Big Fish Recap 3/31/09 - Live to Fight Another Day

Strike First, Strike Hard, No Mercy. Well that is the Cobra Kai mantra but that is not what we did last Friday night in our biggest game of the season against the Swim N Fun. The stage was set for a big showdown for second place and a clear path to the championship game. The Kai were primed and ready…..but we did not follow through for some reason on the field. I think everyone was gearing up for Neil’s big blowout birthday and the obligatory pie in the face at gators.

Swim N Fun jumped out to an early lead and they never looked back. Not much to write about from the game as once the Swimmers jumped out to their lead it appeared the Kai could not match their intensity level. The Swim knew they were playing one of the most elite teams in the league and they were not about to let that opportunity slip by.

“I wanted this game so bad, I was going to give everything I had and then some” Said the Swami after the game. Well, the Swami did that as he provided some pop for the team offensively and even smacked an in the park home run to try and spark a Cobra Kai rally. Well, unfortunately the team did not respond.

Most of us know the legendary packers Coach Vince Lombardi's famous quote: "Winning isn't everything; it's the only thing".

While he always put that kind of emphasis on winning, most of us don't know that he also said: "If you can't accept losing, you can't win." While we all like to win much more than we like to lose, in order to play and be a part of something greater, we have to be willing to take the risk that we might lose. It has to be accepted that losing is a natural a part of participating and of winning.

Well, the beauty of the Cobra Kai spirit is that we get to live again to fight another day. And that day comes this Friday as we take on our mini-rivals the Goonies. The team will use this loss as a learning tool and grow from it and we will have our chance for revenge in the playoffs.

“There were things said after the game that were tried to use to motivate the team, but when it’s all said and done were a family and the family that plays softball together stays together” Thus, the team will move on from Friday’s nights loss and become stronger together” Said Capt. Tucci after the game.

Well, the team certainly kept their championship pace at Gators as the Kai downed a record breaking 47 pitchers in celebration of Capt. Tucci’ 30th Birthday. Oil Can Spragues even successfully used a 300 lb lineman to sneak up on the Old Man Tucci and to complete the Pie in the Face tradition. Good Times.

I will see You under the Friday Night Lights!

Big Fish Recap 3/24/2010 - SWEEP!

It’s a great night for Softball…..so let’s play two!

The Cobra Kai stood on the precipus of perfection Friday night looking for a sweep to keep their perfect record intact in pursuit of a second Red Bug Lake Championship. The DonJuan was looking forward to taking the field for the first time as a married man and the Kai were looking forward to Striking first and No Mercy!

Oh wait….even in the Big Fish Recap things can go wrong……….Capt. Tucci was called up to perform a government audit and would not be able to make the game, Roundhouse Reger was performing a camp for the little ones and was rumored to be late and the Minister was called to duty 4 hours south in Naples. And……what’s that on the side bar??……..it says the Cobra Kai have one loss???????? Oh wait, that is the forfeit we had to accept so we could attend SuperKoko’s dance off…..I mean Wedding.

Step in the teams elders and leaders to pick up the slack and keep the team on the right page:

Oil Can Spragues was back in this momentous game and refused to let the team walk away from Red bug with anything less than a sweep. “ Adversity can cause some men to break down, others to break records and I just battled my tail off and gave everything to get back on the field with my family the Cobra Kai and there aint no way in hell the Shroomers or the Beaners are going to yank a victory from us” Said Spragues before the game. “

“Ask not what your teammates can do for you, but what you can do for your teammate” the Great Swami said right before the game. I just told the guys a double header is a little like wrestling a gorilla like I did back home in my younger days, You don’t quit when you’re tired, you quit when the gorilla is tired and the gorilla don’t tire down” the Swami said.

Well, whatever they said it must have sparked the Kai as the team jumped out to an 11-0 lead to start off the night against Del Taco. The team then appeared to go into energy conservation mode on the offensive tilt to save their bats for the second game of the double header as we would only post 2 more runs the rest of the game. However, that is all we would need as the Defensive side of the team held strong lead by a huge play in the Outfield by the swami himself. Sully thought the team needed a spark so he baited a del taco hitter to 3rd base and then let the Swami complete one of his patented Swan dive bounce back unleash hell throws home to nail a beaner and end any thoughts of a rally for Del Taco. “ All I saw was a Flash in Center Field, dirt fly up and blood spurt out from the Swami’s knee but then I noticed the ball come hurling immediately out of his hand coming right to home plate and I thought we are going to nail this guy somehow, and that is exactly what we did” Sully said after the game.

The team won the first contest by shutting down Del Taco in the bottom of the 7th to preserve the victory 14-11.

That brought us to the much anticipated match-up with the hot hitting newbie’s the Shroomers. The Shroomers were a solid team but they had one glaring weakness in Right Field. Well, it didn’t take long for the savvy veterans of Cobra Kai to figure it out and attack with relentless precision.

Spragues was carrying a 5-5 hit streak and Elliot blasted 2 huge bombs down to right center. Roundhouse Reger also blasted two down the Right Center way and before you knew the Kai had a 8-1 lead. SuperKoko was sporting his Flash underoos for this game as he was clocked at an amazing 6.4 in the 90 foot dash running the bases with a reckless abandon. The DonJuan picked up right where he left off sliding back into the league lead for On base percentage to make his new wife happy.

The big spark of the night was a new and improved Fig who was coming off an injury plagued year last season but there appeared not to be any lingering effects. Fig reached base on every at bat in the second game, stole two bases and had the play of the night tagging out a shroomer at home plate to seal a victory from another amazing play from the Swami. Johnny Blaze was his usual self patrolling third base making sure no Shroomers got by him on the night.

The Cobra Kai completed the Sweep despite the absence of their field general Capt. Tucci. “It just goes to show you what a team can accomplish when they come together for a united cause” Johnny Blaze said at the post game press conference.

Well, the Team looks to continue their winning ways this Friday Under the Friday Night Lights.

Kluge Chronicles - 3/23/2010

Ok, I know it’s been a while since my last Kluge Chronicle but Johnny just inspired me with that great fire from within him. I’ve seen it personally and you do not want to go there, especially after a few beers and some billiards. Besides, I finally have a few things to talk about. Sadly enough it happens once every so often. If you haven’t noticed my posts it’s because I don’t have anything to say or I randomly state the obvious. But so what, who cares.

I’d first like to talk about the show LOST. Anyone with me? I love this show. I am sad that it is ending but it has to or it will get played out. I like how the writers trick me with the double story line every season. First there are flashbacks, then flash-forward and now they are the bizarro world. I like the bizarro world. I always thought these characters had fucked up lives, which they did and is the reason their characters dragged me into watching the show in the first place but after five years of it I’m at Zen with their new and better lives. Jack is a good son and father. James Ford is a cop! Hurley is a millionaire and happy. Good for him. He is so fat he uses the VCR as a beeper. Bum bum bang!!! Ben is a smart ass Dr. Professor teaching in a high school. I admire Ben. He went to the good side. I always thought he was evil due to circumstance and he has now showed us he is trustworthy. Kate is still the same, running from the law, but it must have something to do with the whole story. I just hope they don’t leave us hanging at the end of the season. Give us all the answers, blow our minds up!

I’m also excited about the baseball season. I love baseball. It’s my favorite sport. I know the players get paid too much and they’ve used steroids etc. But so what, who cares. Football is more exciting and basketball is fun but I love the spring, the Yankees, watching a good game on T.V. and going to the ball park which is expensive especially up in Beantown. I hate the Redsox but I love the sport and I’m living in ground zero of the Redsox Nation. The Yankees are looking good this year. They might go back to back. They dropped some salaries (Matsui and Damon) and picked up smart salaries (Nick Johnson). If you haven’t made it to their new stadium, I suggest you go. It is beautiful! Ok, I’m not playa hating but I been to Fenway. Yes it is amazing and all because it is an old stadium etc, etc. Go to the new Yankee Stadium. It is magnificent. The Redsox will have a new stadium in the future but they have to keep it in the city of Boston. Yes money is the major difference between these two parks but John Henry has some cash too.

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Blaze Is Burning 3/12/10

For starters, where do people get off doing rants during my hiatus?..that sh*t really burns me! Leave it to the professionals. Now with that said, what's all this talk about soccer invading our American sports culture? America is way behind and has been trying to catch up for decades now. The sport is watched all over the world, played all season long and has some of the world's best athletes. Could it be that all you soccerphobes are just bombarded on a daily basis by the sports America dominates? America's Sport, America's Pasttime...the WORLD sport and the Americans are the ones, in a way, discriminating the sport. Why? Because we have never been good at it. Oops, let's not talk about the white elephant. The U.S.A. feels an inherent need to be the best at everything it does and when they can't its as if everyone accepts it right out of the gates. Remember when we beat Russia in hockey? Imagine the U.S.A. winning the next World Cup..that sh*t would blow my mind! The ESPN highlights are never boring and are always in the Top Ten Plays. Just accept that another American sport is in it's offseason and is being kicked to the back of your mind, til next year at least, if there is one anyhow.
Can a president really be assessed this early into his presidency? Seriously, it's not a 9-5 gig or boring routine you can perfect in a few shifts, it's the PRESIDENCY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA! Tell me where one must go to get some training in that field, and don't say in the Senate or Congress. We clearly show through our voting time and time again that your qualifications don't mean nearly as much as whether we like you or not, if you can be a good agent, representative for our country. However or whom ever voted the guy in is irrelevant. He is in and will be for a couple more years. OUR job as Americans is to find a way to fix OUR country while backing OUR leader. We can make OUR country stronger from within or just let it fall apart from the inside out. Gotta get back to Core values. Understood values. Family values. Values that defines us as a Nation, while strengthening the culture we will pass on for generations to come...Or we can just keep arguing about how he sux or how he has changed nothing since being elected while we personally contribute to the downfall of our society by wasting our oxygen.
As far as I am concerned, and that's all that matters, of course, is that the Dojo is for everyone and should not be subject to rules of censorship because some of us view this site as a Man Cave. The Dojo is a Mind-F*ck Experience that encompasses more than just guy stuff. We got politics, movies and rambling nut jobs who get a column and even wonderful wives who actually like to make an appearance once in a while. The Dojo is OUR extended family. Visitors are not subject to any rules but those who post on it are. Respect in the Dojo is a two-way street, always has and always will be. Inappropriate, dumb, not very well-thought out posts will be subject to disciplinary actions to be determined by the Kai's of the Round Table.
Of course rookies make too much. Duh! So does every single person who has a hand in steering this boat of a country. The owners don't care what's in everyone elses pockets at the end of the day just like most of our politicians only care about their own as well. If all those bastards took a slight pay decrease, heck, we could give a lot more to education and health care for those who truly need it. Til then, rookies put people in the seats just like politicians put voters in the booth. Quick fixes and sideshow distractions from the bigger problem is simply how American Business operates. Watch the left hand while the right hand lifts your damn wallet and attention span. Maybe lockouts are what we need to regain focus and to right the train of American sports, to ride this train all the way into the station and make some repairs. Who knows, maybe if we fix some of these problems the cosmic tumblers will fall into place unlocking the door to America's salvation and our path home. To a place where sports were affordable to take a family to and to a place where no matter how much we disagreed, we at least agreed that change is a necessity in life. Without struggle there can be no progress. Maybe one day we can all ride the new Light Rail out of the station and into a new America where sh*t makes sense again. Common Sense. All Aboard!!!
On a lighter note...to heck with rainouts, hangovers, Burger King's that don't participate in the .99 double cheese burger(you know who you are), talking heads on tv, dropped calls(at least 4 times this week), policy makers, people who have no sense of humor, and....dust.

Big Fish Recap 3/3/2010 - Sweep The Leg Johnny!

It’s a great Night for Softball, So let’s Play Two!

With the upcoming nuptials of the DonJuan Digler the Cobra Kai had the distinct privilege to continue their winning streak and look to inch closer to 1st place by going for a sweep Friday Night. The Kai were coming off one of their best offensive outbursts in team history and were looking to pick up right where they left off.

The Kai wasted no time when facing their first victim of the night Los Sparks. We jumped out to an early lead and once the bats got moving they caught fire once again. The Swami himself the Big E was not taking prisoners on this night and wanted to let Red Bug Lake know the Cobra Kai are for real and a force to reckon with.

“I noticed the Sharks were eyeing us up and could sense a feeling of trepidation when they saw the team we assembled this year, and I just wanted to give them a taste of things to come and let them know were not backing down nor conceding anything to them” said the Swami after a two game beat down he laid on the league stats books. In the first game the Swami was en feugo with his sidewinder assassin style swing that mercilessly attacked the Right Center field combo leading to an in-the park homerun, a triple, and blast over the Right Center Field Wall that still has not landed. “I told the Swami to lay it on the line tonight and let’s let the rest of the league know what the Cobra Kai are about, and that is exactly what he did” Capt. Tucci remarked to reporters after the game.

Roundhouse Reger was also back in clean-up after a one game hiatus and he didn’t disappoint with his power backing up the Swami and knocking one over the fence himself. The Los Sparks were pretty much done after 2 innings of our bats scorching them until the game was called in the 5th.

This brought us up against another top tier team in the league that was supposed to be another test for us as we squared off against Tetra Tech in the second game of the night. The Techies were feeling confident and were quite chatty with their trash talk and were eager to show they are the force to be reckoned with this year not the Cobra Kai.

However, that would not be the case as the Kai were somehow even more dialed in for the second game then the first. Capt. Tucci and his team of roving bandits in the outfield were not going to budge even an inch for the Techies and the Captain had the play of the night as he dove twelve feet in the air to back a beautiful sliding catch in the outfield to put an end to a tetra tech rally in the 3rd. Johnny Blaze and Brett Favre patrolled the infield and were also eating up everything hit their way.

Koko was wearing his telepathic underoos this past Friday night and was predicting everything his second baseman was going to say and Koko also knew he was going to have to dig out some hard throws from his SS to complete a couple key Double plays and that is exactly what he did. “ I just knew there was a double play coming before the hitter even stepped into the box as I was having visions all night, but was not sure they would come true because I saw Sully ripping two fierce line drive singles and until that came to fruition I was not sure If I was hallucinating or seeing the future” Koko said after the game.

Sully’s back plate mate Figs was also in full force staring down any potential Tech base thief’s and even gunning one down and letting them know not to try next time. The Kai’s defense was in full "wax on and wax off" effect and only allowed the Techies 2 runs off a an early home run blast that proved to be the only runs we would allow all night to the frustrated techie bats.

The only question left was if the Donjuan Digler would end the night after our double header as the league leader in OBP% and enter into matrimony as the league leader as his bride asked him to do. DonJuan had a solid night but was robbed on two at-bats as the Techies crafty pitcher was tossing some nasty curve balls. However, on the opposite field the 2nd place hitter went 1-3 sliding into a tie with Donjuan for league leader in On Base %. Thus, DonJuans bride gets her wish as she gets set to marry RedBug Lakes league leader this Weekend as the Kai’s have a much deserved by to attend the wedding.

Needless to say the Kai celebrated their Sweep in style at Gators as the Big Daddy Gutierrez was in town and the team was serenaded with our team song………”Baby Got Bat” by newly minted team singer Spencer. The Kai have off this Friday but look to get back to their winning ways and inch one step closer to our showdown with the Sharks for league dominance next Friday with a match-up with Kai wannabees the Goonies.

See You in Two Weeks under the Friday Night Lights!