Archive for the ‘Weapon’ Category

1990 STATS

Posted: June 13, 2011 in 1990, BullOxen, Chili, Frost, Hank, Rogers, Sammy, Spongy, Turner, Vic, Weapon
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1990 was a pretty damn good year.  I like what we pulled off.  I really enjoyed pulling the strings from the third base coaching box with this group because we had a lot of speed on this Team.  Straight steals, hit-and-runs, delayed steals….taking an extra base….it all added up.  Rogers hit .246, but he led the Team in stings (eight), sacrifices (six), and was right near the top in RBI.  Rogers’ six sacrifices were an all-time Verdugo record.  Rogers also played EVERY position on the diamond for us that season!  Hank had 21 hits….20 of them singles!  Martin led in average, slugging percentage and doubles, Weap and Canale led in RBI.  Canale, a 16 year old in his rookie season led Verdugo with 27 hits!  Canale struck out only ONE TIME!….an all-time contact percentage record that was never broken.  And Martin’s 10 doubles was another Verdugo record that was never broken.  Same with VIC’s 19 stolen bases…no one ever broke that record either. Vic also set an all-time record for walks in one season (18).  Vic also led the squad that year in runs (18), triples (three), on-base percentage (.549), and times reached base (45).  Sammy was one of two players we ever had in our history to steal more than 10 bases in one season (12) and NOT get caught stealing.  Yep…12 for 12!  Turner may have only hit .178…but he was 5th in on-base percentage.  Turner also was second on the Team in walks with 15, and fourth on the Team in runs scored with 13.  As you can also see….Chili had a great year for us at the plate.  He had four doubles in nine games.  And then there’s Frost.  He didn’t play any ball his senior year in High School and look at what he did.  I looked back in the scorebook and he started the season one for 12!  So he had a nice year for us as well once he got back into the swing of things. 

Our .865 contact-percentage as a Team in 1990 was also a record that was never broken.  1990 Also hit the most triples we ever had in a season with 11…..a record that was TIED by the ’91 Team.

Check out the Original Verdugo numbers…..pretty impressive indeed!  Ahhh Original Verdugo Team!!!!

Straight From The Smithsonian……..

Posted: June 9, 2011 in 1990, Weapon
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Here it is.  The ORIGINAL Battle Jersey from Verdugo.  SILK SCREENED!  Weapon sent over the picture today!!!  AHHH WEAP!!!!!!!!

“The Saugus 500″……..(Part Three)

Posted: May 31, 2011 in 1990, BullOxen, Frost, McBride, Vic, Weapon
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I tweaked the schedule so that there were no games played while I honeymooned.  I returned a week later, and now we had some BIG games to play.  We were at the point now where we couldn’t lose anymore games if we wanted a shot at the Playoffs.  But with Verdugo….you never know.  We still hadn’t really “got hot” and rattled off three or four wins in a row so if anything…we were due. 

If they had camera crews following around teams back in those days and televising the action, Verdugo would have definitely stolen the spotlight from some of the powerhouse teams around the League.  Why?  Because damn near every time we played, we put on a great show.  And today was no exception. 

We rolled out to Saugus to play the Newhall-Saugus team.  For more information on the crazy shit that went down on our ride out that day…..please read my earlier posts “The Saugus 500…Parts One and Two.”

Newhall-Saugus was on track to take the last playoff spot so I told everyone “we gotta beat these guys.”

“Don’t worry Gee”………..was all I heard.

“We can’t lose any more games”………I said.

“Don’t worry Gee”………

God I loved this Team!

Depleted pitching staff?  No problem!  McBride goes ALL THE WAY in a nine-inning game.  We win!!

Facing Erik Hiljus the Big Hard-throwing early-round draft pick?  No problem!  We lit him up!

Vic drew four walks, stole three bases and scored three runs.

Frost singled and scored twice.

Tex went three-for-four with two doubles and three RBI.

BullOxen Two hits and Two RBI.

Weapon Two hits and Two RBI.

McBride threw 134 pitches and went all the way for the win.  It was a little shaky…but we pulled off another upset.

One thing I will never forget is the absolute SHOT one of the Newhall-Saugus players BOMBED for a homerun in the first inning off of McBride.  This ball was probably the longest homerun I had ever seen hit in a Legion game.  Of course, in 1991 we saw BullOxen hit one that we measured after the game at an estimated 510 feet (when it landed)…..but the ball this guy hit was probably just as far.  It was hard to tell.  There was that Big Blue Fence at Saugus High.  Bull’s was hit at an open field up in LittleRock.  Plus, Bull’s shot rolled at least another 50 feet in some pretty deep grass.  So it’s hard to say which ball went further………..

This was one of those homeruns where the dugout gets real quiet.  Usually, when we’d give up a homerun I’d never look at anyone in the dugout.  I’d have to kind of put on my pokerface and pretend that it “didn’t hurt.”  You know, just kind of keep looking out at the field and say nothing.  No change in expression, that kind of thing.  Stoneface it, if you will.  As a manager you have to do shit like that, you know.  Even if it DOES hurt.

But within a short time of this ball landing (about 30 seconds later), I couldn’t keep a straight face.  I had to kind of shake my head at first.  Then I kind of looked at people in the dugout with a little peripheral vision…just to see their reaction.  Next thing you know I was making eye-contact with guys in the dugout and kind of saying “Fuck, did you see that SHOT?”

Then it escalated even further.  Everybody in the dugout was now talking about that ball he hit and laughing about it.  Then we looked out at the field.  I could see from the dugout that some of our guys in the field were kind of looking at each other like “Fuck…did you see that?”

Finally, we looked at McBride.  He couldn’t hold it in either….he started laughing too!!!!!

It didn’t matter…we all just kind of admired it.  Guys in our dugout were needling McBride about it the rest of the game.  We all had a good laugh about it.  That SHOT that kid hit was no fluke.  He led the District that summer in home runs with (I think) seven.  Usually I would read the papers and follow the stats around the League so I at least had SOME clue as to who was putting up the big numbers, and at least try to warn the pitchers.  But I didn’t do my homework on this guy.  Somehow he came in under the radar.  Well, after that SHOT he hit we knew EXACTLY who he was…..and pitched him very carefully the rest of the day.  He also doubled and singled before the game was over, but he didn’t tag us again like that first at-bat of his.

This was another clutch victory for Verdugo.  We were still “alive” mathematically in the playoff hunt at 8-7.  I don’t know what was more fun on this day in Verdugo-lore…..  beating up Newhall-Saugus like we did or the rides to and from the game. 

McBride chucking nine innings like that when we needed it was CLUTCH.  But we still had another HUGE game coming up the next day (Sunday) against Woodland Hills East.  If ever there was a game that should have been caught on film it would be the game that we were about to play.  Woodand Hills East was 15-1 or something like that.  We needed one more miracle……….and little did I know that I was about to experience one of my proudest moments EVER as a coach.

Landmines, Potholes, and Three Sheets of Paper…..

Posted: May 30, 2011 in 1990, BullOxen, Hank, McBride, Turner, Vic, Weapon
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Now we traveled out to San Fernando High School for a Sunday Doubleheader.  I’ll never forget the condition of the field when we arrived.  It was the most brutal war zone I have ever seen.  Not only had the field not been dragged……..I don’t think it had EVER been dragged.  No chalk lines…..nothing. 

I was greeted by a smiling old man who was (I guess) coaching the San Fernando team.  From the looks of the field…I knew he HAD to be the coach (the dress-shoes he was wearing gave it away).

“Are you gonna drag the field?” I asked.

“No, no, no it’s good” he told me.

I saw a couple of guys from his team now trying to dig into the ground to find the anchors for the bases.  I gotta give him credit…he DID have some bases.

“Look” I said, “I will personally drag the field.”

“No, no it’s good” he said.

I then tore three empty pages out of our scorebook and handed them to him.

He then looked at me as if to say “what the hell is this?”

“Really…..you’ve gone to alot of trouble this morning here I can see……..why don’t we just use THESE as the bases today?”

THAT……… pissed him off!  But I didn’t care.  And I think I made my point with that guy.  Somebody was gonna get hurt with the field like that…………jeez.

I’m not real picky…but the condition of this field was the worst I had EVER seen in my life.  And it was a decent facility.  All it needed was to be taken care of.  Incredible.

I hit everybody HIGH CHOPPERS during Pre-game so no one got hurt. 

We took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the sixth inning of the first game and they rolled an eight on us.  We dropped the opener 9-3.  We only had three hits in the first game. Frost hit a two-out triple in the second inning but we couldn’t bring him in.  Vic had a two-RBI Double in the third, and an RBI triple in the fifth.  Apart from that we didn’t really get anything going in that first game. 

The San Fernando team was pretty loose, and had a good squad.  They were having fun out there on the field. Some of you guys may remember they had a pitcher on the mound named “Bobby.”  All I remember is pretty much the whole game I had to listen to their team saying “Hey Bobby”…..”Hey Bobby”….it actually was kind of funny.  Well, it wasn’t THAT funny.  The way I saw it I just lost a game to a guy who was not only wearing DRESS SHOES, he didn’t even have enough respect for the game to drag the ‘effin field!!  Fucker……..yeah, I was pissed!

The second game was a different story.  We took a 2-0 lead on them after two innings keyed by RBI singles by BullOxen and Vic.  McBride started BOTH games of the doubleheader on the mound.  San Fernando then scored five unearned runs against us in the bottom of the third to take a 5-2 lead.

Tex wasn’t at the field that day………YET.  He said he had some sort of commitment he had to be at and told me he would get to the field around 3 PM.  Sure enough…around 3:00, in rolls TEX.  I immediately got him into the lineup.  Tex then stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the fifth inning with that bow-legged stance of his and promptly ROPED a two-RBI double up the gap in left-center.  All of a sudden, we were right back in it.

The Verdugo attitude was starting to kick in.  Guys were getting pissed.  Canale had thrown a couple of great innings of relief and was getting tired.  I was reluctant to give the ball to Hank, because he had thrown about 90 pitches the day before at Chaminade.  Vic stepped up….he didn’t ask for the ball, he DEMANDED the ball.

I asked Vic when the last time it was he had pitched.  “Back in Babe Ruth” was his answer.  That was NOT the right answer………now I was getting sick to my stomach.  It was then that Vic uttered the phrase the players kept telling me all year…….”Don’t worry Gee.”

Vic went out and threw two innings of no-hit ball.  The problem was…..he walked SEVEN guys in those two innings.  But only ONE guy scored….and we now trailed 6-4.

The Verdugo attitiude was now in full effect.  I kept hearing guys saying shit like “C’mon! NOBODY sweeps Verdugo!” 

All of a sudden we were TOTALLY into the game.  Frost led off the bottom of the sixth with a triple.  Hank laced a base hit and it was 6-5.  We tried a hit and run with Canale but the shortstop made a great play to nip the Bull at first.  Hank got wild-pitched to third.  Up came Weapon.  Weapon grounded out, but Hank scored.  It was 6-6 and closing in on 100 degrees.  I was starting to get really worried about Turner….he had caught every inning of both games.  I’d tell Turner “Look we gotta get Rogers in there you’re gonna die back there.”  Turner just kept saying to me “Don’t worry Gee I got it.”

This is the type of shit I’m talkin’ bout!  Total Verdugo!

Hank was getting really worked up.  All he said was “Gimme the ball.”  I told him “hell no”…. he had just thrown 90 pitches the day before.  So what does Hank say?  “Don’t worry Gee.”  So we sent him out to pitch the top of the seventh.  And he fucking struck out the side!!!!!!!  AHHHH Hank!!!!

We started a little one-out rally in the bottom of the seventh.  Tex drew a walk, and Vic singled.  The centerfielder misplayed the ball allowing Vic to get to second base, but we had to hold Martin at third.  They intentionally walked Frost to load the bases. Then the fiery Hank came up and hit into an inning-ending double play!  Fuck was Hank pissed! 

After hitting into that double-play (a 5-2-3 Double-play where he was out at first by a half a step), I was no longer worried about Hank.  He was pissed now, and he wanted this win.

So we sent Hank out to pitch the top of the eighth.  And sure enough, three up, three down.  Ahhhhh Hank!!!

Hank was just about as pumped as I’ve ever seen him.  BullOxen led off the bottom of the eighth with a walk.

Weapon then stepped up and CRUSHED a 1-0 fastball over everyone’s heads…..

And we were DOGPILING AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What  a win!!!!!!!!!!  That ball Weapon hit was hit just as hard if not harder than the ball he hit at North Hollywood where he was robbed of a homerun.  This one would have been an inside the park homer.  So I guess Weap SHOULD HAVE had two homers in 1990 for Verdugo….he kind of got robbed twice.

Somehow……….we had found a way.  Again.  What a win!!!!!!!!!

That’s all I can really say………and I’m shaking my head and smiling as I write this (in a good way) WHAT A WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sometimes it was hard….and it usually defied logic…..but now, when the guys were telling me “Don’t worry Gee”…I was actually starting to BELIEVE them.

CHILI Mows ’em Down

Posted: April 22, 2011 in 1990, Big Breck, BullOxen, Chandler, Chili, Games, McBride, Rogers, Turner, Weapon
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Okay.  Let’s get back to what was happening in the 1990 Season.  We had just pulled off a miraculous victory against Quartz Hill and now we traveled out to North Hollywood High on a Sunday morning.  This was our first of two games that we were scheduled to play that day.  Our second game would be in the evening against Glendale.  We came in to this game at 3-3-1 and overall I was very happy with the way we were playing.  Alot of the guys came to the field that Sunday morning tired and about two skin shades darker (or redder in my case) than the day before after baking in the Quartz Hill sun for almost six hours….but by gametime, we were ready to go. 

Chili got the start on the mound and came within one pitch from throwing a perfect game!  He threw only 62 pitches, and gave up one base hit in the fifth inning.  This win put us over .500 for the first time of the season.  The Team had really come together at this point..and with Hank, BullOxen, McBride, Chili, Chandler, and Big Breck on the mound for us, I started to think that we could actually make a playoff run.  And so did the players….

Chili struck out eight guys and we won 10-0.  He also had two doubles at the plate. 

Vic had two hits, including an absolute SHOT that went for a ground rule double.  BullOxen doubled, and Robb Turner’s 2nd inning double drove in two runs for us. 

But the highlight of this game was a SHOT hit by The Weapon.  When we got to the field that morning we were eyeballing the homerun area in center field and right field.  Left field was wide open… there was no fence.  There was a locker room area in right-center that was considered a homerun if you hit the roof of that building.  There was a small area out there maybe five feet wide where there was no roof…and if you hit it in there the ball was still in play. 

As we have written in earlier posts…The Weapon was always looking to hurt the opponent, and he had a little flair for the dramatic as well.  Weap came up in the fourth inning with a couple of guys on base and hit a ball that (as soon as he hit it) EVERYONE in the park knew was GONE!!!  One of those balls where the outfielders kind of start to make a move on it and then just kind of stop and admire it as it leaves the facility……….

We were all admiring it…..Including The Weapon!!!  As soon as he hit it….he just flipped the bat towards our on-deck circle and he started WALKING….just like the guys on TV used to do!  It was an awesome sight!  However, there was just one problem…..it landed in that little five foot area that was STILL IN PLAY and rattled around in there and spit itself back onto the field.  SHIT!!  Although he had hit it beyond any boundary at the field that day for a homerun….Weap had the unfortunate luck of it landing in that little five-foot porch area….NO HOMERUN!!!

When it landed back on the field….Weapon was MAYBE halfway to first base and was still in his Homerun “walk.”  The centerfielder was now chasing it down and Weap was running full bore.  To this day I still don’t know HOW he turned that thing into a triple.  Talk about going zero-to sixty!  Weap did his signature pop-up head-first slide into third base………..even though there was no play at third.  I don’t know what was more awesome…the SHOT he hit or the fact that he turned it into a triple!

Most coaches would be all bent out of shape for a guy going into a homerun “walk” like that.  Not me.  I loved it!  I also loved the look on the faces of the North Hollywood players that basically said “Okay…we give up” after that play happened.  A couple of their guys just kind of looked at him and said “damn.” 

There was one other player for us who went into a homerun walk…but it happened in 1990 in a Connie Mack League game.  John Rogers did it.  He hit a mammoth SHOT to dead-center one night at Stengel Field…and went into his walk.  I’ll never forget the look on Rogers’ face when it STUCK in the top of the ivy.  And I’ll never forget looking over at him and laughing when they held him to a SINGLE on that BOMB he it!!!  But it was worth it….I used to let our players have that swagger….it’s risky, yes indeed….and if you let the players do that then you gotta take the bad with the good.  And like I’ve said before…I wouldn’t have changed a thing about how I let the players be themselves.

This was a great win.  And I was REALLY looking forward to our match in a few hours against Glendale.  Here’s what the Newspaper said about this win………

What Are All These Nicknames? (Part One)

Posted: April 9, 2011 in 1990, BullOxen, General, Hank, Sammy, Spongy, Vic, Weapon
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There are plenty of folks out there who are “checking out” our Blog here (some on a daily basis) who know nothing about US or our PROGRAM.  We are now averaging about 50 hits every day and should go over 2,000 hits today or tomorrow.  So this story is to you strangers out there who have become fans over the last couple of months.  We, here at Verdugo Hills certainly can understand why you have become fans.  The only thing we DON’T understand here at Verdugo Headquarters is why we aren’t getting 50,000 hits every day!!!  Well, we’re sure it will happen soon enough!!  After all, we ARE The Kings of American Legion Baseball.  So we just wanted to send one very important message to all of you out there who love us as much as we love ourselves.  And the message is this:  “Get a Life!!!”

No…all kidding aside…..we are actually humbled that you “identify” with us…and I figured it would be only fitting to let you strangers out there know what all of these nicknames mean, and the jersey numbers they wore.  So hopefully, by the end of this post you will understand things a little better.   I will begin with “The Founding Fathers” of our four years of glory….the original members of the Motley-Crew, Rag-Tag Group called Verdugo Hills 1990!!!!!!!!!!!  The brilliant nicknames of 91-93 will be posted soon for all of you fans out there!!!

General:  We named him “General” after Gene Mauch.  Didn’t they call Gene Mauch “The Little General” or something like that?  Mauch was the former Manager of the Minnesota Twins and later the California Angels.  We first started calling him “The General”…then it kind of evolved into “General”….later, it became “Gen”….and even later, some other derivatives we CANNOT PRINT HERE!   ‘Ol General, yes-sir-ree….Number 49 on his jersey!!!

Hank:  His Real Name is Henry…but we also called him “Double-Ott” (his uniform Number was “00”).  The opposition had ALOT more nicknames for him than we ever did, and I certainly can’t PRINT any of them here.  Due to the things he did on the field and SAID on the field, he was for sure the most HATED player to ever wear a Verdugo Uniform, and I’m sure no one is prouder of that than ‘Ol Hank himself!!!

The Weapon:  For those of you who don’t know what a weapon is…..I don’t know what to tell you.  There are lots of different kinds of weapons.  This guy was not a tire that you light on fire and roll down the street at somebody…..no, no.  He wasn’t a broken bottle you drunkenly swing at someone when you’re in the middle of a bar room brawl.  No, this guy was a very sophisticated piece of human machinery that was designed to deliver the final knockout punch.  The bomb that WHEN it gets dropped on the opposition ENDS the war if you know what I mean.  Within a short time of “Weapon” delivering……. the opposition would quickly begin to hoist their tattered white flags!!!!!!!!!!  ‘Ol Weapon…Number 22!!!

BullOxen:  Well, we all know what a Bull is.  And an Oxen is slightly larger than a Bull.  Both are “pulling”  animals.  First, he was “Canale”….then for a short while he was “Bull”…but he was STILL GROWING you know?  After a while, he was bigger than a Bull.  We certainly couldn’t change the name…so we added “Oxen” to the end of it.  The two names MUST run together and the “O” in Oxen MUST be capitalized!  Got it?  BullOxen was a perfect name for this guy….because there were many games where he single-handedly “PULLED us through.”   BullOxen….Number 19!!!!

C’mon Vic!!:  This guy was such a great player that General and I came to the conclusion that there was really NOTHING we could teach him.  But we needed to say SOMETHING to him when he was out on the field, right?   We wanted everyone to believe we were actually COACHING HIM so we just kind of started saying “C’mon Vic!!!” every chance we could!!!  Sometimes I liked to fuck with the other coaches and say “this guy has never played Baseball before in his life until this season!”  They’d say “really?”…and I’d say “Oh yeah, he’s coming along just fine, but he’s still learning.”  Then, just before he’s step in the batter’s box I’d say something like “make sure you run to first after you hit it Vic!”……And ‘Ol Vic would give me that smile as if to say “shut the fuck up Gee!”  Yes-sir-ree….”C’mon Vic”….Number 28!!!!!  And once Vic was on base……you could hear ‘Ol General over in the first base coaching box saying something like “Allright now Vic…don’t forget to BREATHE!!!”  SEE??….we actually WERE coaching Vic!!!!

Spongy:  He had this thing going on with his hair that led everyone to name him “Spongy.”  Number 4!!!!!!  Before he played for us, everyone called him “Spongy.”  I always called him by his first or last name.  It’s hard to call a guy by his nickname when you didn’t have anything to do with the creation of it……..to me, he was “Martin”….to everyone else….he was Spongy!!!   To the opposition, he was a MAJOR pain-in-the-ass….because he was either reaching base, driving in runs, or scoring runs!!!  Update:  It has been brought to our attention by “Spongy” himself that his REAL nickname was TEX!!!  So for all of you true fans out there….we may call him “Spongy” on this Blog….or we may call him “TEX.”  Unfortunately we don’t have any footage of him at the plate with his signature, slightly bowlegged, wide-stance.  But we did find a picture of BullOxen with a towel on his head!   So anyone out there with any footage of ‘Ol TEX in his signature stance….please, please send it in to us!!!

Sammy:  This was his REAL first name.  But it stuck.  In fact, if you saw him walking down the street, probably the first name that would pop in your head would be “Sammy.”  You see, a guy named “Sam” is a slow guy who is a power hitter.  The name “Sam” wouldn’t have worked for Sammy.  Sammy was a quick guy.  Could steal a base for you.  Great speed.  Great Defense.  Great Hustle.  In fact, Sammy was FIFTH in the 20th District with 12 stolen bases!!   Sammy!!!  Number 2!!!!!!!

Part Two (and the other seven notorious nicknames from the 1990 squad) will be coming soon!!

1990: The BEST Outfield in the 20th District….

Posted: April 1, 2011 in 1990, Spongy, Vic, Weapon
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Before we go any further about our brilliant 1990 season….I need to take a timeout to point something out here.  Yeah, it was our first season…yeah, we played all of the games on the road….I can (and will, by the way) go on and on about what that Team did.  But once again, “The Numbers Just Don’t Lie.”  And when you take a close enough look at the numbers it all starts to paint a very clear picture…that we had the BEST outfield in the 20th District that year.

Damon “Spongy” Martin in left.  “C’mon Vic” Ramirez in Center.  And  “THE WEAPON” in right……is there anything else to say besides those three names?

Personally, I don’t think anything else needs to be said….but let me keep selling if you insist!

These three guys combined for 67 hits that season, 26 by Martin.  They stole 37 bases for us, 19 by Ramirez.  Let me put it to you this way…our 1991 TEAM stole only 20 bases (and still managed to go 13-9).  Martin led the DISTRICT…that’s right….THE DISTRICT in Doubles with 10.  Vic was second in the District with his 19 stolen bases.  Weapon led our Team in RBI with 16.  Add in the fact that these guys all had killer arms and played pretty much flawless defense, and could all pitch an inning or two here and there and not hurt you and…well, maybe you can see the picture that is emerging.

Martin hit .407.  Ramirez hit .390.  Although Weapon hit only .281 for us…he hit a HARD .281…..leading the Team in RBI.  Weapon was clutch.  Weapon was a presence on the field as well.  I would get so many people who would ask me “What’s the deal with #22 (Weapon) out there glove-flickin’ when he makes a play on a routine fly-ball?”  I’d just say…”Have you ever seen him drop one?”

Nothing looked cooler than a routine fly going Weap’s direction.  Balanced, behind the ball, both hands down around waist-high with palms down and parallel to the ground like a cat ready to pounce.  Then as the ball came down towards him, he’d get that left hand up just above his head and FLICK DOWN ON IT as he made the catch.  I remember a couple of times telling him to intentionally sand-bag it from right field during pre-game to actually ENCOURAGE the opposition to try and take an extra base on him……just so he could gun them down in the game!

People would ask me “Why do you let him glove-flick like that?”

I would just smile and say…”We actually ENCOURAGE him to do that!”

You’ve seen the “pop-up slide” haven’t you?  Sure, we all have.  Well, sliding conventionally (feet first) was just not in The Weapon’s arsenal.  It was always full-tilt with Weapon.  Head first all the way…every time.  He even was the first guy I ever saw who did a “pop-up slide”….HEAD FIRST.  Most guys when they go in head-first stay down for a while after the slide…….With Weap?  Hell no!…he just popped right out of it!  If you blinked your eyes you just might miss it.

If this team had been a pro club where the players were getting paid…we would have PAID Weapon to do exactly what he did for us.  Weap was always looking to hurt the opposition.  The deep SHOT blasted over everyone’s head…the diving catch…gunning down runners from right…some kind of play where the other team just kind of says…”fuck…did you see what that guy just did?”  There’s only one word to describe Weapon’s style of play…ELECTRIFYING.

“Spongy” Martin…who was given this nickname because the guys thought his hair kind of looked like a sponge was just as fun to watch.  The place-kicker for the High School football team.  I can guarantee you he didn’t hit .407 for his High School team that season…but he did for us.  Wide stance at the plate, kind of crouched over, short, abrupt swing….high stirrup socks…he just had that old-school ballplayer look that said SCRAPPY.  And everytime I turned around…there he was again standing on second base after another double.  And this guy was CLUTCH.  Nothing fazed this kid.  I never saw him once get rattled……

Everybody loved Spongy, players and coaches…….he was a great acquisition for our Ballclub.  He was second on the team in hits that season with 26.  Led the District in Doubles with 10.  Second on the Team in runs scored with 16.  Was seventh in The Distict with 11 stolen bases….yeah, he could run, too.  His slugging percentage led our Team at .609 and he only struck out five times the entire season.  Add in some brilliant defense for us…a few runners he gunned down from left….. and maybe this picture I’ve been trying to paint from the beginning of this story is starting to make sense….but I’m STILL not done!!  Please….allow me to keep selling!

And finally….Vic Ramirez.  I would love to just stop right there.  Just the name should be enough for those of you who knew him.  But I can’t stop here….I’m trying to build a case here, you know?

Ramirez had just finished a great season at Glendale College.  And somehow he ended up playing for us!   He could hit, run, throw, hit for power, hit for average, and was a LEFTY!!!  He was second in The District in Stolen Bases with 19 (still a Verdugo record).  Second in The District in Triples with three.  He led our Team in On-Base Percentage at .549….Runs with 18…..Times Reached Base with 45……and Runs with 18.  He was second on The Team in RBI with 15.  He was a human highlight film. 

You know…two-thirds of the earth is covered by water, the other third is covered by Vic Ramirez.  That’s how much ground he covered in the outfield for us.  Having Weap and Spongy out there probably made it a little easier on Vic….but let me tell you something….this guy could fucking motor!!!

Vic was a quiet leader for us.  It is only fitting that he drove in the tying run…and SCORED the winning run in our first victory against Burbank.  But that was just the tip of the iceberg.  He was instrumental in showing our younger guys the ropes……ask some of our Rookies we had that year like Robb Turner what is was like to watch Vic Ramirez play the game of Baseball.  Let me tell you…it was something special to see……….

Vic was also one of two guys we had who made the All-Star Team that year. 

Yeah…..The Numbers Don’t Lie…..and I’m going to say this right here and now….Verdugo Hills Post 288 had THE BEST 1-2-3 punch in the outfield of any team in the 20th District in 1990.  Bar NONE!!!   These guys were Total Warriors!!  They had the numbers…they hit for power…they hit for average…they electrified….they hustled…they scraped up their bodies…they took extra bases…they stole bases….they were CLUTCH….they crashed into fences….they stole games from and broke the hearts of the opposition……they gunned baserunners down from the outfield….they got their uniforms dirty……they did WHATEVER IT TOOK……..VERDUGO-STYLE!!! 

And you know what?  That’s pretty much what the WHOLE TEAM did that year!!!!!!!!!!   So go ahead…line up every starting outfield in the 20th District in 1990….go ahead.  And, soon enough – you’ll see the exact picture I’ve been painting from the beginning of this Post.  And we all know how  “The Numbers Just Don’t Lie”……….

When you’re painting a picture like the one I’m painting here…there are only three colors you can use – Martin, Ramirez and Anderson! 

Yes-sir-ree………….our 1990 Outfield……….THE BEST in the 20th District that Season.  BAR NONE………..

The Collective CHIP on our 1990 Shoulders….

Posted: March 8, 2011 in 1990, Behind the Scenes, BullOxen, Chandler, Chili, Frost, Hank, McBride, Rogers, Sammy, Spongy, Turner, Vic, Weapon
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When we started this thing in 1990 I went in to the Post and somehow got them to sponsor our Team…something Verdugo Hills Post 288 had not done in about 30 years.  For more info on how that came about read my earlier Post titled “From $1000.00 to a Team Bus?”  While I was excited to have been “hired” to coach Post 288 (for no pay)…….I had just ONE PROBLEM.  I didn’t have any players……

I had just finished up my first year as a PAID coach at Burbank High.  So I was planning on taking a couple of pitchers with me from that school……our tough little right-hander Chili Rivera and left-hander Jason “White” Chandler.  But that’s really all I had.  I knew some of the kids from CV and had coached many of them in Colt League in ’88 and ’89.  Alot of those guys had already verbally committed to joining us but I still had many slots on the Roster to fill. 

So I started picking the brain of one of the players from my 1989 Colt Team..John Rogers.  Rogers was smart, funny, and most importantly…he could SELL.  In reality, Rogers was the GM for our Team the first year of our existence.  He kind of bridged the gap with a lot of these players we wanted to recruit for the Team and he really opened up the lines of communication with these players.  Rogers had already played for me for a couple of years and had a feel for how I liked to run a program and I think he did an unbelieveable job SELLING this to the players who ultimately ended up on our Roster.  But being the new guy, I still had ALOT of selling of my own to do.

Glendale had a powerful program going on, and I am sure many of the guys who played with us that first year (if given the choice) would have played for them instead of us.  But there was something going on behind the scenes that worked in our favor.  Glendale was trying to recruit the guys who ended up on our Roster as “Filler” players.  They wanted them on their team, but they wouldn’t make any commitments to these players as to how much (or little) playing time they were going to get. 

Most of our guys probably felt (and rightfully so) that they could be STARTING for the Glendale team.  As I spoke more and more with these players that we ended up with, I realized that they were pretty pissed about the whole thing.  This kind of worked to our advantage.  And in the end, they decided that PLAYING for us was better than SITTING for anybody.  I started to realize that this was a great group of guys….they all kind of had a CHIP on their shoulders and wanted to prove Glendale (and the rest of the world) that they were WRONG.  And I think that our guys more than accomplished this.

Glendale wanted all of the BIG NAME players.  The marquee players, if you will.  Hell, I’ve always said just give me nine guys who want to play hard and I’ll do fine with whoever it is.  Even if we play the entire season ON THE ROAD like we did. 

One of those Marquee players was Vic Ramirez.  The Glendale team was trying to get me to sign off on a waiver sheet and effectively “release” Vic over to them.  I had two words for the Glendale team when that was proposed to me…..those two words were “Hell NO.”  It looked like Vic might not even play that season at all.  But thanks to Hank, BullOxen, and some of the other guys doing a little behind the scenes “selling” Vic ended up playing for us and having a great season. This is the reason the Glendale team had it in for us and wouldn’t let us use Stengel Field at all in our first season.  And I’ll bet you if they did acquire Vic from us they would have won the District.  So Glendale may have ruined our plans of having a home field…but we ruined their season……….

You know what I say?  Canale is a marquee player.  Damon Martin is a marquee player. Weapon is a marquee player.  Hank is a marquee player.  Rogers is a marquee player.  Same with the pitchers we brought over from Burbank.  And the guys we filled out our Roster with were great players, too.  At least this is how I SAW IT.  And as far as I’m concerned, I SAW IT and the guys running the Glendale program missed it.  This is why Verdugo Hills had the greatest players….we had the guys who had HEART.  We had the guys who ate, lived and breathed the game.  So from our inception we had this great group of kids who felt they had kind of been OVERLOOKED.  They had a nice, big, fat CHIP on their shoulders.  And over the next several posts…I’m gonna tell you all about it!  I’m getting fired up right now just writing about it!!

It kind of goes without saying the chip I had on MY SHOULDER.  It was the perfect union…a coach who wanted to prove he could win at this level and a bunch of players who felt like they had been overlooked and wanted to prove that they could PLAY at this level.  Well, I think we proved our critics WRONG by the end of that first season.  Take a look at the stats from the 1990 Team when I post them here and try to tell me these guys were not players.  Canale as a 16 year-old made the ALL-STAR TEAM.  He had 88 Plate Appearances that season…..and he struck out ONE time!!!  

Yeah…..we all had a one big, fat, CHIP on our shoulder.  And I frickin’ LOVED IT.  While the rest of the league certainly didn’t label us as the new bully in the block…. I will say this….after just a few games they all were paying VERY CLOSE attention to US……….and there was a LOT of whispering going on behind the scenes about this New Team in the 20th District called Verdugo Hills……a Motley Crew of no-names who didn’t back down to ANYBODY.

 

The Double That Shook The Earth…..

Posted: February 27, 2011 in 1990, BullOxen, Frost, Games, Hank, McBride, Rogers, Weapon
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It was June 27, 1990.  We traveled out to Notre Dame high school on a Wednesday afternoon to pick up where we had left off three weeks earlier, bad blood and all.  The game we had started three weeks ago was tied 3-3, and called off due to darkness.  So the plan today was to finish the first game, and then play another seven inning game before it got dark.  So it was “Kind of” a doubleheader.  In the back of our minds we were all thinking about what went down between Fat Jody and McBride.  I am sure that all of the parents of both teams had heard about the drama….because by the time we got this thing started, the stands were FULL on both sides of the diamond.  It had the atmosphere of a playoff game.  So I was looking forward to see how we handled the spotlight that day.

We had played well over the last few weeks since McBride went off on Jody and came into the game with a 6-5 record.  All I knew was we needed to win ONE of these games…I didn’t want to drive home with a 6-7 record if they swept us.  So this was another huge game for us.

Finally, the game started.  Both teams went quietly in the eighth inning.  And I don’t even have to tell you who was pitching for us……….. 

Weapon came up in the top of the ninth inning and grounded out.  Up came Bull Oxen.  Walk.  Up came Hank.  Walk.  Rogers flew out to the center.  Two down.

Cal Frost stepped up.  Frost looked at strike one.  The next pitch he drilled a two-iron over the shortstop’s head and up the left-center gap.  I knew Bull would score from second but I wanted to make sure Hank got in from first.  And Hank was all over it.  Hank was moving so fast he almost caught up to Bull.  I was halfway down the line windmilling when I realized there wasn’t even going to be a play at the plate.  Frost’s double had cleared the bases and given us a 5-3 lead.

When Hank stepped on the plate he damn near split it in half.  I don’t think I had ever seen Hank this fired up and emotional as he got.  And no one…and I mean NO ONE wants to win more than Hank.  When Hank scored he continued to sprint towards the chain link fence on the first base side.  He leaped in the air about three feet and his momentum carried him right into the fence, where he clung to it…Spiderman-style.

As he was up in the air, clinging to that fence,  he started shaking it with his hands and feet.  He made sure every single person in the Notre Dame stands was watching him while he shook the fence and yelled out “Fuck Yeah!!!!!!” for about 10 seconds.  They were shocked!  Every mouth in that stands dropped about a foot!  And ‘Ol Hank was up there giving it to ’em….I think he made eye-contact with every last one of ’em!!!

Our dugout and fans were making a lot of noise.  Their side was silent.  Normally, an outburst like that was crazy…..the outcome of the game had not yet been determined…..and we STILL needed three outs to win…..but that’s what we all were FEELING at that moment.  So I let ’em go.  I didn’t say anything.  I just squinted my eyes and looked straight at Fat Jody.  He looked away when he caught my squinting eyes………..

Then I looked around for McBride.  He was sitting down and just STARING at the field.  Yeah, he had that look in his eye.  I knew he was gonna finish ’em off.

But Hank wasn’t done.  When Hank came down from the fence….he started yelling “Fuck Yeah!!!  That’s 7-5, now let’s make it 8-5 in another 10 minutes!!!”

He was predicting the WIN!!!   We still needed three outs but Hank had just moved us up in the standings from 6-5 to 7-5..and was even talking about 8-5!!!

I loved it!!  Mcbride’s outburst three weeks earlier had pulled us together.  And Hank took us out on a limb.  And we were about to find out if we could trash talk and back it up. 

McBride was a little too pumped and walked their leadoff hitter in the bottom of the ninth.  The next hitter laced a single to left, but the runner who moved to second on the base-hit took too big of a turn towards third.  Damon Martin, our left fielder…fired the ball to the cutoff man Frost, and Frosty back-picked to second where BullOxen made a great play tagging out the runner.  That broke their backs.  And Hank was over there at first base (right in front of their dugout) barking “Fuck Yeah!!” again.

The next hitter popped out.  One out to go.

McBride was totally pumped!  He was overthrowing.  He walked their cleanup hitter on four pitches.  Turner went out to the mound and calmed him down.

Runners at first and second…two out.  And McBride STRIKES OUT their other big gun Lou Tapia LOOKING!!!!

Done!  We walked the Walk!!  No crazy celebration when it ended.  Yeah, David had kind of beaten Goliath but I liked the way we handled ourselves when it ended.  You could sense that our guys were figuring out just what we were capable of.  And we proved we could play with anybody that day.  And yeah…as Hank predicted….we were now 7-5. 

We had woken up a sleeping giant with that win.  Notre Dame had a lot of talent on that team and they beat our asses pretty good the second game that day.  But it didn’t matter.  We STOLE a game from them with nothing more than will, resolve, grit, and determination.  

And you know what’s really cool?  Notre Dame missed the Playoffs that year by ONE GAME.

You think ‘Ol Fat Jody spent a little time over the winter thinking about THIS ONE????????? 

Yes-sir-ree….’Ol Cal Frost’s double……..The Double that SHOOK THE EARTH.  The Double that was one of the greatest DEFINING  moments of our four years of Glory.  The Rock in our sling that SLAYED Goliath……….

Proof that “They Burned Their Bodies”……..

Posted: February 21, 2011 in 1992, BullOxen, Hank, No Way!, Turner, Weapon
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We’ve had close to 500 hits on this blog already.  So it’s becoming obvious that there are some people out there reading this shit every day who had nothing to do with this team and don’t know who the hell we are.  They are clearly reading this brilliant shit strictly for entertainment purposes.  For those of you who are doing so…we thank you.  And we agree that there is some pretty funny shit on this blog!!  We also urge you to write in to us here at Verdugo Headquarters and remind us of how brilliant we are!! (as if we don’t already know).  This picture came in today from New Orleans, Louisiana where one of our All-Time Greats by the name of “Turner” is now living.  For those of you who don’t know what this picture is…..may I direct your attention to one of our earlier blog entries titled “They Burned Their Bodies” by Colin James.  This is a picture of Turner’s ‘Gar-Burn.”  Turner, by the way, shaved his head when we clinched a playoff spot that season.  Turner also had a fake ID when he was 18 years old and playing for us…WITH MY NAME ON IT!!!  CLUTCH PICTURE TURNER!!!  Ahhhh!!!  Thanks for sending it in.  I know there are more of you out there who can take a few minutes and take a quick snapshot of YOUR Gar-Burn and send it in here to Verdugo Headquarters.  Weapon said he was going to send a picture of his in last time I talked to him…..but then again…I used to give “Weap” the take sign on a 3-0 pitch and he’d TAKE all right…..as in TAKE a big rip at it….(I’m just sayin’).  So Weap…we’re looking forward to seeing your Verdugo Gar-Burn indeed.  You owe it to us to send us a shot of that, dude….after all…it later caused you a trip to the hospital emergency room.  Weapon also told me that when he got to emergency the nurse asked him “Did you do this to yourself?”  In typical Verdugo-style, Weap lied and told her he had tripped at a bonfire party at the beach or some bullshit.  Then, when Weapon got the bill in the mail….in typical Verdugo-style…he never paid it!!!!!!  Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Here’s a close-up of Turner’s GAR-BURN for everyone!!!!!!!!!!

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