Further Items of Note: The WhyBunts

A week later and I still taste the sweet victory that we laid upon the hapless Whybunts. There is not too much to mention outside of what has been discussed in previous posts (defense, defense and more defense) but here is what we should capitalize on in the next game or two:

1) The Whybunts were not only stuffed by superior infield defense, but also a new change in the outfield dynamic. For the first time as far as I can remember, the Catfish instituted a four-across outfield defense. Although it gave up the short field (and a few were missed as anticipated) it mostly ate up the 'home run' gaps. Along with providing a more accessible back up, the four-across defense could reduce opposing team's run output by a strong amount.

2) Every time a ball is dribbled towards the left side of the infield, everyone must take a page out of Hasley's Guidebook of Gutsy Ballplaying and book it to first base. Aside from a few accurate arms, there is a high chance that a throw will go wild from third basemen and shortstops across the league. If one does not sprint to first base the likelihood of beating a throw is less, but if one does sprint then the likelihood of causing panic in the left side of the infield increases, er, exponentially?

3) Don't assume that their left fielder can catch a softball. Oh wait, that was last game.

4) As for Whybunt particulars, they still have a few wrecking balls in their lineup. The bearded guy (whose name escapes me, unfortunately) still just itches to run out extra bases from singles, so there's no sense in trying to catch him. One must just get the ball into the infield to hold him.

5) Their defense is usually pretty good but we caught them on a bad day, especially early on. This is why a Catfish sneak attack early in the game will gain us the run advantage we need so that any crafty hits made by opposing teams later we can shrug off.

The astroturf has been the Catfish's best buddy, but aside from the awful bad hops and mud holes on the base paths, natural grass at least keeps the bouncing softball from turning into automatic runs. This sometimes works against us but, since our defensive and offensive confidence have greatly improved, it seems to be working for us these days.

We're finishing 4-6, I can feel it.