The Mincemeat Decoy and "The play you have never seen "

As the tournament winds down I plan to highlight the most unusual play of the tournament . There is some historical background required though to get the appropriate frame of reference. But be assured you have never seen this play before.

Operation Mincemeat was a successful British deception plan during World War II. As part of the widespread deception plan Operation Barclay to cover the intended invasion of Italy from North Africa, Mincemeat helped to convince the German high command that the Allies planned to invade Greece and Sardinia in 1943 instead of Sicily, the actual objective. This was accomplished by persuading the Germans that they had, by accident, intercepted "top secret" documents giving details of Allied war plans. The documents were attached to a corpse deliberately left to wash up on a beach in Punta Umbría in Spain.

The deliberate planting of fake documents on the enemy was not new. Known as the "Haversack Ruse", it had been practiced by the British in the First World War. Also, in August 1942 in North Africa, before the Battle of Alam Halfa a corpse was placed in a blown-up scout car, in a minefield facing the German 90th Light Division just south of Qaret el Abd. With the corpse was a map showing the locations of non-existent British minefields. The Germans fell for the ruse, and Rommel's panzers were routed to areas of soft sand where they bogged down.

The Mincemeat was revealed as a true story in the 1953 book The Man Who Never Was.

With this as background we now proceed to a play in game 2 that established some precedent for subsequent game actions.

With runners on second and third with one out a hard ground ball is hit to third baseman Steve Kunken who fires quickly to Charlie Zunda at the plate. Charlie applies the tag but the runner slides hard and gets caught up with Charlie's arms and legs. Johnny Mac is at first base shouting 'CHARLIE THROW TO FIRST"
"Jeez" thought Charlie, "here is Johnny yelling at me in All Caps and I can hardly extract myself from the runner". Next time Charlie ponders I have to find a way to get the ball down there.

Next time will happen very soon in Game 3 as Steve Kunken is pitching against the Taos Solar Sox and has runners on second and third with one out as we are down a couple runs already. Steve is feeling like the guy trying to bail the water out of the Titanic as both runners are on via errors and he needs a big play.

Steve fires his pitch and the ball is hit back to him. He quickly fires home to Charlie but Charlie leans out with his right foot on the plate and catches the ball and fires to Johnny "ALL CAPS" Mac at first. Watching this from the dugout your faithful correspondent notes to Doc Parsons that while it is a nice play, there is no force--Doc however, with his vast experience recognizes this for the Mincemeat Decoy play and whispers to me "hey Charlie is pulling a decoy". The runner from third, who resembles a 150 pound accountant , has seen the play evolve and has stopped running and indeed walking towards plate while Charlie's throw streaks to ALL CAPS at first base. The Taos team is shouting to their runner to touch home plate as some of them are not falling for Charlie's Mincemeaat Decoy but the Taos runner, acting as an observer now casually bends down to pick up the bat left by the hitter and is standing 1 foot from the plate while the umpire correctly lurks in the background without saying anything.
Johnny "All CAPS" Mac who knows a decoy when he sees one , fires the ball back to Charlie who catches the ball whirls to his left and just crushes the runner with the tag knocking him down. Looking up into the sun with a 220 pound muscular pony tailed artist on top of him, the runner then sees the 6'5" umpire lean over and fire his right arm in a throwing angle and calls him out! The Solar Sox are just devastated and your 2010 LI Athletics literally prance off the field while Steve Kunken ponders that the Titanic guys had only one error in that game albeit a pretty big error.


After the game, the ESPN guys decide they want to interview Charlie to go over the play and here is the text of the interview:

Espn : Did you have that decoy in mind or did you just forget it was not a force situation

Charlie: I am an artist ...I live to be creative

Espn: What artist has inspired you most as a catcher? Leonardo Da Vinci?

Charlie: Everyone knows Da Vinci was a pitcher and ambidextrous at that

Espn : Wow i did not know that.. what would you give to be ambidextrous?

Charlie( sipping from the water at the table): your right arm ... where are you from by the way?

ESPN : Kentucky

Charlie : Ok, makes sense

Espn : How do you think Monet would have handled that play?

Charlie: Monet was a French guy with a weak arm and no pony tail so he would have set up a chair for the runners to sit with him and enjoy the landscape, offered them some escargot and sauvignon blanc and then offered them berets and those little cigars and then gently tagged them out while asking for their pardon. I think he would have trouble with the pace of the modern game

ESPN: Then who serves as your model?

Charlie : Auguste Rodin--the plate serves as the Gates of Hell for my opponents they can't score unless they come through me . Then I use The Thinker to get in touch with my contemplative side . The Thinker is what gave me the inspiration for the Mincemeat decoy play.

ESPN: Have you ever tried this play before?

Charlie: Once in my league at home. We left a supposed "dead guy" over by the Fairfield Mariners bench in a Red Sox uniform with a game plan sticking out of his back pocket. On it we said Dave is going to throw all curves and changeups but Bobby Manowitz said he would not bite and they kicked the dead guy until the dead guy got up and walked back over to our bench. But, hey ,we gave it a shot.


ESPN: You design all the packaging for all the Paul Newman's' products. Have you ever used the decoy ploy there in your professional life?

Charlie: Once we created a terrific hot red salsa with an empty jar and a beautiful package but the focus group told us the only consumers that would come back and buy it a second time were from Kentucky.

ABC reporter: Charlie, you seem to have started a fad , young catchers all over the country are growing pony tails and crushing runners -it is labeled "doing the Mincemeat decoy" how do you feel about that?

Charlie: I enjoy being a role model and am always happy to help the young kids


Anyway, our tourney has concluded and despite our disappointment at losing, the players had a very good time playing baseball on beautiful fields on gorgeous days.

And as baseball players who are glass half full kind of guys know.. there is always next year.

Game 3 vs Taos Solar Sox or Harvard beats Yale 29-29

For the first time since 1909, the football teams of Harvard and Yale were each undefeated with 6-0 records in their conference (8-0 overall) when they met for their season's final game on November 23, 1968 at Harvard Stadium. Led by their quarterback captain Brian Dowling, Yale was heavily favored to win and they quickly led the game 22–0. With two minutes remaining on the clock they still led 29–13.As the last seconds ticked down, Harvard, coached by John Yovicsin, tied the game, scoring 16 points in the final 42 seconds to tie Yale. The Harvard Crimson declared victory with a famous headline, "Harvard Beats Yale 29-29"

In a parallel universe ,your Long Island Athletics journeyed to Grand Canyon University to face the Taos Solar Sox. The resplendent Solar Sox were featuring red Caps and sox with a bright uniform pants and the feature of the ensemble was the bright yellow shirt with red lettering emphasising the sun with its lovely color scheme.
Uniforms aside this was a revamped Solar Sox team with players from all over the country ( perhaps drawn by the colorful uniforms) and jumped on us for an early 1-0 lead with a triple and infield out.

As the game evolved we played very poorly in the field consistently making throwing errors and similar to the in game report in Casey at the bat:

"It looked extremely rocky for the Athletics nine that day,
the score stood 3 to 6 with but an inning left to play
and when a sprinting Paul was out at Home and Marc did the same
a pallor wreathed upon the features of the patrons at the game"


As we prepare to hit in the bottom of the ninth we are disapointed to be down 3.
But we scrape a run out of a single and double and are still alive.
Now we are down two runs in the bottom of the ninth with two outs and
miraculously rapped out 3 straight hits to tie the score at 6

We go to the tenth relieved and envervated but they lead off with a triple to right and then get a single to go up 7-6. Steve Kunken who had gone the distance and threw about 15 innings worth of outs while giving up only 5 or 6 hits left the field to the applause of the Athletics who appreciated his valiant effort.His leadership rallied us through the darker innings and he held up after numeropus erros and just kept battling on the mound to get outs. We get through the top of the 10th inning with no further damage and begin our chance the bottom of the tenth.

We get the bases loaded with two outs and hit a ground ball to shortstop. Their shortstop has been good all day but pauses as he decides whether to go to second or first. He opts for first but double clutches his throw and it pulls the first baseman a bit off the bag and our runner is safe and we are tied after trailing all game. Our last hitter grounds to second and they get the third out. The game is then called a tie as it has reached the three hour time limit.

We leave the field elated at the tie as did the Harvard players in 1968 as we played so poorly for so long but did not give up. At the end we strung together a few base hits off their best pitcher-under two out game ending conditions . Our emotions have been whipsawed by the disappointment at our performance in the early to late game but thrilled by our ability to string together an offense at the end.
The tie leaves us 1-1-1 heading into the doubleheader wed.

However, the doubleheader does not go well for as we lose each game and will not make the playoffs. We have one game remaining and will make the most of it but we are disappointed not to be advancing . The truth is we have not played well enough to win and the baseball gods have enforced the meritocracy that baseball demands.










The socre

The Impact of the Sun or "The lettuce wrap at PF Chang's is always a good starter"

We meet as a team for the first time at practice on the Sunday evening prior to the start of the tourney. Everyone has a skip in his step and is eager to get the party started. We go through a few drills and get some batting practice in and newcomers size up the team and vice versa . But everyone is thinking about tomorrow. It is not a tone like one recalls reading the letters of soldiers on the eve of battle in the Red Badge of Courage where young men wrote loved one's expressing their fears they might be experiencing their last night on earth . It is more the tone of fraternity brothers looking forward to a post homecoming game party.

However , on the ride back to the hotel one historian on the team regales us with the story of Isandlwana ( present day Zimbabwe) where in 1879, the Zulu's Black Mamba regiment trounced the British. It seems the British were stunned to see 25,000 advancing Zulu warriors but ferocious gunfire killed may of the Black Mamba until the Zulu force was very small. Then one leader, a fellow named Nkosani, jumped up and advanced to the front line urging the Mamba. The inspired young warriors surged forward overwhelming the British, even though their leader, Nkosani, was cut down. The British then ran out of bullets and simultaneously the moon passed in front of the sun for an eclipse. The Zulu's stopped their killing during the eclipse interpreting the eclipse as a bad omen. When the light returned, they resumed their killing and wiped out stragglers like cooks and messengers and even drummer boys. At the end ,the Zulus went crazy with blood lust killing even the horses and mules. They disemboweled each dead soldier so that his spirit could not escape his body and haunt his killer. And if the enemy solider had been seen to be particularly brave they cut out his gallblader and sucked on it to absorb the dead man's courage and bellowed 'Igatla!" "I have eaten".

Baseball players certainly are superstitious and watch very carefully for omens from the baseball gods but there seems little likelihood of an eclipse and we think we have enough ammunition-so we head into the Monday doubleheader eager and confident.( and more than a few eyes on the Sun)

We open Game 1 with a team called the Snowbirds . The Snowbirds are not a competitive team and have mostly guys who could not play with other teams. We win easily but the game brings to mind the statement about baseball that there is nothing better than playing in a game that is 2-2 in the eighth inning and nothing worse than playing when it is 13-1 in the third. To give you an idea I think we scored something like 24 runs and we did not kick any field goals. ( The Snowbirds gave up 35 in their second game and I think at least two touchdowns)

Game 2 starts where we face Brian Kingman of Dodgertown West who pitched in the major leagues for the Oakland A's in the 1980's. Talk about going from one extreme to the other. We are playing at Phoenix Municipal Stadium and it is extremely bright with the sun facing directly into the fileders eyes.
We get an early lead 2-0 and get them out in a 1-2-3 first inning. We struggle in the second however as a fly ball to center drops as our generally solid center fielder can't see the ball. A follow up fly ball to left field drops as well as the left fielder can't see either as the sun is really very strong and we are soon tied at 2.

We get the lead 3-2 and go to the field there is no eclipse but we are interpreting the sun as did the Zulus, as a bad omen.

We give up yet another fly ball and Charlie our catcher comes out to the mound to assure me things will be fine and to just keep working. As he does that, Marc our first baseman comes over and offers his input

Marc: "Let's eat their gallbladders"

Our third baseman, who was not with us for our history lesson in omens and body organs hears this and also wanders in

John: "why gallbladders, I think we are iron deficient with all this heat and sun let's eat their livers!"

Our shortstop hears this and also feesl a need to weigh in

Paul: Hey fellas, this stuff about eating organs is upsetting my masculine feminine balance. I was up in Sedona doing some altitude training for this tournament and met a couple New Age chicks from California who took me to a vortex to balance my energies. And now I think my masculine and feminine are in order but this talk of organ eating is stressing it.

Charlie: Altitude training? We are playing at sea level.

Paul: I was misinformed

At this point Jeff our second baseman weighed in and had to express his view

Jeff: Wait a minute, if we are eating anything i think we should eat their hearts preferably while beating . If we want to capture their essential warriors then we need to eat their hearts! No one ever said about brave warrior "he has the gallbladder of a lion"

At this point manager Ed Jusino was feeling uncomfortable on the bench wondering what was going on out there and nudged Steve Parsons

Ed: Hey Doc is Dave hurt? what is going on out there?

Doc: he looks fine to me. I don't know what is going on out there

Ed: do me a favor and run out there and see if everything is ok

Doc gets up and jogs to the mound and looks to Charlie to explain what's up

Charlie: we are dealing with a lot of shit out here.....

Marc wants to eat their gallbladders, while Johnny expressed his choices for their livers. Paul is worried his masculine side will overwhelm his feminine side and upset the balance he worked hard to achieve up in the mountains and Jeff thinks hearts are the best option on the menu

Doc: ( nodding in understanding ) Well, The lettuce wrap at PF Chang's is always a good starter

At this point the umpire walked out to disperse us and we went on with the game.

The game turned on us as the sun contributed to about 8 fly balls that fell in and gave them a lead we could not overcome.

So now we have own own Omen. It helps to recall that the Zulu's interpretation of the eclispse as a bad omen was correct . The British reinforeced and came down and crushed the Zulu's.
Let's hope we recover and play well today

2010 Arizona Tourney or "There is no crying in baseball"

After a summer season of games in various men's baseball leagues, the Long Island Athletics journey to Arizona in their quest for a Men's Senior Baseball league (MSBL)Championship.

The Long Island Athletics comprised of players from Connecticut ( Charlie Zunda, Jeff Carroll ,Steve "Doc" Parsons and your faithful correspondent ), Long Island as well as four players from Texas will open the 2010 Arizona MSBL World Series tournament on Monday November 1st at Peoria, Arizona. Peoria is winter home of the San Diego Padres. The complex is beautiful and while you ponder why San Diego would need a "winter home" you can at least feel comforted that they should be in good stead there.

The MSBL World Series in Arizona represents the peak of the season for men's senior baseball. There are various MSBL championships by age groups: 18+, 25+ ,35+,45+,55+,60+ and last but not to be slighted 70+. All together there are about 400 teams that travel to Arizona to compete over the three weeks of tournament action.
In our bracket there are 17 teams in two divisions competing for the championship. We have a 6 game "season" over 4 days which winnows the field to 8 teams who earn the right to play in the playoffs by virtue of their "regular season" performance in the 6 games. This year I think it will take a record of 4-2 to make the playoffs. In the past three trips our teams have made the playoffs but lost to the eventual winner.

Last year we lost to a better team and we were very disappointed.But there is no crying in baseball as Tom Hanks points out to his team ( see it here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWoD2sQ9LiU).
We believe we are taking a stronger team this year and hope the added depth and skills will help us get us closer to the goal of the championship.

Here is a peek at our schedule ( to be able to help set your TV to tape the games)

Regular Season

Mon Nov 1 Game 1 Snowbirds
Mon Nov 1 Game 2 Dodgertown West ( I will start this game on the mound)
Tues Nov 2 Game 3 Taos Solar Sox
Wed Nov 3 Game 4 Arizona Diamondbacks
Wed Nov 3 Game 5 Canadian Playboys
Thus Nov 4 Game 6 Texas Blue Jays

Playoffs
Fri Nov 5 Playoffs (quarter-finals and semi-finals)
Sat Nov 6 Championship Game

Last year, the Dodgertown West team made it to the finals with a 7-1 record only to lose to National Pastime,a team from Chicago. National pastime had beaten your LI A's in the first round of the playoffs. On past performance , the Dodgertown team looks to be among the team to beat in our division of 9 teams. The other division in our bracket has 8 teams and as noted earlier the top 8 from the 17 teams will make the playoffs. We have played the Snowbirds and Taos Solar Sox a few years back when we were competing with the Rhode Island Mavericks and do not expect them to be contending for the championship. The other three teams we are scheduled to play are unknowns for us and we shall just have to wait and see what they have. We are hoping we can handle them and not end up singing with Lady Gaga about being caught in a "Bad Romance".


As we approach game one of the tournament I thought it advisable to consider our strategies and have consulted Sun Tzu in "The Art of War". Sun Tzu advocated "kill one, frighten ten thousand." However, I suspect having a sniper take out the leadoff hitter might be a tad too extreme -even for the World Series. Then again, a sniper might serve to give the #2 hitter some hesitation when stepping in the box to hit.

I think lead-off hitters as well as the rest of us can be thankful Sun Zhu left baseball for something less rigorous like military strategy. We have modified Sun's strategy to "throw strike 1" and "get the lead-off hitter out". And we shall concentrate on executing that plan throughout.


Before the tournament begins optimism reigns as we all the teams come in with high expectations and a sense this is "our year". But baseball is a reality based activity and we will soon find if we are able to make the plays and score some runs. The challenge is very exciting to each of us and I hope we come together as a team. Baseball does not build character as much as it reveals it.
We will have ample opportunity to see what our character is as a team.

But additionally the trip offers the opportunity for a lot of fun. Baseball has it own pace and diverse personalities which opens the window for auxilary entertainment.
A couple years back while playing those Taos Solar Sox I strode to the plate and noticed the catcher was not wearing a chest protector. I mentioned to this the catcher as in :

Dave: "Say... you know you are not wearing a chest protector?"

Catcher : "Yeah... I'm from Nebraska!"

As if that fact alone served to be ample explanation. Of course, the rest of the week anything out of the ordinary was was said to be "because I'm from Nebraska!

Dave: "so Jeff... not having dessert tonight?"

Jeff: "No... I'm from Nebraska!"
( well, it was much funnier out there )


Your faithful correspondent will be on hand to provide a full report for this tourney and hope you enjoy tagging along for the adventure.