You couldn’t ask for a better weekend to host our Annual Opening Tournament!  The weather was warm and sunny, the beer was cold and icy, and I don’t know about you but I certainly enjoyed Smokin’ Tony’s manning the Bar-B-Que!

Out on the diamonds we had some pretty good ball to match the conditions …

Elite Division

With 6 teams in the division, we created 2 brackets for the initial round-robin and then seeded the teams based on these results.  Friar Tuck’s and Sharks came out of their respective brackets with unbeaten records, allowing them a free pass to the Semi-Finals while the other teams battled it out for their chance to move on.  Royals upset the Sharks in their Semi while Friar Tucks took control of theirs to advance to the Final.  Friar Tucks proved to be too much for Royals to handle and took the Final.

Tier I

A group of 9 teams in Tier I meant splitting into 3 brackets for the initial round-robin and seeding the teams based on these games.  Mudcats & Havana Blast went unbeaten in their brackets and Coldwell Banker advanced out of theirs with the advantage in the tie-breaker.  That left all the other teams to take the more circuitous route through the division and the chance to meet more of their opponents for the season.  DDG upset the higher seeded Contenders, Pour House upset Lyon Financial (again, the higher seed) and Here 2 There Freight won over Untouchables – all to advance into the Quarter-Finals (can you call it that when there are 3 teams to advance?).

The teams who were allowed the free pass into this round all managed to advance, so I guess there’s something to be said for winning early and relaxing in the beer tent!  Havana Blast had the best record of the remaining teams and thus got another chance to sit while Coldwell Banker faced Mudcats in the Semi.  With a huge comeback in the final inning, Coldwell Banker beat up on Mudcats and moved on to the Final.  Coldwell Banker started right where they left off, posting a whack of runs to start the game.  Blast battled back, but the hole they were in proved too much to dig out of as Coldwell Banker cruised to the championship!

Tier II

A 10 team division is a little different to try to schedule, so teams ended up with a bit of a mixed bag for opponents.  After all teams played their preliminary games they were reseeded and the top 4 got the chance to move on.  Doogie’s (who looked suspiciously like Kittens!) and Got The Runs both went unbeaten in the preliminary games to earn the top seeds, while Reds and Master Batters edged out the other 2-1 teams (LongShots and Loose Cannons) based on their better +/- record.

Doogie’s managed to continue their success, winning their game against Master Batters, but Got The Runs sputtered (sorry!) as Reds took their game and the chance at the Final.  Reds didn’t have enough left in the tank and Doogie’s came back to the beer tent as winners!

Masters 45

These rebels have always liked to do things their own way, and the Opening Tourney is no exception.  With all their games happening on Saturday, they came out to the park with the main intent being to meet their opponents for the coming season.  They played a round-robin, drank some beers together back at the tent and had fun – and never reported any results at all throughout the day.  THIS is why we have the Opening Tourney!

Beer Fridge

And the winner is … FRANZ from Havana Blast!

Congratulations to all the winners!

And Thank You for your support.

Opening Day is fast approaching, and it’s time for a little refresher course on the way things work in our little world.

The Home Team

• Is responsible for putting out the bases and lining the diamond.
• Is responsible for returning the bases to the bunker at the end of the games and replacing the plugs in the ground fixtures.
• Is responsible for turning on and off the lights.
• Must supply a new game ball and a good (umpire’s call) 2nd ball.

The Winning Team

• Is responsible for reporting the game results within 72 hrs. (Submit Scores link on right or email: scores@rcmspl.slopitchcentral.ca)

In Case of Rain

• All teams are to report to the diamond for their scheduled game, unless games have previously been cancelled by the City or by the League Executive.
• All teams must therefore check the Sportsfield Status page (City of Guelph link on the right) to make sure the diamonds have not been shut down for the night by the City.
• If the Executive makes the call, the team rep will get a call or email from an Exec member and the rep will be responsible for spreading the news to his team.
• We will do whatever we can to ensure that cancellations by the Exec also get posted here on the website.

In looking at the forecast for our Opening Day, it looks like there is a likelihood things will get wet.  Please keep these pointers in mind when preparing for your game.

 Good Luck, everyone – let’s have a Great Season of ball!

Due to circumstances beyond our control, we have to change the date of our April meeting to April 24th at 7:00 pm.

The co-ed league has the room booked and will be handing out their stuff at the same time. This will be a meeting to simply drop off your remaining dues, pick up your scorebooks, balls and keys.

I took the e-mail list from the last sign in sheet, so if I missed anyone, please let me know and I will add them to the distribution list.

Sorry for the short notice,

Jon