Notes: Sudden ailment of Manager causes loss

Team left on own manages themselves poorly
By Beth Sass / hereforthesass.blogspot.com

KANSAS CITY -- Just prior to Tuesday's Fourth of July game, Here for the Sass manager Beth reported feeling decidedly ill. Equipment and Uniform Manager KatHarriet, Accountant olbiemn joined Manager Dawn in taking Beth to the airport, where she was flown to the Batling Fantasy League Infirmary in Minneapolis, where she joined Joe Mauer of StacyTwins733 for tests. Doctors at the BFL Infirmary will decide if Beth will stay in Minneapolis to recover, or if her illness will require her to report to the Sass Rehabilitation Facility in Nice.

With the entire Sass front office away from the team Tuesday night (Clubhouse Manager Rach had not yet returned from her scouting assignment in western North Dakota), the entire Sass line-up dressed in Uncle Sam costumes.

"It was very difficult to pitch while wearing stilts," relief pitcher Julio Mateo reported. In the game, he gave up four runs in one inning of work, an outing that included four hits and two walks.

The costumes made it all the more shocking that outfielders Juan Encarnacion and Jermaine Dye both hit home runs.

"They're veteran players, for sure," said outfielder Michael Cuddyer, "[Outfielder Rocco Baldelli] and I couldn't even get a hit!" Michael walked once in the game, as umpires tried to determine where the strike-zone was on a player wearing stilts.

Pitching failures: Pitching coach Bronson Arroyo apologized for the lack of time he spent coaching the last couple of weeks, due to the fact that he's been working on getting his name out there for the All Star game, and is currently preparing himself for the All Star game. While the Sass would like to see him helping out more with the pitching rotation, they understand that he's very busy right now.

"I really think that our pitchers should be able to do things on their own. They're no helpless," Dawn said. "It's just an excuse that they've been doing poorly. They're just not focused on baseball right now."

The Sass team has instituted new bedtimes for the pitchers in hopes that it will make them concentrate more on baseball and less on having fun after games.

Coming up: Since the pitchers have been playing so poorly, Beth (via phone) and Dawn decided they will not send a starting pitcher out to the mound until Thursday. They will be spending their time on Wednesday much as they did on Tuesday: watching That is a Very Bad Idea, watching advance scouting videos, and practicing their pitches. The relief corps, who have not been doing well, either, will also be watching the videos, but there is a chance they will be called in to pitch.