Observations from Covenant Sharon Softball practice (25 April 2016)

Church softball fans:

Tonight I drove in my Jeep to Holy Trinity Field next to Speedways for Covenant Sharon softball practice and I came away with the following observations of the few players that showed up tonight from my view behind the plate:

Jacob Albright, our rookie from Single-A according to coach Jim Bombeck, has a tendency to swing ahead of pitches, which hearkens back to his baseball-playing days when he could get away with such actions.  However, in slow pitch softball, he needs to have patience when he is in the batter's box and wait for his pitches before he can swing.

Which brings me to switch hitter Jeff Newell.  He tends to swing at bad pitches out of impatience, which was something he was able to get away with during last season's tournament when he led the squad in OPS (on base percentage plus slugging percentage) with a 1.31, which was more than our 2015 team MVP Gray MacKenzie's 1.176 OPS.

Taylor Robinson, our cleanup hitter, is more of a power hitter, which is what is needed in a cleanup hitter.  He's like a slow pitch equivalent of Pedro Alvarez, a power hitter who is capable of whacking a long ball.

Jim Bombeck, who also is an extra hitter for the squad (batting left handed), is more of our comic relief in the batter's box, yukking it up with opposing fielders.

Eric Bombeck, Jim's brother, is our ace pitcher.  He throws a variety of pitches that can sometimes confuse opposing batters.  When he is on the mound, he is capable of going the distance.

Bob Mariotti, who is a part of the starting rotation, is trying to work his way back from an injury he sustained in the losers' bracket finals of last season's tournament against Grace Chapel Black.  With some extra practice before the regular season begins, he is capable of coming back from the injury that ended his 2015 season.

I'll give more insight to the remaining players at Wednesday's practice.  But first, you're probably saying to yourself:  "That's great insight to the players on the 2016 squad, but who are you giving these insights from behind the plate?"

Good question!

My name is Michael T. Mondak, and although I am a member of Church of Notre Dame in Hermitage, Pennsylvania, I am the "Voice of Covenant Sharon softball" from mid-May through mid-July.  I started calling games last year which led to me being discovered by none other than Eric Bombeck, who hosts a Wednesday evening radio show on News talk 790 WPIC.  He put in a good word for me with his station manager Bob Greenburg, and it led to me being hired as a board operator during local high school sports coverage (Friday night football in the fall, and boys and girls basketball in the winter).  The radio station is my second home away from home (my primary home away from home is at a sporting goods store).  But I always look forward to spring because soon it will be time for a new season of church softball coverage.

In the coming weeks and months, I will routinely post insights on the 2016 Covenant Sharon softball squad.  I will also post game audio footage after each doubleheader.  If that's not enough, I will post some statistics on this blog also, so that you, the followers of this blog, will know how the squad's players are doing to contribute to the success of the squad.

And that is the end of this inaugural blog post.  Until Wednesday, farewell and fair balls.