(AP - Ottawa) In a game where 4 Rogues couldn't make the start, it seemed doomed from the start. Martin Soucy showed up halfway through the 2nd inning to make a full nine, but by then The Stingers had left their mark.
The Stingers started the first inning batting, as they managed to get on base with a couple of clumsy errors. Then, afetr another error and a hit, Alain Lapointe hit a three run homerun to make the game 5-0 in the first inning. Rogue bats came up in the bottom of the first - empty. And for the rest of the game, this was a recurring theme.
Seb started on the mound, and the first innings wasn't his fault. He pitched well, and aside from the homerun, it was defense that cost us the runs. In the second and third innings, he pitched masterfully, as The Rogues defense took care of the batter, and retired 6 outta 7 batters. In the fourth inning, The Stingers got accustomed to Seb's fastball, and consequently hit him pretty hard. 7hits, 6 runs and 2 outs later, Dan Robert came in to pitch and after a couple hits, closed the door. But by then it was 11-1.
Well, what can I say? I've been labelled coach of this team, and I'm proud of this title, but it's hard to coach a team from right field. So without any sort of leadership, players tend to deal with their bad luck and misfortune in different ways. Some positive, some negative. Regardless, without some sort of direction, players don't play as a team, they play as individuals, trying to fix the problem.
On Wednesday, against Transport, The Rogues will have a new look. Actually, a new outlook. The season's gonna start on Wednesday, and things are going to be done differently. There'll be signs, there'll be squeeze plays...and there will be consistant fielding. I plan on making Dunbar and Hrycak captains of their respective fields, and to work with the fields to make sure they're making the smart plays. And maybe this'll turn things around.
The bottom line is that if we don't start playing like a team...then you don't HAVE a team, and that's horrible.
On a brighter note, he's a damn funny graphic courtesy of The Stingers web page:
