From F to W...

Halloween in Australia was on Sunday, which also happened to be a game day with the Bears. I started the game on the hill, in what was by far the worst game I have had on the bump in memory. What started out as a dirty trick, turned into a sweet treat and a W at the end. All is well that ends well, right?

Well, unless you have KNIGHTmares about your performance for days...Before I verbally abuse myself like Pedro's rant against Kareem Garcia, I should say how pumped I am that my teammates picked up the slack and we remained perfect on the season. The bats stayed hot and Gabbo threw some huge innings for us in relief. It was awesome. In the end, what I care about is getting that team W. Since we got that, I am 1) relieved/pumped/disappointed we have a bye next week, and 2) feel like I can spend less time worrying about us losing and more time grilling myself.

What follows will be a brutally honest account of my pitching because while it is much easier to write about success... to leave out the failures would be painting a false picture of the game... because let's face it, it's not roses all the time.

Guevin Bashing Guevin:

I am a pretty positive guy... In baseball, I try to take something good out of every bad situation. For the last 3 days, I have been searching for that positive spin, but just find my blood boiling.

I didn't have it Sunday, that is for sure. Having said that, there are plenty of games I "haven't had it" and found a way to compete and battle and pitch productive innings... Instead on Sunday I was pretty much a joke. I was actually embarrassed by the way I pitched. I didn't have good stuff, I wasn't locating, I wasn't consistent, I had poor pitch selection, I didn't trust my 3rd and 4th pitches, I relied too much on my curve, I was mechanically off... this recipe resulted in me giving up 10 runs in 4 and 2/3 innings, including 3 HRs. I blew leads of 4-0 and 6-4, exiting the mound with us trailing 10-6.

During the implosion that was my 5th inning, I had thought I had batters struck out before I gave up a 2-run hr and then a 3-run dinger, but didn't get the calls. I say this not as an excuse, but to point out my frustration. Much of the damage came with 2 outs. Baseball is a game where you can be so close, yet so far. That is also part of the reason why I think it is the greatest game. The worst part about my pitching performance is that I don't get to take the bump for the Bears for another 3 weeks, as we have a bye and then league rules prevent me from throwing in our next game. Also, I F-ing hate metal bats with a passion.

From F to W:

At the end of the game, the boys picked me up big. We jumped right back into the game in the 6th, trailing 10-9 only because of an atrocious call on what should have been ball 4 with the bases loaded on Matty. I chipped in with a nice defensive play in the 7th or 8th at 2b, laying out full extension and finishing the play off to get the guy at first. This proved to be a big defensive play, as they would get a few more runners on that inning. We went ahead for good in the 8th on a 3 run bomb from TJ with 2 outs. Gabbo slammed the door, getting a 6-4-3 DP to squash the threat they were mounting in the bottom of the 9th... Bears Win. I went from F-bombing to a W. And now I can forget about my ineffectiveness in the game and move forward.

Gigantes:

I have been getting up relatively early to watch the Giants all post-season. While I can't claim that the Giants are my number one team, it was great to see them do well. I remember going to Candlestick as a kid, even painting GIANTS on my bare chest during a summer game, and more than anything, imitating the old Giants Will "The Thrill" Clark, Kirt Manwaring, Robby Thompson, Jose Uribe, Matt Williams, Kevin Mitchell, Darren Lewis, Willie McGhee, Rod Beck, John Burkett, Atlee Hammaker, Dave Drevecky, Rick Ruscheul, Billy Butler, Royce Clayton, and Barry Bonds in my backyard (pre satellite TV and Sox games on NESN). Glad that all my friends get to feel the thrill of waiting a long time for this and getting to celebrate. Giants had an awesome team and have been fun to watch in the absence of the Sox. Love the beards too... only thing better would have been fear the 'stache.

Rachel and I celebrated the win with a day at the beach and a drive along the West Coast Hwy, a scenic stretch along the coast. Life is tough when you are unemployed...
which brings me to my next point...

I have been somewhat picky, but dropped off resumes at probably around 20 different places... I have a job for later in the summer, but have been rejected by all but 2. The main problem... no experience in restaurants/retail. For some reason I think if I could make it through Carleton, I could pick up on how to bus tables and run food.


Anyways, that's all my griping for now... hope everyone had a good Halloween and got out to vote.

USA series continues this week, stay tuned!