Playoffs Are A' Coming!

Ok,here's a few things......
1) The Spirit have finished the season by having Sussex take 2-out-of-3. Want the game reports? Go to the Spirit site XD
2) Want a laugh? Go HERE!
3) Joe is going to do a playoff preview post tomorrow,it being an off day and all...
4) He will also release the much-anticpated next round of "Who's Now?" tomorrow. ^_^
5) ON A PERSONAL NOTE: I start college tomorrow night at 7....wish me luck,as I may need it. =p
6) All "regulars",heads up--I will be there Wednesday bearing gifts =]


That is all...
Oh yeah,and those pics I took with everyone today--expect a montage up of those in the next day or so. ;]

Oops / Who's Now Part 5

It turns out that
1) I missed a pretty interesting ballgame yesterday, and
2) I overslept the bus/train combo I needed to catch to get to Fraser today.

As much as that sucks, I guess I'll use the opportunity to post the previously promised round of Who's Now.

Last 4 Results:

Eddie Lantigua def. Alan Blotcher, 5-2
JC Huguet def. Julie Wetherbee 4-3
Wilton Veras def. Slugger 5-2
K-O def. DJ Mattox 7-0

Elmira Bracket

1. Miles Wolff vs. 16 Jarrett Stawarz

1. Miles Wolff

Pro: He's' the boss. He runs this shit, yo. He's also been around forever, has been named one of baseball's most influential people, and operates two pretty successful leagues.

Con: Uncle Miles is a cheatin' S.O.B. who killed the lights against the Spirit in '04 and brings in cheap-shot artists like the one who broke Davilla's arm in the playoffs.

16. Jarrett Stawarz

Pro: Spirit PWNED him many times

Con: He's not good at all; he's on New Haven

-

8. Chris Farley vs. 9. R.C. Reutmann

8. Chris Farley

Pro: Awesome pitcher; has post-CanAm League success in single-A

Con: No longer in the Can-Am League; he's now in the Yankees organization

9. R.C. Reutmann

Pro: Operates the Worcester Tornadoes, a successful team in this league. Probably has lots o' bling bling.

Con: WAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! THE SPIRIT ARE MEAN!!!! WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I SHOULD HAVE A TALK WITH THE LEAGUE!!!! WAHHHHHHH!!!! I'M A SANCTIMONIOUS ASS!!!! WAHHH

-

4. Rich "El Guapo" Garces vs. 13. Joey "See-yak" Siak

4. El Guapo

Pro: One of the most beloved Red Sox of the 90s, Draws lots of attention and brings crowds wherever he goes

Con: Fat MLB reject who would eat all of the food at a party

13. Joey Siak

Pro: He's a sneaky-good pitcher and a good guy. And based on what my girlfriend told me, the ladies love him too. (ladies, is this true? bah, I don't think there are many female readers of this blog anyway)

Con: He's underrated, which is a good thing generally, but maybe not when you are voting on someone's oh-so-intangible NOW-ness.

-

5. Ken Ray vs. 12. John Kelly

5. Ken Ray

Pro: MLBer. Very notable. One of the best pitchers in CanAm history. A really interesting character.

Con: His comments about Fraser did not endear him to Spirit fans or the organization. Also, he's definitely history at this point.

12. John Kelly

Pro: Easily the best pitcher in Spirit history and a seemingly awesome guy.

Con: Never could quite cut it at the next level.

-----

OK... vote or die.

Who's Now, Part 4

Part 3 Results:

#1 Vic Davilla def. #16 Seth Bataan, 7-0

#9 BJ Weed def. #8 Joe Calfapietra 5-2

#4 Bode Miller def #13 Allan Mottram 4-3

#5 Hideki Nagasaka def. #12 Chris Colabello 6-1

Part 4 Matchups:

#2 Eddie Lantigua vs. #15 Alan Blotcher

#2 Eddie Lantigua

Who: Capitales infielder

Pro: Probably the best player in the league. Beloved in Quebec.

Con: If people like him in Quebec, he must be an asshole. Oh wait, he is.

#15 Alan Blotcher

Who: Complaining fan in section G

Pro: Long-time fan; good for a laugh; drives us to away games

Con: Complains about everything. Has less athletic talent than me.

#7 Julie Wetherbee vs. #10 JC Huguet

#7 Julie Wetherbee

Who: Former PR chick for the Spirit

Pro: BC grad [I'm not particularly proud of this, however], went on to have a very successful career post-Spirit with the Celtics; rumor has it that she is going to be on a TV show next year. Brought a lot of energy to those pointless on-field games.

Con: I never thought she was all that good at her job [although, to be fair, she was probably the most skilled person ever to hold this position for the Spirit, which is pretty sad]. She's not 'now' either, she's from '04. Also, she wore the same pair of shorts every day. Or, at least, it looked like it.

#10 JC Huguet

Who: Atlantic City pitcher and pitching coach

Pro: Takes on two jobs; is a pretty good pitcher

Con: I actually had to look him up because I forgot who he was since we made this bracket

#3 Wilton Veras vs. #14 Slugger

#3 Wilton Veras

Who: Jackals IF, former Red Sox

Pro: Ex-MLBer, an elite player in the league, very well known by fans, 2004 champ

Con: "RED SOX RE-JECT clap clap clap clap clap"

#14 Slugger

Who: Spirit mascot

Pro: Little kids love him. Slugger gets PAID to party. Probably the most well-known 'member' of the Spirit.

Con: Probably the worst mascot I've ever seen, doesn't do anything special, and has this goofy expression on its face that is tres annoying, especially after 5 years.

#6 KO vs #11 DJ Mattox

#6 KO

Who: Rox mascot

Pro: Pretty legendary figure , even at Fraser, for his appearance here in 2003; very good, very funny mascot.

Con: Ugly as hell. Looks like Willy.

#11 DJ Mattox

Who: Worcester pitcher

Pro: An actual player in the league

Con: A fairly anonymous one

Well there you have it, four matchups. Go!

Who's Now, Part 3 (for real)

So, Bustos wins his matchup with Richard Katz, and the first round for the Allentown bracket is done.

Round 2 will see the following matchups:
1) Nick Lopardo vs. 8) Tom Donahue
13) Andrew Wishy vs. 5) Michel Laplante
2) Jonathan Johnson vs. 7) Dennis Robinson
3) Butch Hobson vs. 11) Saul Bustos

Now, we move over to the Pittsfield bracket. Here are the first four matchups.

1) Vic Davilla vs. 16) Seth Bataan

1) Vic Davilla

Who: All-time legend of indy baseball, and the manager of the Spirit

Pro: He's a legend AND a badass, tough dude... his performance in game 5 of the 2004 championship series, despite the loss, is legendary

Con: Well, according to the Worcester T&G, his team is undisciplined because of him.

16) Seth Bataan

Who: Hey Seth, get me a hot dog please

Pro: Got us hot dogs and giveaway items. A hilarious name to recall.

Con: Totally awful at his job, as evidenced by the fact that he now works for Sussex

8) Joe Calfapietra vs. 9) BJ Weed

8) Joe Calfapietra

Who: Manager of the Jackals

Pro: Probably the longest serving manager in the CAL. '04 champ. Numerous funny incidents.

Con: Swears at little kids

9) BJ Weed

Who: Spirit outfielder

Pro: Best name in the league. A fan favorite. Hustles all the time. He hits, fields, saves the world, and is an all-around good guy.

Con: Much like Wishy, he's not really in the 'elite' status per se.

4) Bode Miller vs. 13) Allen Mottram

4) Bode Miller

Who: Olympic skiing dumbass who played in one game for the Nashua Pride

Pro: Very, very famous. 'Bode Miller Day' was a fun event which actually drew a crowd to a Nashua game (and that's saying something)

Con: Sucked in the Olympics; his actual accomplishments are unrelated to the Can-Am League

13) Allen Mottram

Who: Spirit catcher

Pro: He is ... uh... on the Spirit. And plays baseball. He's been a pretty solid pickup for the Spirit, too. 12-for-47 with 10 walks... I won't complain about that

Con: He is slower than Jon de Vries

5) Hideki Nagasaka vs. 12) Chris Colabello

5) Hideki Nagasaka

Who: Nashua Pride publicity stunt. Oh, I mean, ace pitcher.

Pro: Brought great PR to the Pride. Is a VERY good pitcher (just got another win the other day). Seems like a cool dude.

Con: Well, he probably wouldn't be that great of a party guest since he doesn't speak much English. Also...51.1 million yen? I really hope the Pride didn't ACTUALLY pay that as the posting fee to his Japanese team. I really hope they distributed that number as a joke. Because even if he goes 25-0, with a 0.00 ERA, 51.1 million yen is still like $300,000. That's more than the entire salary of the team.


12) Chris Colabello

Who: Nashua first baseman and former Worcester legend

Pro: '05 champion. Mellifluous name. Good player.

Con: Famous? Hardly. Also, when I said 'Worcester legend,' I was being sarcastic

So, there's the four matchups. Vote away. Voting will close after TOMORROW NIGHT's game vs the Grays.

Who's Now: Part 3

Sorry for the delay --- now it's time to reveal the results of round 2.

2) Jonathan Johnson 5
15) Cathy 1

7) Dennis Robinson 5
10) Gary Roche 1

3) Butch Hobson 6
14) Mike Meagher 0

6) Richard Katz 3
11) Saul Bustos 3

Oh snap, we have a tie. Before starting round 3... the first person to cast a vote for Katz or Bustos will decide it. Sudden death!

Ready? Go.

Who's Now: Episode 2

So, we have four winners.

They are:
1) Nick Lopardo defeats 16) Tony - no surprise
8) Tom Donahue defeats 9) Chris Miyake
13) Andrew Wishy upsets 4) Jon Fleisig - not that we're homers or anything :)
5) Michel Laplante defeats 12) Chris Rowan

On to the bottom half of the Allentown bracket:

2) Jonathan Johnson vs. 15) Cathy

2) Jonathan Johnson

Who: Come on now. Seriously. If you don't know who Jonathan is, you've never been to Fraser Field. He's the #1 broadcaster for the CanAm League on Versus and the founder of the CanAm Stickball League.

Pro: He is probably the most well-known and beloved Spirit fan in the entire universe. Additionally, he's fuckin' hilarious. He's also legendary for his fancy Reebok kicks and sick throwback jerseys.

Con: He is totally insane

15) Cathy

Who: That girl who does Wayne Kerrins' job sometimes, and Eric's job other times

Pro: She is buying a van and is going to drive us to New Jersey

Con: She is facing Jonathan, come on, there's no way she wins

*

7) Dennis Robinson vs. 10 Gary Roche

7) Dennis Robinson

Who: Spirit reliever-turned-starter

Pro: He kicked Eddie Lantigua in the chest... AND he's an awesome pitcher. He's also a funny guy, and his wavy locks are legendary.

Con: He's kind of notorious at this point because of his involvement in two brawls... or as the Worcester T&G would say, "a trend" of fighting

10) Gary Roche

Who: Spirit infielder

Pro:


Con: Although he's a cool guy and a solid player, he started the year as more of a utility player and isn't really a bona-fide star, per se.

*

3) Butch Hobson vs. 14) Mike Meagher

3) Butch Hobson

Who: Nashua manager/former Red Sox & Yankees player

Pro: He's a celebrity with Red Sox ties. He had the funniest incident in recent memory when he took first base into the stands.

Con: He hasn't really accomplished anything in the Can-Am League. Also, he's a nutjob.

14) Mike Meagher

Who: Yeah, that's a good question

Pro: He has a funny name, I guess, and the Spirit have lit him up a few times, which is a good thing in my book

Con: Yeah...when you're only known because your family clearly doesn't know how to spell and/or pronounce (MA-HA?), you're in trouble

*

6) Richard Katz vs. 11) Saul Bustos

6) Richard Katz

Who: Ump.

Pro: Meow mix = good times. Well kknown around the league.

Con: A terrible, terrible umpire. Period.

11) Saul Bustos

Who: Legendary Rox SS who retired in '05

Pro: Has his own bobblehead. Was a tremendous player. '03 champion.

Con: This is Who's Now, not Who's Four Years Ago

*******

Okay boys 'n girls, vote away.

Who's Now Update

Voting for part I will CLOSE at the end of tonight's game vs. Sussex.

Here are the standings as of now:

1. Lopardo 6
16. Tony 2

8. Donahue 6
9. Miyake 2

4. Fleisig 3
13. Wishy 5

5. Laplante 5
12. Rowan 3


Tomorrow morning I'll post the next 4 contests - but for now, vote away!

CORRECTION--Tonight's Game

Last night it was reported that last night's game aginst the Brockton Rox will be finished today at 4 PM, followed immediately by a full 9-inning game.
This is false as the game starts at 4,resumes the game-in-progress through all 9 innings then a 7-inning game will be played after.

Fans from last night's game can redeem last night's ticket for a ticket to today's double-header.
Tonight we will have the scheduled pitching matchups of Bryan Morse Vs Matt Bishop for game one and Mike McTamney Vs Gary Galvez in game two.

The Spirit Fans Blog sincerly regrets this error.



IN OTHER NEWS: The Blog has started the "Who's Now: The CanAm League Edition",based off a segment from ESPN. This is a fun game,and I encourage all to read the previosu post and join in.



SCORES FROM LAST NIGHT:
Atlantic City 16, Quebec 8
New Haven County 9, Grays 5
New Jersey 9, Worcester 0
Nashua 4, Sussex 1

Who's Now: Can-Am League Edition. Part 1

Tonight's game was stopped due to rain in the bottom of the 1st. It will be finished tomorrow at 4 PM, followed immediately by a full 9-inning game.

If you've watched SportsCenter at all over the past month, you have no doubt heard of Who's Now, which is quite possibly the dumbest segment in the history of sports journalism. Basically, they just draw together two random sports figures, and media types debate who is more 'now' based on subjective evaluations of both how good they are and how cool they are.

Basically, it's the second biggest waste of time in sports, behind reading this blog. So I figured: why not combine the two wastes of time?

Tonight, while slogging through the boredom of a rain delay at Fraser, Eric and I devised "Who's Now: The CanAm League Edition."

We created a 64-person bracket of assorted Can-Am personalities: players, managers, staff members, broadcasters, mascots, and other funny people from the annals of Can-Am history. How did we come up with the 64? Just by kind of shouting out random names. Nothing special.

I'll post the full bracket here, then open up the first four matchups for debate and voting. I'll post four more each day I get around to doing so, until we reach our dramatic conclusion.

Cool?

Of course not!

Here we go --- the full bracket, with seeding:

Allentown Region
1) Nick Lopardo
16) Tony (from the band, YuriTony)

8) Tom Donahue
9) Chris Miyake

4) Jonathan Fleisig
13) Andrew Wishy

5) Michel LaPlante
12) Chris Rowan

2) Jonathan Johnson
15) Cathy

7) Dennis Robinson
10) Gary Roche

3) Butch Hobson
14) Mike Meagher

6) Richard Katz
11) Saul Bustos

Pittsfield Region
1) Vic Davilla
16) Seth Bataan

8) Joe Calfapietra
9) BJ Weed

4) Bode Miller
13) Allen Mottram

5) Hideki Nagasaka
12) Chris Colabello

2) Eddie Lantigua
15) Alan Blotcher

7) Julie Wetherbee
10) JC Huguet

3) Wilton Veras
14) Slugger

6) K-O
11) DJ Mattox

Elmira Region
1) Miles Wolff
16) Jared Stawarz

8) Chris Farley
9) RC Reuteman

4) Rich Garces
13) Joey Siak

5) Ken Ray
12) John Kelly

2) Bill Murray
15) JD Reinenger

7) Willy Tenney
10) Don January

3) Spike
14) Luis Sabino

6) Joe Pescucci
11) Benoit Emond

Utica Region
1) Jimmy Hurst
16) Fontella Jones

8) Mike Torres
9) Chas Terni

4) Brent Connolly
13) Derrick Gibson

5) Dan Schuam
12) Brian Draman

2) Craig Breslow
15) Jon Weiner

7) Nicki Reilly
10) Tripper

3) John Leahy
14) Don Boyle

6) Chris Carminucci
11) Marty Ginivan

Criteria for voting.
-Subjective 'coolness' (the raison d'etre of 'Who's Now')
-Skill at what they do
-Humor value of the person
-Notable incidents
-Name recognition and publicity
-Would you want to invite this person to a party?
-Physical appearance/fashion sense
-Bling bling
-Wealth
-Longevity
-Importance to the Can-Am League
-Character of the person in question
-Power

Without further ado, here we go:

*****************************
The first four matchups
*****************************

From the Allentown Region:

1) Nick Lopardo vs. 16) Tony from YuriTony

#1: Nick Lopardo

Who: Owner of the Spirit.

Pros: The big cheese. A very important figure. One of the most powerful and well-known men in the CanAm league. A very wealthy man.

Cons: Polo shirt with mesh shorts = not the coolest style out there. Also, I get the feeling that he wouldn't be particularly fun to have at a party. But maybe that's just me

#16 Tony from YuriTony

Who: Nobody. Seriously.

Pros: Few names in Spirit history elicit such laughter upon being recalled. Also, I bought the YuriTony CD (yes, I was the one) and it wasn't bad.

Cons: Nobody actually knows who this guy is

*

8) Tom Donahue vs. 9) Chris Miyake

#8 Tom Donahue

Who: 5-year Spirit legend - color commentator in '03, 3rd base coach '04-present

Pros: He's been around since the start of the Spirit. He is universally known as an all-around nice guy and a great baseball man.

Cons: Has been known to have a Dale Sveum-ish personality at 3rd base. Also, if you invite him to a party, expect the food to be gone [rim shot]

#9 Chris Miyake

Who: Manager of the Brockton Rox

Pros: Took Brockton to the CanAm championship series in '06. Kind of a funny name.

Cons: Failed to beat Quebec. Disaster of an '07 season so far.

*

4) Jonathan Fleisig vs. 13) Andrew Wishy

#4 Jonathan Fleisig

Who: Owner, New Haven County Cutters

Pros: He has been around forever. He has plenty of stories to tell from indy ball history. He's also an extremely wealthy, well-connected, and powerful man in the league.

Cons: From most reports, he seems to be an irresponsible a-hole who left baseball in shambles in both Lynn and Pittsfield... and New Haven ain't doin' all that well either.

#13 Andrew Wishy

Who: Worcester outfielder, former Spirit

Pros: A solid ballplayer and a cool guy

Cons: Not really extraordinary, per se. Just a good player.

*

5) Michel LaPlante vs. 12) Chris Rowan

#5 Michel Laplante

Who: Quebec manager

Pros: Led Quebec to the '06 championship. Named one of the most influential people in Canadian baseball. Has had many funny incidents in the past.

Cons: A cheating asshole fraud

#12 Chris Rowan

Who: Former Jackals and Spirit SS, now retired

Pros: A solid baseball player. A champion with the Jackals in 2004. Famous in Spirit circles for his 'arm candy'. He got traded for John Kelly.

Cons: He's retired now, so I guess that makes him more 'two years ago' than 'now.'

Alright all, is this a sufficiently stupid exercise? Awesome! Submit your arguments and votes for each matchup in the comments. I'll close this vote in about 2 days and then move on to the next 4. Yee-haw, rainouts!