The baseball season sometimes seems like it's forever! It is a baseball family made up of 25 players, several coaches, one GM, an Owner, part time personnel, and office staff. The Manager not only has to be "very good" with the decisions he makes on the field, but also how he handles the clubhouse atmosphere. In our case in this league, the bus rides are long, food can be bad, and hotels are not four star ones. But there always seems to be a comical side to this game!
And in this case, it's the "nicknames" that guys inherit for whatever reason. Our second baseman, and team clown, Gene Brown has an entire list, and even an explanation for some:
Homeslice: This is the name you give that country guy who likes rap music.
Scrobie: Anything with “scro” in it is funny. Give this name to someone shorter than you.
Ballstein: If you have a male friend who is totally cool, give them this name. It screams masculinity.
Stainer: This name goes to the friend who is always a downer, or the friend who is most likely to leave skidmarks in his underwear.
Scrobillioniare: This name is perfect for that rich friend who is a tool.
It says: ”You may have a lot of money, but you are still a scrotum.”
Pickles - Of course, a player who loads his plate with pickles.
Slappy - Short for a "singles" hitter.
Anyway, you get the idea. I didn't dare ask him what mine was. He told me that it wasn't good, but the only way I'd find out was if he got traded, or cut, then he wouldn't care what I thought when he told me. He laughed when he said it, but who knows?
So, it's on to Berwick, to play the Slaters, and yes, time for another history lesson my friends!
The only professional baseball club in the history of
Berwick, PA played in the North Atlantic League in 1950. Managed by catcher Lew Hummel until June 4 and pitcher Mike Koons (7-3, 2.86) thereafter, the unaffiliated club finished 5th in the 8-team league at 64-65-1. They drew 15,489 fans, 5th in the league, and were outscored 703-659. Leonard Wile (11-6, 2.12) was fourth in the NAL in ERA while 1B Al Kirchdoerfer (.312/~.392/.442) was 10th in average and tied for fourth in triples while having the best fielding percentage (.988) at his position.
Berwick is also home to Wise Potato Chips/Snacks:
Wise Potato Chips began in 1921 by accident. Earl Wise, Sr. owned a store on Mulberry Street. He had too many potatoes at one point, so he asked his mother, Sarah, to make chips for him. His father, M. I. Wise, helped Earl sell the chips at his store. They quickly became very popular. The demand was so great that in 1923, they built a small plant on Iron Street. Earl and his father designed the plant. In 1926, they enlarged the plant and did so several more times. For his 20th anniversary in 1946, in honor of his mother, Earl threw a party and created a logo of an owl for the plant.
Never could find out how the "Slaters" got their name, although I know a "slater" is a tradesman, who covers buildings with slate. But all I knew was that we had an important, four game series with them, and could we keep up the momentum?
7/12-7/15 - First game of series, and take a wild guess what happened. We get hammered 9-2, with the "up and down" Tim Butler, going just four innings, while giving up seven hits, and five runs. It could have been worse, but our outfielders made some tremendous plays! Following this team through the season, their inconsistency is "maddening."
In between games one and two, I got a package from Kirsten. She wanted to dress up our mascot "Ace" some, and sent me pics of mascots whose colors she thought really stood out. Does she know that I'm pulling my hair out with this team, and have many more things to worry about? Guess not!
I sent her a package back, and said here's the one I would suggest! lol
Game 2 - Denny White loses his third straight game, a 4-1 defeat. White is a bulldog on the mound, and gave the Aces seven and two thirds of six hit ball. But some sloppy play in the field cost us dearly.
Game 3 - - Not much better, as we lost 5-2. Dale Roberson went three for three, but we hit into three double plays, once with the bases loaded that killed what could've been a big inning!
Game 4 - This game was a "slugfest" from the start, and we finally won it 12-10. Ed Bane who suddenly has lost confidence in our pen, left Jesus Castaneda in for seven and a third, giving up 11 hits, seven runs, but coming away with his 5th win! A badly needed win that got us to 47-49, as we head home to take on the Hanover Raiders.