2nd Annual David Ortiz Memorial Tournament

David Ortiz was a pitcher I played with when I started playing competitive softball.

He was a very cool guy, funny, and unique.

He passed away a couple of years ago, and his close friend Tony Casilla throws this event in his memory.

Check it out

2ND ANNUAL DAVID ORTIZ MEMORIAL SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT
Date: June 14th - 15th, 2008
Location: Memorial Park Linden, NJ
Entry Fee: $350.00

DEADLINE JUNE 6, 2008
Awards:
Tournament Champion Trophy,
Tournament Runner-up Trophy.
Format: 3 Game Guarantee format on Saturday
Top 2 teams from each bracket advance to single elimination format on Sunday.
10 Man Class “A” Bunting & Stealing using ASA 9 Man pitching rules

Please contact Tony Casilla at bxnarc22@yahoo.com

SOFTBALL SIBERIA

When you hear the word Siberia you don't exactly think hot vacation spot or beauty.
Even though Miss. Siberia "Masha" ain't bad -

But let's be honest, when you hear Siberia you know it's a cold, brutal, miserable , and horrible place. - it ain't fun - the Marsha's of the wold don't spend too much time there.

Siberia a big Arctic wasteland where people are sent as punishment for behaving badly or against the norms of society.

Real Siberia


Softball's version of Siberia is DeWitt Clinton Park AKA 54th Street

These pictures don't do justice to how bad this field actually is.

Field of Nightmares



The playing conditions (if you want to call them that) are deplorable.

This field has been called Iraq, Normandy Beach, Ground Zero, and my favorite

'Donde Caja la Vaca ' ( means where the Cows shit).

The place is a dump.

It's softball hell.

When you play here you've been sent to softball's Siberia.

Top Ten Reasons you end up playing in 54th Street

10. No hay nada mas - there are no other games going on out there.
All other field are closed and you want to get your softball swerve on. It's like the club or bar at 3AM you take whatever girl you can get. This happens during November fall ball season when not much else is going on.

9. You play for free on a team, like Charter Fabric - convenient

8. Softball gods are punishing you - Softball version of the minor leagues Bull Durham

7. YORKVILLE SOFTBALL!!! - Al Morales runs most of his games there and his motto is "who cares if you break a leg just pay me my league fee, it's the city's fault"

6. You want to improve your vision b/c the lights don't usually all work as well. Nothing like batting against Cueves, Brown, or Cedric in a dark corner.

5. Working on your agility, nothing like dodging players from 3 different games on a horrible crater filled field to improve your footwork. As an extra agility drill, you enjoy dodging pit bulls left off their leash by owners

4. Field sucks but you like going to dive 11th avenue bars after the games b/c some 18 year old bartender girl in a provocative outfit escorted by a Mexican bus boy bodyguard give you a free beer pass. - ghetto

3. Your commissioner forces you to play there - hmmmm

2. Enjoy getting cheap hits and home runs thanks to the horrible fielding, lighting conditions - inflate your statistics

and the #1 Reasons you end up playing in 54th Street

1. Your a softball whore and can't resist - like the moth to flame

PS NY needs to make this field turf with dirt infield cut outs around the bases and better lights as soon as possible - if the next Mayor promises that he has my vote

10 Man Modified Pitching - The Holy Grail

Written by Guest blogger Juan Moreiras (aka Blondie)

Most of you know that Ric and I feel that many "modified" leagues throughout NYC are polluted with illegal "slinger" pitchers. The biggest problem is that most involved (umps, players, managers, commissioners) don't know or understand the 10-Man Modified pitching rules. Everyone seems to have their own interpretation, usually for their own convenience. We've all been through this argument before, but now we have the holy grail.

I found this document written by a very experienced pitcher Sal Guerriero. Simply put, this guy knows his shit and makes things crystal clear. Please take the time to read it! Click the link below and see the light>>>

10 Man Modified Pitching Rules

IF YOU STILL DON'T GET IT, I cant help you, you're illegal!

BREAKING STORY QUE VIVE LA REVOLUCION!!!!!!!!!!

The rumors are true, Softball's version of Microsoft, The HighLanders, have purchased softball's version of Yahoo, The Uptown Chiefs ( stupid name).

Shockingly The Chiefs were the 2007 CentralParkSoftball.com Champions and currently sport a nifty 6-1 record while boasting a pitching staff of Edgar Jr., Gilberto and Cedric.

The softball Mogul behind this shocking takeover is HighLander manager and Ozzie Guillen lookalike Dio Jackson



Much like legendary revolutionary and dictator Fidel Castro,






Dio has a revolutionary background and a love for baseball/softball.

Like Fidel if Dio can't have Freedom, then he will settle for Power.

As the exalted leader of HIGHLANDER NATION,

Dio has led the Highlanders from a rags to riches softball success story.

Now with this new venture called The Sox, named after Ozzie's team, Dio looks to win on NYC biggest and highest profile stage.

Dio stated "I am now the Face of the Franchise,




my Highlanders are here and ready to go!!!!!"

Upon hearing the news many current and former Chief players fled for safer territory




Former Uptown Chiefs CEO Issac "Gubi" Delgado was called to comment on this story but when he picked up his cellphone while driving the police gave him a ticket and his car was impounded.

Former interim manager and GM RR stated "In order to keep our team alive this was the best move for everyone involved".

2007 Uptown Chief MVP Johnny Castillo could not be reached for this story.

Good Luck Dio

A New Hope? - tales from a guest writer

No Blog from me today guys ( Thank God).
Rather my friend and softball aficionado Jimmy Bitros has allowed me to post an email he recently wrote and sent to his fellow managers in the Big apple League regarding pitching.

FYI - In his letter Jimmy references an email from contact manager Patti.
I have not asked or been given permission to post Patti's email, but as a background Patti's letter stated that his team will not complain about broken pitching standards anymore and will take up the challenge of competing against it.

The letter below is Jimmy's response and future ideas.

Very well done Jimmy

Enjoy


Letter starts now :

First, let me compliment Pat on his e-mail of May 9, 2008.

I couldn't agree more with him that the audition process, as it now stands, is broken.

If a pitcher passes the audition process and pitches illegally during a game, the team he pitches for must be penalized. That is the only way to eliminate the problem of illegal pitches, a topic I will discuss later in this e-mail.

I also agree with Pat that we want a good competitive league where every team has a chance of winning the championship. Unfortunately, if Vegas was laying odds, the teams with illegal pitchers would have a significantly better chance than the teams that play by the rules. Therefore, not every team has an equal chance of winning the championship.

Pat's email indicates that a superstar legal pitcher may be more difficult to hit than a less effective illegal slingshot/windmill pitcher. That argument just doesn't work.

I see a major difference between a superstar pitcher who pitches legal and an illegal slingshot or windmill pitcher.

Firstly, the superstar designation is a subjective opinion.

The illegal slingshot or windmill pitcher is by definition illegal in a modified softball league. It is not subjective whatsoever.

The fact that an illegal slingshot pitcher that isn't effective at what he does should be allowed to pitch, but that the illegal slingshot pitcher who is proficient at what he does shouldn't be allowed to pitch is wrong.

Both slingshot pitchers are illegal in a modified league no matter how effective they are. Illegal is Illegal.

If any type of pitching is okay, like some macho men would like, (even though most don't hit high quality slingshot pitching) why not make it an anything goes league, including illegal overhand pitches. After all, in a modified league, slingshot or windmill is just as illegal as overhand pitching. Illegal is illegal.

So basically, a discussion of superstar modified pitching is a valid discussion,

but a discussion of illegal slingshot windmill or overhand pitching is not because of the simple fact that it is illegal in a modified league.

If we want to progress to a slingshot dominated anything goes league, we can discuss that next February. But then we are talking about bunting, stealing and as in some leagues, a three man outfield just to even things out.

Also, we have to consider the demise of the Saturday league and the problem the Big Apple League ran into 8 years ago when we eliminated all pitching standards.

That is basically where I stand on the issue. I recommend that we eliminate the audition process and evaluate a pitcher in a game situation by our Big Apple committee (not the umpires).

If a pitcher is pitching illegally, then the team will the illegal pitcher has to immediately remove that pitcher from the mound or forfeit the game.

We must make it clear to everyone that we are a modified league and all legal modified pitches are welcome regardless of how good they are.

If a pitcher is legal and is a superstar because he pitches better than other legal pitchers, so be it.

We should save our criticism for illegal pitchers whether or not they pitch slingshot, windmill or overhead.

Jim Bitros

CASTILLO - Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

Didn't think I had the balls to write this blog eh?

Your half right. I do and I don't

One of the Greatest and most Controversial players in all of softball Johnny Castillo (kneeling in the bottom left corner during happier times in the 2006 Knockout Inwood Championship celebration) has yet to make his 2008 softball debut.
















Castillo has not played this season due to personal reasons which should be respected.

This isn't the computer game Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

This is real life.

This is his business and no one Else's.

What frustrates me most about this is that everyone in the world of softball keeps asking me about him.

The answer is I do not know any more thank you do and please do not ask me anymore.

On a lighter note this issue demands a Top ten

Top Ten Reasons Why everyone asks Rick about Castillo

10. C'mon Rick stop fronting tell us some dirt like Courtney Cox does on the FX TV show called Dirt Magazine






9. They need stud hitting Castillo's bat and pitching back in my lineup
8. They genuinely care about John and miss him
7. They hate John and miss hating on him, Love to Hate
6. Everyone knows Rick misses playing with Castillo. They say "you know your Castillo's bitch"
Castillo has gotten me on numerous teams, the relationship is kind of like Ike and Tina Turner, Rick keeps going back.
5. They read Softballinsider.net and think this is Dirt Magazine ( see above) - sorry dude, like the NY times says we print only "all the softball news that's fit to print". even though we add some cursing, politically incorrect statements and porn references at times for fun
4. The economy is bad, we are at war, The presidential election is coming, all those topics are not as interesting as the softball life and times of Castillo
3. Love him or hate him, softball without Castillo isn't quite the same - people want him back
2. John owes them money and they want to collect

and the Number One Reasons Why everyone asks Rick about Castillo

1. Rick has a big mouth












Yet

The Worst Word in Softball

QUALIFY - is by far the worst word in SOFTBALL

Top Ten Reasons QUALIFY is the worst word in Softball

10. It means just get your best players/pitchers to make the minimum number of games so that they can participate in the PLAYOFFS. In other, sneak them on your roster. Shiesty
9. So much for being loyal to your regulars. mangers sneak studs on their teams, and then diss guys that show up and play hard all the time. We've all done it, and to be honest it sucks. Managers want to win, players want to win, and some good loyal guy suffers.
8. Guys skips weeks all the team b/c the only want "to Qualify", putting a manager in a forfeit avoid crisis mode every week. This leads to losing games you would otherwise win.
7. Terrible for a team concepts. Makes it more about the individual and is selfish
6. Plays into the hand of mercenary players who don't show up so there team can miss their presence and they can extort money and attention from management.
5. Makes regular season games meaningless at times.
4. Lowers the overall competitive nature of a league.
3. Guys play one inning or get one at bat so they can qualify and then leave games to go play elsewhere. I've done this to sneak guys on my roster, and it usually ends up back firing on me. The softball gods frown on this type of shiestyness.
2. It's petty and and leads to a lot of bitch ass arguments.

and the Number One Reason QUALIFY is the worst word in Softball

1. What the fuck!?!?!
Are you down or what?? Leave fear of commitment to your girlfriend or Mistress.
Where is the softball love and loyalty!!!!!!!!!!???????

P.S. The only exception to hating on the word Qualify is that if someone misses time
due to work, family emergency, or injury. Otherwise this word is a joke and sucks

THE EVIL EMPIRE STRIKES BACK!!!!!!!

Yesterday Choice Parts coldly and methodically flat out whipped our ass ( my team West).

No excuses necessary.
No explanation.
and as Roberto Duran would say, NO MAS!!!!!!

The Evil Empire is Back, the Evil Emperor is in control ,











and the Death Star is stacked with stud softball playing storm troopers ready to lay waste to all in the Big Apple League that stands in their way.

Top Ten impressions about yesterday's lopsided affair.

10. I has very impressed how my manager John Sheppard and the rest of our players took the ass whipping loss in stride and calmly. Shows no panic. We will be OK.

9. Much respect to Eric "Cabezza" Espinal with the score about 100-0 Eric was swing at 3-0 pitches trying not to walk. Eric didn't care about padding on his stats, that's how you play the game.

8. You know it's going to be a bad day when one of our players Jose Carrion, cuts his eye during batting practice and has to go to the emergency room for stitches. Talk about Freaky.

7. The Parts crushed us without Castillo, Eddie Brown, and Ace John Brown.

6. I need to grow up and stop throwing bats. It's stupid. Frustration leads to failure and fear.
As Yoda once wisely said
“Fear is the path to the dark side.
Fear leads to anger.
Anger leads to hate.
Hate leads to suffering."

5. Choice Parts is stacked, but do they have too many guys?
I guess in softball there is no such thing as over recruiting b/c it's a long season and guys miss games. But it would seem to me that they have 4-5 guys on their squad who really seem out of place on that team, like they don't belong there, they somehow have been seduced by the dark side and lost their true softball self, like Darth Vadar,







I sense the conflict in them, there is still softball good in you, you have only forgotten your true softball self.

4. The say that baseball/softball is a humbling game, and that getting humbled is good for the soul. Well after yesterday my soul is ready for heaven.
3. Thank god next week is Mother's week - we need a break.
Enjoy the day with all the special mom' in your life guys.
2. When is Murphy and Jimmy Meyers coming back?

and the #1 impressions about yesterday's lopsided affair.

1. It's over - thank god