Your FC Pilots wrapped up their 2021 14U Intermediate season with style and class and heart last night at Edora Park, falling to a fundamentally sound and deserving PawSox team 8-5 in 5 great innings of ball.  The FCP came roaring out of the gate hanging a 5 spot on the scoreboard in the first frame highlighted by a mammoth home run and bookended with a rare steal of home.  With a dugout as rowdy as an early 90s mosh pit, the Pilots showed they were ready to play and compete from the first pitch to the last out as a true band of brothers.

With the exception of winter and sometimes soccer, seasons always end too soon.  The last game of every baseball season is tough win or lose.  And the last recap write up is tough no matter what …

Pilot Bats:  Oh where to begin … how about with the shot heard round Edora.  Our own #99 tattooed the first pitch of his first at bat for a breathtaking 260+ foot home run to left.  It was an absolute no doubt about it bomb that put the Pilots up 2-0 and out of the dugout to welcome Jay-Jay home.  Wyatt did like Wyatt does and continued his torrid hitting from the leadoff spot.  Wy finished the night with 2 base knocks and the season with a .607 average.  Ben, Kevin C, Damian, and Ty all chipped in with base hits – and Jack crushed an RBI single (should have gone for 2 lollygagger!) to deep right center to keep the Pilots moving in the 1st.  The entire lineup – all 12 dudes – put together some great at-bats with deep drives to the outfield and solid line drives.  I’m talking to you Eli.  Some found grass and others found leather and that is just baseball.

Pilot Arms:  We sure got what we needed out of our pitching staff last night.  Gentry kept the PawSox guessing with his potent mix of fastball – changeup – fastball.  He faced 10 batters over 2.1 innings and twirled a one hit one run gem.  Ben followed the G Man for 2 innings and came out firing.  Out of BC’s 54 pitches 35 were for strikes.  And Jayden made himself available to finish up the game – set – match with 10 pitches for good measure.  We’ve seen gritty pitching performances all season from these three gents and the entire pitching staff.  Ty – Nate – KC – KR – Jack – Wyatt.  Pitching for days … you guys should all be proud of your time on the mound this season.

Pilot Gloves:  The FCP played a solid game in the field.  Damian made a great catch out in CF early in the game and has shown the kind of range you get when your last name is Griffey.  KR had 2 across the diamond put outs to 1B.  Nate hoovered up a rocket grounder to 2nd for an easy out.  It wouldn’t be a Pilots game w/out Ty taking a ball off the chest – which he did in the 3rd to keep an infield single from becoming an outfield double.  And Wyatt made the case that he should start forwarding his mail and permanently move in to 1st base with some awesome plus plays over at numero uno.  Poor Bradyn didn’t get a single ball hit out to LF the entire game.  While he did save a run from scoring in the first by backing up the pickoff behind 3rd, nary a fair ball dared to come within 50 feet of Bray.

Pilots Around the Bases:  Save an ill timed pick off at first the FCP was all sterling and roses around the base paths.  First off the steal of home is one of the coolest plays in all of baseball.  It takes smarts – it takes cones – it takes the right combo of speed and daring.  Bradyn was way ahead of his base coach in picking his spot and executed the kind of steal of home that Pete Rose would have been proud of.  And bet on.  Damian motored around the bags for a first to third to take advantage of some fielding and throwing miscues.  And we had SBs from a whole cast of Pilot characters.  We talked about baserunning being a superpower and worked on our fundamentals a ton.  It was great to see the lads push it around the pillows.

Pilot Game Management:  Hats off to Jack behind the plate for working a full 4+ inning game and just being an old school brick wall back there.  Well – a brick wall with a killer arm who can throw out runners at third.  JT and the funkybunch threw out 2 runners at third and was granted a third via an interference call at home.  That means 3 of the Pilots 12 outs generated in the field were by the dude wearing shoulder pads.

Next Up:  We’re doing Baseball Helmet Sundaes and food and swimming this Thursday the 15th @ Village Green Pool.  Thanks to Melissa and Erin and Summer and Kim and all the other Pilot Moms for organizing what will be a great celebration of this 2021 season.  We get one more chance to honor these 12 Pilots so I hope to see you all there.

Thanks for showing up with such passion and cow-bellery last night during our pregame warm up.  That was awesome and unforgettable.  I did not get to see their smiles running to the dugout but sure did feel the energy and appreciate the support of this young team.  Thank you Pilot Family!

Go Pilots!

Coach Chris

Your Fort Collins Pilots played one of their most competitive games of the season last night at Larry Walker Field – 6 runs on 9 hits, 3 walks vs just 4 ks, nary a single hit allowed to the outfield – but were on the wrong side of baseball juju again and again in falling to the PawSox for the 3rd time this season, 13 to 6.  The inability to make routine plays in the field (infield pop ups) and not focusing on making the plays required by position (infield grounders) continue to be the Pilot’s kryptonite.  Super encouraging work at the plate and on the bases kept us in the game – but the error iceberg was struck too many times to stay afloat and the SS Pilot went down in 4.

All that said … we’re not going to focus on the losses.  We either WIN or we LEARN.  As individuals, as coaches, as fans, and as Pilots.  Your recap … and see most of you in about 2 hours for warm ups!  

Pilot Bats:  Going by the box score, the FCP outhit the PawSox 9 to 5.  Jayden led the way with a 3 for 3 performance – taking one poor pitch to the fence in right center for a triple.  Kevin R and his violent swing destroyed a ball to deep left for a stand up RBI double.  Wyatt, Nate, and Kevin C all chipped in run scoring base knocks, and newcomers Bradyn and Carson both found themselves on 1st via their bats.  And even some of our outs were impressive.  Both Jack and Eli had a few hits on the screws that just did not find daylight.  Tip of the cap to the PawSox 2B and CF who made the plays in front of them and kept these Pilots off the pillows.

Pilot Arms:  The Pilot pitching staff surrendered only 5 hits on the evening – which is awesome.  A small strike zone and errors in the field forced an unnecessarily high pitch during Jack and Jayden’s first two innings, and our guys just put too many batters on the bases via the walk.  KC twirled a brilliant 3rd inning throwing 20 pitches and 14 for strikes.  And Nate was able to test out a new pitch that resulted in one baffled hitter getting wrung up looking.

Pilot Gloves:  KR is just fun to watch out there.  He played a perfect SS and hoovered up back to back put outs to Wyatt at 1st.  We missed a few grounders to the left side as we were getting used to the grassy infield at Walker Field – and then had multiple breakdowns on the right side of the infield where we just are unable to convert easy outs.  At this point in the season all 9 guys on the diamond need to put themselves and their teammates in a position to execute the plays in front of them.  In order to execute those plays you must have effort.  Errors are not going to put any Pilot on the bench for the next two games, but a lack of effort absolutely will.  What are you going to do with your final 3.5+ hours left of baseball this season?  Hey Pilot – talking to you – make Larry Walker proud tonight.

Pilots on the Bases:  Nearly perfect baserunning all game.  Jayden, Wyatt, Carson, Bradyn, and Kevin R were tearing it up and scoring either runs or extra bases.  Way to keep that foot on the gas lads.

Next Up:  Back2Back games as the Pilots are set to take on the Ajax this evening – same time / same field / same commitment to playing our best game as a team.  We had great warm ups last night – let’s do that again starting at 4:45.  The Ajax are a fundamentally sound and talented team, and as baseball savvy as the travel ball clubs we played exhibition games against earlier this season.  Any current Pilot who wants to play baseball at the next level – be it high school / travel ball / Intermediate 2022 – take notes at how these guys operate and then ask yourself, why not me.  Catching infield pop ups, fielding grounders, running bases, playing thru the whistle (so thankful umps do not have whistles by the way).  Why not me?

See you this evening.  Let’s wrap up the regular season leaving it all out on the field.  WIN and LEARN.

Go Pilots!

Coach Chris