Joplin – The Holiday Baseball League took a week off after playing a rare double header of three game sets last week. WIth plenty of down time and a rare bit of rest, the players have been spotted around local night spots and restaurants.
“It is definitely weird to have the time off during a season like this,” Fogelberg Falcon Don Mattingly said via cellular phone from a coffee shop in Fogelberg. “Zimm’s, Fisky and I had dinner a couple of nights ago, but for the most part we have tried to spend some time with our families and friends.”
“It’s kind of wild to go out in this town when you are a Falcon,” longtime McCall Mudhen and current Falcon Honus Wagner said while running into the local nightclub ‘Bunker’. “I will always love my time in McCall, but I am happy to be a part of this team and hopefully be a part of something really special here in Fogelberg.”
The Falcons resume play next week in Joplin against the Crawdads as they complete the first half of the HBL season with a three game set at Broyles Field.
On the other end of the spectrum sits the Joplin Crawdads and the work ethic of manager Dave Duncan. Under the helm of Duncan the Crawdads have had little down time as they prep for the Falcons.
“The Crawdads have been nothing but business during this break. Remember, they are just starting their season and I think that Duncan feels they have a bit of work to do to jell as a team,” ASB analysts Joe Gordon said. “Duncan has always been a more ‘nose-to-the-grindstone’ kind of guy, where Zimmer is more likely to give his guys some off-time.”
The first place Boggstown Boilers (4-2) will be watching the action next week with great anticipation as they will have a long 3 week layoff between games.
“Old Man McKeon always gets those guys ready to play… That guy is so intense that he could get water to boil if he starred at it long enough.”
One mood is constant across all of ASB, “LET’S PLAY BALL!”
