Holbrook Junior League vs. Glenburn (06-18-16)

I'm tired, and it's Father's Day so for the sake of time, I'm gonna gloss over the shenanigans of trying to recreate and hype the game. Here are the best shots of the night.



I really screwed up this photo, but the timing seemed so good, I couldn't leave it out. Pardon the quality, but appreciate the moment!

Andrew has this kid out with some spectacular margins.

Ben making the throw across the diamond.

And of course Max keeping the game rolling!
Not as many photos as the previous post, but still worth checking out here! See you all this afternoon in Orono!

Holbrook Junior League vs. Hampden (06-16-16)

After some photo editing woes, I've got Thursday's shots up. 67 of them to be exact. A lot more than usual, but I'm being a little more liberal with what I put up, and I figured the closest game all season deserved a little more love.




After some resistance, and an initial four run deficit, the boys got their bats going and cut that lead down to one. But the adrenaline certainly didn't wear off!


Trevor killin' it with a couple of amazing back to back plays in the bottom of the third, and Max with a SportsCenter Top 10 equivalent sliding catch to end one of Hampden's chances at the W. And of course, Chappy as everyone seems to call him, stretching out for a vital out towards the end!


Consistency is key, especially in the most stressful games of the season. The pitchers kept their chill and delivered so everyone's attention could be focused elsewhere.

I don't think catchers get a whole lot of love. Which is unfortunate because I have yet to hear an opposing coach warn their runners of ours. In light of this, here's some appreciation for one of the harder positions in the field to master.


I couldn't find any notably funny faces from Thursday :( but I will highlight a couple of encouraging shots:



Despite the margin (7-4 final) I think this is definitely one of the best games so far. A highlight of how focused the team can be when they try. A lot of the single shots from here are part of some cool sequences in the album, so check it out!

Holbrook Junior League vs. Brewer (06-12-16)

I've come up with fifteen or twenty "funny" opening lines for this blog, but I'm going to assume they sound better in my head and leave them out. I will however dedicate this blog post to the moms, dads, and washing machines that were touched by yesterday's cruel and unusual punishment.

Many of us on the sidelines are slightly annoyed and irritated by the rain, others' feelings may align closer to hatred, and disgust. However, the most exciting games of my life were played in the mud. I can't speak for the team's personal preferences, but I will say that the "hydration" didn't hinder their performance whatsoever. Having to leave early, I didn't catch the final score, but I'm gonna safely say that it was "a lot to a little".

I left just as we switched out pitchers, so I don't have a whole lot of coverage on the bullpen, but I'd be surprised to hear that it was anything short of great.





This is only the fourth set of games I've been to this season, and already I'm starting to feel some rhythm, and repetition from the photos of our defense. I'm gonna have to come up with something to make these shots more interesting. It's good baseball no doubt, but it's all so routine, nobody else has given us a run for our money this season.


But I will say without a doubt, and I think the parents with their horns agree, that there is nothing mundane about the offensive production. The hitting was patient yet powerful, and the base running was just straight up aggressive. While standing on Brewer's side of the field, I quite literally heard a parent say "may lord have mercy on our souls." I can't make that up. Between all the sliding, diving and hitting, I'd probably whisper something like that too.




Apologies for the seemingly abbreviated gallery today, but check it out anyways. And please stop me if the writing becomes too painful. I'm sure I can work something out where the talking is kept to a minimum.

Holbrook Junior League vs. Brewer (06-08-16)

I'll be the first to admit that these photos aren't going to be the high point of the season, not even close, but staying as committed as possible is important, so here are some of the better shots from the frigid onslaught the gentlemen in red brought the other night.

Pitcher's working their magic, as is usual.




While the bullpen minimized the work the rest of the defense, they still held their own weight and came out on top with some incredible plays.

And of course Holbrook saw a ton of time on the plate. There must come a point where it just feels like batting practice!

Last but not least, the Funny Face of the Day goes to Max, clearly working on his baseball, and modelling career right here:


The final score was 14-1, not even close! The rest of the album is here, and hopefully Saturday's games are a little warmer. It looks like the high is supposed to be mid to upper 60s in the morning, with rain coming in the afternoon, so we'll see...

Holbrook Junior League vs. Hermon Middle School (06-04-16)

Before I get into Saturday's game, I'm going to apologize for the lack of coverage, and poor turnaround time. Working most nights, and getting to all these games is quite the struggle. I'm still doing my best, but I don't think my original goal for every game in the season is going to be met... But I'm preaching to the choir as far as the whole time thing goes. With that out of the way, Saturday's game:

After totally screwing up, I finally found the field. I knew it was at Hermon, I dropped Will off, but when I got back from some errands I was told the game was moved to Hampden... Or that's what I thought. Not important. Anyway, we can all add two to the win column for the season. I missed most of the first game but knew everything was alright when I heard we were up 17-1.

Some splendid chemistry between the pitcher and his infielders. Not just here, but you can tell these guys work together. While I do believe this runner was safe (in this instance), we all know that the pick off is generally more effective in dampening a runner's lead than directly generating outs. This was especially true on Saturday as the infield flipped some impressive double plays, and shot down many advancing runners.

On the offensive, everyone was hard at work. These guys were putting hits all over! To be honest, I got a little tired watching. Not to say it wasn't good baseball, but someone has to stir the pot!

But we can always anticipate excitement at one point or another. I'll leave the offensive segment with that.

These are our "Funny Faces of the Day". I haven't been taking photos for more than a couple years, so I'm no expert, but I find it's quite common place for those who are busy coordinating the intricate motions required for sports tend to lose control of their facial muscles. Maybe I'll post an album from basketball season too... I certainly admire the work they are doing, but I also like to take a moment, and appreciate the work their brains' are doing that allows for some pretty hilarious candid shots.

I'm trying to keep the posts themselves shorter, but as always, a full album from Saturday's double header with about 30 more photos!

Holbrook Middle School vs. Milford (05-24-16)

Quite the game today, ladies and gentleman! I've played baseball all my life, and been in looonnnggg games like this. Right from the get go it seemed like Milford was pretty young (nothing wrong with that), and our lineup was a little different from usual. People playing different spots, others getting a little more action than usual.

Milford was no match for the boys from Holden and I think the scoreboard at the top of the second speaks for itself.

Our spectacular pitching staff took a minute to warm up, but 100% came through! They had me worried for a minute: with no outs, and the bases loaded they came through with back-to-back-to-back strikeouts! If that doesn't get you pumped, I don't know what will.

And the pitchers saw spectacular support from catchers Trevor and Ben.

As is evident with the ever increasing score, today saw a lot of offensive movement.

Some close, and not so close plays.

And no doubt a ton of hits!

The final score: 19-0 Holbrook. As always, check out the rest of the album here. Tons of photos of most of the team in there!

Holbrook Junior League vs Glenburn (05-21-16)

Playing under the lights at Mahaney Diamond is pretty gnarly, and it doesn't get much better. Actually, that's not entirely true, it doesn't get much better than winning spectacularly at Mahaney. The season opener was crazy to watch, the team was incredibly productive with several triples and a dramatic in the park dinger. You'll have to forgive my cheesy commentary, I'm a photographer, not a writer. But without further ado, Saturday's highlight reel.

I'm gonna start off late in the night because the rip from Mr. Chapman was absolutely incredible, and seeing the energy of everyone was inspiring. He got the whole dugout on their feet.

By the time he was rounding second, the entire stadium was on their feet and cheering louder than ever.

It's no question that the entire offense was getting busy punching holes in Glenburn's defense without any trouble. Max and Ben here with a couple of incredible plays.

And when they were cutting it close, it really wasn't that close.
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Defensively there were some interesting choices but all seemed to go well behind a pretty deep bullpen.

Chapman, back at it again with a beautiful routine play at first, a new spot for him, he's usually more comfortable on the other line, but I definitely have faith!

Some awesome defense here, nobody else in the league stands a chance from where I stand.

The last few posts haven't been incredibly full, but now I'm having to hold back otherwise this is gonna feel clustered. Check out the full album here.