No Surprise as DPS fails to Show Up

CAPS no-shows, forfeits game. Tran walks-off with a homer in split-squad scrimmage.
By Bob Loblaw, Voice Staff Writer
June 25, 2007

LOS ANGELES, CA. — The Marauders (2-2) made their way back up to .500, but it wasn't anything to write home about.

Three starting players were unavailable for the highly-anticipated match-up between MAPP and the undefeated group from CAPS. Another player was sick, two more were returning from the disabled list, and to further complicate things, there were pre-game squabbles over assigned positions in the field. It didn't sound like a formula for success, as much as a recipe for ruin.

Still, after auditioning back-up players at first and third base for two consecutive weeks, the Marauders were prepared for a hard-fought game. "I was ready. We practiced long and hard before the game and we were ready to take [CAPS] on. It was my first game, and I felt great about playing at third," said player/co-owner Binh Tran.

Unfortunately, Tran's first official game ended in disappointment as CAPS (2-1) failed to show for the meeting. The match was officially called a forfeit at 6:20pm, five minutes after game time, when not even a single player from CAPS arrived to take the field.

Starting first baseman Jairo Delgado was more than just a little disappointed. "I wanted revenge on DPS. I wanted to stick it in their faces when we won." Asked to elaborate on what he meant by revenge, Delgado got a bit embarrassed but then revealed that he had once had an altercation - a "miscommunication" he called it - involving DPS.

"Back when I was an undergraduate working at the USC Bookstore," Delgado remembers, "I was going to do some inventory for my boss when he told me to grab a pen from the shelf before heading down to the materials storage area." As Delgado recollects, "When I exited the Bookstore to head down to the basement a DPS officer accosted me and asked me if I had anything in my pocket. I said 'no' and that's when he handcuffed me for 'stealing' the pen!"

"I tried to explain the situation, but my boss was out to lunch. They made me watch the surveillance tapes and then put me in a holding area until my boss arrived to clear me. For six years I've wanted payback, and they didn't even show up!"

Nadia Barosy, who took back her position at second after a week on the DL, was equally annoyed with CAPS ' inability to make a scheduled game. "I wanted to play. My leg felt great and I was back at 100%." The feisty Barosy also described to the paper how she really wished to beat CAPS; however some of her words were unfit to print. Needless to say, the forfeiture stirred up a variety of strong emotions and equally strong language.

Not everyone was upset by the forfeiture, though. "I was excited that they didn't show up, " said catcher Meghan McKenna. "It meant more fun time and more practice for us. I prefer it much more than a real game situation." Asked if the automatic win had anything to do with her feelings McKenna smiled, saying, "Well there's that too."

But, hurt feelings or not, the Marauders made the best use of their time - and the open field - to play an intra-squad scrimmage. The team was split with eight defensive players a piece with Shawn Matsumoto playing designated catcher. A three-run per inning rule was put into affect by manager Neil Teixeira to ensure a competitive game.

It ended up being exactly what Teixeira had expected, with the home team coming up in the bottom of the final inning trailing by one run. With two out and two on, Binh Tran came up to bat after having doubled in the first inning and then flying out twice in later innings. The away team shaded towards left and played back, making sure to keep the ball in front of them.

But Tran was determined to cash in the runners, sending a deep fly ball out into right-center that went rocketing past both fielders. By the time the ball was returned to the infield Tran had crossed the plate and the home team had come from behind to win it on the walk-off home run by the third baseman. Players commented to Tran, "It's a good thing we didn't play a game, because we still have you as our secret weapon!"

After the game, team members gathered to discuss their performance. McKenna commented, "I am really impressed with level of competition we showed out there against ourselves. Everyone still had a good time. And it didn't hurt that my team came out ahead!"

Others were a little more down on themselves. Barosy wasn't feeling right out in the field, despite her improved physical status. "I just wasn't in my groove. My hand-eye coordination was off." Strangely, Barosy had a very good practice before game time; however her on-field performance was "something else," according to her. "It could be age," she said sarcastically, "24 is pretty old."

However the players want to look at their individual performance, the Marauders, as a team, are doing just fine at .500 with one more game left to play before their July 14th date with destiny at the USC Summer Softball Tournament.

The MAPP Marauders pose for a picture after Monday's scrimmage at Dedeaux Field.

-Photo credit, Doris Pease (click for a high-res image)

Marauders come up Short in Slugfest

Bats come alive with 6 extra-base hits, 9 runs. Avatars shut out Marauders in last three frames for win.
By Bob Loblaw, Voice Staff Writer
June 18, 2007

LOS ANGELES, CA. — Monday night's contest between the MAPP Marauders and the ICT Avatars was a lot less about the leather and plenty more about the 'ping'.

The guys 'n' gals in gray broke out the bats for twenty-two hits in seven innings, sprinkling in a trio of triples and an equal number of doubles. Team manager Neil Teixeira commented on the offensive production saying, "It was great to see everyone come up to the plate, stay focused, and just keep getting on base. We were stringing together some great runs and staying aggressive on the base-paths, which really helped us keep up with a good team like the Avatars."

Indeed, this was surely the Marauders' best challenge to date, facing the highest-ranked team in the division. The ICT Avatars (3-0) have yet to lose a game this season, and have won all of their games by more than three runs. However, yesterday's meeting gave them some trouble through the first four innings, when the Marauders were neck-and-neck and looked to break the game wide open with a four-run fourth inning.

But the Avatar's never doubted their own ability and came back, producing five runs in the bottom of the fourth to take a one run lead. After that, they never looked back, scoring two in the fifth and one in the sixth to finish out the game over the Marauders with a 13-9 victory.

Still, there are some members of the Marauders that didn't really buy into the Avatars' mystique. "For a team that's undefeated," said Linda Taing, "they should know that a bunt is an automatic out!" The play that Taing is referring to struck a sour note between the two sides, and occurred when a female member of the Avatars chop-bunted a ball up along the third-base line to move the runner at first.

The entire Marauders defense proclaimed that the batter was out and that the runner needed to go back to first. Yet, the Avatars' pitcher tried to argue that the bunt was a full swing. Newcomer Carly Paoli sarcastically commented from left-field, "Hey, if that was a legal swing we could do that ALL DAY!" In the end, the play was ruled an out with the runner unable to advance. Taing remarked of the situation, "Maybe there should be a - what do you call them? - UMPIRE to say who's out and who's not because there was a bunch of disputes."

In fact, tensions did run a little high between the squads at certain moments. Third baseman Jared Laux had two run-ins with lady Avatars while trying to make some physical plays. "The biggest thing that hurt," he said, "was letting my team down at the plate, not getting punched in the face or chop-blocked by the girls on the opposing lineup." Asked to elaborate, Laux continued: "Look, I can come up with a lot of excuses about the sun bothering me at the plate and in the field, but really they just hit the ball hard and played equally hard on the base-paths. Still, I think they're a dirty team. I'm lucky I didn't get cleated."

Laux made a dangerous play tracking down a fouled pop-fly in front of the Avatars' dugout. On the second pitch of the at-bat, the ball was skied and began to trail wide of third. Unaware of the count, Laux locked in on the ball and began moving to make the out; however the same Avatar that had chop-bunted for an out earlier in the game interfered with Laux's play by crouching down and covering her head, effectively taking the third baseman out at the knees.

"I apologized to her after the incident," said Laux. "I didn't realize it was the second pitch and that the batter was automatically out on the foul ball. But get this, she didn't even care about my apology. She gave me a bunch of attitude saying I was more concerned about the ball than running her over. I was pretty sure we were playing a game, not practicing earthquake safety drills."

Eventually, things settled down and the Marauders worked on making outs and keeping the game close. Outstanding plays were made in the outfield this time around with Josh Gebelein, Javier Andre, Paoli, and Teixeira all recording put-outs on well-hit fly-balls. Yet, while the outfield seemed drastically improved, the left half of the ever-steady infield broke down in the later innings when the Marauders needed to keep the runs off the board. The Avatars were the recipients of 3 additional runs in fifth and sixth innings, sticking the Marauders with the task of coming up with four runs to tie the game.

The Marauders only late scoring opportunity came in the top of the seventh with one away. Shortstop Allison Adamovic, who had singled and was on first base, came charging hard around third base on the double hit by August Cockroft, only to be tagged out inches from the plate. "It was disappointing to have been shut down in the later innings after displaying such a potent offense," Teixeira said. "Next week, we'll have some of the defensive issues fixed and come out strong again. We've played better each successive week and the team is really gelling on offense, so there's a lot of positives to look at despite the loss."

Stats from Monday, June 18th --- ICT Avatars vs. MAPP Marauders

Name	Batt. %	Slug. %		At-Bats	Hits	1B	2B	3B	HRs	K	RBI	Runs
Adamovic	0.500	1.250		4	2	1	2	0	0	0	1	1
Andre	0.500	0.500		2	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
Burnop	1.000	1.000		2	2	2	0	0	0	0	1	0
Caldwell	0.000	0.000		2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Chan	1.000	1.000		2	2	2	0	0	0	0	1	1
Cockroft	1.000	2.000		3	3	1	1	1	0	0	0	1
Gebelein	1.000	1.000		2	2	2	0	0	0	0	1	1
Laux	0.000	0.000		3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Matsumoto	0.500	0.500		2	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
McKenna	0.667	0.667		3	2	2	0	0	0	0	1	0
Paoli	0.500	2.500		4	2	1	0	3	0	0	2	1
Pease	0.000	0.000		4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Taing	0.500	0.500		4	2	2	0	0	0	1	0	1
Teixeira	1.000	1.500		2	2	1	1	0	0	0	0	2
Nguyen	0.500	4.500		2	1	0	0	3	0	0	1	1

Cockroft cycles, Marauders roll past All-Stars

Rehearsal pays off for Marauders. First baseman puts on a show.
By Bob Loblaw, Voice Staff Writer
June 11, 2007

LOS ANGELES, CA. — After a controversial first week of action, the Marauders looked like a team on a mission in their second game against the Annenberg All-Stars.

First baseman August Cockroft was locked-in the entire game, going 4-4 and hitting for the cycle, while collecting three RBI. Asked if he knew that the cycle was on the line during his last at-bat, Cockroft responded, "I was just trying to stay focused, get a nice inside-out swing on the ball and do the best for my team. Arr!" Teammate Kevin Chan certainly knew what was at stake as he motioned to Cockroft to head home from the sidelines, jumping and yelling "You just hit for the cycle!"

"I could definitely feel the intensity coming from the team. They were going to be damn sure they didn't give away a win," said manager Neil Teixeira. The pirate-clad crew certainly exhibited a palpable aura of determination and could be heard yelling "Arr!" in unison throughout the game.

It was that determination, and a growing confidence in themselves, which propelled the Marauders to a 7-6 victory over the Annenberg All-Stars and their first win of the young season.

After the game Rachael Caldwell noted that "every time someone would yell 'Arr!' the entire team would spontaneously join in and keep it going. It was really fun and I think it intimidated the opposing team."

If it did intimidate the All-Stars, they did their best not to show it. The seasoned team, which has played in the USC Summer Softball league in previous years, scrapped together their fair share of hits and a respectable six runs.

Trailing by one run in the bottom of the sixth inning, the All-Stars had a runner on second with two outs. However, the final out of the inning was made when Teixeira, playing up on the batter, blocked a slowly-hit infield grounder and made the throw to first from his knees. "All I kept thinking was 'don't sail the ball over first base.' Luckily, August is money in the bank."

In fact, great defensive plays were in abundance for the Marauders. Third baseman Jared Laux made an incredible, leaning dive for a ball smoked up the line and stole what surely would have been a extra-base hit. "It was a SportsCenter grab," said teammate Patty Trinidad. Newcomer Allison Adamovic was no slouch at shortstop either, spearing a line drive that would have buzzed her ear. For a player that came fresh off the bench, she made it look easy.

A huge, four-run, fifth inning for the Marauders ended up being the difference in the game. That inning alone saw three-quarters of the 12-person line-up come to the plate. At one point the Marauders had five consecutive hits before giving up an out.

A new defensive strategy, cooked up the day of the game, also played an important part in the team's victory. The skipper gave credit to Shawn Matsumoto and Andrew Burnop for helping develop the unique alignment, but asked that this reporter not reveal the exact positioning of the players. On whether or not it worked exactly as planned the team was mum, but you could read a sense of satisfaction on eveyone's faces.

Teixeira was pleased, but determined to stay focused saying, "I couldn't be happier with the team's progression and improvement from one week to the next. We've still got a way to go before we're ready to take on the heavy hitters in our division and the big boys in the tournament. But it feels really great to get off the schneid and get that first 'W'."

Stats from Monday, June 11th --- Annenberg All-Stars vs. MAPP Marauders

Name	Batt. %	Slug. %	At-Bats	Hits	1B	2B	3B	HRs	K	RBI	Runs
Adamovic	0.500	1.000	4	2	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Barosy	0.250	0.250	4	1	1	0	0	0	2	0	1
Caldwell	0.250	0.250	4	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
Chan	1.000	1.000	3	3	3	0	0	0	0	1	0
Cockroft	1.000	2.500	4	4	1	1	1	1	0	3	2
Gebelein	0.667	0.667	3	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Laux	1.000	1.750	4	4	2	1	1	0	0	2	3
Matsumoto	0.333	0.333	3	1	1	0	0	0	2	0	1
McKenna	0.667	0.667	3	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Quon	0.000	0.000	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Teixeira	1.000	1.000	3	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	1
Trinidad	0.667	0.667	3	2	2	0	0	0	1	0	0

First Week Stats and Injury Report

Jairo Delgado's 2-run homer highlights Marauders' offense. Sore knee sidelines slugger as he vacations on the Colorado River.
Al Koholik, Voice Sports Information

Stats from the Marauders' first game against the Keck School XXY's were altogether impressive, with a big, 2-run first inning to start the season.

Jairo Delgado brought in Nadia Barosy on his long, home run to straight-away center after visibly favoring one of his legs when coming to the plate. "I just took a big hack at it and kept running. Everyone was yelling at me when I rounded second, so I knew I could make it home," Delgado recalls. His "inside-the-park"-er damaged more than just the XXY's morale, though. "I had already tweaked my knee shagging a fly ball on the warning track during practice and that trip around the bases aggravated it."

Delgado's knee is just one of the many injuries that have befallen the Marauders in their first week. Nadia Barosy pulled up with a sore leg when she made a charge on a slowly hit grounder. She remained in the game playing infield, but had Meghan McKenna pinch run for her. Outfielder Andrew Burnop had similar problems when he pulled a hamstring on the first ball hit to him and had to make use of a designated runner. Burnop was not at practice on Friday, June 8th, nor was Delgado who spent the weekend in Arizona "rehabbing" on the Colorado River. Barosy did attend the full Friday practice and is expected to be totally recovered for the game against Annenberg on Monday.

Stats from Monday, June 4th --- Keck XXYs vs. MAPP Marauders

Name	Batt. %	Slug. %	AB	Hits	1B	2B	3B	HR	K	RBI	Runs
Andre	.750	.750	4	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0
Barosy	1.000	1.000	3	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	1
Burnop	.750	.750	4	3	3	0	0	0	1	0	0
Caldwell	.333	.333	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Chan	.000	.000	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Cockroft	.333	.333	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Delgado	.333	1.333	3	1	0	0	0	1	2	2	1
Gebelein	.000	.000	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Kaur	.333	.333	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Laux	1.000	1.667	3	3	2	0	1	0	0	0	0
Matsumoto	.000	.000	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
McKenna	.500	.500	2	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Quon	.000	.000	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Taing	.333	.333	3	1	1	0	0	0	1	0	0
Teixeira	1.000	1.500	2	2	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Trinidad	.500	1.250	4	2	0	1	1	0	0	2	1

New Schedule Announced

Two new teams added to the USC Summer Softball Leagues. All "Byes" have been eliminated and new games scheduled.
By Bob Loblaw, Voice Staff Writer
June 6, 2007

LOS ANGELES, CA. — After an exciting first week of games in the USC Summer Softball league, it appears that everyone wants to get in on the action.

Two new teams have been added to the the USC Summer Softball leagues, one to each sub-division, removing all remaining byes. Representing the USC Office of Admissions in the Summer "A" Division are "The Jewels of Denial," while the Summer "B" Division now has to face the team from CAPS (Career and Protective Services). No news yet as to whether or not CAPS will ever pick an actual name for their team.

With the addition of another team to the Summer "B" Division, the MAPP Marauders' June 25th "Bye" has been eliminated and replaced with a 7:15pm game against CAPS. Also, all of the 6:30pm games have now been moved up to 6:15pm.

As a consequence of the removal of the "Byes" all teams that did not play on Monday, June 4th were awarded an automatic win to make up for the missing game on their schedule. This set off the hot-tempered Marauders manager, Neil Teixeira, who wrote to protest the decision.

According to sources at USC Recreational Sports, Teixeira wrote an e-mail to Summer Softball coordinator Michael Dominguez stating, "If no one else has a BYE anymore, then why would we ever give a WIN to a team who didn’t play a game? Maybe we just calculate win percentage instead, since the newcomer teams can’t make up their missed game either!"

Teixeira continued, "I know that there are no playoffs and whoever wants to enter the tournament gets to play, but this entire "W", "L" and forfeit system is screwed up. Give a win to a team that didn’t play a game and then, in our case, not have the Rec. Sports game manager enforce the forfeit rule?"

Seeming eager to avoid a suspension, the Marauder's skipper let up a little saying, "I know that you all have the job to make this fun for everyone, and that’s what it should be about, so I’m not going to pursue this any further if we have no case. However, if you do receive complaints from other teams about the WIN for a BYE, I think that should be re-examined."

Mr. Dominguez was not available for comment on the issue of the "Win" for a "Bye" at press time.

Manager Touches 'em all in Epic Tirade

Neil Teixeira, of the USC Softball MAPP Marauders, stages a Piniella-style tantrum that results in a well-earned ejection, and 15 minutes of worldwide fame on YouTube.
From the Associated Press
June 5, 2007

LOS ANGELES, CA. — A major league meltdown by a softball manager earned him a three-game suspension and worldwide fame on the Internet.

Combining bits of Earl Weaver, Billy Martin and Lou Piniella, the tantrum by USC Softball manager Neil Teixeira prompted the team owners to take immediate action.

The MAPP Marauders manager went wild during his team's 8-4 loss at McAllister field on Monday. His tirade took him on a tour of the diamond as he covered home plate with dirt, threw a base and crawled to the mound.

Teixeira and the club declined to comment, co-owner Binh Tran said.

A USC Softball League executive declined to talk about a possible suspension or fine from the league.

"The league president is working on that right now," said Don Ludwig, president of operations. "Obviously appropriate action will be taken, but nothing will be released to the public about that."

Teixeira came storming from the sidelines after the team apparently lost the game while playing against some of their own players.

Teixeira threw his hat, and then began shouting and framing the face of the umpire with his hands about six inches apart.

After a questionable call on what seemed to be a foul-tip out caught by Marauders catcher Shawn Matsumoto, Teixeira got down on one knee, piled dirt on home plate and used a finger to outline the shape of the plate. He stalked to third base, pulled up the bag, walked toward second and tossed third base into the outfield.

Then he dropped on his belly and pantomimed a military crawl to the edge of the pitcher's mound, where he picked up the rosin bag. He pretended it was a grenade, pulled an imaginary pin with his teeth and launched it toward the plate umpire, hitting his left foot.

Teixeira pantomimed that he was ejecting the umpire, picked up second base, walked into the outfield and picked up the bag he'd tossed. He walked toward the outfield gate with both bases.

Before leaving the field, he turned, blew kisses to the wildly cheering crowd, waved his fist in salute and left.

ESPN played extensive segments of the tirade through the week and the video has been viewed more than 61,000 times on YouTube.

Tran talks to Trinidad

Marauders co-owner is going on vacation, but he says he will keep his star player 'apprised of our progress.'
By Bob Loblaw, Voice Staff Writer
June 5, 2007

LOS ANGELES, CA. — Before Marauders co-owner Binh Tran stepped onto a plane for a vacation in China, he spent some time in the office with his star player.

"I talked with Patty this morning and assured her that I share her frustration and, more importantly, I assured her that we will continue to pursue every avenue possible to improve our team with her as the backstop."

Trinidad has shown resentment towards management ever since she was asked to play catcher for the Keck School "XXY's", which forced her to take part in handing the Marauders their first loss of the season. Trade rumors have swirled at MAPP headquarters, but Tran seems confident that his prized signal-caller won't be leaving the team.

"I told her that we will keep her apprised of our progress and we agreed that we will talk again in the very near future."

In other words, Trinidad's not going anywhere, even if things are still unsteady when Tran returns from a three-week vacation that begins in Shanghai.