On an unusual but nice play ball time for a Shalom playoff (9am), Tiburones showed to the field with the full team trying to get into the next playoff week. Having the OF leader back after his injured was really nice. However, field 2 was working against them and the outfield had a lot of trouble with the sun on their faces. Also, a weird situation happened when an umpire wanted to be the main show of the day with a particular way to handle a situation that 99% of the people on the field agreed that should be handle completely different.
I am not here to say that this was the reason of the 2 loses because the Padres were way better than us on both games. Hats off to the Prim’s and their team.
Game 1 – Tiburones 3 – Padres 16
Tiburones scored 2 on the 1st inning with a single by Andy and a double by captain Sardi, followed by a single of Jon Killburn. Padres answered back with 3 on the bottom of the 1st inning. Tiburones did not score on the 2nd and 3rd but the Padres were “caliente” and scored 8 on the 3rd. Tiburones tried to came back on the game but were short and just scored 1 on the 4th. Padres kept their “caliente” style and scored 5 more. The Tiburones arrived to the top of the 5th with the run rule on their shoulders and they could not score so the 1st game was over.
Game 2 – Padres 27 – Tiburones 5
After about 10 min, the game started on a similar way. The Padres scored 4 on the top of the 1st inning and Tiburones answered back with 2. However, the Padres were “en fuego” and scored 7 on the 2nd, 6 on the 3rd and 10 on the 4th showing not mercy at all. Tiburones were cold and nothing was working for them. They were able to scored 3 on the bottom of the 3rd with a dinger courtesy of Justin Reed. The game ended in 4th inning with another run rule.
We were able to play 2 more games and be at the 1st week of the playoff against the “No Mercy” Padres. They were not our compadres during the regular season and definitely not during the playoff. Kudos to them and win it all guys!
As the season ended for us, I want to say thank you to the 11 players that I drafted as I know they gave every week everything they have on the tank. This was my 2nd time as a captain and I can say that I did my best too. It was great to have the name of the team of my hometown.
Justin Reed – “Justino”: I was not expecting to have him on my 1st round of the draft and I was able to get him. We Have been playing together on a week night for about 3 years and we were together at the Eusay’s Astros. He may be the loudest person on the whole league and play the game with a lot of passion. He has been helping me a lot at the OF for a year and I appreciate all the suggestions during the draft and this season. Thank you my Canadian brother.
Andy Hoelscher – “Andres”: Shalom Rookie but we have been playing on weeks nights for a year. He plays with heart and passion for the game as every Cardinals fan. Really good person, good speed and will always be there to help and support.
Ben Enlow – “Big Ben”: 3rd time playing with him at Shalom (Cubs in 2019 and Astros 2021) and he sub with my team during week nights a couple of times. Great guy to share the field. He can lockdown the 3rd base, hit bombs and will always talk to you in a nice way. He is another player that will give you 100% and can show the passion during the games.
Brad Earls – “Pilot Point”: I played with him years ago on a Saturday Shalom tourney and I drafted him knowing what I was going to get which is a great player that will show his temper as the game is going. The passion he brings to the game is nice even though he can lose it pretty quick lol. He will dive, hustle and do the best he can to contribute to the team.
Jonathan Killburn – “Jon”: 1st time playing with him and I am so glad I drafted him. He brings all the knowledge and help every time he is on the fields. He will always be there to give you some batting tips, support with stats, write ups and suggestions on how to be a better team and a better player.
Jonathan Braun – “JB”: 2nd time playing with him and the good vibe he brings to the field is really nice. I love having his kids on the field and supporting him every time. He is a great teammate and is able to play OF and 1B.
Liam Killburn – “Lazy”: 1st time playing with him too and it was a nice surprise. Even though he was always the last one arriving to the fields and almost never wears the team shirt, I love the enthusiasm of him in and out of the field. Also, he adapted to his defensive role without any problem. Since the draft, he was excited to be on the team and we were in contact since that day. I called him “Lazy” just for fun and we both laugh about it. Really nice kid that hit his 1st dinger at Shalom this season. Keep getting better every week brother.
Barry Epstein – “Tornado”: 1st time playing with this legend of the league. Great teammate willing to help, bring suggestions and listen to it. He brings his knowledge, a great speed, line drive hitter and the capacity to play multiple position which is always nice to have on a team. He started playing OF and 1B and changed to be a pitcher in the middle of the season.
Ian Contreras –“Tio”: What can I say about my uncle? He will always be there to help and plays with all he can. He is able to play 1B and OF. Really nice person in/out the fields and better friend than softball player lol. He does the job that nobody sees but it is important on a team. He got injured during Spring season due to the passion on a game. Great teammate.
Valentin Diaz – “Tigre”: We play on the same team on a week night. He arrived to the team by a trade after the draft per a personal request and negotiation with the Storm Chasers captain. Thanks JP for accepting this trade. Valentin will bring joy and willingness to always improve his skills. He is a great person to have at the dugout as he is always willing to help and never gets mad.
Chris Peterson – “Krispy”: 2nd time playing together and both times have been during Fall seasons. Great teammate that will always be there enjoying the game. Awesome person that listen advices and suggestions and work on it to be a better player. As I mentioned to you probably the last 3-4 weeks keep doing whatever you are doing my friend as you ended the season “en fuego”.
Thank you guys for a nice season! Hope to share the field with all of you again!
