The party benefits this guy... yeah...

Hey, Hey! The new 2011 WSL champs have been crowned and it’s time to get to the only thing we do better than play softball…PARTY!!

Geoff & Fourth Down are holding the End of Season Blow-out Benefit on Friday, October 21st, beginning @7pm. Check out the Facebook page HERE to view more details.

All proceeds will go to the Ronald McDonald House to sponsor everyone’s favorite WSL Baller Mike Vincitore who is running the NYC Marathon to raise money for his favorite charity. There will be an open bar from 7-10 and the first team member from each club to walk through the door will receive a door prize. We will also be holding tourneys for big prizes with the many bar games that 4th Down has to offer. Prizes were all donated by bars in the league and local establishments. Including Clems, RBar, Soft Spot & Pete’s!! You can even win a season supply of Clinchers for your team from BQE Sports! The cover charge is a mere $40 to support the cause. If you haven’t been to the neighborhood’s Best Sports Bar yet, I suggest you cancel your plans, book a sitter, do whatever it takes ’cause this is not an event you want to miss!! Get there early to secure a spot in a tournament.

If you can’t make it, you can hit the link below to make a donation for Mike V!! Remember it’s for the Ronald McDonald house so feel free to Super Size it, but no donation is too small:

https://www.rmh-newyork.org/sslpage.aspx?pid=335&tab=0&frsid=423

See you there!

2011 WSL Champions Spike Hill!

With the threat of another rain-out hanging in the air the final four teams packed up their gear, said a little prayer and headed to McCarren Park for the last Sunday of the 2011 season!!

The Turkey’s Nest and Spike Hill met in the Northside Division Championship on Field One. The Turk’s had a spectacular year and entered into the title match on an 8 game winning streak which included a one run victory over their opponent Spike Hill and were also the proud owners of the first ever T-shirted WSL Home Run Champion Mike Kornhauser! Spike Hill fell short as rookies in the 2010 playoffs, but made it back this season and defeated 3 Kings in their first ever play-off victory to be here this day.

2011 WSL HR Champ Mike Kornhauser receiving his t-shirt from Carly!

The Turkeys put up two runs and Zac shut Spike down in order in the 1st inning as us spectators slowly started wandering into the park to show our support. Spike’s short stop Eric Lebron blasted a homer in the bottom of the 2nd to tie it up, and then CF Mike Powell followed suit in the 4th to put Spike Hill up 4 to 2.  Still holding The Nest scoreless O’Malley’s crew batted in 4 more in the 6th to take an 8-3 lead. Turkey’s finally was able to string some hits together to tack on 3 runs in the 7th, but Spike Hill was not to be denied their shot at the title this year and eked out the win 8-6 Final. The Nest showed great sportsmanship and headed right over to Field Two, Turkey John Louis sporting the “new guy” Spike Hill Jersey, to root on the final two teams in the 2011 Showdown!

The Turks!

Here’s a little something from Turkey’s pitcher Zac who was bursting with pride for his flock: “The Turkey’s Nest ended another great season with a disappointing outcome, losing to Spike Hill 8-6 in the North Division Finals.  Despite great effort from all involved, the Turkey’s have now lost to the eventual champion 3 of the last 4 years despite overwhelming fan support (which is much appreciated, thanks to those who showed up).  We’re feeling a Boston Red Sox pre-2004 vibe here with the Turks (much loved but tough losses abound, Louis=Ortiz, Shafer=Manny) the question is: How many years are we going to wait?  All in all, it was a terrific year, highlighted by a 7 game winning streak to end the regular season and a 1st round Playoff win versus always tough R2R.  Mike Kornhauser topped the 1st annual HR leader Board and led the Turks in Hits, Runs, HR, RBI and Avg.  That sounds like a League MVP Season to us.  We’re not as old as you think we are, and we’ll be back for another run at that trophy and world peace next year.  Congrats to Spike Hill for an amazing team effort on Sunday, and to Betty for their 5 year run.”

'Doza

Meanwhile it was Mendoza Line vs. Black Betty in the Southside Division Championship on Field 2. Mendoza was looking to get back into the Final for the first time since 2006 before they have more kids out there than teammates! Christian would like to provide the recap:
“Black Betty brilliantly exposed our true weakness in the conference championships.  They know Mendoza Line pretty well after all these years.  And they know we’re a team chock full of douchebag music snobs.  Everyone’s a musician, or dates a musician, or is a music journalist, and we all dismiss any popular music as total crap.  True to their form as fierce competitors, Black Betty created a morale-destroying playlist for our game.  How were we supposed to concentrate while they’re blasting shit from their bench like this:

I’m not even joking.  Adding insult to injury, Shab, JB, and Jen Cooper were all in the dugout doing Rockettes-style leg kicks in unison!  This was quite a breakthrough strategy for the WSL.  I felt like I was watching an episode of “So You Think You Can Field A Ball While We Dance?” There was nowhere for us to run, and no earplugs in sight.

JB$ as John Cussak in "Say Anything"

But suddenly, late in the game there was a glimmer of hope.  We were coming up to bat and there was some Rihanna or whatever playing and the boom box just shut down.  I insisted this was because the boom box simply refused to play that song, and we were all quietly hoping that it was going on the DL for the rest of the season.  However Black Betty quickly regrouped and got the shitty music playing again and crushed any chance we had for a comeback.

Hats off to them for a great win!  There was simply no way we could compete.

But the secret’s out now.  You can forget about recruiting jocks through the internet in the offseason.  Next year some crafty team will get the WSL title by cranking up the smooth jazz.  Maybe even fire up some scented candles.  It’s gonna be an awesome lavender & sage scented 2012 season!”

The Last Betty Pre-Game Huddle of 2011!

Betty ran away late on Mendoza line beating them 11 to 4 for the Southside crown.

So we all excitedly, Big Bud’s in hand, crowded around Field Two, muttering under our breaths in envy, to watch Black Bettydefend their title against 2nd year Spike Hill.  Mike Camarra huddled up his champs for their last 2011 line-up chant as O’Malley and his club took over their bench and prepared themselves for their first ever shot at the legendary WSL Trophy!

Here’s the recap straight from the 2011 WSL Champion Captain Mike O’Malley!!

“This was a defensive battle that either team could have won.  We scored one in the bottom of the first on an RBI by Lebron.  Betty answered in the top of the second on a single by Mike Camarra, who drew a throw at 3rd on a single and then scored on an errant throw.  Betty went up 2 to 1 in the fourth, but that was all they would get.  We pushed across 3 in the 6th and one more in the 8th to take the game.  Key plays – 3 double plays and a ridiculous back hand grab by Lebron in an inning that started with 2 singles leading off.  JB was great mixing it up, but

Champs!

Kevin and our defense prevailed in the end.  From Morgan’s double play, to Matt’s diving grab at 3rd, to Jake’s splits at first to convert a double play in the 8th, it was a team effort.  Hard to pick out an MVP.  Mulcahy was clutch, Powell and Lebron were clutch at the plate and Morgan started both our rallies in the 6th and the 8th to put us up for good.   And, Kane was great as always – it was only right that he fielded the come-backer and tossed it over to first for the final out.  I can’t pick an MVP – it was a team effort and everyone contributed – despite the jokes and the rumors that I pay players (just heard that one – that was a good one, but please don’t give anyone ideas – ha) – this was a team, we pulled together, we care about eachother and we won together, each of us playing our part in winning this championship.  Betty was very classy in defeat and this game, like the Nest game, could have gone either way… There were great teams this year in this league and up and comers, and we are happy to have one and look forward to next season where I’m sure that the league will continue to be more competitive and more fun, and where we still won’t go to Spike Hill after the game.  Gibson baby, Gibson!”

The Umps: Locke, Buttah & Deitz Doppelganger

So there you have it! After a half of a decade long dynasty the Great and All Powerful Black Betty is shockingly outscored 5-2 in a fantastic match-up that had us all on the edge of our lawn chairs for the extent of the game! Congrats to Spike Hill who rallied together and showed real team chemistry to put an end to the Black Era. All four of the teams played like real champions out there on Sunday and showed nothing but class all around! Also, a special shout-out to Umps- Locke, AlButtah & DeitzDoppelganger for a hell of job!

Let’s get some good old fashioned fun games going in the park in the final sun-filled weekends!! Thanks for all the website support!!!

-Carly

Spike Hill Wins It All!

Congratulations to Spike Hill for winning the 2011 WSL Championship.

Recaps, updates, pics and all sorts of fun stuff to follow!!

JB$

For the WSL Championship Preview, we are very fortunate to have Christian Ver Halen of Mendoza Line and JB$ of Black Betty contribute to the site and put to together their very own preview.  Take it away fellas!!

CVH: Yo Monet, so Carly asked (demanded) me to ask you to do some sort of point/counterpoint preview for the WSL playoffs.  Your answer is “yes.” Go!

JB:  Well, I was trying to get out of that line of work…I feel like Mel Gibson explaining myself to Michelle Pfeiffer.  Yeah I just called you Michelle Pfeiffer.  Good luck and God bless America.

CVH: Do you have any idea how much cooler it is to be Michelle Pfeiffer than Mel Gibson??  Think about it.  If you’re Mel then you have to walk around knowing everyone thinks you’re an ass bag. But if you’re Michelle Pfeiffer you can just get naked and stand in front of a mirror all day.

JB: Michelle Pfeiffer back in the 80’s or Michelle Pfeiffer today?

CVH: C’mon man.  80’s.  Although she’s still a GILF today.

CVH!

JB: Agreed.

CVH: Which team do you think she would like in the North?  Turkey’s Nest or Spike Hill?

JB: I don’t think she’d waste her time on either of them.  I’m pretty sure she prefers men.

CVH: Wow.  Ok. What happens if at some point during the 1^st games Godsy and John Louis hit bombs at the exact same time and they collide midair?  Will it create some sort of space-time vortex?  And if so, could we work it out so that we arrive in the late 80’s so we can have Ms. Pfeiffer decide which team she would want to win?

JB: That’s not physically possible!  Godsy can’t hit my pitching.

CVH: I don’t know about that.  He told us he’s dropping mad bombs on 9/11.  And Derek promised to take down the Twin Towers of Black Betty and Spike Hill.  But knowing Derek he was probably referencing Lord Of The Rings.

JB: With 5 straight championships I AM THE LORD OF THE RINGS.

CVH: Whatever, back to the North.  I’m definitely rooting for the ol’ school.  But after witnessing Turkey’s collapse against Betty a couple years ago I’m just not sure.  They do have a pretty incredible lineup.  I don’t really know the players on Spike Hill because I don’t hang out at that bar.   Turns out they don’t either.  I guess it’s a long way from Connecticut or wherever they’re coming from to play at McCarren.  But I did go to one of those  “what if they did it” websites and created a lovechild between Spike (Lee) and Hillary (Clinton):

JB: You can’t beat that.

CVH: That’s what I’m sayin’. Spike Hill in the North. 

JB: Damn right.  I’d tap that, by the way.

CVH: Yikes!  What about the South?  Everyone knows that the Evil Empire has won 5 straight.  But Mendoza Line has always had great games against Betty.

JB: Not in the playoffs.

CVH: Whatever, jerk.  In the last 7 years we’ve won 1 Championship, been to the Finals 2 more times, and been to the Conference Finals 3 more times.  Not bad for a bunch of nice, patient people.

JB: Depends on your definition of “not bad.”

CVH: You’re right.  That attitude gets us nowhere.  Betty in the South.  What about the Finals?

JB: You can call me the new “Craigslist Killer,” because I’m going to no-hit Spike Hill.

CVH:  OK, there you have it folks.  Black Betty is our pick to win their 6^th straight WSL championship!  Thanks for another great season. 

DISCLAIMER: Some characters appearing in this article are fictitious.  Any resemblance to a real person named “JB”, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

The Hurricane Is Coming!!

Rain-out.

Okay, fine! Let’s just pretend that we are not 100% going to get hit by the rainiest, hurricaniest, weekend ever.

FIELD ONE THE NORTHSIDE DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP:

Spike Hill: They made it! I wonder what O’Malley’s going rate is per RBI during the play-offs? Don’t be surprised if Silverman is sportin’ a new pair of cleats this Sunday! So, they got The Turkey’s Nest and from the poll, this is the team we all want to win it all! The Nest is on an 8 game winning streak heading into the Northside Championship and they’ve already beaten Spike Hill… But only in their second meeting. If The Nest pulls it off rumor has it they have a secret weapon for the WSL Championship game: John & Chirstie Louis have a new little gobbler, Jack Louis (CONGRATS!!!), that apparently has his eyes set on Little Miss Violet already. These guys will stop at nothing to bring the trophy to The Nest!

FIELD TWO THE SOUTHSIDE DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP:

Black Betty vs Mendoza Line. Mendoza is back in the Final Four! They’ve beat Rbar, finally, and they don’t know what that means but they’re going to roll with it anyway!! Mendoza got their hands on Clem’s Black Betty playbook, so this could get interesting, indeed! In case you haven’t heard, The Black is back to make their Sixth Run for the Title, and amazingly Sunday playoffs are STILL more exciting then Saturday!

I’m not going to predict where it’s going to go from here. We got four great teams vying for a shot in the final and they’ve all got what it takes. Let’s just be safe and hope that Battleship Clemerica doesn’t sweep in on Irene to pillage the WSL trophy!

This is it! (Until 9/11 when these games will actually be played!)

- Carly

Buy popcorn from Julissa's nephew Sam and help support the Cub Scouts!!

WSL:

Great season!

I have got a favor to ask.  My nephew Sam is a cub scout.  He loves it!  There is a ‘popcorn’ fundraiser that the scouts get 70% of their sales.  If you are not a fan of popcorn, there is also an option to send popcorn to our TROOPS!  The deadline is October 16th.

You can order directly through the website: http://www.trails-end.com/estore/scouts/email_referral.jsp?id=14603943

Thanks all and see you soon!

Julissa Rosado
(Soft Spot Yeti)



I know, it's a little extreme...

Hello Sportsfans!!

Well, you voted, they were counted and the results are in and it looks like you know the pulse of the league. We got all the votes right, except one. Not bad!! Let’s take this hot streak to Vegas, baby!

I would love to say we have a FINAL vote count, but it looks like people are still voting for games… that have already been played. Who knows?

But let’s analyze these things shall we?? This is as of 10:26am this morning.

Good Co vs. 3Kings – WRONG!
You voted that Good Co would beat 3Kings. 99 People voted and 65% went for Good Co. Unfortunately, Good Co did not hold up the vote and was the only team to get upset in the playoffs this year, losing to 3Kings 16-3.

Turkey’s Nest vs. Reel 2 Reel – RIGHT!
This was a close vote, we had a solid 100 people vote for this one with 54% voting that the Nest (not Teachers) would come out victorious over their rivals, R2R and it looks like that was correct!!

3Kings/Good Co vs. Spike Hill – RIGHT!
In our hypothetical poll (hypothetical because we didn’t know who Spike Hill would face) 74% of you voted that Spike Hill would beat either of those teams… in fact, I think Spike Hill could have beaten both of those teams COMBINED. They were on fire as they had big win against 3Kings.

A/T vs. Soft Spot – RIGHT!
With 91 people voting, 62% of you said that the Yetis would come out victorious over the A/T All-Stars and you were right.

Rbar vs. Mendoza Line – RIGHT!
In the closest vote of the whole shebang, 92 people voted that Mendoza Line would win and 51% of you were correct! The vote was just as close as the game as The Line pulled out a close victory over the Bums of RBar.

A/T All-Stars/Soft Spot vs. Black Betty – RIGHT!
In a runaway vote, with 93 people voting, 73% said the Betty would win and you were right… barely! Soft Spot and the Betties put on a classic rain-slopfest and the Betties barely pulled out a victory over their rivals 10-9.

Who Will Win The North?
96 people voted with 36% of you saying Spike Hill is going to the big dance… but now that you’ve seen Turkey’s Nest play and Spike Hill play… are you still confident that SH will make it??

Who Will Win The South?
In the Southern Division, 96 people voted with 47% stating the Betty would make it to the big dance again with RBar coming in 2nd and Mendoza only getting 12% of the vote. But now, Rbar is out, the Betty eked out a victory and Mendoza is in the Semi-Final game. What will you vote now?!

Who Will Win The 2011 WSL Championship?
A whopping 112 people voted for this one and oddly enough you voted for Turkey’s Nest to win it all at 16%! Not that it’s odd that Turkey’s would win, but it’s odd that Turkey’s didn’t even get the vote to win their division, but get the nod to win it all, which means 87% of you were drunk when you voted. Statistics never lie!!

Now, what, do you ask do all these statistics mean?? Absolutely nothing.

So, let’s do it again!!! Now that we’ve got our Semi-Final games set we only have 4 teams to vote for. Here we go!

North Semi-Final Vote:

South Semi-Final Vote:

2011 Williamsburg Softball League Champion Vote:

And the weather vote!!

Remember, this is an open vote, so you can have anyone you want to vote, just send them to the site. But, please try to vote once so we can keep this as unscientifically accurate as possible.

Well, there you have it. Hopefully the rain will hold off and we can finish up this season. If we have to push it back, who knows what’ll happen, but I’m sure we’ll vote on something.

Thanks!

- H

Vote, and you just might win her. not really.

Well, we’ve got four days before the 2011 Williamsburg Playoffs begin, so what the hell else are we going to do around here other than vote on who is going to win it?!


Sooo, here we go! Now, I will warn you, this is a new polling software we’re using, so if it looks wonky on your computer or something, I don’t know what to tell you.


After you’ve voted, I think you need to refresh the page or come back to it to see the results. Who knows? This thing is whacked, and completely scientifically accurate, obviously.






Anyway, here we go!

We start with the North:

Round One!

Semi-Final Poll:

Northern Division Hypothetical Semi-Final Poll

Onto the South:

Round One

Semi-Final Poll:

Southern Division Hypothetical Semi-Final Poll

Northern Champion Poll!

Southern Champion Poll:

And the last and mother of all polls:

And finally…

Home

By Carly & Holland

Well, here we are, 21 Weeks later after the first week of games, and what a year it’s been. So much has happened, so many games have been played and next week we’ll have for you the Regular Season End of Year Wrap Up, but until then, let’s jump right into the Week 21 Preview!

So, we finally get to play our rain out teams from week#7 and… wait what was that?? 70% Chance of rain this weekend?! Figures.

11am
The Nest is still gunning for that number one play-off spot in the North and this week they’ve got the Gibson. Both them and Spike Hill give up an average of 9 to 10 runs per game, so this should be interesting.

Pete’s, the guys we were all rooting for, are not making the play-offs this year. BOOOOOO! Black Betty is. Surprise! Surprise! (Come on, still no BBQ??) I’m sure The Candystore will give them a hell of a game anyway, well, unless it rains then just come on down and listen to Holland crying on the bench over on Field #1. (Editor’s Note: If it does rain this weekend, that means everyone’s team that didn’t make the playoffs, your season ended on August 7th… over… on the 7th of August… over a month earlier than last year… just let that marinate for a bit. Thanks.)

1pm
Mendoza needs a win to assure they stay in 2nd place, let’s see what they got against AT. AT can’t really get any higher in the standings (oh but they can always get higher!) but this should be a good game and a possible playoff preview match-up!

Over on Field 2, it’s Good Co @ 2nd Chance. Yeah… sooooo. Good Co is in 1st place for league parties!!! HOORay! And 2nd Chance is in the lead for Banana Sayings (we’re really reaching over here this week for this game). Well, not much to say about this game other than Good Co needs to work out some kinks and get into the playoffs with an over .500 record and 2nd Chance needs to see if they can keep their RA under 300 for the year. We’ll see!

3pm
If it is still not raining by 3PM, then Clems gets their shot at RBar. Let’s face it. Clem’s is the Game of The Week from now until season end, they’re just that awesome (and to show how awesome they are, here is a video of awesome things!). RBar is looking pretty solid in that 3rd place South spot, but they could move up with a win and a ‘Doza loss. RBar beat Mendoza in both of their match-ups this season, so this is a big game for the Bums.

On Field 2, get there early to see the Spike Hill rain dance, but if they do play their catcher is really going to have her work cut out for her against The Loggers.

5pm
The Turkey’s Teachers strut their stuff against the Yeti’s. Soft Spot needs to get it together, someone tell them it’s almost playoff time, please! With a Yeti win and an Rbar loss, the Yeti’s will get out of the first round and advance to the semi’s, so there’s lots of movement that can happen this week.

And Reel 2 Reel will finally get their shot at the new 3Kings, the site predicted winners of it all! With a combined 5 players on the Home Run Leader Board this should be a real bombfest. So, hide your kids and grandma’s, cause bombs are gonna be dropping all day.

I’m off this weekend! Send your recaps, including pictures or videos to H!

Good Luck!!

- Carly & H

P.S.
Danielle LoVaglio (DLo) lost her arm band that she’d had since college. It’s very dear to her, heck, it’s very dear to all of us. If you happen to see it, it’s a Navy blue arm band with white lettering that says “D-Lo, #12″ on it, please return it, or tell us who is wearing it so we can collectively kick their ass. Thanks!

A shirtless shot to Matt Herman for putting up with the Pink for 5 long years!

By Carly & Holland

The rain held off and we got all our games in during another drop-dead heat wave this Sunday! The playoff spots are all sealed up and now it’s just placements to worry about as the 2011 season comes down to the wire. Here’s how the second to last weekend of the regular scheduled games went down:

11AM
Good Co wins their second straight against the Gibson by (well, to be honest we all lost track). The Pinks then rallied back to their bar to get drunk and naked with one another at Matt Herman’s farewell BBQ! Good Co has tied it up with 3Kings and moved into 4th place in the North. Rumor on the street was the after party was amazing and everyone had a great time!!

JB$ and the Black Betty Girls, getting jiggy! Click to watch the Exclusive Music Video!

Holland’s back and he get’s the Recap of the Week spot! Black Betty and the Yetis faced off in an early 11am game. Both teams had something to play for, the Betty was looking to exact a little revenge from the previous week when they lost to Clems and the Yetis needed a win to keep the #3 slot and not have to play the first round of the playoffs to advance. The Betty came out strong and never let up, getting a big win over their rivals. In celebration JB$ got down with the Betty girls!

1PM
Greg Todd (I’m rooting for the double named dude!!) of Reel 2 Reel blasts out another TWO HOMERS to tie Bobby Knapp and close in on the Home Run leader Mike Kornhauser! Reel 2 Reel keeps their firm hold on third place in the North. The HR Board is seriously heating up and with one week to go it’s anyone’s to win and of course, the winner gets the big prize!!

The Battleship was firing on all cylinders this Sunday!  Stryker put the hammer down, while T.Drake, Breeze, Slow-mo, and Splinter held down the battlefield! Wiggins’ hit a cannonball that damn near landed in the dog run, and the pillaging has resumed in Clemerica! TNT had a tough time with the end of this season, but lord know’s they ain’t the only ones!

3PM Southside Vengence!
The Rbar, looking to avenge an earlier loss to AT and earn a chance to move up into the standings, did just that. This was a pitcher’s duel that featured some strong defense by both teams. Rbar scored three runs in three different innings on sac flies.  Leading three zip in the seventh, The Bums defense made another big play when Adam Caccavale threw out a runner at second to extinguish an AT rally attempt. In the bottom half Teddy Browne hit his fifth homer of the season to extend the lead. Pitcher Amy Tucker and the Bums held AT to only fives hits and allowed only one runner to reach third base to shut-out the All Stars. If we are not mistaken, it is the first and ONLY shut out of the season, congratulations!! At the end of the day, however, both the All Stars and the Bums will make the play-offs anyway! Congrats to them and maybe they’ll meet up in the playoffs for a rematch!

Mendoza follows suit and avenges their May 7th loss to The Candystore by beating them 11 to 10, but not before Pete’s took the game once again into the bottom of the 11th in extra innings, but Pat & Jay of Mendoza got on base 9 out of ten times, and a walk-off home run (that only officially counts as a rbi single) by the Commish seals the W for ‘Doza, as well as Pete’s post-season fate as they miss the cut for the playoffs. Strong hitting by both teams, and decent pitching by both teams’ back-up pitchers made for a classic Old School match-up.

5PM
Spike Hill went up 12-0 on Three Kings early, but the Kings put a couple runs up here and there to make it 12 to 5. They finish off strong scoring 7 more, but Spike Hill still steals it by 3. The Game ended on a circus catch behind the first base bench on Field 2 by Leo. Spike Hill is still holding on to the top spot in the North.

Logger’s vs The Nest! The Nest wins and we all hope that veteran baller Trish is doing okay!! The Loggers only sent their concerns as their recap. Trish is a long time WSL Player and a great person, please visit her Facebook page and send her a note and wish her a speedy recovery! The Nest is just two RA’s out of 1st place!!

Looks like we’ve got one week to go before we head into the playoffs!

OK.

- Carly & Holland