FUN BUNCH LOSE AGAIN.
Losing skid hits two games – shakeup rumoured to be in the works.
OTTAWA — It never rains it pours it seems. After a stellar start to the season –winning their first nine games—the Fun Bunch have started sputtering at a most inopportune time. With the league tournament only weeks away, it looks like the Fun Bunch is seemingly headed for another disappointing post-season and the board of directors is not amused. “We have been underachieving the last three years in the playoffs and it can’t continue”, insisted hall of fame alumnus and CEO of the Fun Bunch team, Soren Sorenson haughtily. “It’s not like we weren’t trying for crying out loud”, retorted team captain Alison Hale. “ We played the game with only four guys and the Aquabats were out for revenge tonight”, she continued--clearly stressed over the slump. Once again, the Fun Bunch repeated an all too familiar pattern of spotting the opposition a big lead by failing to produce runs when the opportunity presented itself and stranding base runners in most of the first four innings. One highlight, however was the play of the women and in particular the MVP style hitting and fielding of captain Hale. “I guess her holiday last week did her a world of good”, remarked first baseman Chantal Bujold. “She was placing hits perfectly, and fielding the ball like a pro at second. Sure she misfired when she didn’t go to second to get the lead runner but hey – we got an out didn’t we?”, she added defensively. Catcher Rowena Sams made a spectacular catch to mow down a runner on a relay from the outfield to send a strong message to the Aquabats that the Fun Bunch weren’t going down without a fight. Back up pitching is an area the Fun Bunch will definitely have to improve in if they want to be successful in the post-season. With starting pitcher Steve Saunders at bat and second stringer Scott Saunders on holidays, it turned into a bit of a “clown show” with a parade of wannabe pitchers delighting the crowd with “circus type” pitching making it even more difficult to mount a comeback. “Hey I’m willing to try to hit a pitch on the first or second bounce but when it comes rolling over the plate there’s not much I can do”, said exasperated rover Patti Anderson matter-of-factly. New comer Matt—Richard Bujold’s future brother-in-law—added to the hilarity by showing up in the 7th inning to play outfield and then promptly dropping the first lazy fly that came his way. Clearly not finished impressing his new teammates he then went slipped in the mud and went ass-over-tea-kettle in an attempt to recover the misplayed ball. The Aquabat base runner meanwhile was doubled over in hysteria as they trotted home on a rare four base error. Heading into the ninth inning the score was 19-11 for the Aquabats once again leaving the door open a slight crack for the Fun Bunch to mount a rally. With two runners on, short stop Steve Saunders came to bat. Saunders had missed several opportunities earlier on to close the gap with runners on base due to suspect pitching and did not want a repeat performance. He signaled for yet another pitcher from the dugout and this time Paolo Daros somewhat confusedly strode out to the mound. “Just throw it in like a beach ball”, he calmly advised Daros. Two warm-up pitches later the ball was deftly deposited in deep right field and the Fun Bunch were back in the game 19-14 but that was as close as it got and the Fun Bunch lost their second in a row. “The rumour is one more loss and management is going to start rebuilding the team – just like the Sens”, outfielder Martin Desjardins whispered. Here’s hoping for a positive outcome next Wed.
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