Some remarks about obama and baseball

BALTIMORE, June 4, 2013- Here goes:

• Sources are now saying that on that terrible night, September 11, 2012, through the following morning, as four Americans were butchered in Benghazi, the only thing that obama did was make a lone phone call to Hilary to hash out the cover-up tale utilizing the You Tube film nobody saw.  In other words, once obama and hilary realized they had screwed up in a very big way, by doing nothing when leadership was desperately needed, the only thing the agitator in him knew to do was cover it up.  That is the only thing he did. The only thing.  The left wing shills and functionaries in the White House and in the media will, of course, deny it until they are blue in the face.  But the interesting question for the lot of them is: let's say it's true, just for arguments sake.  What then?  Is it okay for him and her to do what they did?  And if it is not, should he resign?  Should she not run?  I don't expect him to resign or her to not run.  What kind of people will you have to be to continue to support either of them?  Just wondering. Just...

• In the NCAA baseball tournament, in the regional at Chapel Hill (May 31-June 3), Florida Atlantic came out of the loser's bracket to knock off No. 1 North Carolina in the so-called first championship.  Since that first championship left each of them with a lone loss, they had to play again and this time it was winner take all.  In this second championship, North Carolina finally prevailed, 12-11.  So who was it that hung the first loss on Florida Atlantic, dumping them into the loser's bracket?  That would be Towson.  That's the same Towson whose low-brow president, Maravene Loeschke, called a meeting of the baseball team one Friday morning in February.  She called the meeting at 9:30 am, and told the players to report to a given location on campus at 10 am.  When loeschke arrived she entered the hall surrounded by about six armed campus police officers.  Another half dozen armed officers were left outside to "guard" her car.  When the meeting started she told those players who managed to make the meeting (at 9:30 am many of them were, guess, in class. Imagine that!) that she was eliminating baseball at Towson effective at the end of the season.  Then she up and left. The armed cotarie followed dutifully behind. She took no questions.  An uproar followed in the days and weeks that followed and many folk called for her resignation.  The Comptroller of Maryland was one of those persons.  I was another. L'il ole me (see 3/11 post).  Later, the Maryland General Assembly found $300,000.00 to fund the team for two more seasons.  That will help recruiting, I know that!  
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• Anyway, flip the calendar forward.  It is now June and those very same students who loeschke would only face when a contingent of armed men were in between, were still playing and representing the school. They hadn't had a great season, but like well-coached baseball teams at all levels, the Towson lads were playing their best at the end.  They won the Colonial Conference tournament and went tripping into the NCAA Championships.  Once in the big show, the powers that be did them absolutely no favors.  The NCAA invites 64 very good teams (I can't say the 64 best because the team recently at 26 in the RPI rankings, Maryland, was not in the field, although eight other ACC schools were), then divides them into 16 regionals of four teams each.  Each regional plays a double elimination tournament over four days.  The other schools in the Chapel Hill, North Carolina regional were No. 1-ranked North Carolina, powerful Florida Atlantic and upstart Canisius.  Towson drew Florida Atlantic in the opener, and darn if those Marylanders didn't take it to the southern school, winning 7-2, putting them in a winner's bracket game against North Carolina on Saturday afternoon. Not unexpectedly, North Carolina, 55-9, moved ahead in the game, 7-2, after seven and one half innings.  If the Tigers went quietly, who would have thought worse of them?  But they didn't.  They came roaring back, those Tigers did (sorry).  With one out in that bottom of the 8th, Hunter Bennet, the shortstop and number 8 hitter, cracked a double.  Zach Fisher then fell behind on the count, 0-2, before working the Carolina pitcher for a walk.  Pat Fitzgerald then fell behind on the count, 1-2, before being hit by the pitch.  That loaded the bases.  Designated hitter Kurt Wertz followed with a single through the right side of the Tar Heel infield, plating two Tiger runs and cutting the Carolina lead to 7-4.  Next up was left fielder Peter Bowles, and he jumped on a pitch and blistered it to left.  Sadly, it went right to the left fielder, but even then another Tiger runner scored, and now the heavily favored Heels lead was down to 7-5.  Next came the Tiger right fielder, Dominic Fratantuono.  He fell quickly behind, 0-2, before lining a single to center.  Wertz stopped at second.  Now, the tie run was on base and the go-ahead run was at the plate.  That hitter was the first baseman, Brendan Butler.  Butler proceeded to send the Carolina fans into momentary cardiac seizure.  But his fly ball to straight away center stayed in the park and the Tigers were retired.  The final score was 8-5, but with only one loss, Towson played on.  Sunday brought a rematch with Florida Atlantic.  The winner earned a right to play North Carolina on Sunday night in the so-called first championship.  This time, Towson struck for three runs in the first inning and was still tied with Florida Atlantic, 5-5 entering the ninth.  But the southern school pushed across a single run to win the rematch, 6-5.  The Tigers ended the season, 30-30, but a couple of heavyweights in that Chapel Hill regional won't soon forget them.
• Now I could end the story with a remark about  loeschke not having the simple decency of apologizing for the incredible scene with the armed guards, but when someone is that low-brow, why bother?