Schedule

Just downloaded my new 2008 schedule.  Good job by Matt or Bobby Hill but....Ouch.  Every Sunday at 12:30.  Every game.  Every Sunday.  Ouch.  What happened to some late games on Sunday? 

Another Reaper rant...Why are there no games on Mothers Day but we ALL play at 12:30 on Fathers Day?  Give us the day off too.  I smell defaults unless the games were later, like 7pm.

Done.

I agree with Reaper! I wouldn't be able to come on Father's Day either at 12:30. If it's moved to 7 or 7:30pm then at least I might have a fighting chance. 

Otherwise the schedule looks great!

One question though, how come diamond one games are so scarce?

Just wondering,

D.D.T.

I can only assume that everyone thinks it's a kids diamond.  I love pitching there. The infield isn't the greatest, but none of the diamonds are fantastic.  I would say the advantage you have defensively there outweigh the conditions.

If you ask me (I know no one ever does, but hey I'm throwing it out there), Diamond 1 games have fewest runs on them 20.5 a game in based on 2005 stats.  With the small park, guys don't run (which is good for pitching, more force outs), and balls that are over the outfielders heads are homers.  Diamond 4 has way too much room to cover resulting in more runs (~24 a game) with Diamond 7 coming in at about ~21.5-22 runs a game.

But no one ever bought that argument.

So we play more games on 4 than 1.  I wonder about Permits too because I know that Friday nights were always open Diamond 1 for rain outs and there was at least one game on Diamond 1 every other friday.

Cheers

 I agree with Chris.  Don't need to convince me.  I've always liked playing there for those reasons.

Diamond 1 = less cheap hits, less baserunners, less stolen bases,

less extra base hits (although more homeruns),

short backstop (it's not a gimme to steal home if catcher misses ball),

less ground for fielders to cover, and the short porch factor (which leads to a lot

of overswinging and pop-ups).  I have seen few games there decided on home-runs.

Maybe AJL, and Rich Pelzer would have an advantage as hitters on that diamond but they may be the only ones.

Combine all that =  quicker games, better played games, way less runs.

 Damn ... there goes another age old league secret !  Tell your fielders on Diamond 4 & 7 to get their butts unglued from the fence.  Once in a while you gotta go get one but take away the twelve or so that fall in front of you.  Duck quack and drops what little BA  I had left .... as Rog would say " !".  Overswing ...pysch ... would the same thing happen if one saw the outfielders a little shallow ?  Catchers .. oh well ... How else could I dedicate a stolen base to MF ??   Kid's diamond - yup ! but I am still a kid are not the rest of you ?

 Woah !  Can't believe I got censored for " Ba....s...tar....d ! " ... a word meaning the male illegimate child !

 My Ladies,

Just to clarify a few things...

Thank you for all of the nice comments about the schedule - We really do work hard to get it right, even is we always miss the mark.

In response to the understandable questions about why it is posted so late... I do not receive the permits from the town until LATE April.  It then takes a little while to get the schedule created and vetted.  Hence - you get it before the Uniform Pick-Up  In days gone by (prior to the web) that was always when we distributed the schedule with the uniforms.  It might feel like it is later and later every year, but it actually is consistently about the same time every year.  The town however, is giving us the permits later and later every year:)

Why the early games on Sundays - BECAUSE EVERYBODY COMPLAINED ABOUT THE LATE GAMES ON SUNDAYS - Personally, I far prefer 3:30 - 4:00 games myself - you don't lose the day, but I've heard a lot of complaining about those games and the late Sunday games (7:00) which were usually done only if there was a tournament.  As well, it has been raised that it hurts the collegiality of the league when we are not all at the diamond at the same time.  Now, on most Sundays, at least all 6 teams will pass each other (4 playing early and 2 late).  Another league has started and has taken the late Diamond 7 times that were previously held by Phoenix.

Finally, the issue of the sadly departed Diamond 1 (3 homeruns in the first game on Sunday I believe).  We have been for a year shifting to more games on 4 and 7 as they are adult diamonds (not my perspective here, rather the town's).  This year Diamond 7 came available at 12:30 (it had previously not been available at that time) and there was pressure to select two of the diamonds as this other mystery league was starting up and they were going to use the other league.  We decided to go with 7 over 1.  If need be, we can reconsider for next year.  My own 2 cents, I really think that we ought to be playing on the big boy diamonds, where home runs are really homeruns (I have the utmost respect for those who can put it out on the BIG diamonds), and play defence rather than relying on a short backstop and shallow fields, but that is just my slap hitting weak fielding no arm perspective (the views represented above are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the league management).

Play Ball!

 I guess the light fees (or lack of them) also came into consideration regarding the early starts on Sunday.

 Actually, cost really did not play a part of the 12:30 over 3:30 time decision.  You are absolutely correct that night games cost more (about $35 more), however we only ever got night games when the Town had tournaments all day, and they have fewer of those this year than in past years.  We are not getting all 3 diamonds on Sunday nights any more, as another league has booked diamond 7 for Sunday nights and it is not the Phoenix.

We need to check out this "Mystery League" to see who they are.

Matt, I thought our seniority meant that we had second choice at the diamond times?

Cheers,