verdugo288

The General and I loaded up his truck with the Verdugo gear and made the drive that morning out to Taft High. The site of “the dogpile” in 1990. Not much was said on the drive out. We knew what we had to do….

They can celebrate all they want over that one…..we only had eight guys on the field the last four innings. We proved we were the Kings that day and all I knew for today was we were gonna have nine guys on the field the whole game (barring the unexpected) so I was looking forward to this one.

Not all the guys we had on our roster knew what happened here in 1990 but by the time the game got going everybody had heard about it.

East had a different coach. Matt Borzello was the coach there in 90-91. His son eventually ended up as one of the bullpen catchers for The Dodgers.

The new coaches were a couple of twins…yeah….I’m guessing in their early to mid-twenties? Who they were I don’t know and I don’t really care….certainly before the game we briefly met and exchanged “pleasantries”….and our lineup cards for the day.

The place hadn’t changed much and just looking around kind of made me sick to my stomach. But we had a ballgame to play and even though to this VERY DAY I still haven’t let go of that loss….I at least let it go while we were there on this day in history.

We only had eight hits on the day. Five of those hits were off the bats of Jon Gabrielson (3 singles) and Hack Workman (a triple and a home run)

Hack drove in five. Scored twice. Gabe scored twice. The Wiley Jackson (who DH’d that day for Vo) scored twice and picked up a base hit as well. Robb Turner had a base hit, and Lance Evans padded our 6-2 lead to 7-2 in the top-of-the-ninth with a solo shot home run that was pretty much the final nail in their coffin. Both home runs we hit that day were DEEP. The kind of drives where the outfielder maybe takes a step or two back and then just kinda says “no way”…..and stops and just watches it.

It was a nine inning game. Jim went all the way on 112 pitches…..scattering eight hits. Struck out six, walked two and the two runs they scored were both earned.

East’s lead-off hitter started things off for them in the first with an inside-the-park homer. I kinda wanted to be pissed when that happened but I didn’t….and just kinda thought to myself…..”God I hate this fucking place” ….and chuckled.

The same hitter led off their third inning by reaching base on an error. The next hitter grounded out….which moved him to second. Jim hit the next guy with a pitch and we had a passed ball that advanced everybody 90 feet.

Up steps Gabe Kapler. Yeah….Gabe Kapler. He’s now the manager of the San Francisco Giants. Kapler ripped a base hit to left….

The runner on third easily scored. Hack was in left….fielded it cleanly and came up crow-hoppin’ and FIRED a bullet to Thunder and gunned that runner down. The next batter grounded out ending the threat.

And that was about all the noise their bats made the whole day.

Trailing 1-0 in the third, Wiley drew a walk. Gabe then stroked a little bay-hee (base hit). Hack came up and tripled deep into right center, clearing the bases. Hack scored on Ivan Moreno’s ground out.

Leading 3-2 in the fifth. Gabe led off with another base hit. Up came Hack. Hack bombed one outta there deep into the weeds and it was 5-2 Verdugo.

Wiley led off the 6th with a base hit….got BALKED to second. And Gabe stepped up and ripped another base hit. We held Wiley at third. Hack drove in Wiley with a sac fly.

It remained 6-2 until the ninth when Evans unloaded. Deeep into the weeds. 7-2 Verdugo.

We finished ’em in the bottom of the ninth on a 4-6-3 double play. We turned a 6-4-3 DP in the eighth inning as well.

Those guys may have had Gabe Kapler….but we had GABE!!!!

Gabe played a great game for us!!!!

They got some guys on base but Parque was solid. Just kept going at ’em. We played great defense. Turner with 4 assists from third that day….Evans with 5 assists from shortstop. Moreno was in center and hauled in three fly balls. We had two double plays. Hack gunning down the runner at the plate from left field. They tried to steal a base on Thunder in the 6th inning and ‘Ol Thunder mowed him down.

Just a great victory. We made it look easy.

This certainly didn’t sweep their dogpile from 1990 into the trash bins of history….but it felt good. All the coaches and players who were there for that game in 1990 were happy with what happened on this day in history.

This was big. This proved Vo was ready. I was hoping for 5-6 innings from him….but his pitch count was low and while 112 was pushing it a little…he handled it.

We’ve had this blog a long time. You guys all know how I enjoy writing about all of you. The rookies we have every year are important. This was a great rookie class we had….Jim….Thunder…Hagge….Bir.

As we go through the season here I will stop and write some fill-ins about everybody at some point….in addition to what was going through my head in our drive to the playoffs.

Everybody contributed this season. It seemed like there was always a new guy or guys stepping up. Today it was Vo…Wiley….and Gabe. We all played great this game…but those guys definitely stepped up.

Workman? Commanding day at the plate!

Evans? The homer in the ninth HURT those guys….it was hit THAT hard.

We’re 6-1. We bounced right back from a tough loss. We let it go and got back to work. We got Woodland Hills West tomorrow. At home on Father’s Day. We got Bull ready to go again with another one weeks rest under his belt.

What could be better?

I called Vo on Friday night. With the partiers and hell-raisers we had playing for Verdugo…..I had a feeling not only would Vo be home to take my call…but he was probably the ONLY guy who I’d be able to reach via telephone on a Friday night.

Sure, enough he was there.

“I think you’re ready chief” I told him

“For what?” He asked.

“It’s a big game tomorrow….and I’m giving you the ball”

“Ok” he said….

“Just do me a favor …no fucking around out there ….get the fucking ball and fucking go at ’em”

He knew what I was talking about. I had him on my JV Team at CV in ’91. I always felt he took too much time between pitches. A little too cerebral. He had great stuff. Could work both sides of the plate at will and could throw his off-speed stuff for a strike at any time in the count.

Yeah he was small but it didn’t matter. He gave hitters fits…..

I could hear in his voice how happy he was when he said “okay!”

I remember telling my JV team in 1991 that season…..”You guys are out partying too much and raising hell….. you guys need to back off …I need to see a little more IBM and a little less David Lee Roth out of you guys!”

(Silence from the team as they sat there and looked at me)

“Well….except for YOU Parque! You need to start drinking! You? I need to see a little more David Lee Roth out of you and a little less IBM”

That got a roar out of the team.

A paid high school coach saying this kinda shit to his team? HELL YEAH!!!! Why? Because it was true.

Did I want him to start drinking and partying and raising hell? No…

But I made a point with him that needed to be made.

When I played ball at CV we were all drinking and smoking weed and ice-blocking at Verdugo Hills Golf Course. I was a kid once, too – ya know? I knew what these shit-heads were doing….that’s what you do when you’re that age.

And I never messed with his pitching mechanics….Jerry Reuss was coaching him and he also had his dad in his ear 24/7….he was fine. His dad was a wonderful man. Loved his kid….loved the game….and molded Vo into a force.

But dude….just pick up the pace huh? Please? You’re killing me!” Hahahahaha

And he did. And I thank him for that. And I think this was when Vo was at his best. When he just let his stuff do the talking and let his defense make some plays. Just get the fucking ball and fucking go at ’em.

And I will also say this. “The Friday-night-factor” played heavy into me giving him the ball on a Saturday. I knew he wouldn’t be out partying and raising hell the night before the game.

Sundays we were pretty cool because I had arranged for early evening games at Stengel …..and that gave some of the hangovers you guys were sporting about 6 more hours to wear off…..

One thing you could ALWAYS expect from Jim. He was ALWAYS mentally and physically prepared for having the ball.

Yeah ….he was ready.

I remember before this season talking to him on the phone and him expressing his disappointment in not getting enough starts on the mound when he was a sophomore at CV.

He WANTED the ball.

We got a huge game. Against a VERY good team. Pivotal. We gotta win this game. I didn’t need to tell him any of that shit. And I didn’t. He already knew. And he was ready.

I’m not so sure I was ready….because anything could have happened. But there comes that time where you just gotta go with your gut feeling.

Jim not only answered the phone that night….but as you’re about to read ….he also “answered the call” for us.

That’s pretty much what I took away from this game. The way we were playing and what we had going on was what mattered to me most after absorbing this defeat.

Verdugo takes its first defeat of ’92….final score Burbank 6 Verdugo 4.

Was I thinking we were going to go undefeated in League play coming into this one? No.

Were we doing all the right things and riding high coming into this one? HELL YEAH

I distinctly remember what happened BEFORE the next game we played when I gave the scorebook to Nancy shortly before the game.

She said “Kelly that game we lost was so nerve-racking…you were so calm in the dugout the whole game. I couldn’t believe how you stayed so calm”

Yeah…I was. Because win or lose I was LOVING what I was seeing out of you guys.

We had some bad breaks. Got behind early. They had a feisty ball club. Their pitcher threw a great game. And Legion is a lot like the NFL…..”on any given Sunday…..”

But yet I couldn’t question the fire you guys played with getting back into the game. Maybe we pressed a little but that’s what great Teams do in my book.

We were down 6-1 after five innings and scrapped back. Cowsill hit a huge home run that got us back in it. Huge. Fucking Clutch.

And in the top of the seventh….Hack led off. Verdugo trailing 6-3. He draws a walk.

Moreno steps up….base hit.

And just like that….the tying run is now at the plate.

Evans steps up….base hit. Not enough to get Hack home and I was playing it safe because a.) we were down still and didn’t want to run us out of the inning and b.) the next three hitters are Bull, Turner, and “B”….who had already hit a monstrous home run.

You could literally see the little beads of sweat forming on the foreheads of the Burbank team at this stage.

Josh drove in a run when he reached base on a fielders choice making it 6-4.

Turner grounded out into a double play to end the game. I still thought we played a great game. I was still LOVING what I was seeing out of you guys.

And I loved how you guys took the loss. Turner standing just off the foul line past first base shaking his head. Evans walks over to Turner. Canale walks over to Turner. Picking him up. The three of them standing there in disbelief ….just looking out at the field while Burbank celebrated.

Our dugout quiet. All of us shocked.

As far as I was concerned, that’s all I needed to see. What I was seeing told me you guys were for real. And we were gonna be just fine.

And I stayed calm in the dugout for pretty much the entire next two seasons…..

Hack took the loss on the mound. He gave up six runs….but only three were earned and only gave up five hits. He threw well for us that day.

Our next two games were going to be against both Woodland Hills Teams. The East Team we already had plenty of bad blood with. They were the only team that ever dogpiled on us…and although it happened two years prior….that defeat was still as fresh as ever in my head ….and General’s head….and Henry’s head….and Weapon’s head.

The West Team we had never faced before. They had Dan Cey. They had Randy Wolf. Their program had even WON the American Legion World Series during the late 80’s…..

These were two powerhouse teams we were coming up against. But I was confident. Bull was gonna get the start on the mound Sunday against West at Stengel.

We needed a win. I didn’t wanna go into Sunday night against West riding a two-game losing streak. I could have gone with Evans or Cowsill on the mound against East in the next game…..

I thought about it and thought about it…and either of those two guys I know would have answered the call and thrown a great game for us.

But as we got closer and closer to game time….a Saturday afternoon nine-inning game.

I remember I made the decision late Thursday night…..staring at the ceiling in the dark before falling asleep. A little smile came across my face that nobody else in the world saw.

And I thought to myself…..”this is a huge huge pivotal game for us ….and you know what? I’m giving the ball to VO” and I went to sleep.

No, they didn’t throw Jeff Suppan at us. But I’m not sure it would have mattered if they did. We pounded out 17 hits in the victory.

Once again, everybody played. Honestly, I didn’t have any plans to use Parque at all unless it was out of the pen but he played the last few innings in right field after Robb Turner was ejected in the bottom of the sixth inning. It was actually pretty funny what happened and I’ll get to that later.

Bull was on a roll and had a shutout going after five innings. They scored a run against him in the sixth.

All said and done The Bull went eight innings and gave up one run, and struck out nine while picking up his second victory of the year for us.

Lance Evans pitched the ninth and gave up a couple of runs but it was mop-up time at that point. We knocked these guys around pretty hard …..

This game had a little bit of everything. Both teams throwing at each other’s hitters (and one coach denying it was intentional….and it wasn’t me)…..

Wild-ass base-running by both teams. Five double plays between the two teams. Overthrown cut-off men….guys getting called out for not touching bases…guys getting called out for stealing bases cleanly (Turner hahaha) and a lot of line-shots off the Verdugo bats.

We came out raking in the bottom of the first. The first four hitters – Workman, Moreno, Evans, and Canale all ripping base hits. Turner drove in a run on a fielders choice and while we could have scored more….we came out of the first with a 2-0 lead.

In the second inning Dave Fielder led-off with a base hit. Kasey Canale followed with a base-hit of his own (“The Calf” starting that night at second base….at age 14!!!!)……and Thunder eventually scored on a fielders choice making it 3-0.

The fourth inning we racked up six more hits. And six more runs. Haggs led off the inning with a base-hit. Thunder followed with a base-hit of his own. Calf drew a walk.

Up steps Hack with the bases loaded and he rips a GRAND SLAM to right-center. This was at Stengel Field. That ball was an absolute SHOT. 7-0 Verdugo.

Moreno singled….Turner ripped the first of his TWO doubles of the game ….and Haggs (who led off the inning with a base hit) singled yet again….the ball also was misplayed by their left fielder and ended up going all the way to the wall. The bases emptied and it was 9-0 when Haggs was thrown out at third trying to stretch it.

Can you blame me for waving him to third?

At this point of the game I will be honest. I wanted to ten-run-rule mercy these guys. Did I huddle all the players around me and tell them that? No. But was that what I was looking for? HELL YES.

The fewer innings we play the more gas in the tank I’ve got with our chuckers….it’s just that plain….it’s just that simple. I would never apologize for trying to do so either.

We added another in the bottom of the sixth, making it 10-1 at that point. Bull Oxen drove in Gabe….who had led off the inning with a base-hit when he came in to replace Moreno. In fact…..right now….if we score one more run and hold them scoreless in the top of the seventh….then this game is over.

After Canale’s double…..Their pitcher got the ball in his hand. Went into his stretch with Canale on second and picked over to first….claiming Bull hadn’t touched first base on the double. The umpire punched him out!!!!

Wtf? Really?? Honestly I didn’t even see the play. And with a 10-1 lead I was like …whatever. But on deck “The Reverend” (Robb Turner) was breathing FIRE!!!!

Turner steps up and cracks another shot up the gap for his second double of the night.

Then …..clearly…..for whatever reason…..their pitcher was not even remotely paying attention to anything. Turner WAS paying attention….and tried to steal third. He bounced out and got his lead and looked at me ….and bounced out a little further ….and a little more while their pitcher was reading a book or something and by the time he was about half way to third he looked at me as if to say “fuck it I’m taking it if they’re just gonna give it to me!” And off he went full bore!

And why not? He was three-quarters of the way to third before the Crespi dugout started yelling at their pitcher “heyyyyyy!!!!!” And then he fired to third. And this play? I had a front row seat. And he was safe!!!!

But no….the umpire not only called him out……he “wound-up” and called him out!!!!

I think the umpire was more fired up at calling him out than Crespi was. That umpire was strutting around big time ….kinda trying to rub it in. I don’t know what the hell his deal was. I looked at the guy as if to say “you’re kidding me right?” Anyways….soon after….Turner was launched for arguing the call.

That’s how Vo ended up in right field that night. Haha….

Hey….I’m good with it. I like my players taking what’s there if the other team doesn’t give a fuck what’s happening on the field. I say it was a heads-up play by Turner. He stole that base on THE PITCHER…..not their catcher. A pitch never was even thrown .

Yeah….he was already in scoring position with two outs ….but I still say if the pitcher has his head THAT FAR UP HIS ASS….you gotta take it……if only for the embarrassment factor.

And yeah….he was safe. If he was out I know Robb. He would’ve walked off and said “yeah they got me”

Maybe Crespi got a little hot and bothered we were even stealing bases with a 10-1 lead. It’s possible. But this wasn’t your conventional “stealing bases with a nine-run lead” either.

But I’m looking at the scorebook and we didn’t run a straight steal the whole night. Why would I when it was raining line-shots and gappers all over the place? Turner trying to steal third he did it because the pitcher had his head up his ass….not because I gave him the steal sign. He was thrown out by the pitcher….not the catcher. Look at the scorebook. 1-5…..

Maybe that’s why Canale got dosed in the ninth. Who knows?

In fact….it was CRESPI running the straight-steals that night. Once in the fourth inning (and the guy trying to steal second got MOWED DOWN by Fielder) and they ran a straight steal in the eighth when they trailed 10-1. So it’s okay for them to play hard when they trail and we’re supposed to just lay down when we have the lead and let them back in it right?

Wrong. At least not in LEGION.

But after the game I felt a conversation needed to happen between myself and Coach Muckey.

So I told him after the game. This is not verbatim…..but these are the basic thoughts I voiced to him: “This isn’t the major leagues. You and I? We don’t have a farm-team in Albuquerque where we can pull a guy up for a couple of weeks and then send him back down to get us through a tough stretch of the schedule. I’ll be honest with you coach … I was trying to ten-run you….because to be honest with you any innings I can save this summer along the way I will try and save them when they are there….and I’m sure you’d have done the same. I understand one of the ‘unwritten rules of baseball’ says you don’t steal bases with a nine run lead. I get it. But again….this isn’t the major leagues….let’s not pretend that it is ….and if you think I’m gonna lay back and stop playing when my team has a lead you better think again. Now….I’ve been honest with you….and with that being said ….certainly you can be honest enough to admit you threw at one of my guys right?” I said with a big smile.

I said this in a conversational tone with him in front of several of his players. I smiled and I remember his players smiling too. I wasn’t mad. I wasn’t lecturing. And I don’t think he was mad. But I made my point and I confessed. I asked him to confess….but I also knew he COULDN’T have confessed ….at least not to that……so I think that made the whole thing a lot more humorous for us both.

Coach Muckey may not have liked what I said ….and just like me….he never would have admitted he threw at one of my hitters. I’ll never forget the look on his face when I asked him that and smiled. But I think Coach Muckey had a little better understanding of me after this game. Respect? Maybe not. But I think he understood at that point that I was just like he was at the end of the day. And that was the point I had hoped to make with him.

The point? That yeah….I’m just a guy like you coach who’s looking to kick your ass. Just like you’re looking to kick our ass. Neither of us is getting paid to be here. We push it when we can and yeah we can be “righteously indignant” too when we’re down and one of the unwritten rules of the game gets violated……to put on a little show for our players as well….it gets everybody all jacked-up….I get it……I do that too Coach from time-to-time…..just like you.

I’ve gone off on a little tangent here so forgive me but I think it needs to be said. Coach Muckey (Scott) ran the Crespi Legion Team and was also the Head Coach at Crespi High.

I always thought ‘Ol Muck was a pretty cool dude. And probably the only Manager in the 20th district I genuinely liked. We all loved Spiro from the Glendale Team…but Spiro wasn’t managing that ball club. Coach Muckey’s assistant coach Craig Sherwood (who is now the head coach at Burbank high school and runs a great program) had long hair at the time just like me….and Coach Muck more than a few times could be found in the dugout enjoying a dip.

He ran his Legion program with all of his underclassmen. So if you were a senior at Crespi high ….you won’t be playing any Legion ball that summer (at least not for coach Muckey). And honestly, if I was a high school Head Coach I would have run my program the same way.

I will also say this. If I had a kid and could have hand-picked what high school I wanted him to play baseball at and the coach I would have wanted coaching him….I would have sent my kid to play for Coach Muckey.

He was THAT good.

Coach Muckey also was a very funny guy. I remember being at the pre-season coaching meetings we would have for the 20th district and he would always arrive just before the meeting would begin. I think he would wait until the room was full intentionally before making his entrance. He would enter the door….then back up….make eye contact with a few of us and instead of saying “hi” he went into “Coach Muckey-mode”…standing in the door opening and pretending he was giving signs to (who knows? Haha) from his imaginary third base-coaching box while we all either smiled or laughed out loud.

Many of the coaches gave signs BACK to him after he did this…..and a few of the signs sent back in his direction from some of the other coaches had only ONE finger on them for some reason…..

We all got a kick out of that.

He LOVED the game.

And he turned out some great kids. Not just great players…..great people.

He kept things in perspective. He knew he had a young team out there every season in Legion. He could go 5-18 or 18-5 and regardless he maintained his sense of humor.

If they went 18-5 it was due to his “brilliant managerial effort” he would say…..obviously tongue-in-cheek.

And if he went 5-18 he would say “yeah I remember that team I had ….I think the greatest offensive weapon we had that season was the TAKE SIGN”

Coach Muckey passed away a year or two ago. He was in his early sixties. He won the Southern Section CIF championship at least TWICE. It’s hard enough to win that even once…..

He won over 500 games as Crespi’s head baseball coach in his 27 year career there.

So while at the end of this game there may have been some “friction” between Coach Muckey and myself…..it was on the surface level only. He knew the game. He knew people. And I won’t tell ya now….but he did something even funnier before the game we had against them later in ’92 in the playoffs. He was a quiet man….but quite a character.

I have to say he handled that situation exactly the way I would have …and I’m sure he would agree that I handled it from my end exactly the way he would have. What could be better than that? Huh?

Two baseball guys just trying to get their “fair” advantage over the other guy…right? Hahaha

Rest In Peace Coach. You were GREAT!!!! Thanks for the epic battles…..

Scott Muckey ….RIP Coach….loved ya!!!!

Okay….we’re 3-0 and playing a perennially weak team in Valley South. In 1990…they were known as “Valley ET” (Encino-Tarzana) and we beat them twice that season as well as blowing them out on the ten run rule in 1991.

But this was (to me anyways) a huge game. As we had all experienced in Legion…it was kinda like the NFL….”on any given Sunday….anybody can beat anybody” so while worried …I was confident.

This was a Saturday game on the road (nine innings)….and we had to play Encino-Crespi for nine innings Sunday evening at Stengel.

To give you an idea of how confident I was, we started the game with Hagge, Turner, and Bull Oxen on the bench. I could have DH’d any of those guys as well to hit for Jim Parque who got his first start on the mound for Verdugo….but did I?

HELL NO I didn’t! I played the lineup National League rules-style….letting Parque hit for himself in the nine-hole.

And what happened? We shut them out and picked up the win….Final score: Verdugo 7 Valley South 0….,,

Vo stepped up. Threw a great game. He shut them out for seven innings on only 76 pitches and “B” Cowsill pitched the 8th and 9th to pick up the save….and Verdugo was 4-0!!!!

Haggs, Turner, and Bull all played that day as well….but came in late in the game. It was another win where we all contributed.

No attitude whatsoever from Haggs…Turner….or Bull when they started the game out on the pine. We were all having a great time in the dugout that day!!!!

Jon Gabrielson led off for us…played the whole game at first base. Jon reached base three times, had a couple of base-hits, stole a base, and scored a couple of runs.

Wiley Jackson was roaming the tundra for us out in right field….hitting in the six-hole….drawing a walk and moving a runner over on a sacrifice and hauling in a couple of fly balls.

Dan Bir played the whole game in left field that day, and picked up his first hit in his Verdugo career with a seventh-inning single.

Kasey Canale started at second base for us and drove in a run.

Vo scattered two hits and two walks through seven innings….again….only 76 pitches….and struck out five.

Hack Workman had three hits, two of them doubles, and scored a couple of runs.

Brendan Cowsill singled….and stepped up to the plate in the third inning and bombed a two-run HOMER.

Thunder (Dave Fielder) ripped a base hit in the third inning and caught a great game for us.

Kirk Hagge came into the game in the 6th inning, played a couple of innings at second base and caught the final two frames when Cowsill had the ball.

This was a fun day. Everybody got in some work. We took it easy again with Bull because he was gonna be on the mound the next day against Crespi. Bull played the last couple of innings at second base and didn’t even get to hit this game.

Robb Turner came into the game in the 6th inning as well, and picked up a base-hit in his first plate appearance. We shifted him around from right field to third base when “B” took the mound.

Good times….Verdugo 4-0. Everybody’s playing. Everybody’s loose.

Honestly I was expecting to ten-run mercy-rule these guys but it’s okay. We played nine….no injuries….

We got the two things I was looking for….number one, the win…..and number two….Bull Oxen was fully rested for Crespi. Crespi had Jeff Suppan. I didn’t know if he was going to pitch against us or not. And honestly? With Bull rested….I didn’t care who they threw at us.

Yeah…3-0. Verdugo at this stage of the year was 3-0. This wasn’t unchartered waters for me, as a manager. Prior to Verdugo I had managed one championship in 1985….a Colt League Team. That was the first team I managed. What a fight to win it all it was that season. I could write a book about that season (and just may someday).

In ’89 we had another Colt League Team that went 11-2….losing two games to a team it was later discovered (after the season) had a couple of college players on. So really…..one could argue that my ’89 team ran the table……

As a manager…in terms of winning… and even dominating….this wasn’t my first rodeo.

But for Verdugo….this was pretty big. This wasn’t a Colt League Team. This was LEGION. And we’re off to a great start. I liked what I was seeing. A lotta bodies flying around out there. Guys picking each other up. The dugout was loose. Guys that weren’t playing were still totally into what was happening on the field.

Guys in the dugout and on the field weren’t just barking out “QUICK!!!!….PANTHER-LIKE!!!!….everybody in a Verdugo uniform was looking to be ACCUSED of being quick and panther-like. Myself included!!!!

“Ahhhh!!!!” Was being barked out left and right. I can’t even imagine what the opposition must have thought watching the shit we did.

The rags were flying. Rituals were in full force. Flip was happening. Between-inning hockey had gotten to the point that guys were keeping their own stats and won-loss records. Everything was pretty much on auto-pilot.

23 games in the summer is a long season…especially when you factor in the nine-inning games and the double-headers. I remember 1990 and it was tough managing the rotation, and the innings pitched, and pitch-counts…..because we were a little thin with our staff (especially after they pulled Chili and Chandler from the roster)

91′ we were fine. A three-man rotation. Big Breck….The Bull Oxen….and Chili. The starting chuckers we had would get the ball once a week. And we stuck with that. We had plenty of help out of the pen that season as well.

For ’92…we originally planned for Bull, Evans, and Hack to be the three-man rotation. We had Cowsill… who I planned to “spot-start”…..and we had Parque (who at this stage was still a huge question mark)….but Vo could be used in many different ways ….we could “spot-start” him as well……we had Wiley Jackson….and don’t forget we had “Gabe” (Jon Gabrielson).

With Parque…my plan was to spot-start him and look for opportunities where I felt he could do well, and not just throw him to the wolves. Once Evans got hurt, I really had no other choice but to throw Vo to the wolves. But you know what? He answered the call.

Vo had a lotta thugs playing behind him defensively. He learned to trust those guys behind him. And thankfully the thugs we had talked him through some tense situations ….. keeping him focused and just reminding him to keep throwing strikes ….and that was huge in keeping him chilled out when we were playing in those nail-biting tight games towards the end of the season.

But again….I liked what I was seeing. 3-0. Going into the season I had broken the 23 game season down (at least in my head) into SIX four-game “mini seasons”….(yeah I know 24 divided by six isn’t four….but I’m sure you “get the gist”)

Usually by the time the season ends the tank is empty and you’re running on fumes anyways…..well…. USUALLY….but not in ’92.

So breaking things down like this enabled me to keep things in perspective…to have certain expectations as to what I felt we could do in each “mini-season”…. and manage the chuckers….

The 3-0 start was huge. I’m sure it raised more than a few eyebrows around the league.

But something very special was happening here. We had built something and the first couple of years was starting to pay off.

The reason I’m writing this story is for a couple of reasons. Number one…saluting the 3-0 start. But number two is this…,what happened over the next three games for us in 1992 basically SET THE TONE for the glorious run we had in both ’92 and ’93.

And I personally believe that it was the loss we took in game six that changed everything.

After that defeat the eyes of Verdugo never looked ……. they PIERCED.

I will NEVER forget that loss in game six. As a manager, of course….I don’t forget ANY game I get beat. But I still can see Evans, Turner, and Canale standing like statues ….hands on their hips after that loss in game six…..ending our five-game winning streak…..on the sidelines….looking ….just staring out at the field in disbelief. The dugout doing the same. We played a great game in that loss….as far as I was concerned everything was gonna be okay.

But as a manager…when you see your players want it as bad as you do…and maybe even more…..it’s a feeling not very many managers get to feel. This wasn’t the first time I had felt this as a manager. But up in the La Crescenta area, quietly…and unbeknownst to most of the fools around the league…..a 3-0 monster was growing. And every guy we had on the roster was involved in it. And it was getting bigger. And it was getting meaner. And it was getting angrier. And it was getting nastier. Every. Single.Day.

Well….maybe these guys weren’t so “uppity” at all….but it makes for one hell of a headline right? I’ve been accused of a lotta shit in my life, but “click-baiting” ain’t one of ’em….well , at least until now.

It’s funny I was talking to Hack Workman after we had our reunion back in 2011 and I do remember him telling me that somehow at our reunion two or three players from the Sunland-Tujunga ball club were actually THERE. That’s right….at our reunion.

I guess Hack knew these guys from way back or something. Anyways they were there. I think I remember even being introduced to these dudes.

I asked Hack “what did they say about the reunion?”

He told me they had said to him at the reunion that “they were just happy to even be in the same room with Verdugo….because obviously we didn’t belong on the same field with them!”

Hahaha (true story….ask Hack about it someday)

Yes-sir-ree Sunland-Tujunga knew early on they were outmatched….with ‘Ol Hack picking up the win on the mound in his first start of the season. Hack went all the way in this seven-inning game played at Monroe High (yes Monroe High), scattering four hits and striking out five in a commanding 6-1 Verdugo Hills victory which took us to 3-0 on the year.

We drew first blood in the first inning with two outs when Lance Evans singled and Josh Canale came up and tripled him in.

Hack Retired the first seven batters he faced until a one-out double followed by a base hit tied it at one in the top of the third.

That must have annoyed us a little because in the bottom of the third inning it began like this: Ivan Moreno – base hit. Lance Evans – base hit. Josh Canale – base hit scoring Moreno. Robb Turner – base hit scoring Evans. Kirk Hagee came up and grounded out scoring Canale…..and then Dave Fielder stepped up and rocked one up the gap scoring Turner and just like that it was 5-1 Verdugo!

Sunland-Tujunga tried getting uppity in the fourth….with a one-out double. The next batter grounded to third where Yves Brancheau was playing for us that day. The runner on second got out a little too far into no-mans land and Yves decided not to throw to first but instead ran him back towards second base then fired to Josh (who started at second base for us that day) and Josh fired to Evans who was covering third and put the tag on his ass.

Hack retired the next hitter on a fly ball that was hauled in by Turner….who was out in right field for us that day.

We added another run in the bottom of the fourth inning with one out when Hack singled….Moreno singled….we then ran a double-steal and Evans drove in Hack on a towering sacrifice fly to center.

Hack then retired nine out of the next ten hitters….giving up a token base-hit with two out in the final inning.

Hack threw a gem for us ….zero walks and our defense played an errorless game.

A commanding victory. We had eleven hits in the win. Fielder, Canale, Evans, and Moreno each with two hits. Kirk Hagge doubled in the second inning …..and Robb Turner and Hack also added base hits for us.

You know it’s strange to this very day I remember this day vividly. We played this game at Monroe High. I don’t think the Sunland-Tujunga team had a home field that season. Glendale High wasn’t available for some reason on this date and we ended up playing this one at Monroe.

I even remember what I WORE at this game. We were 2-0 going in and it was hot as fuck that day and I broke tradition by not wearing the same thing I wore at our previous win. There’s an old saying “you never fuck with a winning streak” but that’s exactly what I did that day. I wore a salmon-colored short sleeve tee with the infamous basketball warm-up pants with the high-top Nike’s with the laces untied.

I also remember that on this day my voice was horse as hell from all the yelling from the dugout in the first couple of games of the season.

This ballgame also was Dan Bir’s first start in a Verdugo uniform.

Sunland-Tujunga? Ok ….not so uppity after all. And we definitely threw them to the ground. Once down though….they didn’t even try to get up. That dog don’t hunt….you know what I mean?

Verdugo….3-0. Up next? Valley-South.

Everybody knows Verdugo had the most bad-ass Team, and the most bad-ass players who played in the greatest games ever played.  But what about the coaching staff?  Well, you’re about to see part of the reason we were pretty much able to always say “They’ve Done It.”

Just Four Guys on the staff heading into the ’92 Season.  Gee, General, Hank, and Weapon.

Many have commented on the bright and innovative minds that guided Verdugo to their final destination as THE KINGS of American Legion Baseball of All-Time.  And the “distinguished” members of our coaching staff certainly won’t try to stop anyone from saying such nice things about us.  Trust me….we agree.

Many envious coaching staffs from other teams have often asked “how did they do it?”…or “what did these guys know that we didn’t know?”

Well, that’s a good question indeed.  And I will address that right now.

One of the keys to our continued success and domination was the intense coaching staff meetings we held usually each week.  This was done pretty much year-round.

These were civilized and gentlemanly gatherings that would have most likely had the illustrious members of The Bilderberg Group green-eyed with envy!

Our coaching staff meetings would be held weekly at “The Dome” usually on a Saturday or Sunday during the off-season, and pretty much every night during the season.

All these coaching staff meetings had one thing in common. There was going to be a lotta drinking and a lotta arguing.  At each of these meetings, we all basically got totally hammered and plotted our next move(s) for Verdugo’s rise to the top.  It was just that plain, and it was just that simple.

Many of us referred to these classy get-togethers as “The MACALLAN Group”….

Now that’s what I call “distinguished”…..

Anything that was in our way wasn’t a roadblock to us, it was a TARGET.  Any player or coach from another Team that was doing well was soon going to be “Verdugo’s Bitch.”  We feared nothing.  We talked trash about umpires, opposing coaches, opposing players, and figured out ways to control them or get in their heads and take them out of their game.

Again….”distinguished” comes to mind …but so does the word “sophistication”…..right?

We had a bounty out for everyone and everything that got in our way.  Incredible amounts of alcohol were consumed by the four of us as we threw out ideas on how to get our deal to the next level. 

The only thing really missing here as you can see would be some cordovan leather penny loafers and a Herringbone Tweed jacket……

Many coaching staff sessions were spent pounding drinks and lamenting defeats from ’90 and ’91, and making pledges to avenge them. 

Incredibly loud HEAVY METAL Music was played at these coaching staff meetings.  We had a contant barrage of music that had lyrical content that spoke of victory, death to the opposition, glorious triumphs, the slave becoming the master, etc.  This got us all into a frenzy to dominate The 20th District.

Sometimes ….to really be “distinguished”…..you gotta get outside the box and put the Paganini and the Bach and the Chopin aside ….and we feel this was the best route to go 🙂

I had played in a Band called Warrior (name was later changed to Cold Fire) a few years earlier and we had a song called “Tonight We Ride”….my band played the song live from 1986-89 and the song ultimately was released on a WARRIOR album in 1997 when I was no longer in the band.

Ask Henry how much he loved this song.  Here were the lyrics:

TONIGHT WE RIDE

Prepare the Horses….bring me my sword!

Tonight We storm the gates at the castle of Nevermore!

Many will not return…but none will fear to die

We are the chosen ones….We’ve waited all our lives

Glorious heroes….they test our will

My wish….is your command….go forth and KILL!!

TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!  TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!  TONIGHT WE RIDE!!! TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!

Cold Armor kiss my flesh…..of heavy metal skin

Now I feel the strength….building from within

The final words of the hangman….never lose faith in the fight

Vengeance will be ours!!!!!……before the morning light!!!

Unleash the chainmare…..I’ll finish the dead!!

Scale the walls….destroy the Beast….Bring me his HEAD

TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!…TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!!…TONIGHT WE RIDE….TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!!

Hear me oh enemy…the end had been foretold

Messiah of the meek….shall burn your mortal soul!!!

Up from the ashes…the masses arise

Tell the wicked….the imposter….PREPARE TO DIE!!!

TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!…TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!…TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!…TONIGHT WE RIDE!!!!

written by my friend and former bandmate Joe Floyd

__________________________________________________________________________________________

I don’t know how anyone could listen to that song and not be able to accomplish anything!!!!

For (literally) YEARS…..the comments section of this blog were disabled.  They’re back up now….

Shoot us a note here….you’re never too old to still be QUICK!!!! PANTHER-LIKE!!!!

we

Some of you may have noticed I got on a little bit of a roll in late 2018. I started pumping out some posts here and had plans to bring the blog as far along as I could. Unfortunately, my health got to the point I couldn’t even lay in bed and write about one of my favorite things: VERDUGO.

Yeah….I couldn’t even LAY AROUND in bed and write blog posts. I discovered in October 2018 I had a hernia. I read about them online and learned that the only way a hernia could be fixed is through surgery.

Surgery? Helllllllll NO. I then started to read about many people who live with them. Some their entire lives. Helllllll YEAH I was thinking. That’s what I’m gonna do! There’s a lot of stuff Ol Gee does….but SURGERY isn’t one of them!

Well…things got worse. Started causing pain on the left side. Then a couple of weeks later I had the same pain on the right side! There was just one problem…there was no visible hernia on the right side.

To make a long story short….I went to ER THREE TIMES (once in a ambulance when I couldn’t fucking BREATHE)….over the next couple of months.

Yeah….no joke.

I went to ER the first time because I couldn’t breathe. The other two times it was regarding pain on the right side of my lower abdomen. I kept telling the “Doctors” that I thought I had a hernia as well on the right side, too.

All they wanted to do is argue with me and keep giving me CT SCANS. I eventually told them all to fuck off totally Verdugo-style.

They didn’t like that…..

CT Scans and ultrasound and X-rays and blah blah blah and nobody could confirm what in the hell was causing the right side pain. They couldn’t “see” any hernia over there.

By the time I stopped writing blog posts here in mid-December 2018 I had scheduled surgery to fix the left side with a REAL DOCTOR I found after a lot of research. I told the Doctor we may need to do the right side too.

Around the time I stopped writing I was nauseated 24/7….I couldn’t eat….couldn’t sleep…..still couldn’t breathe…..had back spasms….(felt like both kidneys were ON FIRE)…..and I couldn’t WALK more than about 75 yards. The former 220 pound Gee tipped the scales at around 160 pounds. Remember I’m 6 feet 6 inches tall…..

Yeah gentlemen….it doesn’t happen to everyone who has a hernia….but in my case it FUCKED ME UP BIG TIME.

The surgery went down January 24, 2019. My wife and I have about as good of an insurance policy as you can get. But after these fools here in Los Angeles couldn’t even determine what was wrong with me, I decided to go out of network and pay a guy who knew what he was doing regarding hernias. He was in Las Vegas.

He needed to check me out the day before surgery to confirm I had a hernia. And that he did. In fact, he confirmed what I had been trying to tell the fools here in Los Angeles all along…..that yeah, I had TWO hernias.

The day before the surgery my weight was 154 pounds……I looked like a skeleton.

Double Inguinal Hernia Repair under general anesthesia for Old Gee. NO MESH. This Doctor I selected is one of the few guys left here in the United States (and earth for that matter) that performs what they call a “pure tissue repair.” NO MESH.

I knew the surgery was somewhat successful because as soon as it was done and up until today ….guess what? I can fucking BREATHE again. All the other things that returned to normal (eating, sleeping, walking, getting up and sitting down when I ate, tying shoes, getting in and out of cars) came back slowly…..but they all came back.

Here we are now about 14 and a half months post-op and my weight is back to around 200. I can hit golf balls. The first 6-7 months after surgery was not a very pleasant experience.

But it appears as though (and I am knocking on wood as I write this) that everything has turned out okay so far.

I was incredibly lucky to find that Doctor.

So this is what caused the latest delay in the blog. I’m gonna try to get some more posts done soon….but for those of you who are still out there reading this I wanted to let you know what happened.

Now we’re all spooked about this Covid-19. Start blasting vitamin C…..(3-5 GRAMS a day)…..mix in between 4,000-8,000 iu’s of vitamin D3…..(take magnesium as well so your body can absorb the D3)….and mix in a couple of doses of CHAGA mushroom powder daily. That’s right…..start “shroomin'” …..the Chaga will basically halt the reproduction of the virus and make it easier for your body to fight off if you end up getting it.

I know….30 years ago I probably would have just told everybody to chug down a twelve pack every day (and it probably would have worked)…..but times have changed and the old war-horse Gee is almost 24 years sober! That’s right! Not ONE sip!

Hopefully this time with the blog I can get on a roll and not have any health bullshit slow me down!

Recently I’ve been in contact with Turner, Canale, and Cowsill….they’re all doing well. I hope the rest of you are as well…..