Playing Baseball once Again

Once again i am strapping on the spikes to play ball. This time i will be playing with my friends on a Babe Ruth team. our team name is the Wild Screaming Rapta's. our mascot is a huge Raptor painted red we are nothing less than amazing. yesterday was our first game and we beat the team into submission 17-1, i went 1-3 with a walk, stolen base, RBI, and a shot and a half to right center off the wall.

Our team has great chemistry and we all get along and don't mind sitting the bench to let other kids get in the game. we all already have nicknames, mine is lumberjack because i am a powerhouse batting clean-up in the lineup.

One of the major reasons that i joined the team was because now that i am an umpire i wanted to see what it would be like from both sides of the plate. i want to see how other umpires call their strike zone and how they react to certain plays so that i can adapt to what i see and do it in my games. and i really respect the umpires now because some of them just do it for fun and give up their free time to be there.

I think this team will really help me with umpiring and in reverse it will make me a better hitter because i will be seeing balls and strikes all the time.

From Reffing to Umpiring?

Reffing wrestling has been my job for the last few months but now that it has come to an end i found a new job. i am now an umpire for baseball. i really thought there was going to be a major adjustment but it really is easier than my last job.

Here are the pro's and con's for both jobs

Wrestling Referee
Con's
Every call you make is a judgment call and it is hard for all referees to be consistent with their style of calls.
You have to be very mobile and at the same time you have to stay away from the action, so basically you are running the whole time.
Even when you make the right call, you get fans that heckle you.
Pro's
100 dollars a match cannot be beaten by any other sporting official job.
i wrestled in High School, so it was really easy to adapt to the rules.
i know most of the coaches so i really don't get bothered with my calls.

Baseball Umpire
Con's
It gets hot with all the equipment on and you roast out on the field.
I don't Know any coaches so i really hear it on the calls.
You get hit with the ball a lot. Now i feel bad for Major League Umpires.
Pro's
There are specific rules for every part of the game the only judgment is fair foul safe and out.
You also get paid very well and before the games even start.
It is so easy to get into the game and you can have a lot of fun and time flies.
You don't have to be very mobile.

Takedown Autism

Every year Msgr. Farrell sponsors a wrestling tournament in the last week in April for autism. It is a special tournament that helps raise awareness about autism and raises money to help find a cure. This isn't just any tournament, its a take down tournament dedicated to Dillon Braus.

A take down tournament is a modified rules tournament where you only get points for taking the opponent down. there is no mat wrestling.

Dillon is the son of one of the coaches for the Farrell Wrestling Team Jason Braus. Jay as we call him is a hard working man who gives up his time after work to come down to farrell and share in his wrestling experience. he really cares about the guys on the team and the sport. Dillon has autism and we try to help Jay as much as we can when he brings Dillon to practices.

So as a tribute to his son and the sport of wrestling, Jay started the Takedown Autism fund. Every year we sponsor a tournament for Dillon and we try to raise money for the fund. This tournament has become very popular and it gets larger and larger every year. The whole wrestling community comes together for Jay to support his cause and i know that this is worth mentioning in my blog because it is a great thing to support and i want to get this out in the open for all other wrestling fans to know about.

The tournament was very successful this year and even though they had it inside, because usually thay have it outside but because of weather had it inside, there was a really great turnout and i know it made Jay Happy.

Last Season at Yankee Stadium

new stadium above

old stadium above

This is the last year that the yankees will play at yankee stadium. next year they will move to their new stadium across the street... also called yankee stadium. The new stadium will replicate the old stadium from when it was originally built almost 90 years ago. the field will be the same dimensions and everything else will pretty much be the same.

then why are they building a new stadium. well the old one is very old and has gone under renovations, but it is still really old and not up to par. the new stadium will bring a fresh look and it will fix many errors that the old stadium had. for example, the interior where the vendors sell food will be enlarged and there will be more suites and boxes put in for season ticket holders.

the yankees will no doubt have to adjust somewhat to the new stadium because of the change in wind. this could prove to be very hard because it is weird to change the way you are playing. i dont think it will be to hard because the yankees are the best team in baseball and i am sure there bats wont have a hard time finding the bleachers.

New York Yankees

i know this is off topic, however before wrestling my first love was baseball and i am a huge yankees fan, and for the rest of the school semester i will be writing bout baseball and the yankees. i love to play, watch, and live baseball during the season. every year i am very optimistic but i think this year might be the year when the yankees can finally win the world series and bring it back to new york city.

the yankees have the best offense in the mlb. when you go through the lineup there are no sure outs because everyone can hit and most can hit for power. our 4 best players by far are alex rodriguez, derek jeter, melky cabrera, and jason giambi.

Alex Rodriguez is the MVP of the american league. he can hit, field, run, and comes in in the clutch. he is the best player on the team and with a-rod at third base and batting clean up, the yankees will have no trouble scoring runs and making great plays.

Derek Jeter, Mr. November himself is back again in prime condition ready to start off where he left off last year. Jeter is also a triple threat on the field, on the bases, or at the plate. Jeter doesnt hit with as much power as a-rod, but definitely leaves it all on the line every game and plays like its the world series everyday.

Melky Cabrera is one of the new yankees and plays center field. he has a cannon of an arm and runners are scared to challenge him on the bases. he is a decent hitter and is very fast. Jason Giambi has the most power on the team and is able to put the ball over the fence at any time. he bats behind a-rod so he gets great pitches to hit and will also bring the yankees many runs this year.

Overall the yankees are a great team and only have trouble with there last 2 starters so this year will be a great year for baseball fans because the yankees are at full stride and are gunning for a championship.

NCAA Mens Finals

Congrats to the guys who won Nationals this year. the tournament was really tough with a lot of good guys this year many of the top 8 in each division already placed in the tournament or won it last year. The top 8 guys are now All Americans and get an exclusive invitation to tryout for the Men's National/Olympic Team.

The Winners were: 125 Angel Escobedo , 133 Scott Coleman, 141 J Jaggers, 149 Brent Metcalf, 157 Jordan Leen, 165 Mark Perry, 174 Keith Gavin, 184 Jake Varner, 197 Phil Davis, 285 Dustin Fox.

Congrats gentleman you really deserved it. Too bad the mass media doesn't care about real sports that demand hard work and excellence even perfection. they tend to stick with the basketball tournament all march long and don't even show other championships that deserve mentioning like hockey for example. I am really disappointed that it isn't on television a lot because it is a great sport to watch. don't worry guys true fans know who you are and appreciate what you do for the sport.

Creative Nonfiction

Creative Nonfiction

Creative Nonfiction is a style of writing that blends the literary techniques of fiction with the truth of nonfiction. This style of writing is very interesting and it makes the book become more real. Using this style of writing the author can write more of an interesting view or spin on the nonfiction.

This new genre of writing, you have more freedom to bend the book. It gives the writer a way to express the novel their way while still saying the truth. With more freedom you can make the book more interesting and get the reader more involved into the story. The author uses creative nonfiction to make the factual parts of the book more interesting for the reader. Using this method of writing you are freer to write.

A great example of creative nonfiction would be John McPhee’s “The Curve of Binding Energy”. He uses a true biography of Ted Taylor to explain the dangers of nuclear technology. He makes the terminology easy to understand and read. He also makes a dull subject interesting for the common people who really don’t know much about it. This book is proof that creative nonfiction works and it helps the reader stay into the book longer.

By using creative nonfiction, McPhee can get his point across better than if he placed an article in a magazine or newspaper. By using the creative nonfiction he made the subject easier to understand and read.

Creative nonfiction is sort of like journalism. You write about a subject just like an interview. You’re telling a truthful story about a certain person or thing, and explaining to the reader what you got out of that interview. The difference between creative nonfiction and journalism is that with journalism you are asking the questions but with the creative nonfiction you are observing the object and writing about what you see. This makes it more interesting because creative nonfiction takes the story and makes it more appealing.

I see this genre as a tool for young writers to use when they need to write about a certain subject. It forces you to become more informed about the subject you are writing about. If you are more informed with the subject you know more about it and can thus write a better paper. This would be a great tool for me personally because sometimes I find that I can’t write much about any subject.

In conclusion, by using creative nonfiction the writer can find it easier to get to the point and get that point across. It makes the reader more interested in the subject and it helps him or her understand it better. It helps you find a way to express the truth in ways that make the reader and writer connect. Creative nonfiction is easier to write and easier to understand.