Coral Gables A's Stories: Here We Go Again!

The Coral Gables A's are in the championship against...who else?

Your Coral Gables A’s, America’s funniest men’s league baseball team, are back in the championship. In our first season after joining a new league, we have weathered an up-and-down season and have gotten hot at the right time, running through the playoffs on our way to the final round. 

Who should be waiting for us there? South Dade Suela, of course. 

Well, kind of. Suela has been our archrival for years. We’ve met in championship games of national tournaments, we’ve met in championship games of different South Florida leagues. If there is such a thing as Yankees-Red Sox when it comes to men’s league baseball, it’s us and them. The team we’re playing here is not quite the same Suela we know from our previous league. We left that league last year. They stayed. However, they essentially have another team that plays in our new league, which will occasionally feature players we recognize. Both Suelas are run by the same guy.

They play and act the same way. It’s still Suela. I actually think the one from our past league is better, but this version is clearly no slouch; they’re in the championship after all. 

There’s a common Spanish phrase that goes “hasta en la sopa.” It literally translates to “even in the soup.” You use this phrase when something, be it a person, object, or in this case, a baseball team, always seems to pop up in different places. I’m pretty sure we could uproot our lives and move to the Czech Republic, find a league to play in, and Suela would somehow be waiting for us in the championship. The A’s and Suela will play in an important game no matter what, ‘til death do us part. Hasta en la sopa. 

Our new league features three-game series in the semis and championship. Before that it was single elimination. Last week we played Game 1 of the championship series. Here’s a brief rundown of what went down before that. 

Round 1 vs. Pirates (Single Elimination):

Highlights:

I hit a bomb that got us on the board. Mike, who pitched at the University of Miami and is one of our aces, tossed six strong innings before handing the ball off to Angel, a hard-throwing lefty who is our other ace. Angel finished up the last three innings for the victory. 6-3.

Here's my homer, complete with Yuca, our elder statesman, vocal leader, DH, and culture-setter, claiming he called it:

Round 2 vs. Braves (Best-of-3)

Game 1 Highlights: 

Amed, a do-everything player for us, hit a three-run tank to get us on the board in the first inning.

Jorge Q., a utility player, had a great game with the bat and the glove, but the highlight came when he sacrificed his body diving headfirst into home. Perhaps facefirst is a better way to put it. Here’s a nice pair of screenshots showing what happened:

Angel started this game and went six strong, then Mike closed out the final three innings. He briefly lost his control in the 9th, which brought the tying run to the plate after a hit and a pair of walks. Mike has been rising to the occasion for the A’s for years, however, striking out the final batter with a wipeout curveball. Another 6-3 win for the good guys. 

A side note: there was some hooting and hollering in the 8th inning when Suela 2.0 was in the stands getting ready for the game scheduled after us. They bring a speaker system and a play-by-play announcer to their big games (for real). Instead of waiting for the intermission between the end of our game and the start of the next one to set everything up, they decided to do it while we were on defense. Our pitchers shouldn’t have to throw with random speaker booms going off as the announcer tests that everything is working. 

We asked that they stop. They did for a little, meaning about two minutes. Then they started again, leading to us getting more annoyed and to the Braves, seeing an opportunity to get under our skin, defending Suela and calling us soft for bitching about the sound. Whole big thing. The umpires intervened eventually, getting them to shut it down until the game was over. 

Game 2 Highlights:

We faced two A’s legends in this game: Manny and Honny. These two were the heroes of the tournament we played in last fall, carrying us to the championship. They both play for the Braves in this league. 

We jumped to an early lead off Manny, who didn’t have his usual control. This time we started Mike, who continued to shine in big games. The highlight of the day might’ve come on defense, however. One of their best chances to have a big inning came with a runner on first after a ball got hit down the right field line. I fielded it up against the fence with my back to the field, meaning my decision on where to throw the ball was based entirely on what the infielders were telling me. “FOUR” someone screamed, meaning home. The runner on first was trying to come all the way around to score. I fired it in the direction of home plate, towards Dy’lan (or Dee), our first baseman who was serving as the cutoff man. I overshot him, the ball sailing over his head. Xavier (or X), our shortstop, who for some reason ran all the way towards the first base line, caught the overthrown ball, spun and threw to the plate. Alex, our catcher, dove for the sliding runner. Out. 

It was not unlike the famous Derek Jeter flip play in the 2001 ALDS playoff between the Yankees and, ironically, the A’s, except this one was more difficult, since X had to throw it about 90 feet. All-in-all, one of the most heads-up and athletic plays I’ve seen since I’ve played for this team. 

Mike was locked in and ready to go the distance for us, which he did. Complete game victory. Alex knocked in three total runs in multiple huge spots. Manny rebounded after a tough start and Honny allowed just one run, but we did enough to win. 5-3. We’re onto the championship series. 

Championship Series vs. Suela (Best-of-3)

Now we’re getting into the real meat and potatoes of this article. Game one of the championship series. Us vs. Suela, as nature intended. 

It was once again the Angel and Mike show, this time with Angel taking the ball first and Mike coming in relief.

We played like a bunch of jackasses on defense in the first few innings. We had two miscues in the first inning that Angel was able to overcome. In the second inning we had yet another one, although this was aided by the umpires tremendously. The hitter chopped a high grounder to third base. Matt, who plays mostly plays third for us, scooped it up and slung it across the diamond. The throw was a little wide, taking Fabian, our first baseman that day, off the bag. Not a problem, as the runner was slow and Fabian had plenty of time to just tag him out. He went to do just that, but the runner contorted his body and dodged him, going well inside the baseline to do so. 

The call is safe, which, based on the actual tag, was correct. Fabian didn’t get him, and after veering into the infield grass and going back to touch the bag, the runner arrived safely. However, he was clearly out of the baseline. 

Argument time. 

Rules Schmules

Rule 5.09 (b)(1) affords a runner up to three feet to the right or left of the base path in order to avoid a tag. The running lane is three feet wide, stretching from the foul line into foul territory. Now, you’ve obviously never seen an umpire whip out a tape measure to see how far a runner veered off trying to get away from someone, so this is a judgment call. 

I don’t think the umpire crew understood the rule, since the head ump’s reasoning was that the runner was trying to avoid the tag, and thus, it didn’t matter if he was out of the base path. Yes, this is true, but to a degree. Can he run to centerfield as the first baseman chases him? Can he run to his car and get into a high speed chase, as long as the first baseman pursues? He gets three feet either way, that’s it. Remember when I said the runner was slow? He himself was more than three feet wide, so about one body width of his is all he’s allowed to work with to avoid Fabian’s glove. Fabian was not going to miss tagging this absolute unit unless he, quite literally, ran away from him. Which he did. 

But I don’t think they knew the three-foot rule of thumb. Runner is safe. He eventually came around to score with two outs, making it 1-0, them after two innings. Shouldn’t have happened. C'est la vie.

Getting Us Going

Dee provided the spark we needed on offense. Their pitcher was not overpowering, but had good downward movement and location on his fastball and a good change-up. Not really much of a breaking ball, but he wasn’t going to walk you and had a good repertoire for inducing ground balls. He left a fastball up against, Dee, however, who did not miss it. He roped a ball into the right centerfield gap on a full count and motored around for a triple. Alex followed, continuing his clutch hitting ways with a single to center that brought Dee home. All tied up. Dee’s triple is below. 

They weren’t scoring on Angel if we could make the plays behind him. After two ugly innings, we settled in, thanks be to God. Angel rarely throws his slider, but it was effective this game in keeping them off balance. It set up his changeup, which looks just like his fastball before it fades away, and his fastball, which he can use to just say fuck you and blow it by whoever. The 3rd and 4th inning presented no real problems for him. 

We got something going in the bottom half of the 4th. Ever since the series against the Braves, I’ve sort of been getting the Barry Bonds treatment. I’ve been swinging a very good bat this season, so teams have been content to pitch around me and let others try to beat them. I had been walked seven times in three playoff games to that point, two of them intentional. I don’t mind; it helps the team win and I can still be a threat on the base paths. But it does change my approach a little, in the way of me being more aggressive early in the count when pitchers are more likely to challenge me. I came up with one out and nobody on in the 4th, dead set on swinging early if I got a pitch I could handle. I did, and laced a first-pitch fastball into the same gap Dee did. Double. 

It wouldn’t be a game against Suela without some Suela stuff, right? Apparently, the first baseman was certain I had missed first base on the way to my double. Made a big show of it and implored the pitcher to appeal, meaning he has to step on the mound, step off, and throw to first. Unfortunately for them, I am not eight years old, so I did touch first base. Remembering to touch all the bases when playing baseball is something I pride myself on, hence why I haven’t failed to do so since I was in coach-pitch. The appeal was unsuccessful. A valiant effort. 

Jorge B., Alex’s brother who was behind the plate in this game, came up after me and worked a brilliant at bat that culminated in a single through the right side. I came around to score, remembering to touch third base and home plate during my journey. Jorge advanced to second on the throw to the plate from the right fielder. 

Matt followed Jorge with a badass at bat of his own that resulted in a single over the shortstop, bringing Jorge around to score. 3-1, us, after four. 

Angel kept the cruise control on in the fifth and sixth. He was done after that, with Mike waiting in the wings. 

Was It Something I Said?

My next at bat was eventful. With a 1-0 count, I hit a ball roughly 7,000 feet, but foul. Absolutely torched. A majestic blast if we were playing cricket, but alas, 50 feet foul in baseball. I got one more decent pitch to hit in the at bat but wasted it by fouling it straight back. Nothing else I saw was close to the zone, so I walked. 

The pitcher was pulled after my at bat. To his credit, we had to earn everything we got off him, and he minimized all the damage. He was solid. 

The next guy was a tall drink of water who threw a ton of offspeed stuff. As in, almost exclusively offspeed stuff. If he threw 20 pitches, maybe 1-2 would be fastballs. The rest were sliders, curveballs, and changeups. 

He also had a good pickoff move, which he was keen on using against me at first base. He picked over four times across the next two batters. The first three were close, but I was very much safe. Nevertheless, their entire team and everyone in the stands supporting them reacted as if I was out. On the fourth attempt he threw it away. I popped up after diving back to the bag, while the first baseman made a break towards the ball. We got tangled up for a second trying to go our separate ways. 

Heeeeere comes Suela.

The first baseman, the same guy who insisted I missed first base on my double, pleaded with the field umpire to call interference. I could have done cartwheels to second base and made it safely. But no, clearly I held him back from running after the ball and that's why I made it. I’d like to point out that during our meeting in the regular season this first baseman was playing shortstop and claimed I was stealing the signs from the catcher and relaying it to the hitter, while I was on second. He called a meeting and everything, telling the pitcher and catcher to change up the signals. We’re probably too dumb to even pull off a maneuver like that, but I appreciate the flattery. I wasn’t stealing shit, except for bases. The point is, these guys seem to think I’m a big fat cheater. 

Anyway. Interference was not given. 

They kept trying to pick me off, with the typical defiant roar from their team when I was called safe. On one attempt, the second baseman told the field umpire I wasn’t touching the base. I was, sadly for them, as the umpire could tell from his vantage point...five feet away. “They really want to get you, huh?” the field ump said to me after the final pickoff attempt. It would appear they really did, sir. 

Yuca had had enough at this point. “Cuantos umpires ustedes tienen?” he yelled across the diamond. How many umpires do you guys have? This got them all hot and bothered and a few people had to be separated. Someone had to say something, though. The bitching was getting unbearable. 

I didn’t end up scoring but my uniform got real dirty. 

Pretty Please Give Us A Win?

Mike got through the 7th and 8th without a hiccup. In the bottom of the 8th, though, Suela dug deeper into their bag of Bush League tactics and decided to protest the game. That’s right. Down 3-1 in the 8th, after two and a half hours of playing, now they decide to protest to the commissioner of the league, who was at the game. 

This game was scheduled for 12 PM. There was a game scheduled before ours, but it got cancelled. Suela's players, in general, got to the field before we did. We were notified around 11 that, if we so wished, we could start the game early if everyone was there and ready to rock. They were ready at 11:30. Well, we weren’t. But according to them, since they were fully ready and some of our players had arrived by that point, the clock should have started for an 11:30 game time. In this league, if one team is ready at game time and the other isn’t, the non-ready team gets 15 minutes of grace before they have to forfeit. In this case, that would mean we'd lose at 11:45. Since we weren’t ready at 11:45, by their logic, they should have won by forfeit. 

We didn’t agree to play at 11:30, though. It doesn’t matter if some of us are at the field or not. No one agreed to that shit. I don’t care if you’re there at 4:15 in the morning. If both teams agree to a start time, one team can’t just make up a new one and say "welp, some of you are here, so the game startsssss NOW!" Fuck outta here. 

The commissioner was having none of it. They were just begging. Play on. 

Game. Blouses.

A little lefty of theirs poked a two-out double down the left field line in the 9th inning to bring a run in. He would end up stranded on second, as Mike punched out the final batter of the game to complete the 3-2 victory. 

It was finally over. 

Same Story

There’s just no tactic that is beneath Suela, despite being an extremely talented team. On a stolen base of mine, the shortstop yelled “FOUL” as I got to second, meaning I would have to go back to first. It wasn’t a foul ball. Three times in this game the batter stepped across the plate as Jorge attempted to throw a stealing runner out at second. Twice it was called interference, rightfully. Alex and Jorge are our two catchers and are brothers, and their dad goes to all of our games. This is perhaps the calmest, most even-keeled man I’ve ever met. If he gets riled up, you know you’re doing something wrong. Well he was hot in the stands on this Sunday afternoon. Everyone has a limit, and no one gets under your skin like Suela. 

There’s a fine line between gamesmanship and Bush League, but they’ve erased that line. Thankfully, their play-by-play guy didn’t have any hiccups with the sound system. 

Whew. What a Sunday. With the win, we move to within one game of our first championship since our longtime manager, Miguel, hung ‘em up five or so years ago. We’ve been very Buffalo Bills-like since then, losing at least four championships in different tournaments and our home league. This season feels different, though. As long as we play fundamental baseball and keep our heads on our shoulders when it comes to the inevitable Suela moments, we should be good. 

Angel’s got the rock. THE GAME IS SCHEDULED FOR 11:00 AM ET AND IT WILL BE BEGIN AT 11:00 AM ET REGARDLESS OF WHEN EITHER TEAM ARRIVES.

Here's hoping some members of the older generation of A's can make it out to cheer us on. Yuca will be ready to celebrate...

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