2 up 2 Down Down Down Down!

The Greenville Oaks Spring 2010 season is underway, and they got started on Monday night with a Double Header against Chase Oaks and Christ the Servant. When you check the box score you will see a story in the numbers that says that Greenville Oaks had a bad night on the field. In game one, Greenville dug themselves an early hole as they showed a some first game jitters. It proved to be a hole they could not climb out of, as Chase Oaks went on to win that game 20 something to 12.

The second game was a different story, but unfortunately a similar result. The Greenville Oakies jumped out to an early six run lead, and the defense managed to hold Christ the Servant to 2 scoreless innings to start. Unfortunately, the merry-go-round began for Christ the Servant, and they went on to steal game two 20 something to 8.

It is the first time that Greenville has started a season 0-2, but Coach Brokaw seemed to look on the bright side of things. "I was really proud of the way our team fought tonight," said Brokaw. "I look at these spring training games as practice for the real thing. We had a lot of great at bats tonight. The defense was a little spotty, and pitching was horrendous, but those are all things that hopefully we can get worked out before opening day."

Apparently no one told Brokaw that the season had actually started. Result: 2 losses.

However, the real story of the games were not the numbers that you will find in the box score. The real story lies in a rarely looked at side note in the game programs...The Injury Report. So for the first time in this blogs history, I present to you THE INJURY REPORT...

1) Shane Spencer - Did not play. Spouse suffering from a swollen jaw. Out for 2 weeks.

2) Blake Wattenburger - Played (knocked out of game 1). Knee contusion. After getting off to a great start, Blake took a screaming grounder right off the knee near the end of the first game. Listed as Day to Day.

3) James Manley - Played (Had to leave after game 1) James played a great game behind the plate as the catcher in game one, but due to a condition that is currently being called "spousal early morning drop off syndrome" he had to retire early. Listed as Day to Day.

4) Dustin Swart - Played. Dustin had to fight through a diagnosed tear of the groin muscle when he made a great lunging play at first base to get an out. He needed assistance from teammates in order to get out of the splits position. Listed as Day to Day.

5) Clay Platt - Played. Suffering through what is called Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. This is an injury similar to something Jarrod Saltalamacchia suffered from last year when he couldn't quite throw the ball back to the pitcher. In Clay's case, Doctor's have begun to notice that his arm is so strong that he seems to have a mental block that does not allow him to hit a cutoff man. It is a hard diagnosis for a player, because it is not known what causes the problem. For now he is listed as day to day.

6) David Strickland - Played. Strickland ran into some problems with what is called an extreme case of cramps. Wait...I meant Charley Horses. I'm not sure what is was called, but he was clearly in pain, but managed to finish both games. Day to Day.

7) Cade Thompson - Played. Cade came in with a pre-existing issue that he carried with him through the off season. He has some cartilage issues in his knee that he fought through to finish both games. Day to Day. (Interesting note...Cade pitched to 3 batters tonight and had 3 walks.)

8) Mike Mabry - Played. Dealing with a tough case of roid rage. Day to Day. (Had the team's lone homerun.)

9) Bryan Brokaw - Played. You could see him literally getting older with every pitch. He started game 1 age 26. Ended game 2 27. Tough night for the pitcher. Day to Day.

10) John Garrett - Played. He has been diagnosed with a case of "Oops...I shouldn't have told him to go home." He struggled as third base coach, but he played a great game in the outfield. We'll call him day to day as well.

11) Michael Shivers - Played (reluctantly). Shivers is suffering from a mild case of emotional anxiety attacks. It started when, what appeared to be Dr. Kellum, hit a screaming line drive that breezed inches away from Mike's face. Needless to say, the entire event was a little too much for Shivers to handle. He couldn't figure out why a doctor and an elder would try to hurt him like that. With the appropriate medication, Shivers should be back next week. Day to Day.

12) Randy Way - Played. Dead arm. Randy even voiced concern that he may not be able to play at all before the games because he threw out his arm warming up. A little ice and heat, and he should be back next week. Day to Day.

13) Brian Edwards - No apparent injuries, but he did suffer from identity theft. The pitcher for Christ the Servant called himself Brian Edwards for the entire night. Questionable.

14) Grant Glover - The only player to make it through the evening without any injury. Clearly Grant's off season workouts paid off, as he clearly was the most well-conditioned athlete on the field. His only illness may be color blindness, as he has an inability to see the orange bag right next to first base. Probable.

Not that excuses are being made, but Greenville Oaks had the deck stacked against them on this night. With a week to lick their wounds, the team will be ready to take on the next challenge next Monday night at 7:30.

Update: Off season strength and conditioning coach Randy Way has been let go. No replacement has been named as of yet. Stay tuned...