We Missed You at the Sponsor Bar!

Hey Kickballers,

I hope that everybody is having a good time so far this season.  The games have been getting started without too much issue and I think the reffing on the fields has been fairly consistent without to many issues.

But, we have had a very low turnout at our sponsor bar this year.  WAKA Kickball is an event built on the social experiment,  and part of that social aspect is the camaraderie shared after the game over food and drinks.  This is where our sponsor bar comes in, our bars spend a considerable sum of money and offer us outstanding prices on food and drinks to get our business.  The money that they give us goes to cover much of the start-up costs of the season, advertising, equipment, permits, etc.  In addition, our bar this year went out and recruited its own team to make the season more exciting.   For all that they do to help the season get under way and to keep the season exciting and competitive, I say let's pay them back by showing up and give them a little business.

The games end early enough, come on out, show your gratitude to our proud sponsor, honor your team with your presence and hang out with some friends you may not know you had!

Where is the Pink Team?

First there was Waldo...

Then Carmen Sandiego...

And, who knows how long the Dodo has been missing...

But, can someone tell me where the hell the Kickball Sacks have been week after week?  Please if you run into them, give them a ride, cab fare, a bus pass, or at the very least a CT Freedom season schedule.  And, let them know that the season just isn't the same without them. 

Rules You Should Know!

For this weeks rule we're gonna take a closer look at kicking.

What is fair? And, what is a foul ball?  

Let's see waht WAKA has to say:

9. KICKING

9.01 All kicks must be made by foot or leg, below the knee (see Rule 13.02e). Any ball touched by the foot or leg below the knee is a kick. 

9.02 All kicks must occur: 

a. at or behind home plate. The kicker may step on home plate to kick, however no part of the planted foot may be in front of or cross the front edge of the home plate (see Rule 13.02g).

b. within the kicking box (see Rule 1.01g). The kicker must have at least a portion of the plant foot within the kicking box during the kick (see Rule 13.02g). The kicker may line up outside of the kicking box. 

9.03 Bunting is allowed.

13.02 A foul ball is: 

a. a kicked ball landing in foul territory (see Diagram 3G, 3H); 

b. a kicked ball touched in foul territory (see Rule 1.04);

c. a kicked ball landing in fair territory, but touching foul territory on its own at any time before reaching first or third base (see Diagram 3I, 3J, 3K); 

d. a kicked ball whose direction is altered by contact with any object other than the ground in foul territory, and called as such;

e. a kick made on or above the knee (see Rule 9.01); 

f. a kicked ball touched more than once or stopped in the kicking box by the kicker; 

g. a kicked ball kicked outside of the kicking box (see Rule 9.02) (see Diagram 3L, 3M); 

13.03 A fair ball is: 

a. a kicked ball landing and remaining in fair territory (see Rule 1.04) (see Diagram 3C, 3D, 3E); 

b. a kicked ball landing in fair territory then traveling into foul territory beyond the 1st-3rd base diagonal (see Diagram 3A, 3B, 3F).

Ok, everybody get it?  Let me help.  The ball must be struck with the foot or shin area inside the kicking box and must move forward out of the kicking box to be considered a fair ball.

Any ball struck with any part of the leg on or above the knee, or with the foot anywhere outside of the kicking box will be a foul ball.  Any foul ball caught before touching the ground will be called for an out.


And as always, if you have any questions about a rule, find me on the field.

I said FOUL, not FOWL!

Week 4 Recap

Through the mist and fog we arrived, to a patch of muddy earth, warriors one and all, ready to engage in battle...

...over a BIG, RED BALL!!!

This week we played kickball in some inclimate weather, but sometimes that makes it even more fun!  Let's see how everybody did.

The Kickball Sacks were scheduled for another double-header this week against Aim For the Balls and Duh, Winning.  But, as fate would have it most of the Sacks didn't bother to show again.  (Someone should really tell these guys that we play every week.)  AFTB and D,W were gracious enough to allow Sean to fill out his roster and scimmage with them, but from what I hear the scores don't want to be repeated.  So for now, these two games will go into the books as 5-0 win by forfeit for Aim For the Balls  and Duh, Winning.  Better luck next week Sean!

The first game of the week gave us Going Balls Deep against My Favorite Color is Plaid, but to be quite honest it was less of a game then a hockey fight.  Plaid jumped out to an impressive 3 run lead in the top of the 1st,  but due to some lackluster pitching in the bottom half of the inning GBD got back into the game as Plaid Rick walked in 2 runs.  From there the game just got uglier with the lead changing hands 4 times.  The offense was potent and the defense was atrocious on both sides of the ball, with many fielding errors being responsible for many scored runs.  (Let's blame it on the weather, remember it was foggy out.)   In the top of the 5th, Plaid was able to put together a scoring rally to take the lead and then brought their shut-down defense to the field for the bottom half.  Plaid walks away from this game bloody, but not beaten 12-11.

Nothing like a goalie fight!

The last game of the evening was a re-match between Plaid and Aim For the Balls.  Plaid riding an emotional high after beating Going Balls Deep came out swinging and tacked 3 runs onto the scoreboard immediately.  After the first inning, this game became defensive highlight reel with amazing plays on both side of the ball including AFTB charger Bobby A throwing out a kicker at 1st base from his knees.  Plaid hung onto their lead and takes this game 4-1.

Rules You Should Know!

This weeks rule concerns overthrows.

Let's see what WAKA has to say:

10.07 Base Running on Overthrows; 

a. an overthrow is a ball thrown, kicked, or deflected into foul territory while making a defensive play toward a player or base; 

b. a runner may advance only one base beyond the base the runner is on or running toward when the ball travels into foul territory

c. one base on an overthrow is a restriction on the runner – not an automatic right for the runner to advance; 

d. if any fielder attempts to make an out prior to returning the ball to the pitcher, runners may commence base running.

What this means to us is:

If the ball is overthrown into FOUL territory during a play at 1st base, 3rd base or home plate runners on the base path may advance one base past the one he/she is running toward.  For example, if Gloria bunts and Kyle attempts to bean her with the ball to get her out, but throws it into the woods.  Gloria can advance as far as 2nd base.  

On the other hand, if Gloria is already on 1st base and is advancing towards 2nd and the ball is thrown into center field, this is NOT an overthrow because the ball is still in fair territory.  And, Gloria is not restricted to how far she may advance.

I hope this clarifies any questions.  And, as always if you have any questions or comments concerning the rules, just look for me on the fields.

Week 3 Recap

In Week 3 we saw some great kickball, old rivalries were restored, new ones emerged, and former champions fell.  Let's take a look at what happened.

Our first game of the night was a Ball-Fest!  On Field A Going Balls Deep was trying to keep their "unmentionables" out of the sights of Aim For the Balls.  I missed this game, but I can imagine that with GBD missing co-captain Jarrett "the Mouth" J, that it was a relatively quiet one.  But alas, on with the game.  GBD jumped out to an early lead with Tom making the circuit around the bases in the bottom of the 1st.  In the top of the 2nd, Megan took Aim and evened up the score, both defences kicked it into high gear until the bottom of the 5th when GBD Bryan P scored the walk-off run.  Going Balls Deep squeaks out of this one with all their parts intact 2-1.

Meanwhile, on Field B My Favorite Color is Plaid waited intently for Duh, Winning to finish pre-gaming in the parking lot.  It looked from the opening pitch that both teams brought their A-Game and continued to proceed that way until the bottom of the 4th.  Plaid co-captain Rick "stop looking up my Kilt" D led off the inning with a single up the middle opening up room for the top of the order.  Chris "the Walking Stick" D  and Justin C both reached on bunts, effectively loading the bases and bringing Frank " Big Papi" P to the plate.  "Big Papi" ripped a grand slam right up the gut that took the air out of Duh, Winning.  Plaid takes this game 4-0!

MFCIP riding the high after ousting Duh, Winning stays on Field B to face Aim For the Balls in the second game of both teams double-header.  Before the lineups were even exchanged, this game was fueled up by the brother-sister combo of Plaid Rick and AFTB Raelynn talking enough trash to fill a ten-wheeler. MFCIP Justin "I GOT WHEELS" C opened up the game with a leadoff bunt that he turned into a homerun (if you keep throwing the ball at him, he's gonna keep running).  Plaid brought in 1 more in the top of the 1st.  In the bottom half of the frame, with runners on 2nd and 3rd and 2 outs, Plaid captain Rick choose to walk Aim captain Tom (to a loud and vulgar protest from Raelynn) to load the bases and play for the force at any base.  That plan was an epic fail, as it brought Lisa K to the plate and that girl can kick.  Lisa "I'll let my hands and feet do the talking" K got ahold of a pitch and drove it up the middle, clearing the bases and taking the lead.  In the top of the 3rd, Plaid Jess scored to tie up the game.  Strong defence on both sides of the ball closes this game at 3-3.  These teams will meet 2 more times before the regular season ends, make sure you have a front row seat for those games.

Back on Field A,  Going Balls Deep faces off against the Kickball Sacks, who just barely were able to field a team this week, with their 4th girl walking onto the field at 6:04.  Going Balls Deep jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the top of the 1st scoring Tom, Jesse, and Tina.  Kickball Sacks slowly chiseled back their lead throughout the game scoring John, Lindsay and Fran D and in the bottom of the 5th scored Chris and Tommy for the 5-4 win.  An elated captain Sean, was heard screaming "We legitimately won a game."

Rules you should know!

This week we had a problem with time limits on games and the authority of the head ref.  Here's what WAKA has to say about it:

3.03 Referees have jurisdiction over play and may: 

b. call off a game due to darkness, rain or other cause at the Referee's discretion;

7.01 Regulation games last five (5) full innings.

a. In the event of a tie score at the end of the game, the game shall be marked as a tie. 

b. At the discretion of the league coordinator, a single time limit may be set for all regular season games. Such a time limit may not be shorter than 45 minutes and cannot exceed 90 minutes. A game that finishes by being called off due to a time limit remains a regulation game (see Rules 7.02 and 7.03).

7.02 A game that is called off by the Referee (see Rule 3.04) after three (3) full innings of play shall be considered a regulation game. The game score at the end of the last full inning shall determine the winner. Regulation games called off that end in a tie shall be marked as a tie. 

7.03 A game that is called off by the Referee for any reason before three (3) full innings of play shall not be considered a regulation game and a new game may be rescheduled.

Now what this means is, that not every game has to be played for a minimum of 45 minutes or for that matter for the full 5 innings.  But, if a time limit is set it CANNOT be set for less than 45 minutes.  In other words, we can't set the time limit to 25 minutes.  Since the inception of CT Freedom we have always allowed for a 45 minute time limit.

This is a rule that is seldom enforced due to the fact that the large majority of our games are finished in under 45 minutes, but it is still a rule and the ref has the right and obligation to enforce it.

Week 2 Recap

After a week off to celebrate the Easter holiday most of us couldn't wait to get back to the fields and play kickball.

The Kickball Sacks were scheduled for a double-header tonight against My Favorite Color is Plaid and Aim For the Balls.  The Sacks arrived in a frenzy, pumped up like the weasel from the Foghorn Leghorn cartoons and eagerly awaiting the opportunity to throw a smackdown on a couple teams.   Unfortunately, either half their team forgot it was Sunday or failed to remember they joined a kickball league because only 7 players showed up, only one being a girl.  Not having the minimum amount of players to take the field, the Sacks regrettably had to forfeit both games.  Instead of taking a beat-down, Plaid and Aim For the Balls both take a 5-0 win.  And, for that we thank you!

On Field B, Going Balls Deep was trying to get on top of Duh, Winning for the 2nd week in a row by scoring 2 in the top of the 1st inning.  D, W denied their advances like they were wearing a pair of iron undershorts and retalliated with 3 of their own in the bottom of the frame.  Duh, Winning continued to pour on the offense in the 2nd and 3rd innings, sending Going Balls Deep off to the showers frustrated and unfulfilled.  Finally living up to their name, Duh, Winning wins this one 12-3.  Uncle Charlie would be proud!




In what turned out to be the most defensive and controversial battle of the night, Duh, Winning and My Favorite Color is Plaid squared off.  Duh, Winning jumped out to the early lead with a run in the bottom of the 1st, but Plaid was able to tack on one of their own in the top of the 2nd.  In the top of the 3rd, MFCIPs Frank P cleared the bases with a 3-run in the park home run to give them a commanding lead.  In the bottom of the 4th brought the game within one score, but Head Ref Jarrett called the game after the 4th due to extended time limit and it was "chilly".  MFCIP squeaks this one out 4-3.