Cougar Bait: Recap, Preview, and Predictions 2013

Its that time of year again. Dust off the bats, pick up a couple of cold Natty Lights, and prepare to launch your glove into the branches of a nearby Deciduous. 2013 looks as bright as ever for the newly reborn (again) Cougar Bait franchise. With new faces, a stacked lineup, and a power defense CB looks primed to make a real title run in Nassau Slo-pitch, capturing our 5th consecutive chip. Perhaps my dreams of a minimum eight-peat arent that far-fetched after all. Ditka.SausageSuperbowlMmm. Recap: 2012 was a great year for the team. Joe Fitt became the only player in CB history to collect a Hall of Fame plaque, win the MVP, and the Most Improved Player award. With the announcement, Fitt joins Rich Meyer and Mike Rizzo as the only HOFers in team history. Newcomer Jason Reis kicked the door down by hitting .637, breaking the team record set by Bobby in 2009. Bobby won his 4th Gold Glove Award (2006, 2007, 2008, and 2012) and Prince pitched the second shutout in Finals history. Pete Azzarone won his well deserved MVP award and joins Bobby and Greis as the only three players with both an MVP and Gold Glove Award (2011). Azzarone also won the first ever Joe Fitt Playoff MVP Award, going 9-19 with 12 RBI and 3 HR. After breaking his hand earlier in the season, Justin Schimmenti rebounded to collect his first piece of hardware, the heralded Most Improved Player award, edging out Prince Panicker and Mike Barrett. For his constant requests and timely offensiveness, Barrett took home the first ever HEEL of the year award and Mr. Greis won FACE of the year for his relentless attendance. Did I mention that we won the B-Division, mercying Brentwood Liquors in the process? Preview: Yes, 2012 was another success for the record books. Its going to be interesting to see how the team responds to playing in a new county, playing on smaller base-paths, and fields that are primarily fenced. The fenced fields bring up an interesting conundrum. With the short porch, Greis stellar LF defense becomes neutered. His range, ability to stretch the field, and fantastic hands will be handcuffed with less grass around him. With Azzarone completely capable of making the switch, and being a natural outfielder in the first place, Greis may make a move to SS to start opening day. Traditionally, a lefty playing shortstop is the cardinal sin of baseball but we all know what Greis is capable of. If successful, the switch would help both players, and the team in the process. With a strong arm, incredible accuracy, and the best hands in the land Greis can make a serious push for the Gold Glove at the SS position. If this occurs, Greis would become the first player in team history with 3 Gold Glove awards at 3 different positions (1B, LF, SS). Its an experiment. Hopefully it works. Because of the shorter fields and shorter base paths you can expect to see a slight upgrade to the overall stat numbers for players, especially in the areas of batting average, extra base hits, and home runs. With this, it will also be harder to defend the ball. Expect the see a rise in team ERA and total number of errors. Its going to be hard for most infielders to make a case for Gold Glove this season. The 65 foot base paths, as opposed to Majors 70 foot base paths, may pose problems, especially for the left side of the IF. Watch out Reis.

Predictions: Because of the fenced fields, you can expect a big power jump for players such as Azzarone, Catania, Bonett, and Schimmenti. Its hard to Imagine Azzarone contributing any more power than he already does, but the fenced fields will leave him licking his chops. McKennas BA should hover around .530 and Greis should contend with his already held doubles record. Every year, I get to pick the will be winners of Cougar Baits most coveted individual prizes. This year is no different. So, here it goes. The predicted winners of the 2013 awards The Rich Meyer MVP: Bobby Bonett. Expect to see a tremendous jump in overall power numbers, as well as extra base hits and total batting average. The shorter outfields will make web-gem catches and diving snags a weekly occurrence for Bobby. He will match Azzarone at bat-for-at bat but Bobby will separate himself on the defensive end of the ball. (2012 Rich Meyer MVP- Pete Azzarone SS) Gold Glove: Bobby Bonett. I hate to say it, but Bobby is going to win his 5th Gold Glove this season (2006, 2007, 2008, 2012). I just dont see how any IF is going to match him in overall defense and defending against run production. The only thing that would curse Bobbys chances is if he overthrows his cutoffs or air-mailed balls at the plate, which is totally possible. Cmon Schimmenti! Lets see some diving stops. (2012 Gold Glove Winner -Bobby Bonett LCF) Silver Glove: Pete Greis. After winning the Silver Glove in 2012 expect Greis to take home another one, this time at the SS position. You are going to see some very odd plays on the left side of the IF this season. At times, it may even look out of place. Fear not, Greis has the best hands on the team and a terrific and extremely accurate arm. He will take home yet another piece of defensive hardware and be the primary threat to dethrone Bobbys Gold Glove chances. (2012 Silver Glove Winner-Pete Greis LF) Bronze Glove: Alex Catania. You can expect the double play combo of Gries-Catania to turn some heads in 2012. Catania is very versatile, can cover some ground, and is very good at stopping the ball back handed. Greis soft hands will help aid Catania is turning the DP this season. With the impressive stops, strong arm, and accurate putouts, this could be the year Catania brings home his first trophy. (2012 Bronze Glove Winner- PJ McKenna P) The Joe Fitt Playoff MVP: Justin Schimmenti. Every year I expect it. This year, I think its actually going to happen. Down a few pounds and with a determined head on his shoulders expect Justin to have his best year yet, both in the field and at the plate. He is determined to turn those LF lineouts (vintage Schimmenti) into solid 1B over the SSs head. When this team makes the playoffs, Justin will be the unsung hero who steps up, carries the team in tight spots, and plays wherever necessary to help the team win. (2012 Joe Fitt Playoff MVP Winner- Pete Azzarone SS) Most Improved Player: This is a toss-up. I narrowed this pick down to two guys. Alex Catania, especially with the shortened fields, is going to have his breakout year. The Big Cat is a quiet career .500 hitter and a really solid bat out of the #5 spot in the Bait lineup. You can expect him to take the next step and raise his average near the .530 mark, a nearly 20 point jump from last year. However, I think its his defense that will get him over the hump in 2013. Catania was moved around a lot last season. Its not easy to constantly make the jump from RCF to 2B. This year, Cat will be a staple at 2B and will have all the time to mentally prepare for the position. Over time, the transition will pan out nicely. My

1B pick is Justin OConnor. Justin has the capability of being the #3 hitter on this team. In fact, he has proven it in seasons past. Justin has had years where he lead the team in homeruns and has produced 40+ RBI seasons. However, since the 2010 season, in which Justin finished right behind PJ and Bobby for MVP, his averaged has dipped 55 pts and then an additional 31 points. The real OC will make his comeback this year. When Justin is on, there is no stopping that late inside-out swing. His power alley has always been RCF. The fenced fields will limit his ability to stretch the extra bases but he is going to fool the opposing OF with his sneaky power all season. Justin will start the year in the bottom third of the lineup and slowing make his way back to MVP worthiness. (2012 Most Improved Player WinnerJustin Schimmenti RCF/RF) HEEL of the Year: Justin O Connor. One thing is for sure, Justin will do the suck it a lot this season, regardless of offensive production. (2012 HEEL of the year- Mike Barrett C) FACE of the Year: Prince Panicker. My mistaking him for being Mexican will be sure to get him some brownie points. (2012 FACE of the year- Papa Greis Left Out) Playoffs: Division Title, League Title, and our first Nassau Chip. Im salivating at the very thought of it. You guys ready for a real awards dinner with trophy presentations by the league commish?