Clubhouse Chatter

The End of the Beginning

2008-03-13T21:35:00.000-07:00

As the first pitch of the 2008 season approaches, the esteemed Surrey Indians blog will be continuing at a new web address: surreyindiansbaseball.blogspot.com

Following this final post, this blog site will remain as is. The left sidebar has recently been updated and now contains one-click links to all the important stuff that has gone down since the start of the 2005 season. Stuff such as awards, interviews, photos, and videos. The non-important stuff remains available in the blog archive. If you're looking for something specific that's not in the sidebar, maybe you'll find the search box useful; it's located in the top left corner of the web page.

Well, that's it. We hope to see you hanging around our new home. As our final act at this address, here is a baseball-themed song and video by a talented (and Canadian!) singer-songwriter. Here is Buck 65 with "463".

A flickr Photo Album

2007-11-14T22:36:00.000-08:00

We interrupt your off-season to let you know about an online Surrey Indians photo album. It is on flickr and spans seasons 2005-2007. See it here.

Team Awards 2007

2007-08-28T02:42:00.000-07:00

15 players were emailed the voting forms and 10 players emailed back a completed voting form. All players were assured total anonymity and given just one rule: no voting for yourself. At least one player broke that rule. (We included all votes regardless - if they so willingly and boldly broke the only rule, then they must be passionate about them deserving that category and we're not ones to deny such passion.) The number of votes tallied in each category will sometimes be less than 10, sometimes more; some players left a category or two or more blank, and some voted for two players in one category. Entries are listed in order of most-votes to least-votes, with the total number of votes, if more than one, in brackets.

Here are the results...

Most Competitive Player

1) Chris Ratelle (4)

2) Clay Edger (2)

2) Kelly Grace (2) - "always hustling trying to make things happen"

2) Tyler Jones (2) - "'cause he smiles the least"

Most Improved Player

1) Jeff Heatley (4) - "I mean c'mon, he hit a dinger at the last game of the season"

2) Brad Cumiskey (2)

3) Kris Neidert

3) Rod Wingrove

Best Defensive Player

1) Clay Edger (3)

1) Kelly Grace (3) - "solid D" - "every year, it's hard to vote against Kelly"

3) Rob Aubertin

3) Jeff Heatley

3) Josh Karls

3) Kris Neidert

Most Likely To Clone Themselves

1) Scott Sibley (7) - "then he could have his help with managing the team"

2) Clay Edger

2) Jeff Heatley

2) Tyler Jones

Best Clutch Hitter

1) Kris Neidert (7) - "easiest question so far"

2) Kelly Grace (2) - "hits well in tough situations"

3) Enrique Roblero

Season's Biggest Disappointment

1) Aldergrove walk-off loss (2) - "those mouthy jackasses"

1) Jeff Paz leaving the team (2)

1) Losing to the Newton Rockies in first round of playoffs (2)

4) Chris Ratelle leaving the team

4) Losing by default to the Coquitlam Cardinals

Best Sportsmanship

1) Kris Neidert (4) - "smiles even when he's getting squeezed ridiculously by the ump"

2) Kelly Grace (2) - "calm guy that loves ball"

2) Aaron Piva (2) - "calm guy that loves ball"

4) Jeff Heatley

4) Enrique Roblero

4) Rod Wingrove

Most Likely To Fail A Steroids Test

1) Tyler "Yellow Shirt" Jones (3) - "who gets kicked out of a C's game?"

1) Enrique Roblero (3)

3) Scott Sibley (2)
4) Rob Aubertin - "I saw that little freak out last game"

4) Clay Edger

Most Likely To Pass A Steroids Test

1) Brad Cumiskey (4) - "because I think he's afraid of needles"

2) Rob Aubertin (3) - "sorry rob, but it's you"

3) Tyler Jones

3) Josh Karls

3) Aaron Piva - "don't think I've seen that guy get mad once, smooth as ice."

Funniest Player

1) Brad Cumiskey (7)
2) Rob Aubertin (3)
3) Jeff Heatley - "just watch the videos"

Most Valuable Player

1) Kris Neidert (8)

2) Clay Edger

2) Kelly Grace - "good D and hitting"

["Well, Jeff Paz was valuable but I don't consider him. He wasn't around long enough."]

Favorite 20 Qs with...

1) Clay Edger (2) - "it made me laugh"
1) Jeff Heatley (2)

1) Aaron Piva (2) - "for the poignancy of his pregnancy announcement"
4) Rob Aubertin

4) Brad Cumiskey

Unsung Hero

1) Enrique Roblero (2)

1) Jeff Heatley (2)

3) Clay Edger - "awesome back catcher, and he did it all year every game for the full game."

3) Tyler Jones

3) Kris Neidert - "awesome player and sportsman"

3) Jeff Paz

3) Aaron Piva

3) Scott Sibley - "where would we be without him"

Play Of The Year

1) "Aaron Piva's diving catch on a line drive then doubling up the guy on first. The best part was it ended the game." "Aaron's snowcone double play" (2)

1) "Scott Sibley homer to win against the Newton Royals at Unwin Park" (2)

3) "Brad Cumiskey driving to Chilliwack one week early"

3) "Jeff Heatley's homerun"

3) "Jeff Heatley with his steal home during the storm."

3) "Jeff Paz goes to the right, backhands the ball, jumps and throws a strike from deep in the hole over to first... beautiful."

3) "Aaron Piva taking a fly ball off the chest!"

3) "Enrique Roblero's double to win the game against Pirates."

Best Quote

1) Rob Aubertin: SI in SI

1) Brad Cumiskey: I'm sure your toes are beautiful

1) Brad Cumiskey: It’s not fungus, it’s bacteria.

1) Tyler Jones: Check that ball for piss! - "as he mocked the other team last game when Jeff Heatley smoked a homer"

1) Enrique Roblero: Nice job A-rod!

1) Scott Sibley: Does anyone else want to coach next year? - "priceless"
1) That'll be on the blog tomorrow

Sexiest Batting Stance

1) Kelly Grace (4) - "still a big fan of his little shimmy"

2) Enrique Roblero (2)

3) Brad Cumiskey - "as he stares down the fastball"

4) Clay Edger

4) Tyler Jones

["Umm..... No comment"]

Season Highlight

1) "Being in first place" (2)

2) "Jeff Heatley's playoff dinger"

2) "Tyler Jones pitching against the Delta Tigers"

2) "Finding out that Kris Neidert can pitch"
2) "Scott Sibley's homerun, the win against Newton Royals"

2) "Comeback against Surrey Pirates"

2) "The entire first half of the season"

2) "Winning streak at the beginning of the season"

Song That Best Represents This Season

1) All Good Things (Come To An End) by Nelly Furtado

1) Another Sad Love Song by Toni Braxton
1) Free Fallin' by Tom Petty

1) Help! by The Beatles

1) "Oops [we] did it again.."

1) Rain Rain Go Away

1) Shot Down In Flames by ACDC - "exactly what happened"

1) The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan

1) Told You So by T.I.

August 19 2007

2007-08-20T17:44:00.000-07:00

Central Park. 2pm. Vs Newton Rockies.

Warming up before our first playoff game the mood was lighthearted. There was banter and laughter during the stretching exercises in centrefield. Future stretching exercises could feature yoga mats and the wearing of lululemon. This would be followed by an Indians pregame performance of the haka.

Unfortunately, the game did not start how we wanted it to, with the Rockies scoring twice in the top of the first. But we got those two runs right back quicksmart in the bottom of the first. As the song goes, 'Anything you can do, we can do... the same'. But not really, cuz the Rockies scored twice again in the top of the second, and added another in the third on a solo homerun to go up 5-2.

In the bottom of the fifth we buckled down and put together some hits to form some semblance of a rally. In fact, since the multiple hits resulted in a total of four runs, we'd say it was a rally. A rally that was capped by a man-on-base line drive to the gap in left-centre that - holy s***, it's over the fence! Two-run homerun Jeff Heatley! Behind the scenes of the homer: Moments before walking to the plate to bat, Jeff was told that he was gonna get subbed out of the batting order after that at-bat, unless he hit a homer. In the end, that homer earned him two more at-bats in the game.

We added another run in the sixth inning to go up 7-5, needing to make just 9 outs for the win. The Rockies though, they came to play, or at least hit. They scored one run in the top of the seventh to make it 7-6. One run lead, six outs to go.

Some of the details of this post were borrowed from the website of the Newton Rockies. We're now going to quote directly from their homepage:

With the Rockies trailing 7-6 in their half of the 8th, Jeremy Peever crushed a first pitch fastball for a pinch-hit 3 run Homerun to give the Rockies the lead for good. Dave Giovanella added a 3 run blast of his own in the 9th, his 2nd of the season to seal the deal and send the visiting Rockies to their 1st playoff victory in the franchise's 5th season.

And apparently the Rockies' solo shot in the third inning was that player's first career LMBA homerun. Congrats to the Rockies on their first ever playoff victory, and good luck the rest of the way.

With our 2007 season over and done with, we'd like to thank everyone who came out to watch us this season. Twas a season of highs (first half) and lows (second half) and we appreciated your support. Thank you.

One video from this game: kris II.

Stay tuned for our final post of the season, Team Awards 2007, coming soon to a computer near you..

Today's iPod.

This iPod has got to go to El Jeffé with his liner of a homer. The mighty swing is pictured below. Kudos.
We had three games at Central Park this season - or, more accurately, we showed up to play at Central Park three times this season - and El Jeffé snagged the iPod all three times. Triple Kudos.

20 Qs with Rod Wingrove

2007-08-17T21:57:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

i went swimming in the ocean on January 1 for the polar bear swim

2. What are your pet peeves?

guys that use foul language in front of women

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Benjie Molina because he's a crappy defensive catcher, barely has an average batting average, is probably one of the top three slowest guys in the league, and he still gets paid millions as a starting catcher

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would…

say 'that's what my modeling agent tells me'

5. What is your favorite board game?

mahogany or oak

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

journeyman steel stud carpenter and making all the apprentices work their asses off like I used to have to

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

my David Haselhoff record collection

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

everytime i actually get a hit

9. Who do people say you look like?

screech powers. whoever that is I hope it's someone cool

10. I’d like to confess that I...

wear extra tight baseball pants because I like the sensation

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

ufc 74, one of my buddies

12. What was the last concert you attended?

nickelback (I'm sorry clay my girlfriend got tickets for her birthday, please dont make fun of me)

13. Favorite website(s)?

http://www.ufc.com/

14. One book everyone should read is…

freakanomics

15. One movie everyone should see is…

transformers (the best movie ever)

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

robert burnaby because i don't have to drive to surrey

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

sri lankin for sure, my girlfriend's mom is the best cook ever hands down

18. When was the last time you ran?

2 minutes ago to the fridge to get a beer

19. My greatest fear is…

spiders, I hate those things

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of August 17, 1992?

running to the fridge to get a beer

August 12 2007

2007-08-13T14:20:00.000-07:00

South Aldergrove Park. 5pm. Vs Aldergrove Giants.

After finally finding the park, we warmed up. After warming up, the game started. After the game started, the game ended. After the game ended everyone went home happy, 'cept us. Now to the details...

We think every street in Aldergrove should have an arrow pointing drivers to the correct way to access South Aldergrove Park. As we circled the large park area, every street we took towards it ended in a dead-end, and not the good kind. But ten guys made it to the field by gametime and we were ready to go.

It was a pitchers' duel for the (vast) majority of the game. Kris going the first five innings and Tyler going the final four. Going into the bottom of the seventh up 2-1, the Giants plated two, including a solo homerun that wouldn't have made it out of Tamanawis. In the top of the eighth we promptly responded with three runs of our own on several well-hit doubles. According to one Indian it was the best clutch hitting he's seen since ever.

We're now in the bottom of the ninth up by the same 5-3 score. The Giants work the bases loaded, but we have two outs and a two run cushion, so we're alright right? Wrong. The batter crushes one to left that Josh comes close to reeling in but the ball is off the fence. A relay in to home is not in time as the bases are cleared and the game is over.

Final score was 6-5 Giants in a heartbreaking end to the regular season. First playoff game is on Sunday the 19th at Central Park versus the Newton Royals. Gametime is 2pm. The game is scheduled to be Fan Appreciation Day with tickets half-price (and the service charge doubled in compensation).

Videos from this game: clay and kris. The video clay & kris is out soon, but you'll have to pay for that one.

Today's iPod.

It's a tie.

In the first inning (first batter?) a Giants batter attempted a bunt that became a soft foul pop-up towards third. Clay emerged from his catcher's squat, took a couple of steps, and lunged to make the catch. Kudos.

In the eighth inning, the homerun hitter was up again. This time he stroked one to deep left centre where Rob hustled back, stole a look at the fence, and stretched out his glove to make the catch and end the inning. Kudos.

swank magazine 1992 -hilary

2007-08-09T23:51:00.000-07:00

A quick post to share the fact that someone recently visited our blog after googling the following:

swank magazine 1992 -hilary

Some quick research shows that we are result number 31 of about 64,000. We'll take our readers however we can get 'em. In this case, we have Scott and his 20 Qs with to thank.

20 Qs with Josh Karls

2007-08-02T09:49:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

Cliff jumping at lynn canyon

2. What are your pet peeves?

Taking pitches on the first strike and people that eat with their mouths open

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Babe Ruth he was the greatest who else calls their shots??

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would…

Simply say 'baw chicka wow wow'

5. What is your favorite board game?

Yahtzee

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

Demolition. Breaking stuff to relieve stress.

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

My loved ones of course i would try for a second run for my sports cards.

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

Jose Canseco taking the homer off the dome.

9. Who do people say you look like?

Paul Walker or Zac Morris

10. I’d like to confess that I...

Shave my chest

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

To a germany soccer match with my dad.

12. What was the last concert you attended?

Tom Green

13. Favorite website(s)?

btjunkie.org and other torrent sites

14. One book everyone should read is…

The Catcher In The Rye

15. One movie everyone should see is…

300

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Robert Burnaby Park. It's close to home and its a great park

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Meat

18. When was the last time you ran?

At Tuesday's game

19. My greatest fear is…

Heights

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of August 2, 1992?

I was in jail nice try though

July 31 2007

2007-08-01T13:01:00.000-07:00

Whalley Park. 7pm. Vs Surrey Pirates.

Once again this blogger found out sometime in the fourth inning or later that we were only playing seven innings. Turns out it is a new-this-season LMBA thing where midweek evening games only go seven innings. So we won't be clueless - or annoyed - again in the future; concerning this topic, that is.

Kris started on the mound and did well. After delivering a three-up three-down top of the first, he led off the bottom of the first and promptly hit a double. His first of four solid hits on the day.

Jump forward to the bottom of the sixth - quite a jump we know, but we're pressed for time here, so please forgive us. Up a run, we're looking to add some insurance before the Pirates have their final at-bat. Kris is on second base, and there's a basehit. The third base coach is emphatically waving him in - with full vocal support of the occupants of the dugout behind him. Here comes the throw... it's gonna be close.. Kris slides.. he's under the tag, he's under the tag.. we start cheering.. but wait.. the ump hasn't made the call yet.. now he's pointing at the catcher's glove.. now he's making a fist.. what the?? Indians players and fans voice their displeasure. Kris - known for nothing if not his honesty, and maybe his penchant for puns - tells us he was safe. Grrrr...

And wouldn't you know it. Top of the seventh the Pirates get a man on third. Two outs. At the plate is a batter having his first at-bat of the game. His first swing of the game? A little blooper, a Texas leaguer if you will, behind third base. We have ourseves a tie game. A tough break for Tyler, who pitched very well in relief after a tough outing last game.

Leading off the bottom of the seventh is (spoiler alert) co-hero-of-the-day Enrique. Co-hero? Yes, because not only did Kris, the other co-hero recipient, go 4-for-4, he pitched five terrific innings. So co-hero Enrique smacks a pitch to right centre for a double. Next up is Jeff, who lays down his second sacrifice bunt of the day, both of them works of art. So now Enrique is at third base...

Today's iPod.
...and with his head fully in the game, he's 100% focused on every pitch. And that pitch is past the catcher! Enrique breaks for home, hits top gear, slides, and he's safe! For real this time! Indians win, Indians win! Our losing skid is over! Kudos.

July 29 2007

2007-07-30T22:14:00.000-07:00

Whalley Park. 10am. Vs Delta Tigers.

We lost 8-3.

July 24 2007

2007-07-25T17:57:00.001-07:00

Central Park. 6:30pm. Vs Burnaby Brewers.

The weather was hella better than the June 24th rained-out affair which this midweek make-up game was a result of. We tried four different wordings of that previous sentence to strive for the best clarity, and that was the best we could get. Ugh.

Game started in the Brewers favor, with two runs scored in the first inning with a potential third run thrown out at the plate by a heads-up Heatley who had a strong game.

Several Indians had a strong game at the plate, hitting the ball hard; unfortunately, several of the hard-hit balls found a fielder's glove or grass on the foul side of the line. Their players, on the other hand, had hard-hit balls that kept finding grass in the area between the infield and outfield.

In the fourth inning, this blogger found out that we were only playing seven innings, irregardless of time. Something we felt should have been well announced by somebody before the game so all players are in the know. This comes after our last game played only went seven innings due to lonnnng innings in the first half of the game. Our several nine-inning games to start the season - along with our wins - seem like a distant memory.

In the top of the sixth, we were batting and down 3-1. A couple of players did rally caps and that is undoubtedly what sparked a rally, capped by a bases-loaded after-the-pitch try-to-catch-the-runner-too-far-off-the-base catcher's throw to third which got by the third baseman allowing the runner to score to tie the game.

However, in the bottom of the same inning the Brewers moved two runners across the plate, setting us up for a dramatic top of the seventh comeback. To be or not to be? It wasn't to be. We moved one runner across the plate, and then the third out was made. A 5-4 loss. Bah humbug.

Of note, after a beaning this game Kelly has now been beaned three times in the past two games. In other words, that's three times in 14 innings. Wait a sec... We're quite sure it was at least the third inning last game when his first beaning occured (since it happened after his drill-the-pitcher at-bat), so make that three times in 12 innings. That's once every 4 innings. Keep up the good work Grace!

Today's iPod.
The Brew Crew had runners in scoring position and less than two out when a ball was popped up in foul territory a considerable distance past first base. Heatley followed it with speed, kept track of the fast approaching fence, and made an outstretched on-the-move catch before quickly turning to ensure the runner at third stayed put. Kudos.
After Heatley's rain-out performance on June 24th earned him the iPod that day, this is his second iPod at Central Park in exactly a month. Double Kudos.

July 22 2007

2007-07-23T09:16:00.000-07:00

Whalley Park. 5pm. Vs Surrey Pirates.

Another no-game game day. The weather network forecasts the end of rain on Tuesday, so our Tuesday make-up game (6:30pm at Central Park versus the Burnaby Brewers) is probable. At this point, we're still thinking that the rest of our games this season should all be played in retractable-roof Safeco. Either that or our 2008 season will consist entirely of make-up games from 2007.

20 Qs with Scott Sibley

2007-07-20T15:23:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

I once asked my ex-girlfriend if she was moody because she was PMSing?… if you don’t think that is daring try it sometime !!!

2. What are your pet peeves?

People being late - with all the technology we have nowadays there is really no excuse to be late on a regular basis but yet there are people who manage to defy the logic.

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Bonds – I have to admire someone who is trying to cheat to get to the top, gets caught, but manages to get away with it anyways..... in my opinion Bonds has had to work twice as hard as Aaron or Ruth.

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would…

Give them one of the 8x10s of me that I carry around just for situations like this one.

5. What is your favourite board game?

Cranium – it’s like crack!

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

Employee Liberator – I love helping to free these poor unintelligent employees from the constraints of a well paying cushy job.

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

My blackberry….. it is part of my soul!

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

Joe Carter’s walk off world series winning homerun in ’93…… much like my game winning 9th inning homerun in ’07 (I needed to find a way to get that in here)

[editor: click here to see Scott's game winning 9th inning homerun in '07]

9. Who do people say you look like?

I used to get Vince Vaughn – not sure why???

10. I’d like to confess that I...

Wax my eyebrows twice a year…..don’t judge - the ladies love it!

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

Superbowl – just to say I went…. I would hold auditions across Western Canada to find the most qualified female companion to accompany me.

12. What was the last concert you attended?

Faith Hill & Tim McGraw – not my choice, but worth it in the end.

13. Favorite website(s)?

What Would Tyler Durden Do – http://www.wwtdd.com/ – great celebrity gossip.

14. One book everyone should read is…

October 2004 edition of Swank Magazine; there is a great article in there about world economical pressures.

15. One movie everyone should see is…

The Usual Suspects.

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Whalley – what other park has its own hooker section in the stands?

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Fast Food.

18. When is the last time you ran?

September 1998 – I had to catch a plane….. don’t confuse my trotting with running.

19. My greatest fear is…

Losing control of my surrounding… I’m a bit of a control freak.

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of July 20, 1992?

“I have no idea” is always the answer….. because anyone who could possibly remember what they were doing is definitely lying and most likely guilty, most people can't remember what they had for lunch a week ago let alone what they were doing over 6 months ago.

July 19 2007

2007-07-20T09:56:00.000-07:00

Whalley Park. 7pm. Vs Newton Royals.

Another no-game game day. The weather network forecasts rain all weekend, so our Sunday game (5pm at Whalley versus the Surrey Pirates) is iffy. At this point, we're thinking that the rest of our games this season should all be played in retractable-roof Safeco. Either that or our 2008 season will consist entirely of make-up games from 2007.

July 15 2007

2007-07-16T09:16:00.001-07:00

Whalley Park. 1:30pm. Vs Chilliwack Cubs.

We played like a team that, in midseason, hadn't played or practiced in a month. Checking the schedule, it seems we last played a game on June 17th. We played exactly like a team that, in midseason, hadn't played or practiced in a month. We lost 15-8. Click pic to enlarge pic.

New videos - clay and jeff II and josh. A reminder that videos removed from the videos list are still viewable at Google Video. Just click on from user when viewing any Indians video at Google Video.

Today's iPod.
None.
Alright, fiiiine. According to chatter, two:
1) On a slow roller to third Enrique charged the ball, barehanded the ball, and fired the ball to first - tres accuratement - to get the batter/runner by half a step. Kudos.
2) Kelly drilling the opposing pitcher with a line drive (and subsequently getting beaned twice). Kudos.

20 Qs with Jeff Heatley

2007-07-09T11:42:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

this interview. no wait, it might have been the whole aluminum bat in a lightning storm thing.

2. What are your pet peeves?

every driver on the road that isnt me...

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

alex rodriguez. i mean, he's got it so tough. for the love of god people, he's just trying to scrape by and feed his family. why give him such a hard time for it?

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would…

take an aspirin. fevers are no laughing matter

5. What is your favorite board game?

connect four... is that a board game?

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

lead hand in the cabin services department of a company called servisair at the vancouver int'l airport. not one single thing... except for every second thursday when they pay me

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

do all three of my pets count as one thing? 'cause i couldnt choose thats like sophie's choice man! so cruel!

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

hitting my one and only home run at tamanawis about six or seven years ago. i remember marcel asking me why i was out of breath when i finished my trot, and i told him that i dont think i took a breath the entire trip around the bases i was so shocked...

9. Who do people say you look like?

david blaine

10. I’d like to confess that I...

if you smelled it, i probably dealt it...

stanley cup finals, game seven. whomevers bribe is the largest

12. What was the last concert you attended?

the bouncing souls at richards on richards last month. killer show. i love that venue too, i suggest you all check it out before its gone.

13. Favorite website(s)?

man, do i hate that facebook thing... yep, thats definitely not for me... ooh, i just got an email from facebook!

14. One book everyone should read is…

the yellow pages... i couldnt put it down... mostly because i was hungry and there are a lot of pizza places in there...

15. One movie everyone should see is…

rushmore

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

tamanawis. what with the humming of the power lines, the short porch in right, and the constant chance that you might see an infielder take a grounder in the face. she's a beauty!

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

steak... cooked to perfection, a nice medium rare... more rare than medium... oh my god am i hungry!

18. When was the last time you ran?

see jeffrey III in the videos section to your left

[editor: click here for the video]

19. My greatest fear is…

someone finding out about my crime spree that began on the evening of july 9th 1992...

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of July 9th, 1992?

not going on a crime spree... that's for sure. no sir, not me!

July 7 2007

2007-07-06T17:21:00.000-07:00

Blue Mountain Park. 6:30pm. Vs Coquitlam Cardinals.

This may just be the first post written before the title heading date. Our game tomorrow has been postponed due to too many Indians being unavailable, and not in the emotional sense. So the game was over before the day even started. So you're probably thinking no pics or vids. And you'd be WRONG! Uhhhh, wait.. actually you'd be right.

The autograph hounds that hound us for autographs every game may find solace in the fact that they'll be able to find some of us on Sunday at the C's game at the greatly improved Nat. Maybe we shouldn't have given them that scoop. Whatever. We just won't tell them what time the game starts. They'll never be able to locate that information online or in a newspaper - nor will they realize that they could just wait for us at the Nat all Sunday long, from dawn to dusk. Besides, we'll be unrecognizable in our matching purple velvet outfits.. Go C's!

June 24 2007

2007-06-27T22:14:00.000-07:00

Central Park. 5pm. Vs Burnaby Brewers.

We were rained out. And thundered out. And lightninged out. And hailed out. The sun had made appearances throughout the day, and during warm-up from 4-4:45 the weather was decent. It could even have been called nice and warm. But there were ominous clouds in the area, and at ten to five, the clouds came a-rolling in, opened up, and gave 'er.

So the game was over before it started. So you're probably thinking no pics or vids. And you'd be WRONG!

We learned on Sunday that if the rain is falling, the camera had better be pointed at number forty-two. Enlarge the top two pics by clicking them, enjoy our favorite still-frame from Sunday below, and then view the three new vids in the video box: jeffrey - 06/24/2007, jeffrey II - 06/24/2007, jeffrey III - 06/24/2007.

Today’s iPod.

jeffrey III – 06/24/2007. Kudos.

20 Qs with Aaron Piva

2007-06-19T00:01:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

Marriage

2. What are your pet peeves?

Bad drivers - seriously how do you expect to merge onto a freeway when they're going 100 and you're going 50 km/h!

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Jeff Francis, cause I hit a double off the wall against him ergo I should be in the majors.

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would…

Call the nuthouse and report a missing patient.

5. What is your favorite board game?

Mouse Trap

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

Production Manager. They pay me.

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

My wife Shawna.

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

Winning the league championship at Annieville when I was 12 or 13. Can't remember how old I was but I remember how much fun I had when we won in front of all those people at Annieville Days.

9. Who do people say you look like?

My dad or my brothers.

10. I’d like to confess that I...

am going to be a dad in about 7 months!!! You guys don't know this cause we just told everyone.

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

Stanley Cup Finals. Shawna would come with me, we're both huge Canucks fans and 2008 is going to be their year!!

12. What was the last concert you attended?

My brother's grade 7 Christmas concert.

13. Favorite website(s)?

Surrey Indians home site. (Is there any other answer)

14. One book everyone should read is…

Horton Hears a Who!

15. One movie everyone should see is…

Transformers - not out yet but I'm not going to miss it!

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Robert Burnaby - short porch in left!

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Pasta

18. When was the last time you ran?

Sunday

19. My greatest fear is…

Failure

20.You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of June 19, 1992?

Playing baseball at Annieville. Lets see June 19, 1992 - I threw 5 shutout innings giving up 5 hits and striking out 6. I went 2-4 (single, double) at the plate with 3 RBI's and 1 run scored.

June 17 2007

2007-06-17T22:04:00.000-07:00

Whalley Park. 10am. Vs Burnaby Biscuits.

Happy Father's Day!

Many thanks to all the fathers - and nonfathers - who attended today's miserably wet and uncomfortable ballgame. Well actually, maybe it was only wet and uncomfortable for us players as we are not allowed to take umbrellas onto the field. Or maybe we are allowed. We probably should have looked into that, cuz damn it was wet and uncomfortable. Swinging a bat while holding an umbrella wouldn't have looked too ridiculous. And it wouldn't have affected our swing much either. In fact, the at-bat outcomes for some of us (*cough cough* one of us *cough cough*) probably would have been the same.

"ohhhhhhhHHHHHHHH BRAD."

Biscuits took an early-innings lead courtesy us and our bumbling ways. After we spotted them a 3-nil lead our fielding improved, but our bats.. ohhhhhh our bats. We don't think the Surrey Indians franchise has ever been no-hit through the first four innings of a game before... until today! Please note: exclamation marks are sometimes used to mask our tears.

In the fifth inning the no-hit bid ended in dramatic fashion, with great rejoicing, when Ratelle crushed a ball to deep centre for a double. He eventually scored, then a couple of innings later we scored a couple more, and then a couple of innings later we scored a couple more.

Jones pitched the first five innings, and did an excellent job of it. Ratelle then came in and pitched the final three innings (eight-inning game today), doing an equally excellent job of it. Several of Ratelle's pitches that were called balls looked good from centre. Of the three runs the Biscuits scored today, we know at least two were unearned, possibly all three. Through nine games, we have a runs against average of 3.78, leading our division and behind just the Mathers Division's Black Sox's 3.38. We won't compare our runs for average.

Final score was Indians five Biscuits three. One video added to the video box: jeffrey - 06/17/2007.

Today's iPod.
In the top of the eighth the Biscuits had a runner on first with one out. The batter represented the tying run. ping - it's a liner up the middle. It's snowconed by a diving Piva! He gets up. He snaps a throw to first. Double play! Game over! Kudos.

20 Qs with Kelly Grace

2007-06-10T19:46:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

I stole 2nd in the game against the Dingers

2. What are your pet peeves?

Jerk drivers squeezing you out when you’re trying to merge, junk emails, and telemarketers

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Lou Gehrig – watch Pride of the Yankees and you’ll see why. And of course he wore the number 4

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would…

Who me? No you! Who me?

5. What is your favorite board game?

Scrabble

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

Receiving Manager for Ikea – I like that I’m off for 6 months on parental leave

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

Besides the obvious (my family) I would save my wallet

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

Ripping the winning hit to get us to the Canadian Championship in 88

9. Who do people say you look like?

Brad Pitt - lol

10. I’d like to confess that I...

look nothing like Brad Pitt

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

Lets head down to watch the World Series (wherever it may be) with my family – hey how did we get 4 tickets?

12. What was the last concert you attended?

Wow it’s been so long. I think it was Kiss on New Years Eve – can’t remember what year

13. Favorite website(s)?

http://www.teamfolio.net/ and http://www.graceschedules.com/ are 2 awesome websites!

14. One book everyone should read is…

Don’t bother – rent a movie – here’s one…

15. One movie everyone should see is…

Tango and Cash

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Blue Mountain is a good one – seem to recall hitting at least one shot out of there

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Steak

18. When was the last time you ran?

Friday, stole 2nd remember?

19. My greatest fear is…

Getting five holed on the most routine grounder possible

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of June 10, 1992?

I’m not saying anything until I see my lawyer!

June 8 2007

2007-06-08T23:34:00.001-07:00

Minoru (Latrace) Park. 7pm. Vs Richmond Dingers.

A rare Friday night game. A rare game for the Indians at Minoru. Some players had to pay for parking. Where do they get off? And by they we mean the parking chargers, not the players. And we don't actually wanna know where they get off - that's a little personal.

We had heard rumors last week that right field at Minoru was f***ed up, and the rumors proved true. We'd like to describe for you exactly what makes it so, but......... yeah. Piva started on the mound, and pitched well for the first five innings. Then Ratelle came in for four innings of relief and also pitched well.

Our bats showed improvement. Patience at the plate combined with timely hits resulted in many baserunners and runs batted in, moreso than usual. We'd go so far to say that we had more baserunners this game than any other game this season, but we have nil stats to back that up, so we won't say it.

In the top half of the eighth inning, Ratelle received a very dubious strike call during an at bat - it looked up and in to everyone but you know who. On the first batter Ratelle faced in the bottom of the eighth, he received the same call in his favor. Blush, eye shadow, lipstick: make-up!

With the win (12-2?), we are now currently alone in first place! We just have to wait to see how the Delta Tigers fare on Sunday. Just one picture from today's game - night games and our camera don't play well together.

Today's iPod.
Once again a base-clearing extra-base hit. This go 'round it was Neidert up with the sacks juiced in the top of the sixth. He hammered one to the gap in left-centre and tallied a 3-RBI double. Kudos.

June 3 2007

2007-06-03T19:50:00.000-07:00

Whalley Park. 10am. Vs Newton Rockies.

During warmup we welcomed our newest teammate, Tyler. After losing McBoyle to an injury, and Paz leaving after today's game, we needed a pickup. Turns out Tyler pitched against us during last year's championship game. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Or something like that. Warmup also included fond reminiscing of Brad's unnecessary long-weekend drive to Chilliwack. He tells us that what made it much worse was each time he drove past a gas station and its gas price sign. drive drive drive D'OH! drive drive drive D'OH! drive drive drive D'OH! drive drive drive D'OH!

At 9:55am both teams lined up as Rockie (and one-time Indian) Pete was given a ten-year award. The formation of the Rockies team was primarily his doing. Congrats dude.

Our pregame cheer was really something. And then it was the day of the K. Our two pitchers today - Ratelle and Paz - combined for a phenomenal 16 K's. Yes, 16 of the 27 Rockies' outs were of the strikeout variety. Their pitchers were also on top of their game. Unofficially, the combined K total for the game was 27. (Perhaps someone can chatter an official total.) So, with 51 total outs made in the game - we didn't bat in the bottom of the ninth - over half were K's. As one Indian pointed out, lately the pitching in the league has been a little ahead of the hitting. In our games at least. 'kay?

Interesting play today. We were in the field, runners were on, and the batter put the ball in play. The homeplate ump called "infield fly" and the opposing team's captain stormed from the dugout in protest. After consulting with the base ump, the infield fly call was overturned! Has anyone reading this ever seen an infield fly rule get overturned? We're too lazy to look up the rule, but we're thinking it can't be overturned. Maybe it's not even in the rule book as unoverturnable as no one could possibly foresee anyone attempting to do such a thing. But today someone attempted and someone did - you never know what you're gonna get at an Indians' game. 'kay?

And that was after another interesting play with us in the field. A groundball to the secondbaseman hit the runner heading to second and ricocheted to short left field. The runner continued to third and then to home and the batter/runner went to second. Most of the team was moving at half speed, using their energy to point out repeatedly to the umps that "the ball hit the runner!" Usually that results in an immediate deadball with the runner being out. But not at an Indians game! At an Indians game, the play continues to its natural end, then the umps have a powwow, then the umps declare the runner out and send the batter/runner back to first. 'kay?

One video added to the video box. clayton - 06/03/2007. 'kay?

Today's iPod.
In the second inning, with us up just a couple of runs, we work the bases loaded. With two outs, up steps Paz. Bang, a drive to rightcentre. It drops in, the bases clear, and Paz ends up on third. We never relinquish the lead and win 7-3. Kudos.

20 Qs with Brad Cumiskey

2007-05-30T23:15:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

That's a tough one, I would say it's one of two things: One, in June of 2003 I rode a brand new motorcycle from Edmonton to Vancouver, in the pouring rain, with just my learners license, by myself, and the Coquihalla had a wind warning that day. Two, I got married.

2. What are your pet peeves?

People who say "take it to the next level" or worse yet: "let's think outside the box", or worst of all: "In order to take it to the next level, we need to think outside the box."

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Barry 'Zen' Zito was a candidate until the candy ass stood up for Barry Bonds last weekend. So, I'll go with Carlos Delgado for his fine combination of ball skills and political beliefs and his ability to pull out of the bloody awful slump he is in now so he can save my fantasy baseball team.

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would...

I would simply reply: this is why, this is why, this is why I'm hot, I'm hot cuz I'm fly, you ain't cuz u not, this is why, this is why, this is why I'm hot, I'm hot cuz I'm fly, you ain't cuz u not, this is why, this is why, this is why I'm hot

5. What is your favorite board game?

I own trivial pursuit. Not 'own' own it, but own it in the sense that I like own everyone else who tries to step up, ya heard? I should also mention that apart from owning the game I also own it.

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

Internet Marketing Manager. - After having helped Al Gore invent the Internet, I now market the managing of the Internet for a company who's marketing department includes an Internet group which requires, yep you guessed it, managing. Just call me Chandler.

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

If by 'thing' you mean non-possesive substantive things I would have to say.... my dignity, and by dignity I mean I would grab at least a bath robe on the way out the door. If by 'thing' you mean material possessions, I would have to say.... my wife.

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

An unforgettable play in little league, where in an effort to score the 2-out, winning run from second base on a single to left field, I noticed, after rounding third, that the throw would beat me to the plate, I charged hard regardless and made an amazing evasive head first slide to the inside of the baseline, reaching with my outstretched right arm I just slid my fingers over the plate as the tag came down late. As I jumped up spinning to see my teammates erupt from the bench, celebrating the winning run as simultaneously Al Beital, the umpire, made an emphatic 'youuuuu'rrrre OUT!' call. The preceding mania of parents, teammates and coaches going nuts on Al for the blown call was priceless. I just looked away in disbelief catching the eye of the other team's catcher, who looked at me and mouthed the words 'you were safe' as he walked off the field.

9. Who do people say you look like?

Archie.

10. I’d like to confess that I...

would do it again. If given the chance. Dammit.

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

The Beijing 2008 Olympics start in 435 days. Does that count?

12. What was the last concert you attended?

Metallica. I fell asleep. Sad but true.

13. Favorite website(s)?

The Onion

14. One book everyone should read is…

Siddartha by Hermann Hesse

15. One movie everyone should see is…

Old time fav: Casablanca. Recent mind blower: Pans Labyrinth

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Fairfield in Chilliwack. I like the park so much, that I drove all the way out there to scope out the place a full week prior to game time.

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Sushi or Tuna Burgers or Dark Chocolate.

18. When was the last time you ran?

Full Swing bunt last Sunday. Check out the vid. [editor: click here for the vid]

19. My greatest fear is…

I would have to say either prison rape, what happens when you die or teletubbies.

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of May 30, 1992?

I have no alibi, but I didn't do it, honest - I was home alone, playing video games, punching out Glass Joe in Mike Tyson's Punch-Out.

May 27 2007

2007-05-27T22:51:00.000-07:00

Fairfield Island. 10am. Vs Chilliwack Cubs.

It was a dark drive out to Chilliwack. The threat of precipitation loomed large. The wet stuff held out. A fierce wind was the main enemy. Anyway...

We again fielded a roster of ten. Grace showed for his first game since the birth of his baby girl. Her name, Claire. Street that Fairfield Island is on, Clare. No i because there's no i in team. We knew we had a tough game on tap, being tied in the standings with the Cubs. They jumped up early, taking a 3-0 lead. We fought back and then some in one inning, tying our inning and game high with 6 runs on some hits and a few miscues by the defense. There were more miscues than usual for both sides throughout the game. Well, for us for sure, but we're not sure if the Cubs make that many miscues in an average game. We doubt it.

We are happy to announce that we finally scored more than 6 runs in a game this season. We hit double digits! Ten! Dix! The Cubs got seven for those of you keeping score at home. Special shoutout to our two fans present at today's game. Thanks for joining us in Cubs country.

Three videos from today's game have been added to the video box. To view them just look for, and click on, the ones with the date 05/27/2007.

Today's iPod.
While today's weather was unpleasant, we have it on good authority that last weekend the weather at Fairfield Island was perfect for a game. You see, Brad made the trek out to Chilliwack on Sunday the 20th and arrived at 9am to an empty park. He phoned his wife, waking her up, and asked her to check the team website for the schedule. She told him that there was no game, due to it being a long weekend. He thanked her for the information and began the trek back home. We thank him for sharing that story with us. Kudos.

20 Qs with Kris Neidert

2007-05-21T16:56:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

Played ball for the Surrey Indians

2. What are your pet peeves?

People, Traffic, Work

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

I got 2, first would be A-Rod cause he makes lots of money and earns it and has an awesome jersey #, the other would be his opposite almost in Richie Sexson. He makes a lot of money and does nothing, now that is true talent.

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would...

Now is "I" in this question me or you? Cause if someone said you were hot, I wouldn't know what you would do.

5. What is your favorite board game?

Parcheesi. Never really play it but it's got a cool name.

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

Machinist, the thing I like most is the paycheck. Goes to my hookers and blow fund.

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

A tossup between me and that rack of ribs in the freezer. Mmmm.

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

All I remember is last week losing to the Pirates and going 0 for 4. Kidding, at one time a long time ago I used to be good. I hit a grand slam to win the championship, I think I was 8.

9. Who do people say you look like?

I don't see it but Ben Affleck or Ben Stiller, I've gotten both.

10. I’d like to confess that I...

Used to play soccer, sorry if I let you guys down. I am ashamed.

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

World Series, my old man

12. What was the last concert you attended?

Metallica

13. Favorite website(s)?

mlb

14. One book everyone should read is...

The Little Engine that Could. Great story, somewhat difficult read, some good pics. Great all around.

15. One movie everyone should see is...

Any movie with lots of killing, then you know it's good. Or The Thing, that's a cool movie.

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Robert Burnaby. Because it is the nicest park.

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Baby Back Ribs

18. When was the last time you ran?

Sunday, after striking out with the bases loaded I ran back to the dugout.

19. My greatest fear is...

Getting old

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of May 22, 1992?

Robbing the liquor store!!! I mean not robbing the liquor store.

SI in SI, Si?

2007-05-20T15:41:00.000-07:00

In a moment of supreme intelligence we have come up with a stellar idea. We are going to write to Sports Illustrated – the world’s preeminent sports magazine – and suggest a new feature in their pages: a small blurb featuring a rec team with an accompanying picture of said team and the website (when applicable) of said team.

SI's primary focus is on professional sports and athletes, but they do have regular features like Faces in the Crowd, and coverage of college and high school sports, which focus on the non-professional athletes of the world. Having SI do a small piece each issue that gives print space to adults who pay money to play sports in their spare time – for love of game – would be, we think, a cool addition to their already fabulous magazine. We can envision a future where rec teams across North America and beyond would send in a blurb, a photo, and their website's address. SI would pick one rec team for each issue, edit the blurb as needed, contact team reps for supplemental info when needed, and regular folks – like us! – would get a thrill from being in the world’s preeminent sports magazine.

In the near future we will email SI with our self-proclaimed stellar idea, and include links to our official team site and this blog – and this post in particular. Maybe the powers that be at SI will think it’s a strong idea, maybe they’ll think it’s a silly idea. Having sufficient interest on display in this post’s comment section when/if SI staff look at this blog(post) will help our cause, or so we believe. So if you like the idea, chatter! Surrey Indians players, chatter! Players’ partners, children, friends, mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, chatter! All others, chatter! Don’t be silently indifferent, chatter! If you don't want to chatter with your real name, you can chatter with a secret identity. And while you’re chattering, go ahead and suggest possible names for this new feature…

If SI did suddenly implement our stellar idea, perhaps they would acknowledge the origins of the idea by featuring the Surrey Indians as the first rec team. After all, in addition to all that is written above, our team name shares the same initials as the world's preeminent sports magazine. So do the Springfield Isotopes, but that’s stupidly irrelevant.

May 13 2007

2007-05-14T13:24:00.000-07:00

Whalley Park. 5:30pm. Surrey Indians vs Surrey Pirates.

We fielded a slightly depleted roster with Wingrove, Paz and Grace all MIA. In Grace's case, the absence was due to the birth of a baby girl. Not just any baby girl, his baby girl! Congrats to all the Graces.

So it was an Indians roster of ten up against a Pirates roster of five hundred. The first half of the game, as usual, flew by. Our bats, as usual, struggled. While the Pirates were able to get two runners across the plate in the third inning on a deceptive double, we weren't able to get a single hit. Until the fifth that is, when Heatley's single spoiled the no-hit bid. In the fifth and sixth the Pirates tacked on another 4 runs, taking control of the game with a 6-0 lead. Seeing as how we hadn't scored more than 6 runs in a game this season and could barely get a hit this game, it looked bleak.

But then we came to bat in the top of the eighth. Knowing that we couldn't make up six runs with one swing of the bat, we went one base at a time, collecting singles and walks and rocks on the basepaths that were in the shape of hearts. The lead had been narrowed to 6-4, and we had the bases loaded. In steps Piva who hammers a drive to left field which carries past the fielder and drops in for extra bases. All runners are running, some high-stepping. Six to five! Six to six! Six to seven! Bases clearing triple for Piva! Waaaaaaiiiiiit. It's only six to six. Why, you ask? Because the 6 runs/inning limit had been reached. D'OH! That's alright that's alright. We tied our season high of six runs in a game in just one inning. We'll continue this next inning, pick up our rally where we left off.

In the bottom of the eighth, with Pirate runners on second and third and less than two out, a soft grounder is hit to the right side of the infield. Piva charges from second, scoops it up, and throws it home to nail the runner at the plate. The tie is maintained, and we get out of the inning unscathed..

Getting ready to bat in the top of the ninth, we're told by the umps that this is the last inning. No duh. Actually what they are trying to say is that no extra innings. If it's tied after this inning, then the game ends in a tie. Ohhhh, gotcha.

Nothing doing for our at-bats, so now we need to hold them for the tie. The Pirates didn't pull the bandaid off slowly, they ripped it off lickety split. The first batter ripped a double to right-centre, got to third on a sacrifice, and scored on a pitch that got through to the backstop. Game over.

While it was a heartbreaking end after our comeback, at least we do have that comeback to hang our hats on. That and our sweet new hatstand; it's made of pure gold.

We must mention Brad's remarkable plate appearances. While his 0-for-0 day might seem dull, we see it as anything but. He was at the plate four times, and drew four walks! He swung once in his first at-bat, and did not swing again in any of his three subsequent at-bats! Again, remarkable.

Today's iPod.

We take you back to Piva's pressure-filled plays. Tying the game in the eighth with his clutch double would have been enough to be iPod'd, but then he took to the field right after and promptly threw out a runner at home who had dared to break the tie that he had just created. Double Kudos.

20 Qs with Enrique Roblero

2007-05-09T09:06:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

Wore all red in front of a raging bull when I was 10.

2. What are your pet peeves?

people who talk a lot of crap

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Dennis Martinez, El presidente , El Perfecto

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would…

immediately test myself with my thermometer

5. What is your favorite board game?

MAD GAB

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

System administrator / administering systems

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

My family.

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

Watching the Boston Red Sox win the world series. My second favorite is being drafted by the Surrey Indians.

9. Who do people say you look like?

a guy once told me I look like THE ROCK. hmm yeah.

10. I’d like to confess that I...

haven't confessed in a long time.

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

World Series, the whole Fam. Kids get in free or half/price.

12. What was the last concert you attended?

I haven't been to one yet. But I did see STOMP two weeks ago.

13. Favorite website(s)?

MLB.com

14. One book everyone should read is…

the one they think they should read.

15. One movie everyone should see is…

the one they think they should see.

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Robert Burnaby, easy to pick up the ball there.

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Nuts. The kind that come from trees.

18. When is the last time you ran?

Friday, to catch a bus.

19. My greatest fear is…

Striking out with bases loaded.

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of May 9, 1992?

I was doing my home work while listening to Wreckz - N - Effect's Rump Shaker. Yeah baby...

* Scott Sibley *

2007-05-07T18:31:00.000-07:00

Even though it's viewable on Google Video, we think it deserves a spot on the pages of the blog. Here is Scott's dinger from April 29th.

May 6 2007

2007-05-07T12:11:00.000-07:00

Whalley Park. 1:30pm. Surrey Indians vs Aldergrove Giants.

There's been a lot of talk about this game. Maybe too much talk. This is not a rebel game. This is Sunday baseball Sunday.

Players began arriving at 12pm, half an hour earlier than usual, to get some extra BP time in the batting cages. Maybe it paid off, considering we tied our season high of six runs scored despite batting in just 8 of the 9 innings.

18 runs in 4 games isn't too great, but after Sunday's 6-2 victory we now have a 3-1 record, so we ain't complaining. Besides, one can't complain about one's own doing, can one? No, one can't. For the stat fiends among you, we are averaging 4.5 runs scored per game, which is last in our division and third last overall.

The not-so-secret secret to our success thus far is our ability to keep opponents from crossing homeplate. 12 runs against in 4 games equals a runs against average of 3 runs against per game, tops in our division and second only to the stingy Richmond Black Sox who are allowing an average of 2.5 runs per game.

We will now critique every aspect of this game. This will take a few hours. Get comfy. We took the field after a rousing pregame cheer of "white noise, low growl" and in a bizarre start to the game there...

We interrupt this post with a breaking news update: "It's not fungus, it's bacteria." - Brad. We now take you back to regularly scheduled posting.

... and while some Giants players and personnel had taken exception to Kelly's hard slide into second, the coaches eventually cooled off and made nice. And that, our friends, concludes our extremely extensive post-game coverage. Thanks for reading. We hope this post garners us a Pulitzer Prize in the category of Commentary. We would also accept a Pulitzer Prize in the category of Criticism.

Today's iPod.
The Giants were batting in the top of the fifth and we were protecting a 4-1 lead. The Giants had a runner on first with less than 2 outs. A sharp grounder was hit up the middle. Second baseman Kelly broke to his right, took a couple of quick steps, dove, and had the ball come to a stop in the webbing of his mitt. Kelly got to his knees, shoveled the ball to the shortstop standing on second, and the force out was made. Kudos.

20 Qs with Rob Aubertin

2007-05-05T12:15:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

California Screamin' at California Adventure - my first, and so far only, loop de loop coaster ride.

2. What are your pet peeves?

Goaltenders who try to be referee instead of puckstopper.

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Roberto Clemente. Great stats, huge amount of charity work, and the only walk-off inside-the-park grand slam in Major League history.

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would...

ask them to repeat themselves.

5. What is your favorite board game?

Settlers of Catan

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

I work with kids and I like the bizarre "jokes" they tell me. Kid: What do you call a snail on a boat inside your ear? Me: I don't know. Kid: A nose scratcher. Kid then walks away laughing.

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

Sandra could save herself, so I'll say the animals.

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

Around age 10 playing baseball with a few friends pretty much all day every day all summer.

9. Who do people say you look like?

Someone once said Scott Wolf. "My Celebrity Look-alikes" said, among others, Yogi Berra and Estella Warren.

10. I’d like to confess that I...

rocked out this morning to Montell Jordan's "This Is How We Do It"

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

Wimbledon with Sandra.

12. What was the last concert you attended?

Barenaked Ladies.

13. Favorite website(s)?

facebook.com and bookcrossing.com

14. One book everyone should read is…

The Authoritative Calvin and Hobbes

15. One movie everyone should see is…

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Robert Burnaby. A field of dreams carved into the woods.

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Cereal.

18. When was the last time you ran?

Yesterday, to get the dogs off a picnic table that a guy was eating at.

19. My greatest fear is…

sock puppets.

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of May 5, 1992?

Visiting my hairstylist in anticipation of my graduation from elementary school. Or playing Baseball Stars on Nintendo

May 2 2007

2007-05-02T21:10:00.000-07:00

Had a practice this evening that was attended by seven Indians and consisted of much-needed BP. There was thunder and lightning aplenty and rain in moderation - the light drizzle variety. The distant snow-capped mountains gleamed in sunshine. Right when practice ended the hail began. You're here to read about the weather, right?

Today's iPod.
Brad beaning Chris twice during BP. Kudos.

April 29 2007

2007-04-29T21:03:00.000-07:00

Unwin Park. 10am. Surrey Indians vs Newton Royals.

Talk about clutch. As happy as the rest of us are after today's game, Scott must be walking on air. We hope he touches down in time for Wednesday's practice, but we won't blame him at all if he's still afloat.

Clay had a pre-game opportunity to make two dollars if he did a teddy-bear headstand. He declined.

In our best attempt at sounding like a broken record, today's game was a pitcher's duel from the start. Chris started on the mound, his first time on the mound since a self-described "shit" outing in the later part of the opening game. He recovered very well, allowing just a few scattered hits and stranding several runners.

In a game where most of us just couldn't find our swings, we needed timely hitting more than ever. And eventually we got it. With a runner in scoring position, Aaron hit a blooper the opposite way, just out of reach of a diving rightfielder and just on the fair side of the foul line. That huge RBI put us up 1-0. The top photo in this post is Aaron's swing on that very play.

While most of us struggled at the plate, we have it on good authority that newbie Kris was 3-for-4 at the plate, getting things done in a quiet manner. Attakid.

The Royals, on average, were hitting the ball much better than us with several hard drives to the outfield that eventually got them the tying run followed by a go-ahead run, possibly in the same inning, possibly not - we can't remember.

Things looked promising when Chris stroked a triple to centre, but he was left stranded. That might have happened when it was still 1-0 us or tied at 1 or us down 2-1. Again, we can't remember. The bottom photo in this post is Chris's swing on that very play.

Today's inability to remember things caused us some embarrassment in one inning. After recording what we believed to be the third out of the inning, we all began to exit the playing field. Just as the infielders were about to cross the firstbase line the homeplate ump announced, "that's only two outs guys". Oops.

We do remember playing the field in the bottom of the eighth down 2-1. Looking ahead to a last-chance top of the ninth after going three-up-three-down in the top of the eighth, our future looked bleak. We held them to no runs and were now down to our final three outs.

And then it happened. Cue the comeback!

[iPod alert] With the tying run on base, Scott up to bat representing the go-ahead run, and the videocamera rolling, there's hope in the air. A high fastball comes in, and Scott turns on it. Deep to left - back, back, back, and gone. First homerun of the season. The dugout erupts and the team makes its way to homeplate to meet and greet and maybe high-five the hero. [a next-day update: a link to the video of the dinger is now on the sidebar: scott - 04/29/2007]

We now took the field in the bottom of the ninth, three outs away from a victory. Aaron had taken over on the mound in the sixth and was looking to make this a quick inning. First batter hits a drive to left-centre but the ball is tracked down by the fleet-footed centrefielder. The next batter got a single but Aaron then hit overdrive and shut the door.

Final score 3-2. A two game winning streak, and with a 2-1 record we're above .500 for the first time this season. Next up: Aldergrove Giants on Sunday May 6th at Whalley at 1:30pm. BE THERE!

Today's iPod.
Please see paragraph number twelve - you know, the one with the iPod alert. Kudos.

20 Qs with Clay Edger

2007-04-25T22:13:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

Bunjee jumped in edmonton

2. What are your pet peeves?

People that chew with their mouth open. And when the pitcher throws the ball in the dirt.

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Darryl Strawberry because he's cool.

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would…

agree that it is hot and proceed in taking off my pants.

5. What is your favorite board game?

Snakes and Ladders

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

I build stuff. My favorite part about it is that sometimes you really have to think things through. So if the boss catches you staring at a piece of paper and doing nothing, it's usually okay.

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

My hands.

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

When I was a kid at my dad's baseball game and I got hit on the head with a foul ball.

9. Who do people say you look like?

Some guy name David apparently.

10. I’d like to confess that I...

Don't like reality t.v. Seriously though, 'cause a lot of people say they don't but they still watch it. I really hate it.

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (with airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

Final game of the March madness tournament. But not for the basketball, just for the college chicks. And I'd just bring a good wing man.

12. What was the last concert you attended?

Tenacious D

13. Are the mind and the brain the same thing or different? Please explain your answer.

Different. Mind is your consciousness and it can be altered... Wheras the brain tells the rest of the body what it's supposed to do.

14. One book everyone should read is…

The Scorecard

15. One movie everyone should see is…

Team America

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Tamanawis for its close fence

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Sushi

18. When was the last time you ran?

When I popped up a bunt to the pitcher.

19. My greatest fear is…

Chris Ratelle's curveball

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of April 25, 1992?

Let's see I would've been 7 so I was probably playing sega

April 22 2007

2007-04-22T15:34:00.000-07:00

The morning began with drizzle mixed with light rain, and the game's 10am start time looked precarious. Regardless, the team showed up on time and warmed up while watching the Playaz-turned-Padres slowly drift in. Come 10am, the skies had cleared, a glorious day was shaping up, and the Padres had enough players to field a team.

LMBA president Dan Taylor had both teams line up along their respective baselines and then delivered a superb speech honoring Bob Ashmore. Bob had sadly passed away this past week. A moment of silence was given.

Once the game got underway, it paralleled last week's game. This time it was Aaron starting on the mound and pitching a solid four innings; the few runners that reached were stranded. It appeared as though we had a great early start in the bottom of the first when Jeff P. hit a shot over the leftfield fence. The joy was brief as the homeplate ump called it foul, but the immediate reaction of thirdbase coach Jeff H. told the true story. Even more credible was the testimony of both the thirdbaseman and shortstop of the Padres saying it was fair. However, none of them make the official calls. The umps do, and foul it was.

Our silent bats were awakened in the fourth inning when we put a five-spot on the board thanks to a combination of walks, beanballs, hits and errors. A smorgasbord of activity in one half-inning.

Jeff P. came in to pitch in the fifth, and the non-dinger call proved to be the first of many questionable calls that came Jeff's way. Pitches that looked like strikes from everywhere in the park - from the dugout to centrefield to Clay's irises - apparently looked like balls in the one place that matters, the ump's POV. Nevertheless, he managed to make several Padres players look silly on his mixture of heat and curves and also gave the ump some thumps by way of some foul tips while in the batter's box. We feel that while he's still tied with the rest of us in what's shaping up as the epic Indians homerun chase of 2007, Jeff P. ended up ahead in this battle.

One inning the Padres doubled us up on a liner to first with a runner on first, but our very next time in the field we doubled them up on a liner to third with a runner on first. "Anything you can do we can do better." Nothing much else happened in this fastest-game-in-Indians-history (confirmed by our overpaid fact-checkers). Game time was approximately 2:06. Final score was 6-2.

The video camera was rolling during last week's opening game and we now have links to two new videos on the left sidebar. Links are now there for josh - 04/15/2007 and scott - 04/15/2007. Please note: only some of the videos from this season and last have direct links on this blog. To access all the videos from this season and last just click on "From user" while at google video.

Today's iPod.
With a Padres runner on second, nobody out, a lead to protect, and a general team fondness for capris, Andrew vacated his shortstop position, snuck behind the runner, and created daylight. Pitcher Jeff P. saw this, spun to his left and delivered a perfect throw which led to a perfect tag and the bases were now empty with one out. Kudos.
Honorable mention goes to Clay for his in-the-dugout impersonation of himself on the field five minutes earlier. Common decency keeps us from writing details but he had several Indians very entertained. Thanks for that Clay.

20 Qs with Chris Ratelle

2007-04-19T14:32:00.000-07:00

1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done?

due to the ramifications of this question and answer, i will leave this one blank, lol

2. What are your pet peeves?

People talking on their cell phones on the sky train.... makes me mad just thinking about it

3. What Major Leaguer do you most admire and why?

Barry Zito, lefty that can throw that disgusting hook and have the ability to befriend Barry Bonds

4. If a stranger told me I was hot I would...

i cant answer this one with a PG answer, lol

5. What is your favorite board game?

Drinking snakes and ladders (yes i own it)

6. What is your day job and what do you like most about it?

I work in a warehouse, and the best part of the job is going home

7. If there was a fire at your home and you could only save one thing, what would it be?

besides my family....my cat

8. What is your favorite baseball memory?

Going to Sask. two years in a row when i was 17-18 to play in the western canadians

9. Who do people say you look like?

Nick Lashey... don't laugh, he married/divorced Jessica

10. I’d like to confess that I...

sometimes order salads as a main course.

11. You’re offered two free tickets to any sporting event in the world within the next 12 months (airfare and accommodation also included). What sporting event do you choose and who goes with you?

World Series and i would take my brother

12. What was the last concert you attended?

Never been to a concert

13. Are the mind and the brain the same thing or different? Please explain your answer.

the brain is the physical thing and the mind is the emotions and thoughts and so on...

14. One book everyone should read is...

insomnia by Steven King

15. One movie everyone should see is...

the big lebowski (sorry Jeff).

16. What is your favorite LMBA park to play in and why?

Robert burnaby, just because it has so many sweet memories.. ie, farthest home run i have ever hit

17. If you could only eat one type of food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Indian food, specifically anything with curry

18. When was the last time you ran?

mmmhhhmmm

19. My greatest fear is...

[Chris left this question blank]

20. You are now a suspect in a crime that happened 15 years ago. Where were you, and what were you doing, on the evening of April 19, 1992?

hmmm, what did i do yesterday.....?

April 15 2007

2007-04-16T11:41:00.000-07:00

Opening day fell on Jackie Robinson day. In honor, Jeff Heatley wore a jersey adorned with the number 42.

The first half of the game was a low-scoring affair. Not many baserunners for either team. The rare few got stranded, with one getting picked off of second base after a first-pitch-of-the-game double. To protect the guilty, he'll remain anonymous. As the pitcher's duel progressed, we were fortunate to have had the game of american pingpong to prepare us.

New Indian Jeff Paz proved a valuable addition, pitching five strong innings and shutting down the strong Delta hitters. We eventually managed to break the scoreless deadlock, which apparently awoke the sleeping giants in the other dugout. Their second pitcher was a knuckleballer who seemed much more hittable from the dugout than at the plate.

During one of Enrique's at-bats he was hit by a pitch, but we were left scratching our noggins when he was not awarded first base. The pitch did bounce before it hit him, but is that enough to negate a beanball? It shouldn't be, in our heavily biased opinion. Does anyone have a portion of the rule book to throw in our face regarding this occurence?

At 3-3 in the late innings, the Tigers were able to string together some timely hits and tack 3 runs on the board. Unable to get a significant rally going, we lost our opening game.

And now, a new feature for this season's blog! Today's Indians Play of the Day. Each game - and maybe for some practices - we will single out one play that was better than all the other plays for that game/practice. This is a subjective exercise, and readers may disagree with the choice. If you disagree with any of the choices, you can voice your disagreement, and offer your pick(s), in the chattered section found under each post. For this post, though, we don't think there will be any disagreement.

Today's iPod.
After pitching a stellar five innings that would have permanently disabled lesser arms, Jeff Paz manned shortstop. On a grounder that was just out of reach of the third baseman, Jeff hustled to his right, backhanded the ball, and threw across his body, across the diamond, and into the first baseman's glove to nail the batter/runner. Kudos.

April 11 2007

2007-04-11T18:51:00.000-07:00

Our April 8th exhibition game got rained out. We had a practice last night at Tamanawis, our final practice before Sunday's season-opener. Did some fielding and did some hitting. Now if you'll excuse us, Canucks/Stars game one is about to start and we need to get our groove on; more accurately, we need to get onto our couch's groove.

April 1 2007

2007-04-02T10:42:00.000-07:00

Our 11am practice on the 31st got moved to the 1st; no joke. We do believe that a practice did occur on the 28th, but we are not in a position to comment on that. Perhaps someone else who is in a position will care to comment?

As for our practice on the first, there's nothing quite like playing baseball in a hailstorm. Add a strong wind so that the hail falls sideways and you've got a recipe for perfection. The infielders and outfielders were segregated for the first half hour for the usual grounders & flies drill, followed by an infield/outfield session, followed by a spirited game of american pingpong which proved to be quite the pitchers' duel. A little too many K's on both sides, but the pitchers did want to prove their worth, spring training and all. No one can take their spot on the roster for granted.

We have an exhibition game planned for Sunday the 8th against the Rockies. Come one, come all - especially the players.

March 25 2007

2007-03-26T12:11:00.000-07:00

Our first outdoor practice! It was the Indians' best turnout for a practice in a decade, give or take 10 years. Just two guys weren't there. If this keeps up all season, the players who make the long drives to practices will actually be rewarded. It is just the first outdoor practice so we may well be getting ahead of ourselves, but still, we have hope, and hope is good, unless you're hoping you stub your toe, then not so much..

We had infielders taking grounders and outfielders taking flies and occasional grounders and it was grand. It was sunny, but due to the recent rain the field was very soggy. We stayed off the Whalley Field to avoid longterm damage, and trekked to a nearby available area. Brad was late, he "stepped into a marsh puddle and it took 20 minutes to get out of it".

After roughly 40 minutes of flies and grounders we made our way to the cages and took some hacks. There is much enthusiasm watching the newbies in the cage, as they appear able to make contact - quality contact - with great frequency. Our new additions are sure to help us get our playoff legs up and over that final hurdle.

Talk of our first game, versus the Delta Tigers, had some players displaying some trepidation. You see, there are rumors afoot that the Tigers have been practicing indoors three times a week for a couple of months now. But, the game on April 15th is not going to be played in a gymnasium. It's not being played in a gym is it? No, we didn't think so. So with our outdoor practice today, and upcoming outdoor practices on Wednesday the 28th and Saturday the 31st, we feel we have the edge. Some of us feel that way anyway...

March 21 2007

2007-03-21T16:08:00.000-07:00

Spring has officially sprung and Spring Training is proceeding at a slow pace. A few batting cage sessions here and there, with the annual start-of-Spring-Training proclamation given by Enrique that he won't be pitching this season. Alright Enrique, so you're good to go in the first game? Or the second game?

We've able to swing the bat at pitched balls a few times, but the weather has been uncooperative when it comes to field time. As of now we have yet to need to don our cleats - which is probably the most poetic sentence we have ever written. But that could change this Sunday! The don our cleats part; it's highly unlikely we'll ever write a more poetic sentence. The weather channel predicts mostly sunshine for this Sunday, which would be very nice for our scheduled not-so-long-ass 10am-11:59am practice. For everyone who has been eagerly awaiting our return after the off-season, a special treat: this practice is an open practice, free to anyone and everyone who wishes to view this practice! (note: tickets required, with a service fee of $2.50, a little something we learned from les 'nucks.)

There are a few changes this season, including a new rule governing the placement of a batters' feet during an at-bat: at least one foot must stay in the box at all times. Getting the signs from the third-base coach? Keep one foot in. Failure to follow this rule will result in a strike. For it's one, two, three times-both-feet-out-of-the-box you're out, at the ollllld balllllll gaaaaame!

Spring Training 2007

2007-03-07T13:58:00.000-08:00

As soon as we realized that a whole new baseball season lay just ahead, we thought about our ultimate goal, which is going one step further than last season and winning the championship. And then one thing entered our minds and wouldn't leave:

Ain't nothing gonna break my stride
Nobody's gonna slow me down

Imagine, if you will, the entire Indians roster dancing around the clubhouse in our skivvies, chanting the above line (now adopted as a mantra) while beating our chests in a rhythmic beat, and you will have some idea of what is definitely not happening.

Instead we're meeting at night in the bloody cold and trying not to lose appendages to frostbite while hitting BP in a batting cage that isn't fully lit. Afterwards, we decide to postpone future practices until there is no longer snow on the ground. The postponement ends Sunday at 7:30pm.

It should be noted that while our first, and so far only, team BP session was on February 26th, we had actually wanted to start earlier. But we were unable to do so due to squatting hookers that had been living in the cages during the off-season. Whalley had to clean all of the garbage and syringes out of the cages and have them inspected before we could use them. There's a Bonds joke in there somewhere.

Our first game is Sunday April 15th. Mark your calendars.

Team Awards 2006

2006-09-16T19:29:00.000-07:00

10 of 16 players have submitted their voting forms. Players were given one rule: no voting for yourself. The number of votes tallied in each category will sometimes be less than 10, sometimes more; some players left a category or two blank, and some voted for two players in one category, which, unlike last season, was within the voting rules. Entries are listed in order of most-votes to least-votes, with the total number of votes, if more than one, in brackets.

Here are the results...

Most Competitive Player

Robin (6)
Kelly (2)
Christopher
Clayton
Scott

Most Improved Player

Jeffrey (3)
Rodney (2)
Bradley
Robert - "that guy used to be all kinds of terrible!"
Scott
Tyler

Most Likely To Show Up To A Game Hungover

Christopher (4)
Ryan (4)
Clayton (2) - "obviously"
Rodney

Best Defensive Player

Robert (4)
Clayton (2)
Jeffrey (2)
Kelly
Robin

Best Clutch Hitter

Clayton (6)
Robin (2)
Jeffrey
Scott

Best Sportsmanship

Kelly (3)
Robert (3)
Rodney (2)
Adam
Enrique
Jeffrey

Funniest Player

Bradley (5) - "on a dance floor"
Jeffrey (2)
Robert (2) - "in writing"
Christopher

Most Peculiar Injury
("It’s interesting enough that you created this category – we had that many injuries.")

Josh's punching metal rod and breaking hand - exact same manner that Chris broke his hand (4)
Sabres pitcher's arm (2)
Aaron's popped knee
Bradley blowing out his knee playing frisbee 3 years ago
Lee's arm
Scott bailing on third

Unsung Hero

Jeffrey (6)
Enrique (2)
Ryan

Play Of The Year

"Dirty [Tyler] Sanchez" "making his superman debut in left field" (7)
Christopher's game ending catch in the semi-finals
Clayton's sliding catch of a foul popup
Robert - "you've had too many. Pick one."

Grittiest Player

Kelly (3)
Josh coming back from broken hand (2)
Robin (2)
Ryan (2)
Clayton

Most Valuable Player

Clayton (7)
Christopher
Robin

[editor: But where's Pooh?]

Best Quote

Kelly: "Man, we're gonna get smoked!" (2)
Pick any one of Brad's classic cheers (2)
Clayton: "I sometimes do a #2 in urinals"
Jeffrey: "Jazz Hands"
Leaverd: "Is it okay if I leave?" (seventh inning of the semi-final game)
"He really HF'd that one"

Sexiest Batting Stance

Kelly's "shimmy" (3)
Jeffrey (2)
Leaverd (2)
Clayton
Scott
"We're the sexiest team in the LMBA"

Song That Best Represents This Season

Backstreet Boys: "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)"
Britney Spears: "Oops!... I Did It Again"
Garth Brooks: "Friends In Low Places"
Metallica: "Turn The Page"
The Ohio Players: "Love Rollercoaster"
U2: "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"
The Wedding Song

Exclusive Ensemble

2006-09-15T22:49:00.000-07:00

All the exclusives, all in one post. Links to them at least. In chronological order:

Enrique -- Josh -- Jeffrey -- Kelly -- Adam -- Rodney -- Robin -- Clayton -- Robert -- Bradley

There have been a handful of award submission forms returned. We're hoping to get a few more before the deadline of noon tomorrow. As we said, the results will be posted by, uhhhh.. 4pm Sunday. Okay okay, we originally said noon Sunday, but an unexpected offer of Sunday morning brunch came our way, and believe you me, we're not ones to turn down crepes. Therefore, the results will be posted either sometime Saturday night or after brunch on Sunday. Once they're posted, an email will be sent to all Indians, all Surrey Indians that is, and the other couple thousand of our readers will just have to keep checking in.. Trust us, from what we've seen so far, it'll be worth the hourly check-in.

To the several Indians who haven't emailed in your entries: email in your entries!!

September 10 2006

2006-09-11T21:47:00.000-07:00

We were that close (we touched it).

It was definitely a beautiful day for a doubleheader. 'Tis a shame only one game was scheduled. At least it was the championship game, that kind of made it okay that we were only playing one game. In the end though, we would have liked to have played a best-of-seven, like the big boys do when it's playoff time. Even a best-of-three would have suited us fine. However many best-ofs until we are crowned champions. I think we even had it in us to do a best-of-one-hundred-and-thirty-nine. Et toi, Sabres?

The Sabres sure did bring their bats to the game. We'd become used to our pitchers being able to shut down the opposition, allowing just a few hits here and there. On this day, however, the Sabres jumped on our pitching early, driving hits to all fields. We kept pace early on, thanks in part to Jeff and Enrique's back-to-back extra base hits. We think we heard Jeff saying that it was his first career triple. Kudos Jeff; well-timed.

There was nothing really that stood out as reasons why they won or reasons why we lost. It was a well-fought game and in the end they had more runs on the scoreboard. A few more timely hits, and a few less baserunning errors, on our part and maybe, just maybe... Suppose we can play the what if game all off-season.

To the Sabres pitcher: Get well soon.

That's about it. If anyone else has anything to add, more specifics for the absent RobE perhaps, you're more than welcome to chatter. For mental health reasons, we can't get more specific about the Sabres' pitcher; we've said too much already and we're getting lightheaded again. Clay can tell you about it.

The team awards submission forms have been emailed out; results will be posted here by Sunday noon at the latest. In the meantime, check out the videos found on the left sidebar. We got our hands on some good footage taken during Sunday's game.

Bradley: A CC Exclusive

2006-09-06T08:30:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Bradley Cumiskey: The closest watering hole with the team

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

BC: Cleaning the waffle iron in my skivvies

CC: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars.

BC: my wife.

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

BC: my wife.

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

BC: Cynthia f*#king Voo

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

BC: Come up with the best pre-game cheer.

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

BC: The Red Menace

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

BC:

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

BC: Raging Bull

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

BC: Casablanca

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

BC: Chillaxing

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

BC:

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

BC: snake bit with the bat
with resolve the hits will come
if not, I just bunt

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

BC: I would throw it back, and use the publicity to make more money than I ever could selling the ball. I would release a book titled "Why I threw it back," and try and be really charming and marketable on the morning talk show circuit. I'll further make a name for myself by making fun of Matt Lauer while on the Today Show.

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

BC: Comedies.

CC: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

BC: Al Einstein, Willy Shakespeare, Izzy Newton, & Leo DaVinci.

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

BC: The Phillipines. I've heard so much, I would love to go.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

BC: George Bush after a bath.

Clayton Edger

2006-08-31T10:58:00.000-07:00

There are no *s around Clay's name because it's not a video. We're here to tell you about Macula's big gig this weekend. Actually, who better to tell you than Clay himself. Here's the mic Clay...

Hey guys. Saturday, September 2nd at the Lamplighter on Abbott St. in Gastown is going to be the venue for our first show with our new singer. You will not be able to tell by our performance that it's our first. We've been practicing like 4 times a week for the past 3 months. We're definitely planning on making a career out of this.

Three of the four other bands playing that night are also really kickass... the promoter has told us that there are going to be labels there to check out the band that's on second. Obviously these guys would want to check out who's headlining (us) and it could be a REALLY big night for us if we get good crowd support. It's unheard of for a band to get signed at their first show but you can always hope right? Anyways, thanks in advance to anyone deciding to come out and support.

Cheers,
Clay

August 27 2006

2006-08-29T16:20:00.000-07:00

Now that was a game.

In between our epic pre-game cheer (a compilation of previous cheers, a "best-of", if you will, with a shout-out to newlywed Kelly - congrats!) and the final out, there was much drama, much excitement, much heartache, and, finally, much celebration. Okay okay, so much of the "much celebration" happened immediately after the final out.. there was still a bit of much celebration after Rod laid down a pressure bunt in the eighth. We'll get to that later. First...

The other semi-final had just concluded, so we knew the finals would be the Sabres vs winner of Biscuits/Indians(us!). The game started well for us. Lee started on the mound, and he was on. And we mean on. Two thumbs up on; Chris can vouch for that. Bottom of the first we got on the scoreboard quicksmart. Two walks to start it off, and then Redge smoking a triple to right-centre.

From there, we kinda coasted, and some details escape us. We do know that Lee had 9 Ks through 4 innings. That's right, 9 of the 12 outs had come via the strikeout. Can't remember how he did in the fifth inning. Perhaps a nice little pixie will come along and enlighten us. Despite Lee's dominance, we couldn't take a strangle hold on the game. We had a 3-1 lead extended to 6-1, and promptly blew that, due to some sketchy fielding and timely Biscuit hitting. They scored one run in the seventh, and then four in the eighth. The Biscuits' bench became more animated with each run scored, and as the tying run came across there were loud cries of "it's a whole new ballgame!" Simmer down lads, simmer down...

Bottom of the eighth was small-ball time. Leadoff man Ryan got on, and stole second. We think the catcher overthrew second and that's how Ryan got to third, but we may be confusing that with another play. At any rate, Ryan was on third, Rod was at the plate, and the squeeze was the plan. The pitch was low, the bat pulled back, and Ryan scampered back to third. The infielders came in for the next pitch, squeeze was called again, and Rod laid down a beauty. The pitcher came home with it but it wasn't even close. We tacked on two more after that, for insurance's sake, and for vanity's sake. The game was in the bag. Or was it?

Top of the ninth the Biscuits loaded the bases. The sacks were juiced. Two outs. A triple would tie the game. A double may tie the game. A single probably wouldn't tie the game. Heeeeeeerrrre's the pitch. It's a liner right at Chris. He snowcones it. This game is ovah.

See alls y'all at the finals. Date and time and place is TBA. Hmmm, after typing that last sentence we checked the Sabres' website. According to them the date of the final is September 10. Time and place is still TBA.

* Kelly Grace *

2006-08-19T14:45:00.000-07:00

We tried to embed this video but not only did it not work, it also made Brad's video not work. Therefore...

Click here for Groovin' Kelly at Google Video

Robert: A CC Exclusive

2006-08-19T12:32:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Robert Aubertin: Anywhere that I can have a sit and a cola

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

RA: Walking the dogs

CC: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars.

RA: My blueberry muffin recipe

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

RA: Laugh and cry simultaneously

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

RA: The absence of spelling bees at my school.

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

RA: To play a role in the Indians' championship.

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

RA: Trickster Coyote

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

RA: Off the top of my head, Douglas Adams, because of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

RA: Caddyshack

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

RA: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

RA: Taking kids and dogs for a hike

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

RA: All my secrets have equal deepness and darkness.

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

RA: Five years old, lost teeth
Used to be an infielder
Where's my hitting gone?

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

RA: Quickly throw it close enough to Bonds so that the lightning strike evaporates both Bonds and the ball. Game continues as if nothing happened. No one ever utters Bonds's name again.

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

RA: Fairly equal, maybe comedies a bit more

CC: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

RA: Andy Kaufman, Bo Jackson, Kirk McLean, and Keri Russell

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

RA: Portugal, specifically Açores, because it's Sandra's home country and it looks beautiful in photos.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

RA: A masochist is a person who likes to take a cold shower in the morning; so they take a hot one!

August 13 2006

2006-08-16T20:42:00.000-07:00

Sunday's game saw the return of a couple of players fresh off the DL, as our nine-player roster streak ended. Welcome back Josh and Rod; howzabout you keep the punching of metal objects and the faceplanting into trees to a minimum from here on out?

Twas a tight match for the first half of the game. Neither us nor the Brewers could get much going offensively. They at least had Chris to blame. We had no one, and nothing, to blame, except for our sky-high expectations of ourselves which forced us to overswing at pitches which should have been driven much harder than they were actually driven.

The fielding was suspect on both sides. Perhaps the sun is at fault, but there were several pop-ups, flyballs, and foul balls that could have been caught by a little leaguer. Or your mom, your pick.

We loved Lee striking guys out on called third strikes with loopers to end all loopers. They were bailing out onto their asses as the ump punched them out. Nice touch: their coach calling them "chicken sh*ts" both during the at-bat, and while they were doing their walk of shame to the dugout. Not not-loud either.

Highlight of the game goes to Brad. Not for his batting, which was impressive unto itself, but for his idiosyncratic cheering. He had the entire Indians roster, as well as our fan section of the grassy hill, cracking up on several occasions. Wish we could write more about it, but it truly is something you have to see/hear for yourself. His regalement after one of Lee's looping Ks could prove to be the number one highlight of this season. Video footage excluded.

Final score: 9-3 (according to the Brewers website.. can't remember if that's correct or not)

Question for you: On the standings website, doesn't PCT stand for winning percentage? Why then does Newton have a higher winning percentage if we have one more win than Newton in the same number of games? Turned into two questions; double the fun, half the calories.

Clayton: A CC Exclusive

2006-08-15T18:17:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Clayton Edger: Probably have to be that corner near whalley ballpark where my girlfriends hang out

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

CE: SLEEPING! DON'T CALL!

CC: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars.

CE: my sega genesis

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

CE: Steroids

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

CE: I was six years too old for the competition

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

CE: My baseball goal for this baseball season as a baseball player would have to be to just play baseball as well as any baseball player could play baseball and not let the bad baseball games get me down but to feed off the good baseball games that happen this baseball season...baseball. (that's 10!)

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

CE: Clay the wrestler.

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

CE: Hugh Hefner. He doesn't own any clothes that aren't pyjamas.

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

CE: Fever pitch

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

CE: Wedding Crashers

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

CE: Waking up hung over after a Macula sell out concert at GM place, in time to warm up for the game with the Indians

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

CE: I sometimes do a #2 in urinals.

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

CE: Hit as a lefty
But I throw with my right
This question too hard!

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

CE: Throw it at his head and kick him in the pouch.

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

CE: comedies

CC: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

CE: Kurt Cobain, Maynard James Keenan, Brandon Boyd, and my Melissa.

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

CE: Iraq because I've been told it's a blast.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

CE: Chuck Norris doesn't sleep, he waits.

* Bradley Cumiskey *

2006-08-15T10:41:00.000-07:00

Ladies and gentlemen, we are pleased to present to you the world premiere of Dance-Machine Brad. Watch it on the screen below, or click the link underneath the screen.

Click here for Dance-Machine Brad at Google Video

Robin: A CC Exclusive

2006-08-14T20:06:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Robin Edger: The India Bistro

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

RE: Laying on the beach at English Bay with my wife.

CC: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars.

RE: 2 billion dollars

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

RE: Faint.

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

RE: The word 'elevator'. No joke, actually happened.

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

RE: Same as every other year: win it all.

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

RE: 'The Edge'.

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

RE: Tough one. I have a lot of admiration for philanthropists and people who are just generally trying to make the world a better place. Bill Gates, Bono, and Jeffry Sachs come to mind.

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

RE: Field of Dreams. You know why.
[editor: cuz Kevin Costner is sexy like you?!]

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

RE: Tough one. I'm going with 12 Monkeys.

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

RE: Wake up; go play baseball with the Surrey Indians; go straight to the hospital after the game and begin the 6-day recovery process.

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

RE: I don't want to get into specifics, but lets just say his name is Rob Aubertin.

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

RE: a few decent years
then an mvp season
now, ride off my rep

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

RE: Spit on it. Wipe it off. Then sell it.

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

RE: Comedies.

CC: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

RE: Socrates, Socrates' translator, Pierre Trudeau, Lee Harvey Oswald (I gotta know).

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

RE: France. I'd get to practice my French, and I'd get to enjoy all the culture.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

RE: A grasshopper walks into a bar. The bartender laughs and says, "Hey, we have a drink named after you!" The grasshopper looks at the bartender, with a look of extreme confusion on his face, and says, "You have a drink called Steve?"

[editor: apologies for lack of images. but blame blogger.]

July 23 - August 6 2006

2006-08-14T11:55:00.000-07:00

Yeah yeah yeah. We know we're a little behind in the whole blog-posting department. FYI, this is a nonpaying gig and it's been a busier than normal summer, so three words for ya: Get over it. Now that we've got that unpleasantness behind us, let's get to it...

On July 23rd we could barely assemble a barely cognizant crew to face the inept Playaz. It was the day after RobE's wedding (congrats!), and we had to call him up to get him on the field as our ninth player. Luckily it was a night game, as we don't think an early morning call would have gone over well. ("But we realllllly need you dude.. c'mon, did your priorities get skewed overnight?") We recently heard that his bride watched The Notebook alone while her hubby played. Sad, but not as sad as forfeiting to the Playaz would have been. Kudos RobE, you've got Indian blood in ya.

The game was not so much a game as a glorified BP session. Final score was 21-1, as we collected 14 hits, six of which going for extra bases, and tallied a remarkable 18 base on balls. Good eye, Indians, good eye. Perhaps BP, in this case, stands for Batting Patience. After a season long slump, also-recently-married RobA (congrats!) pounded out five hits, including two doubles, and scored four times while knocking in three. The pitching was exceptional, including five strong innings from Ratty, and surprise performances by Clay and Kelly.

Our next game on the schedule was an August 2nd midweek rematch against the Playaz. Unfortunately, we learned in the days prior that the Playaz forfeited that game, as they were folding for the season. Sad news, as they seemed to get enough players out to the games by gametime.

Next up: the Sabres, a formidable opponent. The August 6th game was our second straight with just 9 players. Injuries and holidays were taking a toll on our roster, which we won't harp on about cuz we still manage to notch plus-ones in the win column, this time a 10-2 victory.

Highlights from this game:

Clay's 5 stolen bases (17 in 11 games - yowzers!)
Lee's 5 solid innings pitched, averaging a K an inning.
The win.

With one more game on the sked (Sunday the 13th vs the Brew Crew), let's keep this wagon wheel going right into the playoffs. Who are we kidding, we've already played that game. Stay tuned for a post on that game after a post or two of CC Exclusives.

Rodney: A CC Exclusive

2006-08-09T01:51:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Rodney Wingrove: first my fridge than my sofa

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

RW: either hiking or mountain biking and sometimes nursing a hangover

CC: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars.

RW: my spot on the indians roster

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

RW: buy a video camera to film everything

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

RW: I could only spell swear words I got susspandid

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

RW: to pitch a no hitter

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

RW: Mr. Tickle-Pants

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

RW: My father good athlete good person and a great dad

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

RW: Major League

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

RW: Kobe Tai vs. Jenna Jameson or Hot and Ready Vol. #6

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

RW: Playin ball with the over 40s Indians

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

RW: I think Scott Sibley has a great ass

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

RW: Really want to hit
but Im sitting on the bench
please put me in coach

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

RW: Probably sell it than pay all the pitchers in the majors to throw at him

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

RW: I like scary comedies

CC: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

RW: Kevin Cash, Vernon Wells Alex Rios and Pat Borders

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

RW: England lots of historical sites, football and beer

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

RW: Why is 6 scared of 7? because 7 8 9 (ouch is this thing on?)

Adam: A CC Exclusive

2006-07-23T15:59:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Adam Fischer: The Jon B, but I have to find a new one in Surrey.

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

AF: Hydrating

CC: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars. 1 billion dollars?

AF: There's very little you can't buy back with 1 billion dollars. 2% annual interest on 1 billion is 20 mil/year income. You'd be crazy not to sell.

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

AF: Learn how to hit.

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

AF: There were no spelling bees, only tests. I dominated the tests, though.

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

AF: Try not to throw out my arm.

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

AF: Slick Rick

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

AF: Naslund because he's Naslund.

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

AF: Major League

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

AF: Beavis and Butthead Do America

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

AF: Porche, Autobahn. I hope.

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

AF: I'm absolutely wasted on coffee right now. Strong cup.

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

AF: Baseball since age 5
Quit for 3 to complicate
Back to the basics

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

AF: Submit it as evidence in one of the several court cases he is, and will be, involved in.

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

AF: Girl or no girl?

CC: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

AF: Me from different decades. Is time travel allowed?

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

AF: UAE

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

AF: A man visits his doctor complaining about health problems. The doctor starts reeling of questions about the man's lifestyle, and proceeds to ask him to describe his sex life.

The man replies, "Infrequently". The doctor says, "That's great news! Such an active sex life will keep you healthy."

Get it?

July 16 2006

2006-07-21T13:17:00.000-07:00

Why has it taken so long to do a posting about our last game? Because we've been attempting to string together enough words into logical sequences to make a 3-0 win seem exciting. We've said it before and we'll say it again, a win's a win. You can't tell how pretty or ugly it is by looking at the box score, so let's just say this was the equivalent of a Britney Spears win. The before-or-after-Britney?, you may be asking. And the ambiguity settles in nicely, except for our ambiguous-free second sentence.

We're looking ahead to our game this weekend, which isn't hard as the weekend is pretty much already here. Gotta get that runs-for average back up to our elitist standards. See you Sunday at 7pm in Langley!

Kelly: A CC Exclusive

2006-07-06T23:54:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Kelly Grace: Usually home…I’m way too sore to do much of anything but on occasion we do head out for beers – something I think we as a team should do more often.

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

KG: Working unfortunately. This summer however will be weddings or stags most Saturdays.

CC: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars.

KG: My wife (but she’s still my fiancé so if anyone wants that trade hit me up now)

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

KG: Well I don’t need to sell my fiancé anymore so deals off.

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

KG: Actually I think I won most of the spelling bees – me smrt

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

KG: To keep my average above .400 – I got some work to do.

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

KG: Wolverine (tough and hairy)

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

KG: My late grandfather – an all round great guy.

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

KG: Any baseball movie

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

KG: X-men

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

KG: Playing for the Indians 30+ league. That’s right, 50 years old playing for the 30+ league. Do you think it’s possible?

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

KG: Well if you promise not to tell anyone…ya right, you can’t be trusted.

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

KG: I used to hit good
But now I’m getting older
And that really sucks

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

KG: Well I just hit #1000 up in the show so his 756th homerun really means nothing to me. Here ya go kid.

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

KG: Comedies.

CC: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

KG: My grandfather, parents, and my brother

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

KG: Africa…Safari

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

KG: A bear and a rabbit were each taking a sh*t in the forest. The bear turns to the rabbit and says “Do you have trouble with sh*t sticking to your fur?” The rabbit says “no”. So the bear wipes his arse with the rabbit.

Jeffrey: A CC Exclusive

2006-07-04T17:45:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter #1: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Jeffrey Heatley: well, considering that 9 times out of 10 i end up at work after a game, ill go with anywhere but there. oh, and if there happen to be cold alcoholic beverages available, that helps.

CC #2: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

JH: theres an 11 in the am now? whats that like?

CC #3: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars.

JH: a trillion dollars, thats just bad business

CC #4: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

JH: learn how to play baseball

CC #5: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

JH: the un-availability of "hooked on phonics" at the time

CC #6: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

JH: see question #4

CC #7: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

JH: the half black attack

CC #8: What person do you most admire and why?

JH: the editor of this fine weblog. because its hours of entertainment
[editor: you mocked me once, never do it again..]

CC #9: What is your favorite sports movie?

JH: slap shot; followed closely by bull durham (*note: slap shot 2 is nowhere near this list)

CC #10: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

JH: the big lebowski

CC #11: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

JH: throwing out my arm foolishly trying to gun out a runner in a 40 and over game

CC #12: What is your deepest darkest secret?

JH: its actually just a good tan...

CC #13: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

JH: to win or to lose
is seldom as important
as making them cry

CC #14: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

JH: sell it immediately for as much as it would take to make that little boys dream of booting him in the balls a reality
[editor: we're pretty sure he means this little boy]

CC #15: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

JH: comedies, preferably of the non-romantic variety

CC #16: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

JH: jon stewart, lewis black, stephan colbert, and dubya to be their fodder. (*note, all 4 are alive, as i think dead bodies might be gross at the dinner table)

CC #17: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

JH: used to be australia for no honest reason... now maybe fiji... if only for the beaches

CC #18: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

JH: horse walks into a bar, bartender asks "hey, why the long face?"
ha... he... hooo. come on i cant be on all the time!
thank you, GOODNIGHT! dont forget to tip your blogger!

update - A CC Exclusive

2006-06-28T22:08:00.000-07:00

At this point some of you may be thinking that A CC Exclusive has suffered some sort of season-ending injury. We may also be thinking that. In truth, we haven't had much luck with bites recently. We'll keep throwing the bait out there, and hope to feel a tug on the line sometime soon. In the meantime, enjoy the warm summer sunshine, and Happy Canada Day! (Better early than never.)

Our next game is Sunday July 9th at 6pm at Central Park against the White Rock Rockies.

BTW, you know Josh's hand injury we told you about in the last post? Turns out he's out for 6-8 weeks, but will still be coming out to games to do some "cheerleading and stuff". All you need to know: Drop him from your fantasy team, unless you get mega points for arabesques.

June 25 2006

2006-06-26T16:59:00.000-07:00

Such a perfect day for baseball; cries of "let’s play two" were oftheard from our clubhouse. In fact, we quadrupled that amount and got in eight before the day was done. We’re talking innings, what are you talking about?

We welcomed back Lee from the imploded Revolt, some more welcoming than others (Kelly and his "presenting", any excuse that guy can find). It seems that the Revolt folded due to insufficient players for several consecutive games, so Lee was a might bit anxious when the Indians had less than nine players with just half an hour until gametime. Usually we have 12 or 13 guys at the park an hour before gametime, so naturally we blamed Lee for bringing his bad luck with him. The game was at a park we hadn’t yet played at this year, so a couple of guys got lost but showed up in the nick of time. Rob E and Clay had to leave halfway through the game, so we needed at least 11 to show, and got exactly 11 to show. However one of the guys, Josh, pulled up lame, having punched the metal holder of a punching bag. Irregardless, we had enough players to play, so play ball!

Top of the first we threatened. Bases loaded with one away, anything was possible! We scored one run. A few innings later we went up 2-0. Our bats just weren’t there. Which sucked, cuz Enrique was pitching well, nary a scoring chance being given up. We’ll blame the heat and humidity; we’re sure that both were much higher in our dugout. Eventually the Biscuits tacked together a few hits, scored a few runs, and waddya know, it’s a 4-4 game heading into the late innings. This can’t be happening. This is a team that we beat 14-0 a mere three weeks earlier.

But have no fear! After we took a one-run lead, Jeff located his curveball (which is said to have been in his mushy yogurt bar) and knocked in an insurance run and we snuck out of Robert Burnaby Park with a hard fought 6-4 victory. We did benefit from many costly errors on their part; from dropped flies to passed balls/wild pitches. But a win's a win, at least where we're from, so we'll take it to the bank and cash out.

The End.

(PS to Rod – Sorry again about the momentous brain fart. It’ll never happen again. But blame Talky McTalkerson and the Biscuits’ catcher, it was their fault that I found out the score. If they don’t tell me the score, I can’t slip up and tell you the score. Right? Right. But how ’bout that Portugal/Netherlands game. What a doozy!)

June 18 2006

2006-06-18T20:40:00.000-07:00

We played a game on Thursday? Prove it.
We played a game today? Yeah we did!

Sparked by Kelly's "presenting" during warmups, we put our two consecutive losses behind us and jumped out to an early lead, scoring early and often. The Cardinals (sans site de web) were shorthanded, forcing their coach into playing the outfield, to less than stellar results. At first he was in right, but after several line drives headed out that way in the second inning ("is there a bullseye out there" - Cards 3rd baseman) he was found roaming centrefield the rest of the way. We figure it was so he had help on both sides.

His presence in the outfield actually wasn't much of a factor. Our hits were scattered all over, helped along by some uninspired infielding on their part. Once again our pitchers - hey, Chris and Enrique, who knew? - were all-starific, shutting the opposition down inning after inning.

We had a lot of good hits today, but can't seem to remember who did what per se. Recall a Josh smackaroo to left centre, and a Clay triple down the left field line, but without a scorebook as we write this, and paying little attention during the game, we are at a loss for too much specifics..

A couple of nice catches; by Tyler in left and Brad in right. Steady play by the infield, including a soft line drive double play that included a nice scoop by Jeff at first base on a play that included the runner running towards second while the base coach yelled "baaack.. baaack". (We bought some batteries, but they weren't included, so we had to buy them again. Steven Wright is awesome.)

We're not too sure why we're so far below the Cards in the standings. Sure they were missing a player or two, but still, we just didn't see it. They certainly didn't look like the team that beat us a few weeks back.

That's just about all we've got for today. FYI, the game on Thursday was a well-played game by both sides, but Newton scored more runs than us. That other loss we still choose not to discuss.

Happy Father's Day! All father's were given free admission to today's game. We are high-rollers. Never forget it.

Next game is Sunday at 10am.
Robert Burnaby in Burnaby.
Rematch vs the Biscuits.
Be there.

June 11 2006

2006-06-13T11:23:00.000-07:00

We choose not to discuss Sunday's game (unless anyone wants to chatter... anyone? anyone? Bueller?)

Our make-up game for the rained-out make-up game is scheduled for this Thursday at Whalley at 7pm. Newton will never know what hit 'em.

June 4 2006

2006-06-09T18:52:00.000-07:00

It was a cold and humid day. The clouds were working overtime to hold in their rain; a trickle would escape here and there. Anticipating their first game in three weeks, the Surrey Indians were determined to get this one in.

With the threat of rain lurking all afternoon, the Indians' game plan against the Burnaby Biscuits (who do not have a team website) was to 1) jump out to an early lead, and hope the rain held off long enough to make the game official; 2) keep up their runs for average; and 3) decrease their runs against average. Come to think of it, you can pretty much count on that being their game plan every game.

Game plan 1 was successful, to a degree. The end of the first inning saw the Indians with a 4-0 lead, including a two-run HF by Mr. Ratelle. After that midday moonshot, a few scoreless innings with nothing dramatic (or memorable... or emailable) happening.

Eventually game plan 2 was enacted, and the Indians tacked on a few more runs in the sixth or seventh. Could have been the fifth too. Pretty sure it wasn't the fourth. We really need to be doing these posts earlier in the week.

As for game plan 3, both teams discovered early on that the strike zone was larger than Quentin Tarantino's imagination, and Mr. Ratelle and Mr. Roblero exploited that fact perfectly, fanning a combined twelve Biscuits.

In the eighth, still not happy with the runs scored total, the Indians got their offense going again. The exact moment that their lead was extended to 10-0, the Biscuits began walking off the field, apparently thinking that there was a mercy rule. (FYI, there is a six-runs-max-per-inning rule, except for the ninth/last inning, but no ten-run-lead-after-the-fifth-the-game-is-over rule.) The Indians, however, did not accept their resignation, owing to the fact that they hadn't played a game in three weeks. They wanted to get their hacks in... and their bucks worth.

Notable batting performances
Mr. Heatley: 2-for-2
Mr. C Edger: 2-for-3
Mr. Ratelle: HF to end all HFs

Upon the Biscuits' 27th out, the score was 14-0 and the Surrey Indians had successfully executed all 3 of their game plans. The Indians are currently tied with the Sabres for the lead in runs scored (51), despite playing two less games, which means they have the best runs for average (12.75). And, after Sunday's aforementioned phenomenal pitching, they now have the second best runs against average (5.75).

Next game is this Sunday.
9am at Central Park vs the Rockies.

Josh: A CC Exclusive

2006-05-28T12:54:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Josh Karls: The closest bar with the cheepest beer.

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

JK: Nursing my hangover from friday or playing ball.

CC: Fill in the blank: I wouldn't sell ___________ for a billion dollars.

JK: I wouldn't sell my son Jacob for a billion dollars.

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

JK: Call you guys and tell you you're S.O.L.

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

JK: What's a spelling bee?

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

JK: Hit at least one dinger.

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

JK: The big K (or my girl calls me Jumpy Joshie)

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

JK: I admire Steve Nash because he's a two year mvp and he's a little white guy who runs the court.

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

JK: Major League!

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

JK: Scarface.

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 20 years from now.

JK: I can't think that far ahead but I'll say playing ball then being lazy and old.

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

JK: My real name is actually Michael Dunahee.

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

JK: Dig in to the box
Smash anything that looks good
Sprint all the way home

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

JK: I would sell it right away before he gets caught for steroids then the ball would be worthless.

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

JK: Comedies.

CC: You can invite four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

JK: Babe Ruth, Alissa Milano, Steve Nash and Hannibal Lector

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

JK: Germany because thats where I'm from.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

JK: Why is it so hot at Burnaby Bisquits games? Because there's not a fan in the place.

May 23 2006

2006-05-24T08:32:00.000-07:00

The make-up game of our rained-out opening day game got rained-out last night and will be made-up sometime in the future.

Enrique: A CC Exclusive

2006-05-19T09:21:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite post-game hangout?

Enrique Roblero: Boston Pizza

CC: It's 11am Saturday. What are you likely to be doing?

ER: Lifting weights or washing the car

CC: What person do you most admire and why?

ER: Myself, just 'cause

CC: You've been called up to The Show; what is the first thing you do?

ER: Buy tickets and cameras for all my friends, family and any acquaintance.

CC: What stopped you from winning the grade five spelling bee?

ER: The little ***** girl with long hair and SteveUrkel glasses

CC: As a baseball player what is your baseball goal this baseball season?

ER: To Win, Win, Win

CC: If you were a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

ER: NACHO MAN RICO SAVAGE

CC: What is your favorite sports movie?

ER: 61*

CC: What is your favorite non-sports movie?

ER: Madagascar, can't wait for Over the Hedge

CC: Describe an average Sunday in your life 30 years from now.

ER: Playing ball in the over 60 league.

CC: What is your deepest darkest secret?

ER: Can't reveal that, otherwise it wouldn't be as dark...

CC: Compose a haiku of your baseball career thus far.

ER: What the hell's a haiku,,., ok, googled it ....here goes
I often feel heat
Heat I often try throwing
I'm disappointed

CC: Let's say that Barry Bonds hits #756 and you end up with the ball. What do you do with it?

ER: Check it for traces of steroids.

CC: Do you prefer scary movies or comedies?

ER: 50-50 Love them both

CC: You can invite any four dinner guests, dead or alive. Who are they?

ER: Jessica Biel, Alessandra Ambrosio, Beyonce Knowles, Eva Longoria. Does it have to be only 4? wait is my wife gonna read this?

CC: What country that you've never been to would you most like to go to and why?

ER: Australia, tons of family there.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

ER:
1) A man walks into an emergency room with two black eyes and a broken nose. The doctor asks him what happened. "Well," says the man, "I was having a nice round of golf with my wife. She sliced her ball into a pasture of cows. We went to look for it, and while I was rooting around, I noticed that one of the cows had something protruding from its rear end. Sure enough, when it lifted its tail, there was my wife's golf ball." "And?" asked the doctor. "Well," the man said, "that's when I lifted the cow's tail, pointed, and yelled to the missus, 'Hey, honey—this one here looks like yours!'"

2) Q. How do rednecks practice safe sex?
A. They spray-paint Xs on the back of the sheep that kick!

May 14 2006

2006-05-14T15:32:00.000-07:00

Hello readers! Sorry for last week's nonpost. We were too busy warming up our cores and digits after the cold, wet, loss. Are we forgiven? Thanks.

After last week's disappointing outcome and today's disappointing result, we have two consecutive disappointing losses after our first-game win. It is, how you say, disappointing?

It started out promising enough today, with Kel giving a legendary pep-talk ("man, we're gonna get smoked") and Chris pitching a no-hitter through two, but the bats weren't providing the necessary runs. See, in baseball, you need runs to win. True story; you learned something today didn't you? Anyway, we did eventually get the bats going, but so did the (who did we play today? let us check, hold on... oh right) Sabres. In the end, they got the timely hits and we did not. That's the way it goes sometimes.

We are working on getting some game-action pics on our website. The one thing holding us back is taking some game-action pics. Profile pics were taken a couple of weeks ago, so look for those to pop-up at any moment, much like our at-bats today.

Our next game is the make-up game of our rained-out opening day game vs Newton Royals: Tuesday May 23rd at 8:45 pm at Whalley.

Let it be known that no one on the Indians roster brings a pencil sharpener to the games, or at least today's game. It really would've helped us out today, but we'll stop short of blaming the loss on it.

Is it possible for us to write any more words without actually saying anything?

Hey, we almost forgot to mention the defensive play of the game. The winner is..... Kel! On a hard line-drive, Kel powered up, released the controller button, and leapt what must have been at least three-and-a-half inches off the dirt to snare the ball for the out. Kudos Kel. (A nod to Jeff for the "powered up" inspiration.) First runner-up is Tyler for his diving catch attempt in left. He didn't quite make the catch but it was definitely worthy of an honorable mention.

Later that same day:
We definitely should have wished all mother's a Happy Mother's Day, this being Mother's Day. All mother's who attended today's game were given a special treat: free admission to the game. We often overhear people saying, "those Surrey Indians, how virtuous do you think they are?" We now consider that question to be sufficiently answered.

April 30 2006

2006-05-03T20:48:00.000-07:00

Twas a b-e-a-youtiful day for our opening day.
We notched a 20-3 victory over the Langley Playaz.

Our sparkling new jerseys made an immediate impact. We executed our warm-up runs and pregame drills with a whole new sense of purpose. As we stretched and gossiped during our centrefield huddle, talk turned to the new Burnaby team, the Biscuits. A future was envisioned. A delicious future. A future pastry league. The Burnaby Biscuits would play against the Coquitlam Croissants, with the winner taking on us, the Surrey Scones. Alas, we missed the boat, what with our new uniforms and all. When these fine fabrics become excessively frayed, the Scones we shall become. (Additional pastry team: Delta Donuts. Any others? Give us some more by chattering at the end of this post.)

The game got off to a rough start, with Aaron aggravating a leg injury in the top of the first that took him out of the game. Kelly, who was in a car accident on Saturday, was not dressed to play Sunday. Get well soon guys!

All in all, we had a decent offensive output, with a total of 21 hits spread out over the nine innings. FYI, last season it took us several weeks, possibly over a month, before we played a nine-inning game. Enrique and Josh both led the way on Sunday, each of them going 4-for-5, and at one point they smacked back-to-back triples. Clay also had a great start to the season, going 3-for-5 with a walk and 4 runs scored.

The pitching staff appears to be in mid-season form. Chris, Enrique, and Josh each pitched very well, holding the Playaz to just three hits.

The heads-in-the-game award is shared by Jeff and RobA, for instructing Rod to get his ass onto third base as he was making his way, helmet under the arm, to the dugout. He had mistakenly thought he was forced out at second when in fact the shortstop "phhhhhh - wasn’t even close" to the bag (quote: base ump).

If you’ve been paying attention to the forum on our website, you know that there is quite a competition brewing over who will lead the league in batting by season’s end. Not helping Scott’s cause was a very questionable infield-fly call on one of his batted balls. The ball landed in short rightfield, well out of the reach of the hustling infielders. No Indian was aware the call had been made until the umps stated the case after all the baserunners had advanced.

Next game: 6:30pm Saturday May 6th vs Coquitlam Cardinals at Blue Mountain Park.

April 25 2006

2006-04-26T21:57:00.000-07:00

Practice at Tamanawis.

It was a fairly uneventful practice until close to the end. A certain second baseman was having a tough time in the field, with groundballs tipping off the end of his glove that some say would have been in his back pocket last year. He was understandably angry when he began to take BP, and this anger only intensified after he swung through the first pitch. He basically lost it. Then with his neck muscles bulging, his face turning red, and his mouth struggling to contain the growing amount of foam, he ripped a line drive so hard that the ball literally exploded.

In other news, it was my first practice of the year, and it seems obvious to me that what was missing from the team is now back. Just one man's opinion.

The picture is of the broken ball. Click to enlarge.

April 16 2006

2006-04-17T15:56:00.000-07:00

We was rained out on opening day. No actual precipitation at game time, but there had been enough wetness in the days and weeks leading up to the grand event that playing the game would've meant destroying both the turf, and, more importantly, our precious cleats. Plus our toes would've gotten a little chilly. You don't want our toes to get chilly do you?

Make-up game is scheduled for 4pm, Sunday April 23rd at Unwin. It's sure to be a doozy. Do us a favor, s'il vous plaît: do a sun dance every morning this week. We sure would like to get our season started.

Update - 8:40pm.
We have intercepted an email that contained the following information: Unfortunately we aren’t able to field a team next Sunday to play the makeup so it will have to wait until later in the season. At least 6 of us are unable to attend.

We know what you're thinking.. should I still do a sun dance every morning this week? Well, it's up to you. But you should know that we will still be doing them. The sooner all of the fields are dry the better; after all, we also have to practice on them.

April 11 2006

2006-04-14T13:40:00.000-07:00

We had an exhibition game on Tue zzz zzzzzz zzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzz. It was against the Revo zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzz zzz z. It was slow going. Not much energ zz zzzzzzzzzz zz zzzzzzzzzz zzz. Our first game is this coming Sunday. 7pm at Whalley. See you th zzzzzzzzz zzz zzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzz zzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzz z zzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz zz zzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzz zzzz zzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Spring Training Continues

2006-03-30T18:50:00.000-08:00

We've had a few more practices. Nothing too exciting to report thus far.

There was talk of having the team blog moved to this new site. We can definitely say that it might happen. You see, as it is now, this blog site is completely separate from the official team site. It'd be nice to have all Surrey Indians webstuff found in one place, so that's what we're working on. That is, when we're not working on having Natalie Portman join our roster as trainer... or watergirl... or utility infielder... or coach... or announcer... or whatever the heck she wants to do.

An exhibition game is going down tomorrow night. We can say the same thing about the North Langley Revolt. Zing! It's been said that Lee will have an on-base percentage of 1.00 whenever he faces us this year.

Spring Training 2006

2006-03-14T13:13:00.000-08:00

We're ba-aaaaack!

So far we've had two practices. Our third is happening tonight. Haven't hit the field yet, but gotten some good BP going. And the pitchers have thrown a few.

Looks like we'll be the new-look Indians this year, two fold. For one, new uniforms (hats included) are in the works. For two, several players from last season are not returning, their roster spots being filled by rookies. Well okay, so maybe at least one of the rookies has played before in the league, but they are Indianrookies, so rookies they be.

The team appears to be quite confident that we will go undefeated in the first half of the season. You heard it here first. Unless you heard it at the Whalley batting cages first, in which case you heard it here second. Unless it doesn't happen, in which case this post will be edited and you will have never heard it at all. What are we talking about, there will be no need for editing.

And, according to our official website's forum, Scott is determined to "beat Rob E in batting this season". Let the games begin!

Q+A withs

2005-09-04T18:48:00.000-07:00

Firstly, pics from the last game can be seen by clicking here.

Secondly, throughout the season we featured exclusive interviews with the league's hottest stars. Here is your one-stop-shop to all those interviews:

Jeff Heatley Kelly Grace Rod Wingrove Rob Edger Chris Ratelle Enrique Roblero Brad Cumiskey Shane Meister Clay Edger Rob Aubertin Sandra Aubertin

Lastly, unless there are any major trades or free agent signings during the off-season, the next posting on Clubhouse Chatter will be at the start of spring training 2006. To find out how the rest of the playoffs play out, pay attention to the LMBA site.

So long and thanks for all the fish.

Team Awards

2005-08-25T19:16:00.000-07:00

The Team Awards categories were emailed to everyone on the Surrey Indians roster except one (he doesn't have email). All the recipients replied back before the deadline except two. There were two rules: 1) One entry per category; and 2) You cannot vote for yourself. These two rules were broken by four players. One Indian voted for two players in one category (both votes were tallied), two Indians each voted for themselves once (after careful consideration and a beer or two, both votes were tallied), and one Indian voted for himself in two categories (he has been given an appropriately lengthy detention).

Instead of announcing just the winner of each category, which was our original plan, we have decided to include all entries received. If you don't like it, eat it. Entries are listed in order of most-votes to least-votes, with the total number of votes, if more than one, in brackets.

(One late submission came Friday morning. The tallies have been revised)

And now, the Team Awards...

Most Under-Rated Player

1) Jeff (4)

2) Rob A. (3)
3) Enrique (2)
3) Shane (2)
5) Brad

Most Improved Player

1) Shane (5) 2) Brad (3)
3) Rob A. (2)
4) Enrique

Most Superstitious Player

1) Rob E. (5) 2) Clay (2)
3) Jeff
3) Chris

Play of the Year

1) Kelly falling on his face running home (3)
1) Shane's diving catch in left (3) 3) Clay's in-the-parker
3) Rob A.'s [error-assisted] in-the-parker
3) "Any play Kelly makes"
3) Rob E.'s 1st game/1st inning ejection

Best Sportsmanship

1) Rod (3) 2) Rob A. (2)
2) Jeff (2)
2) Kelly (2)
2) Enrique (2)
6) Sandra

Would Look Best in Drag

1) Lee ("he's so pretty") (6)

2) Scott (3)
3) Kelly (2)
4) Chris

Most Valuable Player

1) Rob E. (5)

2) Kelly (2)
2) Chris (2)
2) Clay (2)

Most Likely to Clone Themselves

1) Lee (5) 2) Rob E. (4)
3) Brad (2)
4) Jeff

Shortest Temper

1) Chris (10) 2) Clay

Best Quote

1) "I think our offense has adjusted but our hitting hasn’t.." – Lee (2)
1) "Is that a tumbleweed?" – Lee (2)
1) Whoever came up with HF (2) 4) "attabubadebuddayawoyawubudub" - Brad cheering
4) Jeff H.
4) "Don't play like we're not good enough or anything like that" - Kelly

Most Dedicated Player

1) Kelly (8)
2) Rob A. (2)
3) Brad
3) Rod
3) Scott

Could Win a Fight With a Velociraptor Armed Only With a Baseball Bat

1) Enrique (3)2) Scott (2)
2) Clay (2)
2) Chris (2)
5) Kelly
5) Rob A.

Best Defensive Player

1) Kelly (3)
1) Rob A. (3)
3) Jeff (2)
3) Clay (2)
5) Lee

August 21 2005

2005-08-23T21:01:00.000-07:00

Well. That was a tough loss. A "heartbreaker" if you will.

When we last played the Revolt, we held a 7-3 lead going into the seventh. We lost that game 17-8. On Sunday, feeling good after three straight lopsided wins, we got a short-but-sweet pep talk from our player/coach/manager about us being a formidable opponent and not going into the game thinking we're going to lose. Essentially, play-to-win, not play-to-not-lose.

We aren't going to say much about this game.. It may be therapeutic to get it all out, but if we start to do that, the dripping tears may cause our keyboard to malfunction, and that wouldn't be any good now would it? A one run game at just 5-4, now that's a good playoff game. We'd like to think that we went out fighting. It feels like we did.

Not that it affected the outcome of the game(?!?), but how 'bout them umps, eh?

We're pretty sure some pics were taken at the game. When they are posted we'll let you know.

The next posting, announcing team awards, is coming soon..

Q+A with Sandra Aubertin

2005-08-16T13:06:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What's the first music album you ever bought?

Sandra Aubertin: NewKids on the block (go Donnie)

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

SA: Who buys music anymore it's free

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

SA: Grade 8, I was right field trying to catch a fly ball and somehow caught it without my glove and broke my thumb. It was great.

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

SA: Chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate.

CC: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

SA: Robert B Aubertin ( what a sexy hunk)

CC: What is the best thing about scorekeeping?

SA: I get to check out the guys on the other team. Woo Hoooo

CC: What is the least-best thing about scorekeeping?

SA: Your butt gets flat!! I think next year the guys should buy me a pillow.

CC: What is your favorite baseball movie?

SA: 61* some goodlooking guys in that one

CC: Besides baseball, what is your favorite sport to play?

SA: Hiking ( some people call it a sport, I am really competitive)

CC: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

SA: Title "ME", Person Sandra Bullock

CC: Do you have any baseball superstitions?

SA: ??

CC: What was the best vacation you've ever been on?

SA: 2
First one Road trip across California, Death Valley was a blast and Disneyland was spectacular. Boooggerrrs was great he drove the whole way cause I didn't have a licence.
Second New York All the shopping and Times Square, I wanna go back. We also saw Phantom of the Opera.

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

SA: Eon by Greg Bear, Scifi book awsome!!!

CC: What is your proudest baseball moment?

SA: Watching my booogggerrrs hit a homer at Tamanawaissss

CC: Any words of advice for the thousands of young fans who dream of one day playing for the mighty Surrey Indians?

SA: Get on the waitlist

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

SA: #1
Guy walks in to a bar snapping his fingers. Bartender asks why are you snapping your fingers? Guy says I'm listening to the music in my head. Another guy walks into the bar snapping his fingers. Bartender asks why are you snapping your fingers? I'm just snapping to the beat in my head. Third guy walks into the bar snapping his fingers. Bartender say let me guess you're snapping to the beat in your head! No, the guy says, (with rhythm) I GOT A BOOGER ON MY FINGER AND IT WON'T LET GO!

#2
Theres a guy standing by the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. He sees a man walking towards him dragging one of his legs. He asks what happened to your leg, and the limper replies "I was shot in the war". Another guy comes along also dragging his leg and he is asked what happened to his leg. The second limper replies "I stepped on a mine in the war". He keeps going. Another guy comes walking and dragging his leg. The man asks did you get injured in the war. "No, I stepped in a pile of S$$T 50 feet back."

August 14 2005

2005-08-15T16:10:00.000-07:00

A 20-4 win is a good way to start the playoffs.

To earn player of the game, Raub must have had the best game of his career.. His seven at-bats featured two doubles, two singles, and three walks. He scored six runs. All in a nine-inning game in which, as the home team, we only batted in eight of them. Also tallying four hits were Kelly and Shane, with Shane chipping in five runs scored.

Honorable mention for player of the game is Chris, who pitched five strong innings, allowing just two runs (zero earned), and striking out three (tying opponent Anthony) while walking none. It's his fifth win of the year. Good boy.

Our twenty runs scored came on only seventeen hits, far less than our previous two games (21 and 26). The difference: base on balls. In the previous two games, we had just two walks in each. This game, we had an astounding twelve walks. Quel pa-shance!

After Lee cost him two RBIs, Kelly arranged to have two RBIs deducted from Lee's total in compensation. While we are not inclined to go back and change history, as it can have disastrous effects on the present, we figure mentioning it here is compensation enough. In his return, Lee had many awesome comments come out of his mouth before and during the game, but they are unfortunately not appropriate for this all-ages blog.

After taking a vote, Jeff was encouraged to finally make his profile truthful and show off that switchhitting of his. The ultimate outcome of that enndeavor need not matter. What matters is that, while batting left, Jeff swung twice and made contact both times. That kid has got mad skillz!

We would like to commend the Rockies for sticking with it this season.. While mired in last place all season, without a win to their name, they still showed up to play and compete as hard as any other team right up to the final out. Well done Rockies.. See you on the field next season..

And see you all next Sunday, as we look to extend this three game winning streak..

Q+A with Rob Aubertin

2005-08-13T18:53:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

Rob Aubertin: Willie Mays, because he was a centrefielder extraordinaire

CC: What's the first music album you ever bought?

RA: I don't know how I got the MC Hammer U Can't Touch This tape, and I KNOW the New Kids tape was a gift (thanks "friend"), so it was probably Contact, a collection of pseudo-hockey songs.

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

RA: Smart Kid by the Clumsy Lovers. Good clean fun.

CC: Do you have any baseball superstitions?

RA: I always have to wear the same helmet while hitting. Chris better not have it.

CC: What is your favorite baseball movie?

RA: Does "A League of Their Own" count? Tom Hanks was very funny. Or does it have to be men playing baseball? Fine, Major League.

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

RA: Mmmmmmmmm pizza.

CC: Besides baseball, what is your favorite sport to play?

RA: Tennis anyone?

CC: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

RA: Lucky to be Good, starring Tobey Maguire

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

RA: Two seasons ago, in the only game that my parents and brother attended, I struck out in my first at-bat. Walking to the dugout I turned my head and said something stupid to the ump. I got ejected for the first, and only, time of my life. "Thanks for coming to see me play, guys!"

CC: What was the best vacation you've ever been on?

RA: Last summer. Spent a week at a cabin in upstate New York, kayaking, tubing, eating ice cream at Martha's, and watching fantastic lightning & thunder storms that knocked out power. Relaxing. Then spent a night in Boston, watching the Sox beat the Jays at Fenway. Magical. Then spent a week in New York City, seeing the essentials and having a blast one night at a certain comedy club, 30 comics in 4 hours for 5 bucks. Hilarious.

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

RA: Right now I'm reading Spadework by Timothy Findley. I recommend most of Douglas Coupland's work. Try his Polaroids from the Dead.

CC: What is your proudest baseball moment?

RA: There hasn't really been any one standout moment. Let's go with my two career home runs, both at Tamanawis of course.

CC: Any words of advice for the thousands of young fans who dream of one day playing for the mighty Surrey Indians?

RA: Don't lose focus. You can change what you focus on, but don't lose focus.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

RA: A guy is in a bar sipping beer and munching on peanuts. All of a sudden, he hears a tiny voice say "nice tie." He looks around and sees no one close. The bartender is at the other end of the bar on the phone. So he goes back to sipping his beer and munching his peanuts. A minute later, he hears a tiny voice say "good haircut." He looks around and still sees no one close. A few minutes later, the tiny voice says "you're handsome." At this point, he calls the bartender over and tells him he's heard these voices saying nice things to him. The bartender says, "Yeah, those are the peanuts. They're complimentary."

August 11 2005

2005-08-13T16:02:00.000-07:00

We have decided something that should have most definitely been decided many many weeks ago. We are not driving all the way to Tamanawis, a lengthy rush-hour commute, to stand around in a parking lot with two other guys hoping that at least one more guy shows up so then maybe we can at least, you know, play american ping-pong or something to make use of this 6:30pm Thursday practice that almost everyone, after the last game, said that they could make. With gas reaching a buck ten plus, it's a frickin' slap to the frickin' face, and from now on we are only making a frickin' baseball related drive if it's a frickin' gameday. Should have decided this in April when it would've saved us a shipload of cash. Frick.

Rumor has it that Rod and Raub got together earlier today with a couple of friends and played american ping-pong on a field next to the Nat. Rumor has it that it was a lot of fun. Rumor has it that there might be a Vancouver team in the league next season. Rumor has it that if there is, Rod and Raub will be playing for their hometown next season.

Q+A with Clay Edger

2005-08-09T17:52:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What's the first music album you ever bought?

Clay Edger: That would have to be the Godzilla soundrack

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

CE: The newest K-os CD

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

CE: I got called up to play for the premier team a couple of times and every time I went up to bat I struck out, like 8 times in a row. (and they were all pretty damn ugly)

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

CE: I'm gonna have to go with beer and porn on that one. Good question though, a lot of thought went into my answer... I'm serious.

CC: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

CE: Ken Griffey Jr., because he gets paid millions to sit on his ass since he's always injured... and when he does play, he's actually pretty good considering he's been injured for a long time.

CC: What is your favorite baseball movie?

CE: The Bad news Bears with billy bob. that's just right now though, i just saw it last night.

CC: Besides baseball, what is your favorite sport to play?

CE: there's nothin better than riding fresh powder on a snowboard

CC: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

CE: the title would probably be " life of a rockstar" and tommy chong would play me.

CC: Do you have any baseball superstitions?

CE: well I'm not sure if it's superstitious but I don't wash my uniform... oh and I rock out to music before every game with my jockstrap on my head. but I don't know if you could really call that superstitious. I have one serious superstition and it is that I always have to be standing in level/fresh dirt. before I step into the box I have to adjust the dirt and fill in the holes, and the same as when I'm catching.

CC: What was the best vacation you've ever been on?

CE: Edmonton trip last summer. drove an '89 POS up there overnight and stayed with another couple in a room. the chick was really hot. won big at the casino and got totally pissed the entire time. all I remember was that it was fun.

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

CE: Jerry Seinfeld's "Sign language". it's the only book I've actually read cover to cover... ever.

CC: What is your proudest baseball moment?

CE: signing autographs at the nationals and world series. or maybe when a whalley local was hitting on me... one of the two.

CC: Any words of advice for the thousands of young fans who dream of one day playing for the mighty Surrey Indians?

CE: as long as you walk up to the plate like you're bringing a footlong with you, you'll be fine... and you're halfway to being able to play on the team.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

CE: so this giraffe and this elephant are walking down the road one day... oh wait that's a dirty one. okay okay, so there's this priest right, and he's walking with this nun and she says to him she says... wait a sec that one is definately very dirty. okay so there's these two girls at a bar, and all of a sudden they just start making out, full on clothes ripping off and everything. so the bartender goes.... wait no, that joke is too long, sorry guys I got nothing.

CC: The end. Please reply back ASAP. If for any reason you do not wish to answer any of the questions, just skip it. If you do not wish to answer any of the questions, please let us know ASAP. Thanks.

CE: I did not wish to answer the question "what time of day do you shower and what's your address?" I just thought that was kinda weird and uncalled for.

August 9 2005

2005-08-09T09:48:00.000-07:00

Greetings earthlings,

We come in peace and would like it known that the Surrey Indians play their first playoff game this coming Sunday at 11am at Whalley. In addition to your seat cushions, please bring a glove, as you may be called upon to field a position on the field. You see, it seems as though a couple of players are unavailable to play in this game, so we are hoping everyone else will be present to avoid a forfeit to the lowly Playaz or Rockies. It is single elimination from here on out and being knocked out by either of those teams, even by forfeit, would be an embarrassment no one could possibly overcome. If that does happen, the Surrey Indians will spontaneously combust. Sad, but true.

Now then, after our game on Sunday June 4th, seven league games into the season, there were only three Indians who had a batting average above .211 - Today, there are eight players batting above .270, with our team batting average of .317 looking pretty solid. It would be nice to compare our stats with the stats of other teams, but the subjective scoring by different teams doesn't make that possible. We are interested in the idea of hiring official scorers for all league games. That way, the league could compile league leaders in stats such as batting average, on-base average, home runs, stolen bases, and team batting average versus lefties during Sunday afternoon games after a rainy Saturday. Write your congresspeople, let's make this idea a reality!

At first glance at the standings it seems as though we played pretty shabby this season. While that is hard to disprove, let us try. Take a look at the total points. We are just one point behind the Royals and the Sabres, and two points behind the Rangers, who sit in fourth place. (a win = 2 points, a tie = 1 point) Those thousands of games where we had a substantial lead only to lose the game in the later innings? We hate to play "what if", but what if? We should note that not all teams played the same amount of games. At 14 games played, we equalled the Rangers, played one less than the Royals and played one more than the Sabres. It would've been nice to have finished in the top half of the league, which we could've and should've, but on the bright side, maybe we can expect to have pitches slow-pitched to us.. Although if teams have been scouting us near the end of the season, that is unlikely.

We have a practice at Tamanawis on Thursday (me thinks..), and then Sunday we play the biggest game of our lives.. Come out and watch, and don't forget your glove.

Q+A with Shane Meister

2005-08-07T15:14:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite baseball movie?

Shane Meister: That's easy Major league

CC: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

SM: That's a tough one... I don't have a clue

CC: What's the first music album you ever bought?

SM: hmmmmm I think the rocky 2 soundtrack when I was 8 or 9 years old

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

SM: actually I download all my music

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

SM: can't say this is for all ages ;)

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

SM: A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME by Stephen Hawking. It is an amazing look at the universe based on studies from some of the greatest scientific minds

CC: What was the best vacation you've ever been on?

SM: Palm springs, went with my dad we played two rounds of golf every day we were there :)

CC: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

SM: Well its kind of silly but when I think of cool moments that I witnessed in baseball Carter hitting the home run to win the series for the blue jays stands out allot

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

SM: I would probably order pizza

CC: What is your proudest baseball moment?

SM: Well recently it would have to be our last game of the season I hit 4 for 4 and caught 2 fly's in field. Its not the kind of play movies are made of but... If you have seen me bat this year you would understand hahahah.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

SM: Q. What did the zero say to the eight?
A. Nice belt!

August 3 2005

2005-08-04T16:37:00.000-07:00

Where was all this hitting at the start of the season? Just a few games ago we were shutout, shutout, and now 15 runs last game and 16 runs this game, with 21 and 26 hits respectively. That, my friends, is called a breakout. Some people (like the rest of the league) might call it an anomaly, but we prefer to call the first 90% of the season an anomaly.. The last two games is how things should be.

The most noteworthy item of note in this 16-7 victory over the Phillies: Shane's four-for-four performance. Who is this guy? Struggling at the plate in his first few games of the season, then MIA for the next few games of the season, he shows up to Poker Night and announces, while giving away money, that he's going five-for-five on Wednesday. He then shows up and promptly follows through. That RBI-triple? Sa-weeeeeeeeeeeet. The rest of us failed him in his quest, giving him just four at-bats. There is no doubt he would've come through in his fifth at-bat. Nicely done S-meister, nicely done.

The Edge's were at it again. Cedge set the tone early, driving a single to lead off the bottom of the first, then scoring on Raubert's single to left. But it was later in the game where the action picked up. In the seventh, Cedge drove a fastball over the centrefielder's head and legged out a triple. Two batters later, Redge lined one down the left field line and, yes, legged out a triple. Cedge was mighty proud of his sister.

Chris was in fine form on the mound. The Phillies were either behind on his fastball or flailing at his curveball. He could do no wrong! The hits they did get were dinky little bloopers that had no right being hits. Enrique then came in and closed out the game in good fashion, picking up what we believe to be his first legitimate save of the season.

With Shane leading the way with four hits, four players had three hits apiece, and five players had two hits apiece. Everyone had at least two hits. That is outstanding. Three players had three RBIs apiece. With Cedge leading the way with four runs scored, everyone had at least one run scored. That is outstanding. You could probably spend all day analyzing the fascinating stats from yesterday's game, but don't. Go swimming or something instead. We recommend New Brighton Pool. Twas really really nice there today.

We would like it known that Enrique's wife Jas helped us out after the game, carrying some heavy gear to the car. Also, Sandra would like it known that when she told the score to Scott, it really was 10-5. Two runs were scored right after that. Got that Kel? By the way, Kel was very benevolent. He went three-for-three then pulled himself, rather than anyone else, to get Enrique into the game. Kudos.

Enrique was spotted taking some photos at the game. The photos are now viewable by clicking here. Since there are shots of Enrique batting, we're guessing that someone else took some shots too. Or maybe something really magical is taking place at Whalley Stadium.

Q+A with Brad Cumiskey

2005-08-04T09:10:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

Brad Cumiskey: Rafael Palmeiro – How can a 3000 Hit, 500 Home Run, Viagra Popping, Viagra Touting, Stud like Rafi be under rated? People just don’t give him the respect he deserves. Take the U.S. congress for instance, what guile that organization must have to march Rafi up to Washington and accuse him of taking Steroids, essentially forcing him to point his finger at those men and declare in a forceful, low tone: “I have never taken steroids, ever, period.”

CC: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

BC: ‘From the Streetz’ – myself played by Eric Stoltz. Eric is one of Hollywood’s finest ginger haired actors, able to play a litany of characters. Including, my life story, about a Canadian suburban gangster, who’s had a hard life, and has a hard edge. Of note: Street is spelled with a ‘Z’ at the end to enforce the gangsterness of the source material, much like the Langley Playaz of the LMBA.

CC: Do you have any baseball superstitions?

BC: I like to visualize getting a hit prior to stepping in the box each and every time. Because, as you know, 90% of the game is half mental.

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

BC: One year in midget ball, I was back catching a fireballer, and with a base runner on first I was primed to gun that b#@tch down. The pitch comes in, I wiff on the ball and it strikes me square in the mask; and the ball lodges itself in my mask between my eyes. I let out a highly feminine yelp, scramble around a bit trying my darndest to get the ball out of the mask. I finally get the ball out, just as the runner strolls into third base for a two base steal. Brilliant Brad.

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

BC: No jokes on this one, 5 great books I’ve read recently:
Guns, Germs & Steel. (Jared Diamond) – Non-fiction, it explains the history of Human progress. Amazing. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize.
Da Vinci’s Code. (Dan Brown) – Fiction. The church is mean to girls.
Into Thin Air. (John Krakauer) – Non-Fiction. An incredible story of climbing Mount Everest in the spring of 1996.
Live From New York (Various) – Non-Fiction. Numerous accounts of Writers and Actors working for Saturday Night Live.
Super System II (Doyle Brunson) – Non-Fiction. How to make money without really trying.

CC: What was the best vacation you've ever been on?

BC: Cancun, MEX. There is a video, go to my boy Riaz’s site, and download the fun:http://www.riazmeghji.com/Downloads/rm%20online%20-%20Downloads.htm

CC: What is your favorite baseball movie?

BC: Gonna have to go with ‘The Sandlot’, when that kid fakes a drowning in order to get mouth-to-mouth from the life guard — whooo weee.

CC: What's the first music album you ever bought?

BC: Mini-Pops Sing the Hitz. (with a ‘Z’)

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

BC: Nowadays, I only download music and mostly listen to AM sports talk radio. McKeechie is singularly the worst talk radio personality ever and Jim Rome rules, hang up clones.

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

BC: A 50 pack, the thin variety. “It feels like you're not wearing one.”

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

BC: Q. What did the porcupine say to the cactus?
A. "Are you my mommy?"

Poker Night

2005-07-30T15:04:00.000-07:00

The first Surrey Indians Poker Night, held Friday, July 29th, 2005 was a success. Seven players, including the host, Kel, came by for some good ol 'fashioned fun. First on the scene was Shane, who apparently is unable to make any team practices or games, but schedule a team poker game and he'll be there before anyone else. Hey Shane, our next poker game is on Wednesday at 6pm. To mix things up a bit, we're going to play that one on the field at Whalley in our uniforms. And, uh, bring your glove, so you have something to, uh, sit on.. Raubert was next to arrive, and, with Lena and Kel's girlfriend Chelsea there as well, play got underway.

It wasn't long before Kel started dominating. Enrique came in to try and shut him down, as he has capably done all season long, but even his best effort was thwarted. Brad, Redge and Andrea arrived soon thereafter, after having spent the day moving. Brad bought in first, and was immediately dealt pocket aces.. Not sure if he won that hand or not, we're thinking yes. A couple of hands later Redge bought in, and, what are the chances, was also dealt pocket aces on his very first hand. Redge then proceeded to increase his chip pile to approximately $14, all the while showing off his belt-buckle bottle-opener. He then cashed out and left, bewildering those who had already had to buy-in again. Brad also did quite well for himself, quickly increasing his worth before plateauing out. We are unable at this time to remember how Brad did on the night, but there's a chance he might drop by with a comment to enlighten us.

Not sure who had to buy in a second time first. It might have been Lena, but Raubert wasn't too far behind. Shane managed to make good mileage out of his first $5, but it slowly dwindled and he was forced to buy in again. After having his first buy-in last him a good couple of hours, his second buy-in lasted a good 10 minutes, possibly less.. Ditto his third buy-in. Meanwhile, Kel, who was still on his first buy-in, was building up a huge chip lead, seemingly insurmountable, or so it seems..

Enrique struggled from the get-go, unable to win any hands. After buying in for a second time, it wasn't long before that too was gone and Enrique checked out.
There were some other players, Kel and Chelsea's friends, but we can't remember how they did (or their names). Let's move on.

Raubert's second buy-in served him well. Or did he serve his buy-in well? Either way, he hit some great hands, including a royal straight on the flop. That's definitely the wrong term for that, but hey, we ain't no pro. As Shane was buying in for a fourth and fifth time, Raubert was mounting a charge and it wasn't long before he was challenging Kel for the chip lead. In our unbiased opinion, Raubert was making his charge with such confidence, charm and grace that it's a surprise that Kel, Mr. Grace himself, didn't just roll over and submit. You know, that wasn't supposed to come across as obscene at all. Again, let's move on.

In the end, Raubert and Kel ended up quite even with a minimal amount separating them at approximately $30 each. Shane had a rough finish, eventually buying-in a total of 6 times ("It wasn't eight was it? Let me check my wallet.") We should probably feel somewhat guilty, as he stuck around longer than he normally would have, since we were playing with his chips. But, as with most things involving shoulds, we don't.

Chris was also there, but only briefly as there was stuff happening back at his place, 14 minutes away. He didn't buy-in. Jordan probably would have been there but he had prior commitments. And, last but not least, apparently Kel's girlfriend Chelsea has balls. We are unsure if that is in the context of poker, or if we just happened to be playing poker.

To see more pictures from Poker Night, click here. Poker Night pics start at the bottom of the first page.

See you all on Wednesday at Whalley. (Shane...)

July 24 2005

2005-07-26T12:48:00.000-07:00

AP. - Looks like the Surrey Indians finally figured out how to hit a baseball. A remarkable 21 hits as they cruised to a 15-10 victory. Leading the way was recent pickup Scott, who pounded out four hits. Also in fine form were Chris, Kel, Redge, and Raubert, contributing three hits apiece.

It was clear from the outset that this was not going to be an ordinary Indians game. Leading off the game, Cedge got on base and scored within the first two pitches of the game. He blooped the first pitch of the game into centre, stretching the hit into a double. On the very next pitch he attempted to steal third and was able to score easily as the throw got by the third baseman. The Indians continued to hit the ball to all spots on the field in the first inning, and were only stopped when they reached the maximum six runs.

The pitching staff, consisting of Chris and Enrique, was able to hold the Royals back. A few base on balls and errors weren't enough to knock the Indians off their gameplan, which was to win. That is, in fact, their gameplan every game, but sometimes it gets forgotten by about the fourth or fifth inning.

With the final game of the season coming up on Wednesday August 3rd, the Indians will hope to enter the postseason on a winning streak. Perhaps they should have some pregame music by Redge and Kel, and manage to just barely scrape together nine players by gametime. That combination seems to work for them.

Q+A with Enrique Roblero

2005-07-24T21:20:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

Enrique Roblero: Dennis Martinez "El Presidente"... "El Perfecto" Only mainstream player from my native Nicaragua.

CC: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

ER: Walking Tall starring The Rock, I get to swing a big stick.

CC: What's the first music album you ever bought?

ER: Cypress Hill by Cypress Hill, can't get rap like this no more..

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

ER: Can't remember that far back, way before Napster even started...

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

ER: Maple Ridge, guy hit the front lawn of the house across the street in left field.

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

ER: You're on your own here, I choose not to read ..

CC: Do you have any baseball superstitions?

ER: Always gotta leave my bag at either end of the dugout bench. When I go up to bat, I touch the front right corner of the plate.

CC: What was the best vacation you've ever been on?

ER: Vegas, Hoover dam tour was incredible, being harrased by porn-flyer-handing latinos - very annoying especially when your wife is right next to you.

CC: What is your favorite baseball movie?

ER: 61*, awesome story.

CC: What is your proudest baseball moment?

ER: Couple, holding down Richmond Phillies to one run in the playoffs a few years ago (left the game in the eighth winning 9-8 or something like that -- of course we all know how the game ended), and shutting down the Seattle Mariners for 5 innings in the long weekend tourney 3 years back, we all know how that game ended as well :-(

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

ER: Not on a book, how 'bout lottery tickets....

CC: Any words of advice for the thousands of young fans who dream of one day playing for the mighty Surrey Indians?

ER: Focus on the positive kids, focus on the positive...

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

ER: A recent Scottish immigrant attends his first baseball game in his new country and after a base hit he hears the fans roaring "run....run!" The next batter connects heavily with the ball and the Scotsman stands up and roars with the crowd in his thick accent: "R-r-run ya bahstard, r-run will ya!" A third batter slams a hit and again the Scotsman, obviously pleased with his knowledge of the game, screams "R-r-run ya bahstard, r-r-run will ya!"

The next batter held his swing at three and two and as the ump calls a walk the Scotsman stands up yelling "R-r-run ya bahstard, r-r-run!" All the surrounding fans giggle quietly and he sits down confused. A friendly fan, sensing his embarrassment, whispers, "He doesn't have to run, he's got four balls." After this explanation the Scotsman stands up in disbelief and screams, "Walk with pr-r-ride man! Walk with pr-r-ride!!!!"

July 21 2005

2005-07-21T21:46:00.000-07:00

There was, to our understanding, a practice tonight. Unfortunately, this particular blogger was unavailable to attend due to a work meeting. Perhaps someone who did attend can email me if there was anything exciting to note. If we get emailed, we will put up a new post. If the next post is not about tonight's practice, then it is safe to assume that nothing exciting happened. Actually, it would probably be more accurate to assume that many many exciting things happened, but no one who attended sent an email.

We are guessing that some throws were made, some catches were made, and there may even have been some hitting.. But remember, at this point, that is just a guess. An educated guess, but a guess all the same.

July 19 2005

2005-07-20T14:17:00.000-07:00

(Correction: Due to faulty sources, we gave out erroneous information in the posting titled 'July 14 2005'. Cedge was not at the all-star game. He was, in fact, where we all should have been: at the Merritt Mountain Music Festival. We apologize for the error and, to avoid similar errors in the future, we promise that in the future we will all be at the Merritt Mountain Music Festival. Thank you.)

Well well well, look who smoked a liner to right centre for his first hit of the season! None other than The Bigrodboski! Well done old sport, well done. Rod politely declined an offer to keep the ball.

However, what should have been cause for celebration Rod dismissed, as he was understandably upset after yet another Indians loss. All was well until the fifth inning, when the ball suddenly became a hot potato. We could probably go somewhere with the whole hot potato idea, but right now we're really not feeling it. Sorry hot potato, you're short-lived.

It sounds like we've lost one of our players, a pitcher no less, as Lee has informed us he might not make any more games this season due to a new job. In related news, if you have any knitting or sewing questions, don't hesitate to contact Lee, who is sure to have all the answers.

All that is left to say is that we have our opposition right where we want them, ahead by a few metres with their backs to us. Like a pack of wolves, we are ready to pounce and devour. Beware.

Q+A with Chris Ratelle

2005-07-17T17:48:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

Chris Ratelle: Hmmm..."what could have been" starring Rick Ankiel

CC: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

CR: Jim Edmonds, cant nobody carry this guys jock

CC: What's the first music album you ever bought?

CR: cant remember back that far

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

CR: buy music....what the....?

CC: Besides baseball, what is your favorite sport to play?

CR: Basketball

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

CR: None yet, but as a pitcher anytime i get lit hurts, being out on the mound you have no place to hide

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

CR: The artful Dodger by Tommy Lasorda, hey it's Tommys book do I need a reason

CC: Do you have any baseball superstitions?

CR: Yup gotta have the same catcher all the time (love ya Clay)

CC: What is your favorite baseball movie?

CR: It was called "BallsDeep", i think it had Ron Jeremy and Kobi Tai in it, very good

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

CR: six pack of beer for me and a tin of chew for Lee

CC: What is your proudest baseball moment?

CR: it's a tie, I have two. being picked up to go to Sask twice for the western Canadians, and hitting a 690 foot shot off one of my current teammates a few years back

July 14 2005

2005-07-17T17:29:00.000-07:00

A half-team turnout at practice on Thursday. Not so bad. But not so good either.

Plus5. That's our new practice slogan. Anytime there's an error made, whether it's fielding or throwing (or hitting grounders), the errorer must do five pushups. Rather than interrupting the practice, the errorer just says "plus5", while tallying up a grand total in their head. On two occasions JP and The Bigrodboski stubbornly refused to agree on which one of them made the error, both of them adding the plus5 immediately. Pretty sure everyone at practice had to do at least 10 pushups by day's end. Three of our players were justifiably absent. Two of those three were representing the mighty Indians in the annual all-star game. Congrats to Redge and Cedge.

And that's all we have to say about that.

July 10 2005

2005-07-12T22:18:00.000-07:00

Pop quiz mass wholes!

1. The Surrey Indians are:
a) struggling
b) improving
c) under-achieving
d) a laughing-stock
e) destined for greatness

2. Kel's fall while -- ("cough cough") - - what? Oh, okay. Kel's extreme wipeout while running home was:
a) tragic
b) embarrassing
c) beautifully orchestrated
d) frickin' hilarious
e) all of the above

3. Our loyal fans deserve:
a) more wins
b) a pennant
c) better entertainment
d) refunds
e) a+b
f) b+c
g) a+b-c+g+(e/a)

4. Our water cooler should be tested for:
a) limes
b) 'roids
c) recently fallen tears
d) morphine

5. On Sunday Redge experienced:
a) his first kiss
b) his second hangover
c) his third alien probe
d) his first multi-inning 0-fer game of the season
e) one hundred percent total consciousness

6. Rookie Jordan was:
a) a star
b) a welcome arrival
c) a stud
d) enh.. okay, I guess, for a guy who hasn't played ball for two years

7. To win some games, the Surrey Indians will need:
a) more hits
b) more runs scored
c) more hits which will lead to more runs scored
d) more runs scored from more hits
e) Tom Drees

Q+A with Rob Edger

2005-07-09T12:18:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

Rob Edger: Robin Yount. Great first name.

CC: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

RE: "The Man Who Married Up". I'm played by Kevin Costner. He is sexy like me.

CC: What's the first music album you ever bought?

RE: Nirvana -- Nevermind........I grew up in the early nineties, wearing two or three plaid shirts at a time.

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

RE: Coldplay -- X&Y (clearly I'm a little wimpier than in elementary school)

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

RE: When I played for the Orioles I hit a triple to dead centre in Winskill, but tripped and landed a few feet short of third base, knocking the wind out of myself in the process. I couldn't catch my breath in time to drag myself over to third base, so the third baseman ended up tagging me out. I guess it was a double.

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

RE: 'No Logo' by Naomi Klein. You cannot read this book without wanting to get involved in social justice. Unless your name is George Bush. And then you just can't read at all.

CC: What was the best vacation you've ever been on?

RE: I took an amazing trip on the eastern seaboard of North America with my family when I was about 15. I got to see the Blue Jays play in Fenway Park, amongst other really cool stuff.

CC: Do you have any baseball superstitions?

RE: Watch me the next time I go to hit. I always draw a line with my right foot, and then dig in with my right foot. Then I simultaneously (gasp) step into the box with my Left foot while touching my bat to the plate. Then I swing my bat back and forth along the top of the strike zone. I've been doing this whole routine since I was 13. I am very very weird.

CC: What is your favorite baseball movie?

RE: Field of Dreams. Kevin Costner is sexy.

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

RE: I would probably donate it to some starving child in a third world country. You can't really do anything with twenty bucks anyway, and I would think that the feeling you would get from physically handing a ten year old twenty canadian dollars, or the equivalent in their money, would be much better than the feeling you would get from eating 2000 one-cent candies (my second choice).

CC: What is your proudest baseball moment?

RE: When I was 14 I pitched my team to the league championship, even though I got into a collision at first base in the second inning. I just gutted it out and changed my motion so that I didn't have much of a leg kick, because I hurt my knee. After the game I had to take a few weeks to let my knee heal before I could play All-Stars, but during the game my knee didn't really seize up, so I was able to keep pitching. By far my greatest hero moment. Kevin Costner couldn't have done it any better.

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

RE: How do you make a tissue dance? Put a little boogie in it.

July 3 2005

2005-07-03T16:50:00.000-07:00

Because of the Canada Day holiday, there is no game to write about this weekend. Next weekend we face our cross-town rivals, the Surrey Sabres; a matchup that is bound to be far more intriguing than the overrated Subway Series.

For now, be sure to eat, drink and be merry, and be at practice on Thursday, as a participant or just as a spectator, either/or.
Note: Practice is NOT guaranteed, await more details..

Thank you.

You're welcome.

Q+A with Rod Wingrove

2005-06-29T20:21:00.000-07:00

Clubhouse Chatter: What is your favorite baseball movie?

Rod Wingrove: Major League, the funniest movie I've ever seen

CC: There's a movie about your life. What's the title and who plays you?

RW: The boy who couldnt hit a beach ball starring Dave Chapelle

CC: What's the first music album you ever bought?

RW: Bobby Brown, Ain't Nobody Humpin Around

CC: What's the most recent music album you bought?

RW: Rita Mcneail, The Remix Album. Rita has some phat beats

CC: What is your most embarrassing baseball moment?

RW: Go to the team stats and look at my batting average

CC: We want to read a good book, what should we read and why?

RW: Right now I'm reading a book called the Canadian Game its about Canadian players in tha Major Leagues its got some great stories about the road to the Majors

CC: Do you have any baseball superstitions?

RW: I dont wash for a week before a game(just kidding). After each out I spit two times in my glove and before a game I always stack my catchers pads the same way

CC: What was the best vacation you've ever been on?

RW: My buddies and I went on a road trip to Seattle to see a couple Mariners games against Boston last year. I got so drunk I cant remember anything it was the best time of my life.

CC: Who is your favorite baseball player of all-time, and why?

RW: Kevin Cash. Was the catcher for the best team ever GO JAYS GO!! At bat hes average but defensively nobody can steal off him. Last year he had something like a 46% throw out rate, just awesome

CC: You have $20. It's the last $20 you can ever spend. How do you spend it?

RW: A Blue Jays ticket and two ice cold pints of the Rogers Centers finest brew. I would die a happy man!!

CC: What is your proudest baseball moment?

RW: Signing that big league contract with the mighty Surrey Indians. It only cost me $120. Wow, I still get teary eyed

CC: Tell us a good joke. Keep it clean.

RW: What kind of Bees produce milk (Boobies)

June 26 2005

2005-06-26T14:25:00.000-07:00

Indians win! Indians win! Indians win!

Oh man, so this is what it feels like? We like it. It was scarily close to another blown lead. Up 6-3 into the bottom of the sixth, a guy of theirs smacked one deep to left for a three run dinger. Having no homerun fence meant the Shane-meister had to go for a bit of a long sprint.. It could've been Rickey Henderson in left, and the result would've been the same (3-run dinger if you've forgotten). At this point it looked like we were being sucked into weekly patterns...

BUT, in the final inning, with a 6-6 tie game on our hands, we the Indians pulled together a clutch inning with three runs scored. With runners at second and third, Lee went down in the count 0-2. After fouling off a pitch, he proceeded to smack a liner ("off the end of my bat"), through the left side of the infield to plate the go ahead and the first insurance run. He then scored another insurance run when Jeff smacked a hit of his own, his third of the day. We have used the word "smack" way too much already. Someone please get us a thesaurus.

We haven't had the delight of writing a post-win post in a while, please give us a sec as we savor this moment ........................... Okay. That's good. Thanks for indulging us.

Lee was without a doubt the player of the game. Not only did he have the clutch game-winning hit, he pitched without peer. 11 K's in 5 innings? Are you kidding us? There are only 15 outs total, which means that Lee produced 73.33333333333333333% of the outs without the ball being put into play. And if you subtract the 3-run dinger, Enrique also pitched a heckuva game. Letting the questionable ball/strike calls roll right off his back, Enrique picked up his first win of the season.

As mentioned above, Jeff had a solid day at the plate with three hits: a double and two singles. Also with a double and two singles, Raubert was feeling a little bit too chuffed for a guy who failed to hold to the maxim of never being the first-or-third out of the inning at third base. C'mon kiddo, being on second with no outs is plenty good. Do you even read this, you greedy jerk?

Before the game there were the requisite comments you'd expect for a 9am game in Richmond. "It's too early. It's too cold. I'm too hungover. It's too Richmondy." However, based on the outcome, we'll take all the 9am Richmond games we can take. Or not..

Way to cowboy up boys. Let's keep this wagon wheel going..