Mariners Talented Off The Field

For our first installment of Mariners Off Field Talents, I present to you Ryan Maves stand up comedy performance at the Mariemont talent show. He is accompanied by his brothers, Ben and Jack. He had a great time rehearsing this and performing it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDNI96-LFrM&feature=channel_page

Mariners Make Dodgers Blue; Cards See Red

A couple of strong pitching performances led the Mariners to a two game sweep over a three day period. Jack Kotal came in to throw 4 impressive innings on a Saturday game against the Dodgers. This was complemented by a barage of scoring as the Mariners get scoring and scoring in an 18-4 victory. There were a lot of offensive heros in that game as well including Jacob Nelson, Matt Condrin, Nate Calderon and Ted Giberson.

Two days later, the Mariners had an important game against the 3 and 1 Cardinals. Facing one of the top pitchers in the league, the Mariners were able to put 7 runs on the board. That was more than enough runs as Nate Calderon pitched well for two innings and handed the ball to Ted Giberson who absolutely shut down the Cards the rest of the way. If it were not for a poor coaching shout from the dugout from an unknown baldish coach, Ted would not have surrendered a single run!

Ben Couch has a couple of big hits at important times for the Mariners, Nate Calderon had a couple hits and Patrick Miller's hit a very long shot to the fence for a triple to get the Mariner offense going. The Mariners ended up on the winning side of a 7-3 game.

The Mariners are in a 4 way tie for first with the Yankees, Cubs and Red Sox with 3 games left in the first half. We'll see how this weeks games affect the standings. Go M's!

Better Know a Mariner - Jacob Nelson

Jacob Nelson, aka "Tenacious J", is a 9 year old third grader at Del Dayo. This is Jacob’s first season in the Minor League. Last year he played for the Angels Farm team and was coached by his Dad, Steve Nelson. Steve must have done an excellent job coaching him as he is one of the most fundamentally sound 9 year olds ever to play in the minors. Jacob is very excited to be on the Mariners this season and loves his new coaches. Jacob is not related to the Tyler Nelson. They just both really liked the name.

In addition to being a baseball fanatic, Jacob loves football. He played tackle football for the American River Raiders Mighty Mite Team last Fall. His nickname was "Gorilla Grips" because once he decided to tackle an opponent, he wouldn’t let go. He loved playing tackle football and hopes that some of his baseball friends will want to play football too. I pity the runner that tries to score on a close play when Jacob is catching!

Jaocb has an older brother, William, who is a fifth grader and plays for the Major Rays Team. Jacob enjoys keeping pitch count and updating the scoreboard for William’s team. Jacob has a dog named Buster, a cat Fred, and a hamster called Hami. (No fishes or birds?) If you are working the snack bar after an M's game, be ready to for Jacob's assault on Churros and Coke. Just try tackling him after that sugar-tastic combination!

M's Can't Bear the Cubs

In an epic battle for first place early in the season, the Mariners were not able to outscore the Cubs in a very well played game Tuesday night. The M's took a 3-0 lead after two innings, but Jake Virga of the Cubs pitched wonderfully and kept the high powered Mariner offense under double digits for the first time this season. For the M's, Two-Strike Ted pitched as well as I have seen a minor division kid throw in my four years of minor manager until his arm got a little tired. Ben Couch returned from his two-game vacation to pitch a shutout inning.

Despite facing some very difficult pitchers, we had several great hits. Nate hit well (again!), Ted smoked a very hard extra base hit and Matt Condrin had two hits. Jacob Nelson, the most fundamentally sound 3rd grader to play baseball, had two solid hit balls against Virga and earned the M of the game for his outstanding play.

The M's take on the Dodgers this Saturday followed by a rematch with the tough Cardinal team on Monday. We'll review that doubleheader next time.

April Will be Eggs-citing!

There are lots on tap this month. I know it is the busiest of all months around my house. Here's the schedule of events for April.

Sat, April 4 - Game vs. Dodgers @ 12:15

Mon, April 6 - Game vs. Cardinals @ 5:15

Sat, April 11 - Practice at Valley Oak @ 12:00

Sun, April 12- Easter Sunday! Happy Hunting for baseball eggs.

Wed, April 15 - Game vs. Giants @ 4:15 (Note the strange start time)

Fri, April 17 - Anna turns 40!!

Sat, April 18 - Game vs. Brewers @ 3:00

Tues, April 21 - Game vs. Red Sox @ 5:30. Last game of the first half!

Thurs, April 23 - Practice at Valley Oak at 6:00. Meet at the cages.

Sat, April 25 - Coach Mike and Scorekeeper Anna head to Europe!

Sat, April 25 - Game vs. Cubs @ 5:30

Mon, April 27 - Game vs. Yankees @ 5:30

Wed, April 29 - Tentative Practice at 6:00. Place TBD.

Whew! I'm tired just typing all of that. March was a super month in the World of the Mariners! I'm really enjoying all of the boys and families on the team. April will be even more fun.

M's Shuffle the Cards. Deal a Big Win.

The Mariners got their season off to a rousing start with a come-from-behind, 17-7 victory over the Cardinals. The game started off slow as Adam Gilbert was pitching very well for the Cards and put them ahead 4-1.

But these Mariners know how to put runs on the board! Every Mariner got on base and nearly every Mariner had a hit in the game. Patch Miller and Nate Calderon had the loudest hits as they both smashed the ball past the outfielders and had hits on multiple at bats. Matt Condrin had some very important hits to lead the comeback. His hit into left field gave the M's the lead for good in the 5th inning. Ryan Maves hit in the last inning was his first since getting hit in the face with a pitch a week ago. That was a great sign for his season to come.

Tyler Nelson had a big game on his birthday to earn "M of the Game" honors. He had two hits and scored three runs. He also made a nice basket catch on a pop up in the 6th inning.

Ted Giberson put on an impressive pitching display, needing only 31 pitches to get 8 outs. Jack Kotal pitched a scoreless 6th inning for the Save. There were also some great defensive plays. Peter Edelmayer made a super play to end a bases loaded rally in the first by charging a ball that Nate had knocked down in front of second base and throwing to first to end the inning. Jacob Nelson made a perfect play on a grounder to end the game.

Next up are the Yankees right after Opening Day Ceremonies!

Better Know a Mariner - Peter Edelmayer

"Pistol Pete" Edelmayer is a 10 year old, 4th grader at Del Dayo. This will be his second season in minors having played with T-Bone Nelson on the Giants last year before Scott Boras was able to negotiate an Arden Little League record free agent bubble gum and snow cone contract with the Mariners for the pair.

With his future set, Peter can hardly wait for the start of the season. He enjoys team sports of all kinds and the chance to hang out with his buddies. He is a real team player, always willing to pitch in at any position to help out. Off the field, when he's not devoting himself to his studies, you can find Peter staking out a fishing hole behind Rio, hucking big air in the terrain park at Northstar, or enjoying a healthy debate with his his older, 6th grade brother Alec. Downtime usually involves spending time with his two dogs Knuckles and Roxy and his corn snake Scales.

March Mariner Madness

There are a lot of dates and events to remember this month as the baseball season stars to gain steam. No two days are the same! Here's a list of how to spend your baseball time this month.

Wed, March 11th - Practice pushed back to 6:00. (Thank you Daylight Savings Time!) Practice ends at 7:00. Coach John will be throwing some batting practice at the batting cage at 5:30, so if you want to drop off early for some extra swings, please do.

Sat, March 14th - 8:00 - Field work day. Arden Little League has the best fields around and that is from the efforts of our parent volunteers. Whether you can spare 30 minutes or 3 hours, any time you can spare would be much appreciated.

Sat, March 14th - 2:00 - Regular practice that ends at 3:00. I'll be there at 1:30 throwing some batting practice in the batting cage to anyone who shows early.

Tues, March 17th - No formal Mariner events, but take some time out of your day to toast our own Patrick O'Miller.

Wed, March 18th - 5:30 - Scrimmage with the Yankees. The plan is to play two simultaneous 2 inning games. Then hold practice after the scrimmage until 7:00.

Sat, March 21 - 5:00 - Pre-Season game against the Cubs. Please be at the field at 4:30 so the kids can warm up.

Tues, March 24 - 5:00 - First game of the season! Please be at the field at 4:30 so the kids can warm up.

Thurs, March 26 - 6:00 - Practice at Mariemont Elementary until 7:00. We will try to practice at the backstop nearest the Fitch Way entrance to the school.

Sat, March 28 - 10:00 - Opening Ceremonies on the White Field.

Sat, March 28 - 11:30 - Right after the Ceremonies, we play on the blue field against the Yankees. We're sure to have a large crowd of post ceremony revelers anxious to watch some baseball!

Tues, March 31 - 5:15 - Game against the Cubs. Have your Mariner to the field by 4:45 so he can warm up.

Sounds like a lot of time at Valley Oak! Stu will be sending out information regarding field preparation duties, snack bar shifts and the all important snack tickets next week.

Go M's!

Better Know A Mariner - Tyler Nelson

This will be Tyler's second year in the Minor divison. He was on the Giants last year. T-Bone is an energetic boy and I expect his enthusiasm will be contagious. He is a very fast runner and makes excellent contact on the ball when hitting.

Away from the field, Tyler plays Arden Park soccer and will hopefully be a member of the fledgling Mariemont Flag Football team in the fall. (Check with Coach Mike for more info!) Also, his cute little mug has led him to bit of a modeling career appearing in national ads for Clorox and Sprint. "Tylander" and both his siblings have modeled in the past. Ty's favorite sports are football (he's a big Charger fan) and baseball. He is an accomplished dirt bike rider and has been shredding up dirt tracks in Nor Cal since he was 4 years old. Tyler is a Blue Belt in Karate, an animal lover and a phenomenal reader. Tyler is not shy. He is very social and will often strike up long conversations with adults. He loves making new frineds with kids of all ages.

His younger brother Blake (1st grade) is playing T-Ball this spring on the Scrappers. His older sister, Lauren (7th grade) is an excellent musician winning Mr. Teague's band scholarship last year and is nearing her black belt in Kenpo Karate.

Tyler's dad is breaking the glass ceiling for us dads by being the team parent this year. Stuart will be getting out information soon regarding the parent participation that is required for the league. He has broken down barriers to allow me to be the team parent for Ryan's brother's major division team this year. Walk tall, brother Stu.

Better Know A Mariner - Patch Miller

Born in San Francisco, raised inNashville and now back in California to rescue the state's economy by having his parents buy more and more legos and Wii games, Patrick Miller (you can call him "Patch") is excited to be a Mariner (although he's not quite sure what a "Mariner" is).

Patch and his family moved from Nashville (after his career in country music failed) to the Del Dayo area in the Summer of '07. He played for the Nixon/Edwards/Moebs Indians last Spring. He had a great time with that team and is looking forward to facing them (now the Red Sox) this year to show them what a Mariner can do (whatever it is that a Mariner does). While living in Nashville, he played baseball for several seasons, as well as a little soccer, flag football, and basketball.

He's in fourth grade at Del Dayo and his favorite subject is Recess. He's starting to take guitar lessons (the real guitar, not Guitar Hero) and has some of the best "knock knock" and "yo mama" jokes around. When it comes to dance-moves, this kid can do "the worm" like he was born to do it. Patch loves his dog (Stella), although he's not a huge fan of picking up her, well, "duty". His older brother, Danny (now in the Majors), played last year against Patch and was kind enough to bean him with a fastball. While Patch could have charged the mound, he refrained and gladly took first base without further incident (until the boys got home).

Patch is looking forward to a fun and respect-filled season with the Mariners.

Better Know a Mariner - Nate Calderon

This installment of "Better Know a Mariner" is yet another coaches' kid. Nate Calderon is a returning member from the Minor Pirates last year. Nate ALWAYS has a smile on his face. On the field, Nate Dog takes that same, always-a-reason-to-smile attitude to his game. His is the poster child for the positive attitude and sportsmanship that the Mariners want to have. Nate is a Giants fan, plays a spectacular shortstop and is a very good pitcher.

Off the baseball field, Nate is an excellent soccer player. He plays both indoor and outdoor. He's been known to piece together a Star Wars Lego Battleship in less than an hour. He builds up his legs with a stringent, offseason trampoline workout.

He has an older brother, a younger sister Gabi and a younger brother. His brother Noah plays on the Farm Angels. I coached his older brother Jacob in Minors a few years back. He has since followed coach Kirk's leaning toward golf. He always was good at those low pitches....

Here's Nate in his first year a Mariner when he was 5 years old!

Better Know a Mariner - Ted Giberson

The second installment of "Better Know a Mariner" is Ted Giberson. Ted is one of two returning members from the Minor Pirates last year. Ted absolutely loves baseball! He spends many of the days that he doesn't have a game at the ballpark scouting the opposition and getting mentally prepared for the Major Division next year. Ted also runs the first ever Arden Little League fantasy baseball league.

Ted is an excellent pitcher. With his tall frame and command of the strike zone, this left hander is expected to take the hill many times for the M's this year. "Two Strike Ted" likes to get ahead in the count and put away the batters early. He also is a very good catcher and first baseman.

Ted is a fifth grader at Mariemont. His favorite baseball player is Dan Haren, an excellent left handed pitcher on the Diamondbacks (and former Rivercat). He has a younger brother playing t-ball and an older brother blowing the saxophone around the world as part of the renowned Rio Jazz band. "Teduardo", as my sons are prone to call him, is a very intelligent boy and will be counted on to set an excellent example of sportsmanship and enthusiasm.

Better Know a Mariner - Ryan Maves

The first edition of "Better Know a Mariner" starts with a coaches' kid! Ryan Maves is the youngest of all of the Mariners. He will not turn 9 until just after the season ends. He is a third grader at Mariemont and is the youngest of 4 boys in his family. His twin brothers play on the Reds in the Major Division.

Ryan's favorite baseball team is the Mariners and he is just really starting to get into the sport. He likes playing third base but he is itchin' to pitch. His favorite player is Richie Sexson. He's in the market for a new favorite player.

Outside of baseball, Ryan's a budding stand up comic. You can see his next gig at the Mariemont Talent Show on April 15th and at Morty's Yuck-Yuck Hut on April 31st. Ryan says that if he can't be a baseball player when he grows up, he wants to be a bartender. His parents are already trying to find a different "safety" career to baseball.

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Send me an introduction to your Mariner before I am forced to make something up. Ted, you're on deck!

2009 Schedule Released

Here are the dates, times and opponents for the upcoming Mariner season!

3/21 - 5:00 - Cubs (Pre-Season Game)

3/24 - 5:00 - Cardinals

3/28 - 11:30 - Yankees

3/31 - 5:15 - Cubs

4/04 - 12:15 - Dodgers

4/06 - 5:15 - Cardinals

4/15 - 4:15 - Giants

4/18 - 3:00 - Brewers

4/21 - 5:30 - Red Sox

4/25 - 5:30 - Cubs

4/27 - 5:30 - Yankees

5/06 - 5:30 - Red Sox

5/09 - 10:00 - Brewers

5/11 - 5:30 - Cardinals

5/16 - 5:30 - Giants

5/18 - 5:30 - Dodgers

There are other important dates to remember:

Opening Day Ceremonies - 3/28 at 10:00

Easter 4/12

Anna's 40th Birthday(!!!) - 4/17

Pancake Breakfast/Picture Day - 5/2 - Time of picutres to be determined

Mariner end of year party - 5/30? -Date tentative, time and place TBD

Welcome to the Arden Mariners!

I am very anxious to get the 2009 Little League season underway. I was thrilled with the kids and families that we were able to draft. I have had the pleasure of coaching many of these kids in previous years. Here is the team roster...

Nate Calderon
Matt Condrin
Ben Couch
Peter Edelmayer
Ted Giberson
Declan Hogan
Jack Kotal
Hayden Long
Ryan Maves
Patrick Miller
Jacob Nelson
Tyler Nelson

That guy's not on our team. This is the Mariner Moose! He is the mascot of the Seattle Mariners. If anyone wants to dress as the team moose during our home games, let me know.

I'll be updating this blog throughout the season, so bookmark it! We will be posting the schedule, important events, recapping fun games and profiling the "M of the game". I love to add pictures to every post, so please send me digital photos to post.