Favorite Athletes

The past and the present of the Packers

There are so many challenges or "games" on Facebook and other social media platforms going around. 

One of them is to list 10 athletes you have enjoyed watching the most. Some people are doing it one day at a time on Facebook. Rob Adams has done in on Facebook and included it as part of his #Project365 on his blog. I saw John Nash do it in one blog post on his blog. 

I decided I liked Johm's idea and I would do that. Why not? It's fun and I like talking sports. This doesn't have to been seen in person, in case be, and many of these are, athletes who I have only seen on TV. 

So here we go, in no real particular order. 

1) Brett Favre - The Gunslinger. Not the best guy, but a great competitor and player. 

2) Aaron Rodgers - A fantastic athlete. Will always be a debate between him, Favre and Bart Starr as the greatest Packers QB. 

3) Alex Rodriguez - Yes, there are plenty of issues with him, but I just became I big fan. It also goes with the fact that even though I am a huge Yankees fan, was never a big Jeter fan (I will likely get yelled at for that).

4) Mariano Rivera - The GOAT. The best closer in MLB history. 

5) Jason Kidd - Leader for the Nets during their prime years in the early to mid 2000's. The Kidd, Carter, Jefferson trio was a lot of fun to watch. 

6) Mike Piazza - Yes, as a Yankees fan, I shouldn't like him. But I was a Mets fan growing up, and his 9/11 HR is so much more than sports. (Note the uniform he is wearing there. It's not black! #BlackIsNotAMetsColor) 

7) JJ Redick - Loved him at Duke. Great three-point shooter. Sold role player in the NBA, but never a star. 

8) Tim Tebow - The man at Florida. His playing style was great for college, didn't work in the NFL. His baseball career, well.....LOL Mets. 

9) Ray Allen - I didn't like any of the teams Ray played for in the NBA but he's a UConn guy (even though I don't remember him playing at UConn much). Three-point master. (Had to go with this video on this one. Great call by Mike Breen) 

   

 10) Amani Toomer - Well, just like with the Mets, I grew up a Giants fan, so I figure I should include a Giant. I'll still root for them as long as they don't play the Packers. I had a bunch of guys I thought about for the Giants but Amani seems like a good guy and was a solid player. 

I likely left out someone who I should have added. Or maybe I added someone I should not have. Thoughts on my choices? Who are your favorite athletes you've seen? 

Sangiuolo Pitches Fairfield 19U Past Westport

Joey Sangiuolo delivers a pitch during Sunday's game

After getting swept in a doubleheader against the same Westport team on Saturday, Fairfield 19U bounced back in a big way on Sunday. 

Joey Sangiuolo's three-hit complete game shutout lifted Fairfield past Westport 3-0 on Sunday morning at Owen Fish Park in Fairfield. 

Sangiuolo allowed two hits in the second inning, one of which did not leave the infield. 

In the third, with Fairfield leading 1-0, Westport's Chris Veneruso came up with a man on second and two outs. Veneruso singed to center field and the runner tried to score to tie the game but Christain Homa threw a strike from center field and Jack Hernandez applied the tag to the runner to preserve the lead. 

Fairfield got on the board in the second inning. Ryan Cowles tripled to deep left field with one out. The next batter, Anthony Espinoza singled to deep shortstop and Cowles was able to come in and score. 

Fairfield tacked on in the third. Sam Weinstein was hit by a pitch leading off the inning and Charlie Mount followed up with a single to center field. Hernanez then laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third. Two batters later, Jack Pierce singled to left field to bring home Weinstein and Mount to increase Fairfield's lead to 3-0. 

Over the final four innings, Sangiuolo allowed only a walk and nothing else. For the game, he struck out seven. 

Fairfield will be back in action on Monday vs Trumbull at Trumbull High School at 5:30. 

Fairfield 19U Defeats Ridgefield in Tight Affair

Fairfield 19U baseball defeated Ridgefield 5-3 on Thursday afternoon at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. 

With the bases loaded and one out, Sam Weinstein grounded into a fielders-choice to short that allowed Joey D'Elia, who reached on an error, to come in and score. 

Ridgefield got two runs in the fourth to take the lead. In could have been a bigger inning if not for a nice diving catch in left field by Jack Fitzpatrick leading off the inning. 

In the bottom of the fourth, Fairfield re-took the lead. D'Elia and Blake Benway each singled before Jack Varcoe singled to right to bring home D'Elia to tie the game. The next batter, Charlie Mount grounded out to short to bring home Benway to give Fairfield the lead back. Weinstein came up and drove a fly ball deep enough into center field to score Varcoe from third and give Fairfield a 4-2 lead. 

Fairfield added another in the fifth. Christain Homa led off with a triple to right field. Two batters later, Anthony Espinoza.hit a ground ball to short and Homa, who was running on contact, beat the throw home and got under the tag from the cather. 

Ridefield produced a run in the sixth on a single, hit-by-pitch and another single to cut the deficit to 5-3. They had a chance to do more damage but Alex Wiggetman was able to work out of a bases-loaded jam to preserve the lead. 

Wiggetman threw six innings of three run ball to pick up the win for Fairfield. He allowed three runs on six hits, while striking out three and walking one. He also hit a batter. Chris Domizio struck out one in a perfect seventh inning to pick up the save. 

Fairfield improves to 18-2, 8-2 in the division. They will be back in action on Friday against Wilton at 5:30 at Tunxis Hill Park in Fairfield. 

Fairfield 17U Comes From Behind To Defeat Westport

Fairfield 17U defeated Westport 12-5 on Wednesday night at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. 

Westport got out to a quick start in the first inning. They scored four runs on three hits, and capitalized on a Fairfield error. The big blow in the inning was a two-run single by Jacob Ragaza. 

Fairfield got a run back in the bottom half of the inning. Jack Fitzpatrick led off with a triple to deep left field and Sean McAdams followed up with a sacrifice fly to left to bring home Fitzpatrick and get Fairfield on the board. 

Fairfield had a big second inning and was not only able to tie the game, they were able to take the lead. With runners on first and second and one out, James Blanco hit a hard ground ball that ricocheted off pitcher Jacob Lessing and allowed Aidan Gouley to come in and score. A walk loaded the bases and then Fitzpatrick singled to left to bring home two more runs as Griffin Dodder and Blanco crossed the plate. Three batters later with the bases again loaded, Danny Pierce singled to left field to plate to more and give Fairfield a 7-4 lead. 

Fairfield added a run in the third. Steve Titus and Gouley each singled to put runners at the corners. With Gouley in motion, a ground ball to short by Dodder turned into a 6-3 putout and a run for Fairfield. 

Westport got a run back in the fourth. With two outs and a runner at third, Jacob Lessing hit a ground ball to second that McAdams made a sliding play up the middle but the throw to first was dropped allowing a run to come in and cut the deficit to 8-5. 

Fairfield tacked on a run in the fourth. With runners at second and third and one out, Sam Swanson singled to right to bring in Jack Martin, who walked to lead off the inning. 

The fifth inning saw another run go up on the scoreboard for Fairfield. After Titus and Gouley walked to start the inning, Dodder laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third. A ground ball to short brought Titus in to increase the lead to 10-5. 

The scoring was capped in the sixth. With runners on first and second and two outs, Titus doubled to left field to bring home Swanson and Pierce. 

After a tough first inning on the mound, Martin settled down to throw three innings plus, allowing five runs, but only one earned, on three hits, while striking out three and walking four. Charlie Mitola came out of the bullpen to throw four innings. He allowed one hit and two walks, while hitting one. 

Espinoza Leads Fairfield 19U Baseball Past Ridgefield

Anthony Espinoza delivers a pitch during Tuesday's game

Fairfield 19U defeated Ridgefield 6-1 on Tuesday afternoon at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. Anthony Espinoza came up big with his arm and his bat. 

On the mound, he threw four innings, allowing one unearned run on one hit, while striking out four and walking two. The only hit was an infield single on a slow roller to third base. 

At the plate, Espinoza went two-for-three, including a two-run double in the first inning which proved to be all he and Fairfield needed. 

Christian Homa singled to lead off the game. Jack Pierce then followed up with a single of his own. Following a walk to Ryan Cowles to load the bases, that set up Espinoza. He drove the first pitch he saw over the left fielders head to bring in Homa and Pierce. 

Leading 2-0, Fairfield tacked on in the third. Cowles singed to left with one out and Espinoza followed up with a single to right and Cowles moved to third on the throw. Blake Benway then drove a sacrifice fly to deep center field to bring in Cowles and increase the lead to 3-0. 

Ridgefield got on the board in the fourth thanks to a hit, a couple walks and a couple of errors. 

Josh Wittenberger came out of the bullpen for Fairfield and threw three scoreless innings to close out the win He allowed one hit and one walk, while striking out six. 

Fairfield blew the game open in the bottom of the sixth. Benway walked to lead off the inning. Joey D'Elia then tippled to deep right-center field to bring in Alex Wiggetman, who had pinch-run for Benway. Jack Varcoe then followed that up with a single to bring in D'Elia and cap the scoring. 

Fairfield improves to 7-1 in their division and 16-1 overall. They will be back in action on Wednesday in Ridgefield at 5:30 at Ciccuoli Field. They will return to Kiwanis on Thursday at 5:45 to host Ridgefield. 

Fairfield 19U topples Norwalk

Fairfield 19U Legion defeated the Norwalk Revolution 12-3 on Thursday afternoon at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. 

Fairfield got off to a quick start in the first inning and never looked back.Christian Homa led off with a single and Ryan Cowles doubled to put runners at second and third. Jamie Flink and Blake Benway then singled in Homa and Cowles to put Fairfield up 2-0. 

Later in the inning, with Flink at third and Benway at second, Brady Pomer singled to center field to bring in two more runs and Fairfield led 4-0. 

Fairfield added another run in the second. Joey D'Elia led off with a single and the next batter, Homa, singled him in. 

Norwalk got on the board in the third. The Revolution put up three runs on four hits. With two on and two outs, Will S delivered a two-run double and Mitch S came up with an RBI single to cut the Fairfield lead to 5-3. *

The roster we were given only has first names and it's tough to find rosters for summer baseball, especially this summer. I normally HATE using first names. 

Fairfield added on in the fourth. Jack Pierce led off with a single. After a strikeout, Homa singled and Cowles walked to load the bases for Flink. With Flink at the plate, a wild pitch went to the backstop and Pierce was able to scamper home. Flink would walk to re-load the bases for Benway. Benway hit a sharp ground ball to first base that went past the first baseman, allowing Homa and Cowles to come in and score and put Fairfield up 7-3. 

Fairfield increased their lead an inning later. With two on and two out, Homa once again came up big. He doubled to left to bring home Pomer and Jack Fitzpatrick. 

The scoring would be capped in the sixth when Fairfield would yet again add more. Jay Joliet's two-out single scored Flink, who had led off the inning with a walk. Joliet would work his way around the base paths and come in to score on a wild pitch. 

In addition to their great offensive performance, Fairfield got great pitching from Alex Wiggetman, Joey Sangiuolo and CJ Montiero. Wiggetman threw three innings, allowing three runs on four hits, while walking one and striking out two. Sangiuolo threw three innings, allowing no runs on three hits, while striking out three. Montiero pitched a perfect seventh, including two strikeouts. 

Fairfield 19U baseball edges The Clubhouse

Fairfield 19U Legion defeated The Clubhouse 3-2 on Tuesday afternoon at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. 

Fairfield got off to a quick start, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first without the benefit of a base hit. Christian Homa led off with a walk, Joe D'Elia reached on an error by the shortstop and Jamie Flink walked to load the bases. 

The next batter, Blake Benway, grounded into a 4-6-3 double play. However, Homa was able to come in to score. Charlie Mount followed up with a ground ball to third and the throw to first was not fielded cleanly allowing D'Elia to come in and score. Fairfield led 2-0 after one inning. 

Fairfield added a run in the fourth to take a 3-0 lead. Mount reached for the second time on an error. Following a single by Sam Weinstein and a double play, Jack Varcoe came up with a running on third and two outs. He singled to left field to bring home Mount. 

The Clubhouse got a run in fifth to cut the deficit to 3-1. In the seventh they added a run and had the tying run at second but Weinstein was able to work into and out of trouble to pick up the save and the win for Fairfield. 

Fairfield got strong pitching from Anthony Espinoza, Brady Pomer and Weinstein. They improve to 5-1 and will be back in action on Thursday at Kiwanis vs Norwalk at 5:30.  

Live Baseball!

For the first time in almost a year, I saw live, local baseball tonight. 

I've been posting for weeks about needing to get out a watch and or cover some baseball. Brad Weinstein sent me the Fairfield Legion* schedule and I have been finding others as well. 

*American Legion is not sponsoring the league this summer, so it's non-legion sanctioned teams. 

In tonight's game, Fairfield defeated Stratford 2-1 on a walk-off single by former Ludlowe baseball standout and future Army-West Point student-athlete Jamie Flink. 

Jamie Flink’s walk-off single lifts Fairfield past Stratford 2-1 #ctbase pic.twitter.com/u5YIsyVhvV

— Shawn Sailer (@ShawnSailer) July 6, 2020

Tonight, I just watched. Hopefully I will "cover" some games soon, even if that just means keeping my own score sheets during the games and then writing a quick recap of the game on this blog. If there are other opportunities this summer, great. If not, I’ll do this.

Speaking of opportunities, Rob Adams has the opportunity to broadcast the Greenwich Cannons Legion team (who will play Fairfield later this summer). You can get the details of what Rob is doing here and follow him on Twitter at @double5 and @RobcastingRadio for more. I’m sure I will end up joining Rob for a game or two (or more) before the summer is over.

 You can follow me for updates of games and where I might be (not that you care) on my Twitter @ShawnSailer. In addition to Legion, I am going to try to get to a bunch on local games this summer, especially to see the Ludlowe baseball guys who recently graduated.

I miss writing/covering games and figure it’s good to still keep my toes in journalism and keep my writing skills sharp. I also need to write more here.

If you have any suggestions on games I should go to or feature articles I should write, Tweet at me, comment on the blog, or get me on my other social media platforms

I’m so happy baseball is back!