I haven't written a tournament preview in a while. I have no time, very little patience, and my concentration level this time of year is next to nil. What the heck. Doing so will give me a good chance to bust some cajones and poke a little fun. If I make a prediction, yours is not the team you want mentioned. My track record leaves a lot to be desired.
Team 1: Memorial Day 2019 champion managers Rob Lyons and Lauren Wood return with eyes on a 2nd title. They grabbed Labor Day 2019 MVP Evan Porter as their first round pick. A double trade with Team 3 brought Jason Ashworth and Vanessa Calero on board. Male eddie virgin Dan Vescovi joins the squad. Nicely balanced team. Lauren 'all she does is throw strikes' Wood will be on the hill. With only 3 eddies, Rob and Lauren are playing injury Russian Roulette. Should 1 go down, a batting out will ensue from that point forward.
Team 2: Chris Hackney and first-time manager Jacki Heim will make a run from the 2 slot, grabbing Shane Hanna as their top pick. With a nice mixture of infielders and outfielders, solid pitching and good sticks, this team has what it takes. Brian Peterman will be on the hill. Russian Roulette with the bare minimum of eddies would be the only drawback should 1 get hurt and have to leave the game.
Team 3: Tom Koelzer and Krista Wellington are in their sophomore year of 1-pitch drafting/managing. Grabbing perennial 1-pitch stud Joe Horchuck was their top priority. A double trade with Team 1 brought Gary Thompson and Jacqui Fitzsimmons on board. With a nice assortment of veteran players, Team 3 can certainly get the job done. Veteran men's league backspin artist Craig Henderson will be on the rubber. Once again, bare-bones eddies puts the team at risk of taking batting outs should 1 of those eddies have to leave the game.
Team 4: First-time 1-pitch managers Greg Reilly and Linda Dart will be tested. They passed with flying colors in the draft, taking Jeremy Villano as their #1 along with a bunch of other solid picks. I'd say they have as good a chance as any. With Danielle Mason a little prego (congrats), they actually have 14 on their roster. No worries, I think that's covered in the SBA by-laws. Jeff Hess and Bob Louderback are more than capable pitchers. 3 female and 2 male eddies give them more than enough eddie-requirement cushion.
Team 5: Defending Labor Day 2019 champs, Zach Martin and Katie O'Toole are back to defend. Solid on both sides of the chalk, they should be able to make a solid defense of their title. All-around talent Keith Keppley was their top priority. My guess is Tom Mason and Phil Black will share hurling responsibilities. 5 females and 1 male eddie has them covered from an eddie-requirement standpoint.
Team 6: Greg and Kristen Thompson have taken an unorthodox approach to this year's draft. Greg tends to think outside the box. After it was announced before the draft the line-up requirement would be core/eddie/core/eddie, etc, Greg decided to corner the market on male eddies with Ron Pulli being the marquis pick. If the team can stay in the winners bracket, all should be well. If they end up in the loser's bracket, especially early in the tournament, it may take its toll on this geriatric squad. I took the time to figure it out. The team's AVERAGE age is deceased. Yes, there are some older than that. Ron Pulli will start on the mound. Rob Worthington is a capable replacement. Enough eddies for 2 squads.
For what it's worth, next Memorial Day and every tourney thereafter, line-ups will require male/female or female/male from start to whenever the females run out.
Team 7: Gene Walczak and Angie Georgiadis are making their 1-pitch maiden voyage. As a seasoned manager in his own right with teams in multiple leagues, Gene is no stranger to evaluating talent and getting the best from his players. With shortstop extraordinaire Sean Nonemacher as their first pick, Gene and Angie filled in with a nice blend of offense and defense. Their middle infield is Grade A. Veteran Buddy Schwarz will handle the pitching duties. No eddie-requirement issues.
Team 8: Bob Garges is no novice to 1-pitch tournaments. In fact, Bob is only 1 of 2 managers in 35 tourneys to take the whole enchilada after losing the first game. That's overcoming long odds. He and Michelle Egitto grabbed the farmer's son as their #1 with veteran Mark Bernacki who leads in almost every 1-pitch lifetime category right behind Ryan in back to back picks. Unless I am blind in one eye and can't see out of the other, I see no pitcher with 1-pitch experience. Gotta throw strikes Farmer Bob. Tossing hayballs ain't gonna cut it. 3 female eddies is all they have and all 3 must remain ambulatory or you know what.
If I failed to mention someone, erred in any way, or you don't like what I wrote about your team, tough crapola. It's all in fun and that's how it should stay. Best of luck to all involved. It's softball and nothing more. Don't take it too seriously.
