Jackson's Baseball Page
Major League - Spring 2012
May 17th, 2012. Jackson made his 1st start at
pitcher. I thought he did great against a really, really good hitting
team. He made a good out at first too later in the game. It was
another loss, but I swear the kids play better each game. We have another
game tomorrow night, so we'll see how it goes.
May 5th, 2012. We were out of town for this game, but I do have the score, a 22-5 loss to the Rockies.
May
3rd, 2012. For the second time this week, Jackson pitched, this time
for two innings on his birthday against a very good Franklin Cardinals team.
We lost 11-1, but the team played well, made a lot of solid outs and only lost
on some good hitting by the Cards and some routine errors that plagued us in the
3rd and 5th innings. Jackson had another really solid game, both at 1st
and on the mound. He only gave up 1 run in the 4th inning, struck out one
batter and walked none. He walked one in the 5th and gave up two runs,
both on fielding errors. The whole team continues to get better on
defense, with fewer and fewer errors though. The Cards beat us 28-1
earlier in the season, so this game's score was a big step in the right
direction. Our hitting still has a ways to go, but hopefully we will get
there by the end of the season.
May 2nd, 2012. We were tied 5-5 after 3 innings and playing pretty good ball. Jackson caught at least 3 pop flies on 1st base, fielded a ball solo and ran it back to 1st, plus he scored for the first time this season. Unfortunately the game slipped away in the 4th and they lost 17-5 in the 5th inning.
April 30th, 2012. Jackson played 1st base for 3
innings, then pitched the complete 4th inning in an 18-0 loss to the top ranked
Beulah Royals. He had another solid performance on the mound, throwing
strikes, walking one, striking out one, throwing one runner out at 1st.
April 23rd, 2012. The team closed out the first half
of the season with a well played 14-4 loss to the Westfield Orioles. Jackson
played all 5 innings at 1st base and had a solid outing, including a couple of
foul balls that he chased down for outs. Their record may be 0-7, but
across the board the players are improving and we are getting a lot of outs that
we were missing early in the season.
A classic moment happened before the game. Jackson and
I arrived in Westfield right at 6:00 for the 6:30 game and discovered that
Jackson had stepped into the van without grabbing his cleats. He was
wearing socks with no shoes at all. Amy came to the rescue before the game
started, but he had to take infield on 1st base without shoes. Our very
own Shoeless Joe Jackson.
April 19th, 2012. A 12-2 loss to the White Plains Pirates. It was a well played game by our team and I thought they bounced back from the Cubs loss nicely. I believe it was our best pitching to date, split evenly between Cory and Mason. Jackson played 1st base for the first time this season and I thought he did great. He struck out once and was walked once. We were down 9-2 at the top of the 5th with bases loaded and Christian at the plate. Christian's hit went to short they made the play at 2nd. We continue to get one hit from being able to go 6 innings. Sooner or later it will happen. The kids were positive, the parents have remained positive. All things considered, I thought it was a good night.
April 16, 2012. The toughest loss of the season. We played the Franklin Cubs and, on paper, they appeared to be a team in a situation similar to ours. We were 4-4 at the end of the 1st inning, but lost 16-5 in the 5th. It was discouraging to the players, coaches and parents alike, but I think we may have put too much pressure on ourselves. They are still learning and improving. My sister came and took some great photos. Jackson played all innings at 2nd base.
April
14, 2012. A 13-3 loss to the Beulah Royals giving us an 0-4 record on
the season. The kids continue to
play better and this was the first game that went beyond 4 innings. They
held their opponent scoreless for another inning. Jackson has been playing
well on defense. I really think that the team has the potential to get
better and to compete.
April
12, 2012. The Rockies beat us 16-2. The first inning was tough as we
went three up and three down, while they scored 11 runs. But the team had
a really good 3rd inning and ended on an up-swing. Christian hit our first
home run of the season, sending the ball over the left-field fence in the 3rd,
knocking Cory home in the process. Then on defense, Jackson fielded a pop-fly,
followed by Corey and Corbin's 3-5 double play to hold the Rockies scoreless.
April
9, 2012. A brutal 28-1 loss to the Franklin Cardinals. Their sole run
was off a walk with bases loaded. The boys did have more offensive
opportunities this game and continue to make some really good plays. But
it is still early in what is a learning experience for most of the team.
Jackson played 2nd base for the first three innings, then made his pitching
debut in the 4th. He pitched a complete inning, walked one batter, allowed
2 runs (which was fantastic considering 26 runs were allowed in the first three
innings) and threw a runner out at first after fielding a short roller.
The other two outs were made on throws to 1st by Kendall who was playing 2nd.
On offense Jackson was walked twice. He has gotten on base during all 4
at-bats he has had this season. Click
here for a video of J on the mound.
April 2, 2012. The White Sox lost 11-0 to the
Reds. It was the first baseball game ever for three of the players on a
team that fields no returning Major league players from last spring. Only
two of the players have been on a team together before. All things
considered, I thought the team performed pretty good. Jackson got on base
during both of his at-bats. He was walked in the 2nd inning, then stole
both 2nd and 3rd. He was hit by a pitch in the 4th, which loaded the
bases, but unfortunately all three base runners were left stranded.