still not sure who is winning, but I know we have 2 runs.
Bottom of the third was 3 up 3 down.
Top of the fourth and the Giants have a few nice hits and scores 1 more run before it was over. I finally found out the score...3-2 for us.
BP got 2 on base in the fourth but couldn't score any more runs.
Top of the fifth and Aaron starts us off again. He hits but it is caught. We get one on base and the next batter is caught, and then the runner tries to steal home but is tagged out!
Aaron takes a nice catch in Centerfield and the inning is over with no runs for BP.
We didn't get any runs in the sixth. Aaron takes another catch in Centerfield and BP gets 1 more run to tie the game!
We didn't score any more in the seventh. It's now 12:25 p.m. and the other team starts arriving, so the Giants will not get a lot of rest before Game 2!
Bottom of the seventh and final inning. BP gets one base and he steal on an overthrown to second and then he steals the winning run on another error!
The boys get a 45 minute break and then on to Game 2...
Saturday, May 13, 2017 - Game 2
The Giants take the field first for Game 2. As the boys head out to the field, everyone is asking who's pitching? Eventually the Coach said "Aaron". Aaron? He hasn't even warmed up. In fact, he told us earlier that he wasn't pitching today, he was opening tomorrow's game! The boys are just as confused as I am but we see Aaron heading to the mound.
With just a few pitches, he strikes out the first batter; walks the second; strikes out the third and then the fourth hits to short and is thrown out at first. Hmm, maybe he didn't need to warm up!
It was 3 up 3 down for the Giants with 0 runs.
Aaron is back on the mound for the second inning. He walks the first 2 batters; hits the third with a pitch...and just like that the bases are loaded! The fourth batter goes up and after a full count, he walks...and 1 run is walked in! What the heck, that's not my kid...he doesn't walk in runs. Andy said this is the first time he's throwing to this catcher. The next batter hits and is safe on first, but the runner is tagged out at home. Another hit and the batter is safe on first...and 2 more runs are scored! A runner is thrown out at third. The seventh batter hits to third and should have been out at first but our third baseman takes too long to thrown the ball! After, what seems like a very long, nail-biting inning, the final batter strikes out! Aaron gave up 3 runs in this inning!
Bottom of the second and the Giants get a few hits and a couple runners on base, but only 1 run before the inning is over.
Another pitcher replaced Aaron for the top of third, while he remained in the dugout. Neither team scored in the third inning.
BP didn't get any more runs in the fourth either, but the Giants got some hits and scored 3 runs, taking the lead in this game.
No one scored in the fifth or sixth innings. Aaron didn't go out on the field for the rest of this game.
Top of the seventh and it's BP's chance to score some runs, but they couldn't do it...and the Giants have their first win for the weekend.
After the game, we found out what the confusion was. Aaron was not supposed to pitch in any of today's game. He was supposed to open the Mother's Day game tomorrow morning, but there was some lack of communication between the Coaches. It still doesn't explain why he was sent to the mound without warming up. Because of that he had some pain in his arms and couldn't continue to pitch the game.
Bottom of the first and Aaron is sent out to cover Centerfield (not sure why), as the Giants take the field. BP's first batter walks and the next 2 both strikes out. The runner on base is already at third and ends up stealing home to score the first run in this game. Our Pitcher tries to cover the home plate and injuries his foot! He continues pitching but he is clearly hurting. The next 2 batters both walk and one tries to steal home but is tagged out.
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| When the Uniform was still clean and the pants was WHITE!!! |
Top of the second and all 3 batters get caught...leaving Aaron in the hole!
By this time the sun is really hot...and it's only 10:25 a.m. I can feel the heat just burning my arms! The Giants sends out the same defence for the bottom of the second. I lost track of the score (if any) when someone distracted me. I knew time was called at one point to change the pitcher and there were 2 outs before the final batter got caught. I really hate it when people distract me from the game!!!
Aaron starts us off for the top of the third. He is thrown 3 balls, 1 strike and then a ball, so he walks over to first base. He wastes no time in stealing second. When the next batter hits, he scores the first run for the Giants. His brand new WHITE pants are no longer white. It's a good thing he does his own laundry now! The third batter strikes out; the fourth walks; the fifth hits and breaks his bat...and the base are loaded with only 1 out. The next batter hits and is safe and our second run is scored, but the runner is out at second. The final batter is caught at first. I am still not sure who is winning, but I know we have 2 runs.
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| Always looking for a chance to move... |
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| Those pants don't get to stay WHITE for too long! |
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| Scoring the very first run for his team! |
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| Getting "high fives" from the team... |
Top of the fourth and the Giants have a few nice hits and scores 1 more run before it was over. I finally found out the score...3-2 for us.
BP got 2 on base in the fourth but couldn't score any more runs.
Top of the fifth and Aaron starts us off again. He hits but it is caught. We get one on base and the next batter is caught, and then the runner tries to steal home but is tagged out!
Aaron takes a nice catch in Centerfield and the inning is over with no runs for BP.
We didn't get any runs in the sixth. Aaron takes another catch in Centerfield and BP gets 1 more run to tie the game!
We didn't score any more in the seventh. It's now 12:25 p.m. and the other team starts arriving, so the Giants will not get a lot of rest before Game 2!
Bottom of the seventh and final inning. BP gets one base and he steal on an overthrown to second and then he steals the winning run on another error!
The boys get a 45 minute break and then on to Game 2...
Saturday, May 13, 2017 - Game 2
The Giants take the field first for Game 2. As the boys head out to the field, everyone is asking who's pitching? Eventually the Coach said "Aaron". Aaron? He hasn't even warmed up. In fact, he told us earlier that he wasn't pitching today, he was opening tomorrow's game! The boys are just as confused as I am but we see Aaron heading to the mound.
With just a few pitches, he strikes out the first batter; walks the second; strikes out the third and then the fourth hits to short and is thrown out at first. Hmm, maybe he didn't need to warm up!
It was 3 up 3 down for the Giants with 0 runs.
Aaron is back on the mound for the second inning. He walks the first 2 batters; hits the third with a pitch...and just like that the bases are loaded! The fourth batter goes up and after a full count, he walks...and 1 run is walked in! What the heck, that's not my kid...he doesn't walk in runs. Andy said this is the first time he's throwing to this catcher. The next batter hits and is safe on first, but the runner is tagged out at home. Another hit and the batter is safe on first...and 2 more runs are scored! A runner is thrown out at third. The seventh batter hits to third and should have been out at first but our third baseman takes too long to thrown the ball! After, what seems like a very long, nail-biting inning, the final batter strikes out! Aaron gave up 3 runs in this inning!
Bottom of the second and the Giants get a few hits and a couple runners on base, but only 1 run before the inning is over.
Another pitcher replaced Aaron for the top of third, while he remained in the dugout. Neither team scored in the third inning.
BP didn't get any more runs in the fourth either, but the Giants got some hits and scored 3 runs, taking the lead in this game.
No one scored in the fifth or sixth innings. Aaron didn't go out on the field for the rest of this game.
Top of the seventh and it's BP's chance to score some runs, but they couldn't do it...and the Giants have their first win for the weekend.
After the game, we found out what the confusion was. Aaron was not supposed to pitch in any of today's game. He was supposed to open the Mother's Day game tomorrow morning, but there was some lack of communication between the Coaches. It still doesn't explain why he was sent to the mound without warming up. Because of that he had some pain in his arms and couldn't continue to pitch the game.
Sunday, May 14, 2017 - Game 3
Well it is the fourth Mother's Day in a row that I am on a baseball field early in the morning...but I wouldn't have it any other way!
Today it was just Aaron and I for the drive, as Andy opted to remain at home and to complete some construction work, and Ariana still wasn't feeling well.
Sunday morning traffic was even better than yesterday's and we made it to the field right at 9:00 a.m., as the first game was scheduled for 10:00 a.m.
Top of the first and the Giants take the field first with Aaron heading to the mound. What better way to spend Mother's Day than watching your kid open up the game! The inning was over before you could blink. With just 7 pitches, Aaron retired 3 batters. The first one hits to him and is out at first; the second hits to first and is out and the third hits to third and is thrown out at first!
The Giants didn't score in the bottom of the first either. It was also 3 up 3 down for us.
Aaron is back on the mound for the second inning and it was another scoreless one. This time he faced four batters before it was over. The first hit after a full count and is safe on second; the second hits in right field and our defence drops the catch. The runner tries going home but Aaron is able to bet the ball in time to tag him out at home. The third batter hits and it's another missed catch, and the runner advances to scoring position. Finally, the last batter is caught in left field.
The Giants didn't score in the second inning either, as it was another 3 up 3 down.
Not much rest for this Pitcher as he heads back to center stage for the top of the third. The first batter walks; the second hits behind third and is safe on first; the third strikes out; the fourth is caught at second and the final batter hits towards Aaron and is thrown out at first, before any runs can be scored.
It was still a scoreless game at the end of the third inning.
Top of the fourth and another pitcher is sent in to take Aaron's place. BP manages to score the first run in this game before the inning ended. The Giants still didn't have any runs.
BP scored another run in the top of the fifth and the Giants still had none.
BP scored 2 runs in the sixth and even after time was called and our pitcher got replaced, they still managed to get 2 more. The score is now 6-0 for them!
The Giants finally get their first run after a nice hit down centerfield. That batter trips and falls just as he was turning on first base and had to be removed from the game.
BP got another 4 runs in the seventh, making it 10-1, and the Giants couldn't catch up before the game ended.
While Aaron and I were having lunch he told he me had to pull himself from the game because his arm was acting up. All this because of someone else's stupidity...sending him in a game without warming him up. At this age, the boys are throwing the ball really hard and without the proper warm up, it can really take a toll on them. I guess after Aaron pulled himself from the game, they won't make that mistake again!
Sunday, May 14, 2017 - Game 4
For Game 4, the Giants take the field first, with Aaron covering centerfield again! BP scored 3 runs in the first inning but the Giants only got one. Andy called to say there was hail failing at home but here in St. Catherines the sun was shining brightly but it was a little windy.
Another six runs for BP in the second after a few errors by our defence. As I am sitting there watching the game, I realized that I never get any good photos when Aaron is in the outfield. I still can't figure out why he is there!
With 2 already out in the bottom of the second, Aaron goes up and hits the very first pitch. He's safe on first and quickly steals second. The next batter strikes out and Aaron manages to steal home...and it was our only run in this inning as the batter strikes out!
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| That was a close one...but he's safe! |
BP gets one more run and the Giants score 3 in the third inning.
It's another 2 runs for BP in the top of the fourth. Aaron starts us off in the bottom of the fourth. He hits one in centerfield and is safe on first. The next batter advances Aaron to third. The third batter walks...and the bases are loaded. The fourth batter strikes out; the fifth walks...and Aaron's run is walked in! We get a few good hits and some more runs in this inning. With 2 outs, Aaron is back up to bat, in this same inning! He hits but it is caught at first. The Giants add 8 more runs, bringing the score to 13-12, for us...
No one scored in the fifth inning!
BP gets one run in the sixth and tied the game.
Bottom of the sixth and with 2 outs and 2 on base, the Giants' next batter hits a nice one in the outfield and is safe on second...and 2 runs come in. The boys all ran on the field cheering. There was some confusion as they thought the game was over...but it's only the sixth inning. The Giants scorekeeper has it as the bottom of the seventh but BP's scorekeeper has bottom of the sixth. I have bottom of the sixth. After it was all sorted it out, the everyone had to go back to where they were to continue the game...and it wasn't very nice from here! The next batter gets caught to end the inning.
BP scored 2 or 3 runs in the seventh. Honestly, I lost track, as I left to go start Andy's car. The batter died on me earlier and I have to make sure I could get it started with the boaster pack. I remember seeing Aaron on third when the game ended so I didn't know if the Giants got any more runs. When Aaron came to the car he said they lost...
Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful moms,
especially the baseball moms out there...
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