KEEP LOOKING, SON; WE'RE DOWN THERE SOMEWHERE

Well, it wasn’t the best of nights for the old Pen & Pencil Club softball team, as we lost 13-7 to the Franklin Institute on the beaches of Edgeley 4. It was our first loss to FI since the team fissured following the 2011 season. Previously, against this version of the Beating Hearts, we were 3-0 with a combined score of 46-16.

All that history was meaningless on Wednesday, however, as we fell behind early and were unable to get up. The Franklinites made the plays they needed to make and found the holes in our defense and potholes in the infield and won it fair and square.

We had our chances but were undone by a five-run first inning for the Institutionalists and then a seven-spot hung on us in the third when Franklin batted around. I meant to ask Buddy the last time FI batted around, but was afraid to hear the answer.

By the end of the fifth inning, after having trailed by 10, we struggled back to trail by six, but neither team

Yeah, Candy snared it.

scored in the last two innings. In fact, we held Franklin to just one run in its final four at-bats, but, alas, the damage had been done and it was time to drink beer and drive the car across the field. We even gave them the old, 1-2-3-Franklin after the game, obviously trying for our second straight Lady Byng Sportsmanship Jerkoff trophy.

For the record, since I keep these things and the league archives ain’t what they used to be, Franklin Institute was 2-33 in league play since Whitmarsh and Ventrola took the cool kids and went away. Both previous wins were over the Constitution Center, one in 2012 and one in 2013. Both of the wins over NCC were by more than six runs, however, so we’ve got that going for us.

Fortunately, because of the unbalanced schedule this season, we don’t see the Pirates of the Parkway again,

Even taking out their girls with body blocks didn't help.

having learned our lesson well enough.

Game details, you say? Thought you’d never ask.

Three hits for the Management, two each for losing hurler Chris Yasiejko, Jon Snyder and George Miller. We had just 14 hits total in our seven at-bats and brought four or fewer to the plate in four of those innings. Not good enough by a bunch.

The Franklins hit the ball up and down the lineup. I’m not going to try to separate the hits from the errors, but they all counted and 10 of the 12 in the Franklin lineup scored at least one run. That was annoying.

Ah, well. Onward. Next week we get to play the spinoff Franklinites, those Cajun dogs of Catahoula and it would be a nice symmetry to lose to one version of the FI team and then beat the supposedly better version the following week.

That game, Wednesday at Edgeley 3, is the rescheduling of our opener, which we graciously moved so that Nick could go to the Phillies opener. Just speaking for myself, I’ve had it up to here with being gracious for a while.

When all else fails, blame the scorekeeper. That book can't be right, can it? (Photos by Jon Snyder)