| Lafayette Park | Frenchtown Field | Frenchtown Field | |||||||
| 5/20 | 5/21 | 5/22 | 5/22 | 5/22 | |||||
| WW | 6|13 | FS 0|5| | 0|1 | JM | 0|0 | AK | 2|2 | AK | 5|7 |
| CC | 5|0 | GD 7|8| | 9|11 | WD | 10|10 | WD | 7|0 | JM | 0|1 |
| WW w 2 | GD w 4 | WD w 2 | Split 1-1 | AK w 2 | |||||
| Marquee Match-up: |
| May 22nd | 1 PM | Frenchtown Field |
| Ass Kickers @ Wiffling DeLoppes |
The DeLoppes are on fire right now, riding a seven-game winning streak into Week 4. Both their offense and their pitching are clicking, and if you find yourselves down against them going into the final inning, Chucky McDonald will take the mound and make sure you stay down. Presumably, if you manage to have a lead late in the game against the DeLoppes McDonald could come in, shut you down, and give his team the chance to come back and win. That situation is yet have risen.
The aforementioned pitching has always been there. Chad Hoppe is accurate, doesn't walk many, has lots of pitches to throw at you; he won't overpower you, but he won't give you much to rip either while he tricks you out of your cleats. Cliff Comstock, a southpaw, is a good addition to the DeLoppes rotation: similar to Chad, he won't blow you away with speed, but he spots his pitches very well. Forcing you to hit the pitches he wants you to, more often than not where he wants you to: notably into the hands of one his above average defenders; namely the sure-handed, quick-footed Joey Delano ranging around the outfield. Can you get the bat on the ball against the DeLoppes? Yes, but that is not the question. The question is can do anything with the pitches you get the ball on? So far this year, that answer is a resounding, "no."
The biggest part of the DeLoppes hot start to the 2011 season isn't their pitching, though. It is their hitting that shot up out of nowhere. Up and down the lineup they can do damage. The big sluggers, the heavy damage doers are DeLano and Nick Snow who are candidates for doubles and home runs every time they step up to the plate. You can't pitch around them either, because Bobby Hoppe, BJ Hoppe, and Cliff Comstock can also slap the ball around, find holes, and drive the ball to the wall. There aren't many reprieves or easy outs in this DeLoppes lineup; you have to make your pitches to count and not make any mistakes to escape an inning clean. The new black and silver look seems to be working for the DeLoppes, giving them a new found winning culture in their clubhouse.
Speaking of winning cultures: the Ass Kickers won their first ever wiffleball experience last June. The team expected that streak to continue when the 2011 season began, but things got off to a stutter-step start losing their first two games. They did rebound, however, winning their next two games. Off to a .500 start the Ass Kickers are not in bad shape, still in the top half of the league, and at only three games behind the DeLoppes they are in a position to be at the top if they can take the two games against them this Sunday.
Looking at the results so far, you might think that the Ass Kickers shot at taking games from the DeLoppes is slim. The Squirrels who beat the Ass Kickers twice just lost two to the DeLoppes. Although, if you look a little closer, you'll see the Squirrels lost 2-1 and 2-0: low-scoring defensive battles. Offense has never been a problem for the Ass Kickers. So, if Brian Constanti and Mike Constanti pitch to their potential, they have a real shot at winning these games. Brian can hammer the inside corner to right-handed hitters with a hard-cutter that usually results in soft ground balls. Controlling that corner may give him the advantage in getting through the DeLoppes lineup. Mike has also come a long way with both accuracy and movement in his pitching this year, giving the Ass Kickers a solid number-two for their rotation. In combination with the Ass Kickers potent offense, his pitching is good enough to give them the chance to win any game.
Now, if I had to predict the outcome of this two-game Sunday series... I wouldn't! I see two close games. Offensively, I give the advantage to the deep DeLoppes lineup. Defensively, DeLoppes get the nod as well. Pitching is a little tougher. The Ass Kickers throw harder and if they have their stuff working are harder to hit, but the DeLoppes seem to always have their stuff and hit their spots. There is one absolutely sure thing, though. If you want to see a game of wiffleball with lots of hard rips all over the yard, then you should check out one of these games. Both lineups will keep defenders on their toes and moving around the spacious grounds of Frenchtown Field. That said, the pitching will also be first-rate and there will definitely be plenty of "oooh!" worthy swings and misses along with some "damn!" worthy backwards Ks.
Elsewhere around WSEM: Git r' Done and recently proven pretenders, the Flying Squirrels, have both been playing since 2009, but have never met on the field. Saturday's series will be the first meeting for these squads and it comes with a few questions. 1) Is Dennis Pearson's arm okay to pitch? How will it hold up if he does? 2) Week 1 saw the Squirrels offense rake 32 hits to lead the league; Week 3 saw that number reduced to about 6. Which is the real Squirrels lineup? Or, at least, which will show up? ... The Jason Mattseals are still looking to get in the win column, and this Sunday will be a hard challenge to get that done with four games against the recently flaunted Ass Kickers and DeLoppes. ... Lastly, the week leads off with the Westside Warriors (1-2) heading to Lafayette Park to take on the Campus Commandos (2-0) in two games. Captain Alex Shore is upset with his team's attendance and losing twice this past week, so expect him to take out some frustrations having his team running like crazy around the bases against the Commandos. The question still remains: are the 2-0 Commandos for real? The Warriors energy, speed, and quality will be their first true test on Friday night.
The aforementioned pitching has always been there. Chad Hoppe is accurate, doesn't walk many, has lots of pitches to throw at you; he won't overpower you, but he won't give you much to rip either while he tricks you out of your cleats. Cliff Comstock, a southpaw, is a good addition to the DeLoppes rotation: similar to Chad, he won't blow you away with speed, but he spots his pitches very well. Forcing you to hit the pitches he wants you to, more often than not where he wants you to: notably into the hands of one his above average defenders; namely the sure-handed, quick-footed Joey Delano ranging around the outfield. Can you get the bat on the ball against the DeLoppes? Yes, but that is not the question. The question is can do anything with the pitches you get the ball on? So far this year, that answer is a resounding, "no."
The biggest part of the DeLoppes hot start to the 2011 season isn't their pitching, though. It is their hitting that shot up out of nowhere. Up and down the lineup they can do damage. The big sluggers, the heavy damage doers are DeLano and Nick Snow who are candidates for doubles and home runs every time they step up to the plate. You can't pitch around them either, because Bobby Hoppe, BJ Hoppe, and Cliff Comstock can also slap the ball around, find holes, and drive the ball to the wall. There aren't many reprieves or easy outs in this DeLoppes lineup; you have to make your pitches to count and not make any mistakes to escape an inning clean. The new black and silver look seems to be working for the DeLoppes, giving them a new found winning culture in their clubhouse.
Speaking of winning cultures: the Ass Kickers won their first ever wiffleball experience last June. The team expected that streak to continue when the 2011 season began, but things got off to a stutter-step start losing their first two games. They did rebound, however, winning their next two games. Off to a .500 start the Ass Kickers are not in bad shape, still in the top half of the league, and at only three games behind the DeLoppes they are in a position to be at the top if they can take the two games against them this Sunday.
Looking at the results so far, you might think that the Ass Kickers shot at taking games from the DeLoppes is slim. The Squirrels who beat the Ass Kickers twice just lost two to the DeLoppes. Although, if you look a little closer, you'll see the Squirrels lost 2-1 and 2-0: low-scoring defensive battles. Offense has never been a problem for the Ass Kickers. So, if Brian Constanti and Mike Constanti pitch to their potential, they have a real shot at winning these games. Brian can hammer the inside corner to right-handed hitters with a hard-cutter that usually results in soft ground balls. Controlling that corner may give him the advantage in getting through the DeLoppes lineup. Mike has also come a long way with both accuracy and movement in his pitching this year, giving the Ass Kickers a solid number-two for their rotation. In combination with the Ass Kickers potent offense, his pitching is good enough to give them the chance to win any game.
Now, if I had to predict the outcome of this two-game Sunday series... I wouldn't! I see two close games. Offensively, I give the advantage to the deep DeLoppes lineup. Defensively, DeLoppes get the nod as well. Pitching is a little tougher. The Ass Kickers throw harder and if they have their stuff working are harder to hit, but the DeLoppes seem to always have their stuff and hit their spots. There is one absolutely sure thing, though. If you want to see a game of wiffleball with lots of hard rips all over the yard, then you should check out one of these games. Both lineups will keep defenders on their toes and moving around the spacious grounds of Frenchtown Field. That said, the pitching will also be first-rate and there will definitely be plenty of "oooh!" worthy swings and misses along with some "damn!" worthy backwards Ks.
Elsewhere around WSEM: Git r' Done and recently proven pretenders, the Flying Squirrels, have both been playing since 2009, but have never met on the field. Saturday's series will be the first meeting for these squads and it comes with a few questions. 1) Is Dennis Pearson's arm okay to pitch? How will it hold up if he does? 2) Week 1 saw the Squirrels offense rake 32 hits to lead the league; Week 3 saw that number reduced to about 6. Which is the real Squirrels lineup? Or, at least, which will show up? ... The Jason Mattseals are still looking to get in the win column, and this Sunday will be a hard challenge to get that done with four games against the recently flaunted Ass Kickers and DeLoppes. ... Lastly, the week leads off with the Westside Warriors (1-2) heading to Lafayette Park to take on the Campus Commandos (2-0) in two games. Captain Alex Shore is upset with his team's attendance and losing twice this past week, so expect him to take out some frustrations having his team running like crazy around the bases against the Commandos. The question still remains: are the 2-0 Commandos for real? The Warriors energy, speed, and quality will be their first true test on Friday night.
