verdugo288

This game reminded me of one of those cowboy movies where the whole bar just ERUPTS into a brawl. Guys smashing wooden chairs over each others’ heads and then they’d get up off the floor and do it right back to the other guy.

Just beating the hell out of each other. No gunfire….just a good ‘Ol brawl…where the last man standing picks up the win. I think every guy on the field had dirt all over his uniform after this one. What a fricken’ dogfight. I’d have paid money to watch this game.

We took some shots to be sure. Up against the ropes. Had us staggering a little bit at times. I think playing this one at Stengel weighed-in huge in our victory. Sun Valley always had a damn good team. And we had never beat ’em….until tonight. And they didn’t like it at all.

Verdugo 11 Sun Valley 10

It started simple enough. The Verdugo squad hanging out at our Saloon. All our horses there. Just minding our own business like always. A peaceful group of characters just taking a little break from a long journey…..

I’ve already done a post on this game from ten years ago. It’s Funny. I’ll put the link at the bottom of this post. What I wrote there is kind of the sub-plot that was going on underneath the hood as this game unfolded.

I will condense that post a little bit here…I don’t want to go too deep into it. Suffice it to say that the pitcher they threw at us today threw very hard, he was cocky, he was overweight, and he beat us TWICE back in 1990. Yeah….we hated the guy.

And we knocked the shit out of him, too!!!!

Now…..I know I always make it sound like VERDUGO hit nothing but line-shots and the opposition hit chinkers, dunkers, and seeing-eye ground-balls. Yeah …I know.

(That’s pretty much the truth anyways)….

But these dudes hit some shots …they knocked us around a little bit …I give them credit….but we kept getting back up.

Between the two teams tonight there were 10 errors, six wild pitches, five passed balls. All kinds of guys getting thrown out on the base paths. And both teams were hitting SHOTS all over the yard.

The lead changed hands FOUR times. In the end, it was Sun Valley’s greed that cost them….coupled with a couple of huge plays from Hack Workman in centerfield and Dave Fielder from behind the plate gunning down a few of their runners.

I remember how it all began. Les Riley came walking into our Saloon with all his horses. I didn’t take too kindly to that. I looked him over and said “what the fuck are you doing here bitch?”

Les Riley ran the Sun Valley Team. Old white-haired Walrus looking guy. He had that Wilford Brimley thing going on. They always had a damn good team and always made the playoffs.

1992 was probably the first time in a long time they didn’t finish in first or second place in the Division.

But I’ve never seen a guy so aggressive with his baserunners. He was ALWAYS looking for another 90 feet…..and anyway he could get it. He was like Gordon Gecko….”greed is good”…..

When I say he “ran” that team….he “ran it” in more ways than one. They ran well and he knew that….and he kept the pressure on at all times, regardless of the score.

But you live by the sword (or “the chair” in the bar room brawl) ….. well….you die by it, too. And that’s what happened to Sun Valley this ball game. One could argue they beat us this night….but I say in this ballgame? Ol Les Riley ran them right out of the game….

Riley sized me up and said “it’s real simple boy….I’m here to kick your fucking ass!!”

I squinted my eyes and said “Oh yeah?” as I got up from my chair. I slowly lumbered across the Saloon in my Sunday bests, my ten-gallon black Stetson and my snakeskin boots.

I got to him and wasted no time at all….busting him in the chops with a brutal uppercut….and knocking his sorry ass to the floor…

And after that….let’s just say “it was on”

Lance Evans was scheduled to throw this game but as we know he went down with an injury against Glendale. I gave the ball to Vo.

Vo came out and threw a scoreless first, including picking off a runner at first who had singled.

In the 2nd…..They sent nine guys to the plate against us and rolled a five. They had four hits and many of them were shots….

The guy in their two-hole doubled in two that made it 5-0. Up came Marlon McKinney. Their shortstop and (really) a great player. Marlon singled and here was the first sign of the Sun Valley greed we saw. Riley sent the guy who had just doubled and Hack Workman blew him down at the plate from centerfield to end the inning.

What had started out as a friendly little fist-fight had quickly escalated into a full-on BRAWL!!!! I couldn’t believe it when they crossed the line and started smashing a lot of our guys with chairs!!! A lotta busted wood all over the floor after that exchange ….holy shit!!!!

When I saw several of our guys reelin’….I realized it was ON!!!! I had to act quick…

I was behind the bar at the time and quickly started tossing whiskey bottles to you guys!!!!! No empties either!!!! I must have handed out at least three dozen of them as you guys got up off the floor and started slinging ’em around….busting them in the heads with ’em between the punches we were delivering!!!!

The tide kind of turned when that went down. We came up in the bottom half of the inning and answered with a five of our own ….tying the score at 5.

We sent nine guys to the plate, too. Although we only had one hit and Sun Valley made THREE errors that inning, We were still hitting the ball HARD….and getting in their chucker’s head.

Damn straight!!!! They took those shots to their collective heads with the whiskey bottles we were wielding and smashing into their noggins!!!! Knocking their asses down and yelling at ’em “GET UP BITCH!!!!”

We took the lead in the bottom-of-the-fourth when Robb Turner singled and Ivan Moreno tripled him in. Ivan later scored an another Sun Valley error.

7-5 Verdugo.

We added another run on a walk to Haggs and he got around on a stolen base, a wild pitch, and scored when their catcher made another error.

8-5 Verdugo.

They were staggering….taking shot after shot as we hit them repeatedly with chairs…bottles….pool sticks….we were hitting them with just about anything our hands could find!!!!

Vo was on a little roll. After they rolled the five on him in the second he shut them out the next three innings.

But Sun Valley is a feisty ball club. They rolled a four to take a 9-8 lead in the 6th. We were in trouble. Vo didn’t finish the inning and I gave the ball to Cowsill with one out and a runner at second.

Vo did a great job. He kept us in it and I was overall very pleased with his performance.

It was a bullshit maneuver they pulled…..I saw the whole thing!!!! one of their guys who was half knocked-out somehow struggled to his feet and he got a rope around about seven of our guys and they all started punching us!!!! A total bullshit maneuver!!!!

This shit was getting out of control….and I’d be lying to ya if I told ya I wasn’t thinking at this point “where the HELL is Rusty Fielder when you need him?!?!?!”

But “B” came in and got a ground ball out against McKinney, then struck out their clean-up hitter to end the inning. CLUTCH!!!!

Then I heard that big rope snap….two big hands had snapped it in half!!!! All our guys broke loose….and I couldn’t believe it when he emerged from the pile….both of his hands on each end of that broken rope!!!! as soon as I saw his smiling face I knew it was him….

RUSTY!!!!

I knew we had a chance now….

And you gotta remember….once this brawl had broken out we had their chucker up against a wall in the corner of the bar with about six of our guys just taking turns punching him!!!! I’m talking unanswered shots!!!! The problem was….he wouldn’t go down!!!!

In the top of the 7th Brendan struck out three more, and stranded the guy at second base who had doubled against him.

Finally we did what we had to do. About ten of our guys rolled that old bar room piano away from the wall. They all got behind it and ran full speed….sliding it across the floor full-bore and into their chucker!!!! Smashing him into the wall where he finally went down!!!!

Hot damn!!!! you should have seen the look on that dudes face when that old out-of-tune piano went into him!!!!

One of my proudest moments for sure when I saw it go into him. No doubt about it at all !!!!

Cowsill led off the bottom of the 7th with a SHOT up the gap for a double. HAGGS then ripped a base hit….knocking their fat-ass pitcher out of the game for the night. That’s’ when that piano hit him!!!!

Our dugout was all over his ass when Riley came out to the mound and pulled him. You gotta read the link at the bottom of this post to see what happened!

Dave Fielder stepped up and greeted their new pitcher with another base hit….scoring Cowsill and tying the game. Gabe grounded out to second…scoring Haggs and we were back in the lead.

Fielder eventually scored what would be the decisive run when Hack Workman struck out. You say what?

Yeah…..they got old Hack on strikes but the third strike got away from the catcher….he had the ball in time….but Hack was hustling and their catcher hurried his throw to first ….and promptly fired it into right field!!!!

11-9 Verdugo.

What a bar room brawl!!!!

You also gotta remember while you guys were out on the main bar room floor mixing it up….’Ol Les Riley and I were back behind the bar beating the absolute shit out of each other. We were both pretty bloodied-up at this point, too. But I ended up getting him!!!!

Sun Valley scored a run in the top of the eighth. A lead off walk….a passed ball….and a sacrifice bunt had their runner at third with two out.

McKinney drove one up the gap in left center making it 11-10.

Once again the greed of Sun Valley came into play. McKinney’a drive was a double. A text-book gapper. He ran well….yeah….but Les pushed the envelope a little too far and waved him towards third….trying to stretch it into a triple. Hack came up with it and fired to Hagge who then fired to Turner who laid the tag on McKinney at third TO END THE INNING.

Huge play!!

Their clean-up hitter was on-deck. McKinney was already in scoring position with the double. Bad move Les.

This was right around the time Moreno….who was halfway up a staircase fighting-off about six of their guys leaped from the staircase and down onto a well-placed chandelier where he grabbed it with both hands and swung above the main bar room floor….kicking a couple of their dudes in the head…..and knocking them out…at least temporarily. It was a gutsy move he made….risky…..one I’m not so sure I’d have tried myself…..But it was clutch and definitely turned the tide.

We threatened in the eighth…loading the bases with one out but GABE hit a line shot into a double play. Great at-bat for GABE. Hit it right on the screws. Shit happens….

We needed three outs. It’s 11-10

Sun valley’s clean-up hitter led off with a base hit. (A base hit that would have scored McKinney has Les not pushed the envelope)

The next hitter reached base on a fielders choice. He then stole second base.

First base was open and I put the next guy on. Crazy move but I did it.

Once again….the Sun Valley greed came into play. Les tried to steal third when the guy was already in scoring position.

Fielder blew him down. Thanks again Les. Two down.

That’s right around the time I finished Riley off. He had me in a chokehold …about to crack me in the head with another whiskey bottle. I was in trouble. I’m not proud of it….but I did what any man would have done in that situation. Somehow I got ahold of his jersey and pulled it over his head….rendering him sightless…I then grabbed a pool stick by the skinny end and swung for the fences. I think I may have messed up one of his eye sockets on that one….but finally ‘Ol Les Riley went down for good when it connected!!!!

The next hitter grounded out. Haggs to Moreno. 6-3 if you’re scoring. It’s over.

We swarmed the field after the final out. A lotta bad blood….a lotta words exchanged….an absolute knock-down-drag out BRAWL…..but no gunfire.

Except….you could still see if you looked closely enough on the field a few little wisps of smoke trickling away into the sky. Smoke that was still lingering from the Verdugo arms that had GUNNED down the reckless Sun Valley runners on the base paths!!!!

What a brawl. Broken shit everywhere. Finally….the knocked-out bodies of the Sun Valley posse were scattered all over the floor. The dust had finally settled, and Verdugo had all the last men standing……barely.

By Monday morning that bar had already sent me a bill asking for about $30,000 in damages. I told ’em to pound sand!!!! They’re still trying to settle this thing in court to this very day!!!!

The message to Sun Valley was clear. NOT IN OUR SALOON!!!!

So what do you do when you’ve got the last men standing and the opposition is scattered all over the floor? You calmly walk over ….give them a good swift kick to the head and sit down and finally have yourself a drink!!!!

Link: https://verdugo288.wordpress.com/2011/02/10/fat-bitch-gets-his-bra-knocked-off-twice-part-one/

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