HIGH TIDE, LOW TIDE
Post-Season Perigee And Proxigee: Cannons Win 4-3, Lose 10-1 Versus Marlins

Glastonbury, CT (AP)—Tides: the cyclical rising and falling of the Earth’s ocean surface caused by the gravitational or “tractive” forces of the Moon and Sun. Water’s wanderings are most pronounced along coastlines of the world’s oceans, gulfs and bays where tidal ranges—the differences in height between low and high tide—are increased by factors from topography to meteorology, as Joe “Doppler” Furey fans are well aware. From ancient times, tides have been observed and understood with expanding sophistication, first noting the daily recurrence, then their relationship to heavenly bodies—no Cannon Nation, not Leo Dionicio, Jason Maule or John Mancini…especially below the Mancer’s belt!—and knowledge of this daily ebb and flow has become increasingly vital for many of man’s functions, including navigation, fishing and construction of coastal facilities. This natural procession and recession in many ways mirrors the A Division play of the Connecticut Cannons, though this team—the pick of many prognosticators and pundits to win the 2007 CNMSBL Championship—is famously more frustrating to forecast. The Cannons have at times during their two years in the A Division looked like the proverbial big fish in a little pond with successes from series sweeps to powerful playoff performances. In other instances the team has struggled to keep its head above water, languishing in lengthy losing streaks and eight times dropping games by a single run. A gain here, a setback there. Sunday on the road against the Glastonbury Marlins (6-8) was yet another example of the dichotomy that has often defined Connecticut Cannons baseball: a well-played 4-3 win that saw the team play as anticipated in all aspects of the game followed by a 10-1 loss that was the antithesis of the Game One victory. Like baseball’s version of the Beach Boys, the Cannons hope to “catch a wave and they’ll be sitting on top of the world” when the ’07 post-season comes to a close in August. The attraction or, if you will, gravitational pull of this is most alluring to Cannons fans from the Connecticut coast to the capital region.

Old man of the “C,” Mike Patenaude, made the start in the opener after his wondrous, woebegone two hundred two-pitch two-loss outing against first-place Bristol one week ago. The Cannons were able to score a first-inning run against lightning-armed left-hander Kei Hamada courtesy of a Maule walk and stolen base (an overthrow advanced him to third) and a Mike Calabrese sacrifice fly for a 1-0 lead. This marked the seventh time that Maule has tallied a first frame run for the Cannons in his fourteen games played this season. The Marlins responded immediately, plating a pair of runs against Patenaude in the home half of the first as he surrendered consecutive hits to Wally Joyner, San Diego State star and former Florida farmhand B. F. Skinner and Ray Allen before getting Chris "Bugsy" Moran on a fly out and Mickey Bantle on a swinging strike out. The Cannons were kept quiet until the sixth when Matt Celio led off with a walk, John Mancini singled sharply to left-centerfield in his first game action in nearly a month following a thirty minute cage session to Baseball City on Saturday and Calabrese lined a ball to left to load the bases. With one out, Cannons Rookie of the Year candidate Drew McDowell smashed a 2-2 pitch deep to an unfortunately fenceless left field that cleared the bases giving the Cannons a 4-2 advantage. Patenaude (7 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 7 H, 5 K, 3 BB) battled the “Asian Assassin” pitch for pitch over the course of the contest allowing just three walks and two hits between the second and sixth innings. In the seventh, Patenaude faced pinch hitter Shawn Barry who hit a rocket right back to the box that the southpaw snagged for the first out of the frame. A single by Beavis Cornholio and an error put the tying run on with just one down but a ground ball to the hole at short allowed an alert and athletic Calabrese’s to cut down the lead runner at third for the second out of the inning. Skinner singled home a run and stole second putting the tying and winning runs just ninety and one hundred eighty feet respectively from home with the clean-up hitter Allen approaching the plate (his two RBI in the first accounted for the Fish’s earlier scoring). Refusing to fold in the face of adversity, Patenaude (2-5) pounded the strike zone with an awesome array of pitches and three swings later the lefty had logged a strike out and his second victory of the season, the Cannons fourth overall matching the team’s 2006 total. Following his winning one hundred eight-pitch performance, Patenaude stated in his post-game press conference: “We showed what kind of team we can be when we play solid defense and come up with some clutch hits. We got great contributions from everybody out there today and that is what has made us successful in the past and will be the key to our immediate future. It hasn’t necessarily shown in the wins column but we are playing with a high level of consistency and confidence that has been the trademark of Cannons Baseball, especially at this time of year. I’m excited about our prospects in the upcoming playoffs. I know I wouldn’t want to face us in an elimination game.”

After the “old man” the Cannons went to Mike “C”alabrese following a lay-off of over two months between starts (May 20 at Marlborough; he relieved Steve Markie on June 3 against Winsted). Not surprisingly, Cal was a bit rusty in the early going as the Marlins built an 8-0 cushion after the first two frames on seven hits, a walk and an error. At the same time Calabrese’s opposite number Skinner was in total command of the Cannons’ batters, facing just one more than the minimum through the first four frames (hitting Mark “Keyser Soze” Lynch with a pitch to lead off the second). Calabrese (6 IP, 10 R, 8 ER, 11 H, 1 K, 3 BB) settled down against a hard-hitting Glastonbury ball club and resembled the 2005 Patenaude Award winner that Connecticut will rely heavily upon if they hope to make a deep run into August. In the top of the fifth, Lynch worked a walk—his third free pass of the day including the HBP—but was erased on a Mike “Big Papio” McGann fielder’s choice. Skinner proceeded to punch out Patenaude and Perrier but in both instances the ball got by the catcher Joyner and the Cannons loaded the bases with two outs. Celio stepped to the plate and hit a hard ground ball up the middle that ricocheted off of the Marlins’ ace breaking up the no-hit bid and bringing home McGann with the first and only Cannons’ run (Calabrese singled in the sixth, his third hit in three games, representing the only other hit against Skinner; Mike Weber and Patenaude singled off of reliever Paul “Bread” Cubeta). Cal (0-3) was touched for single runs in the sixth and seventh but was able to hold the Fish from getting a ten-run lead, keeping the Game Two loss at Marlborough as the last time the team was a victim of the mercy rule. “I told the guys it was going to be Roman Candle City out there early,” quipped Calabrese inside the visitors’ locker room, referencing the trajectory of the towering shots hit by the Marlins. “I wasn’t at my best and we faced a power pitcher who was on his game. I feel great and I’m encouraged that I was able to throw a lot of pitches (one hundred ten, slightly more than management’s expected one hundred pitch count) and that Lynchie and I were able to get back on the same page relatively quickly. I just want to contribute and I know the team is going to need me down the stretch and in the post-season. There is a bunch of baseball to be played and I’m really excited to do my part to bring a second Championship to Cannon Nation. Cutter Nation is back, baby!” Weber added: “We looked at this as a rehab start for Cal. He showed some signs of his old self, especially after the early going, and he understands how important he will be if we are going to rediscover our winning ways in the playoffs. With Patenaude, Calabrese and [Tom] Luby we have three pitchers that can do different things out there. That change of pace could be just the thing to make us a tough out in the tournament.”

Tides: local mismatches at the Earth’s surface create a horizontal force directed towards the surface points closest to and farthest from the Moon and Sun (otherwise known as lunar and solar tide-generating forces) and these forces create the high and low tides experienced around the planet each day. Whenever the Sun, Earth and Moon are perfectly aligned, the gravitational pull is at its greatest causing maximum tides. Local mismatches and perfect alignments. These are things that the Connecticut Cannons look to experience and exploit as the regular-season comes to a close and the post-season gets underway. On Sunday the Marlborough A’s (8-8; tied for 4th place) travel to New Cannon Yards for the final home games of the year. With hitting, fielding and pitching unparalleled anywhere in the league the Cannons could once again prove to be a major force in determining where the CNMSBL Championship ends up in August. Playoff proficiency for the Cannons is as expected as the forces dictating the tides. May the “force” be with you, Cannon Nation! Single seat tickets are available by phone at 1 800-CANNONS or on-line at ctcannons.blogspot.com.

Cannons News and Notes: Maule and McDowell moved into a tie for the team lead in at-bats (42) surpassing the vacationing Luby (41); McDowell’s three RBI give him ten in his first full season as a Cannon (he also knocked in the team’s fiftieth run of ‘07), trailing only Maule’s eleven; with his two hits Cal raised his average sixty-seven points; Celio was the only Cannon to have hits against both Marlin starters…with seventy runs scored he is the Cannons lifetime leader in that category…Celio also moved within one walk of the team’s all-time lead (Andy Borst: 39)…in a message delivered by Mancini, Borst “sent his love to the team” saying he hopes to return in the future…management remained mum on this topic; Patenaude has twenty-six strike outs in fifty-two innings of work…he lowered his ERA from 3.58 to 3.50; Craig “the Warrior” Perrier was present for his first win in a Cannons uniform, allowing him to wash said garments; Marlins’ first baseman Furey was not plunked by a Cannons pitcher for the first time in a match-up with Connecticut (Calabrese and Luby have hit the local radio personality on multiple occasions); Cal “got his guinea up” and called Glastonbury left fielder Chris Barry “Shaggy” of Scooby-Doo fame during his final at-bat…Zoinks!; this weekend marked Mancini’s first wedding anniversary…Mancer, when discovering he was scheduled to play right field in both ends of the double dip, was quoted before the game stating: 1) “The field looks flat;” and 2) “If you don’t think you’re worthy, no one else will;” in the Mancini-Skinner match-up, Las Vegas bookmakers made Mancer a forty-to-one underdog to make contact against the former minor leaguer…“Blue Fire” grounded out…to the catcher!; Perrier described Mancini’s hairdo as “Dennis the Menace-esque”…he then questioned the rule that credits the batter with a run scored rather than the pinch runner…he thinks each player should receive .5 runs scored on the stat sheet; Skinner recorded five outs (four via strike outs) in the fifth inning against Cannons batters…he argued with the umpire and when he was given a warning shouted, “Keep your ears out of the dugout”…Mr. Wizard says, “Sound travels;” the Marlins’ righty may possibly be a homophobe after he refused to shake Perrier’s hand post-game…Cal had earlier attacked the “French Tickler” for possibly leading an alternate lifestyle; potential pitching prospect Jack Vanasse plans to appear at New Cannon Yards on Sunday in a team meet-and-greet; Calabrese, Celio, McGann and Perrier were seen on Park Road at Lena’s following the games…Cal, after consuming double-digit drinks, went on to umpire a West Hartford Youth Baseball game while the others ended up at Plan B; after extensive debate it was unclear whether Calabrese’s Green Man tattoo says “Cal” or “Eat”…Celio said of the pitcher’s ink and California visor: “After a bender Cal just looks at his tat and hat to remember his name;” Perrier played Cupid, setting McGann up with friend and Cannons fan Sarah “Admiral” Ackbar; after much debate—and the presentation of a dropped “grenade beer can”—Calabrese and Perrier both agreed to bring cannoli, arguably a fertility symbol, to Italian-Fest ‘07 in a head-to-head competition called Cannoli Boli I.