Solid Win

utley was inspired by our victory

- a. sembrot's return prompted win -
















4 - 5...a home run away from "the cycle"

Maybe Jobu will help me hit the slow-pitch softball...

At Bat Jams = Wins?

Saul Field is in Roxborough — Therefore A Dalessandro's Steaks Pit Stop Will Substitute For Today's Post-Game Grilling/Bar Action

With GPTMC’s big day being tomorrow and all, we’re going to keep it simple at the game today. We won’t be grilling but don’t worry — there will be beer.

And then after the game instead of going to the bar or anything, your omniscient team beverage/catering director instead recommends a pit stop on the way home at Dalessendro’s Steaks (above) — a Roxborough institution for authentic Philadelphia cheesesteaks.

It’s a different kind of cheeser than you are used to (finely chopped meat, American cheese instead of whiz, etc.) but nonetheless deserving of a little GPTMC love. (And you can pair your steak with a beer, something you can't do at Pat's or Geno's.)

And considering it is literally on the ride home (about five minutes from the field) it’s a no-brainer.

Directions to the game are appended below. It’s going to be around a 25-minute ride from CC to the game.

But remember:

78˚ + a WPSG beatdown + At. Bat. Jams. = lots and lots of awesome.

Seriously, what more could you ask for?

So get ready — today is going to go down in Philly Ad Club Softball League history.

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Smedley's Pics from Last Night

FOX vs. GPTMC vs. Hotdogs

get pumped

next week is a new game....

Smack Talk Tuesday

you're a loooong way from home, Dorothy. I'll get you! And you're little dog, John Bolaris too!

Riddle of the Day...

whatta ya' call a ginger with a perfect flame grill and a propane tank at 26th & Brown?

Roger!

Game #5 Showdown: GPTMC vs. FOX 29, Tomorrow, May 6, After Work. Be there.

Big game, people. The weather is going to be ridiculous.

On account of which, we will be grilling and chilling at the field after the game in lieu of going to the bar. Very basic grilling, i.e. dogs, chips, beers… but still awesome grilling. All for a nominal fee per person.

Get psyched.

Directions to game are here.

At Bat Jams

Perhaps you’ve played out the scenario in your head: Bottom of the 7th (this is softball, remember), down by 1. 1 on, 2 out. And who should step up to bat but you. And as you gloriously stride up to the plate, “The Final Countdown” by Europe echoes throughout the stadium / Fairmount Park. And, of course, you crush it.

Thanks to the genius of modern boomboxes, this fantasy can come to fruition. I ask you now: what is your At Bat Jam? Is it... a juicy cut from Jock Jams? "I Believe I Can Fly"? Some emo affair by The Get Up Kids? Whatever reinforces your sense of your own hardcore-dom, so be it.

So. Shout out / give me the jams, and I’ll collect and re-distribute in some cohesive, mixed tape fashion. Strictly for the purpose of pumping you up while you take the long walk to domination.

My ABJ, for instance, is “Strawberry Letter 23” by the Brothers Johnson. Alternate is “Like Mike” from the Gatorade commercial of yesteryear.

GUYS, I really feel that these jams are the key to hitting dingers, turning double plays and such. So please. Stake a claim for your preferred ABJ as a comment on this here blog, and let's do this thing.

awesome part deux

some pictures from the game and the post game festivities. enjoy.


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

NO PRACTICE - 4.27.08

No practice today...questionable weather and scheduling issues for a lot of people.

We'll try to reschedule for Tuesday night...discuss tomorrow.

-R

Dedicated to our players overseas...

Some Game 3 Photos

I have a problem editing... sorry for the sheer mass of pictures. Ya'll look good though.


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

cherry street tavern = awesome in its purest form

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Consistency! Consistency! Consistency!

Well, we didn't win our third game. UnReal Marketing beat us 16 runs to 11. But, does that ring a bell to anyone? Yes, we have scored 11 runs in all three of our games. Someone go get a lottery ticket, and we can just pay the other teams to let us win with our winnings.

In my job my boss and I say, "Even if we aren't right, we must be consistent." So, good job everyone. It's a win in my book! (And I am the scorekeeper.)

Ritt-Row Spring Fest Kickoff Party Loses GPTMC Softball Contingent to Game #4

No soup for you.

Come back. One year.

(Adama, you first Seinfeld lesson…)

A Little Pre-Game Pump Up

i could watch this over, and over, and over again.

can you feel it in the air tongiht, GPTMC!?!?! Get up!!!

Postgame Bar for Week #3 Determined, Due To Be Most Rad Postgame Festivities To Date

After two great showings at two somewhat surprisingly awesome bars for postgame softball drinking, we are going to keep it fresh again this week and change the venue up once more.

The lucky lady tonight is another Philadelphia classic — although one that is not exactly a household name among the young and hipsterific.

We're headed to the extremely venerable Cherry Street Tavern for some hot roast beefs and beer. The C Street Tavern is located just over yonder in the oft-overlooked Logan Square nabe of the city.

"More than a century old, Cherry Street Tavern is the friendly neighborhood bar you wish your neighborhood had.

It's the type of place where there's a pitcher of beer on special every night, where posters and accoutrements from various Philly sports teams line the walls, and where you know that a hot pulled-pork sandwich will be on its way soon after you sit down.

But this is no dive bar: Rich woods, an antique mirror above the bar and an atmosphere of (admittedly faded) gentility prevail. Generally packed with a mix of students from nearby Moore College of Art, neighborhood residents, after-work professionals and longtime regulars, the place really gets raucous whenever the Eagles are on TV.

If you're hungry, the carving stations by the door will help satiate you -- the roast beef sandwich is a house specialty."

So Cherry Street Tavern it is. We have a very, very good feeling about this one and highly encourage everybody to make it out. The Fightin' Phils will be on the telly. (So will the Flyers.)

To make it ultra-easy, we've even appended directions — from the game, to the bar, no less — below.

Cherry Street Tavern is at 22nd and Cherry and is probably the first bar that is physically possible to reach after re-entering Center City from Belmont Plateau. (So we've got that going for us…)

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Directions From Game to Bar:

Option #1 - BLUE - 76:

1. Take Montgomery Drive from field to 76 East entrance.

2. Take 76 East to 676 east

3. Merge left onto 676 east and then immediately exit right onto 23rd street

4. take 23rd street south two blocks until parking lot at 23 and cherry. park here and walk one block to bar at 22nd and cherry.


Option #2 - GREEN - MLK Drive:

1. Take West River / MLK Drive all the way back to the BF Parkway.

2. Get in the right (outside) lane of the parkway.

3. Make a right onto 21st Street, the first right you can make.

4. Look for Street parking on 21st Street down to Cherry Street.

5. Make right onto Cherry Street. Look for street parking.

6. bar is at 22nd and cherry.

Gameday Forecast For Week #3 Calls For Sun, Clouds and Lots and Lots of GPTMC Whupass

To be distributed upon Unreal Marketing via cans, buckets and, yes, even barrels.

Just remember to recycle those containers, so we can redistribute said whupass next week.

T time

The T-shirts are in, and they are awesome. Thanks to Ashlie for making it happen.

Important note: Our names did not end up on back of the shirts. And I say, the softball gods were on our side. In today's star-crazed sports world, the GPTMC softball team will join the ranks of the Yankees, the Dodgers and the Nittany Lions who leave the monikers off. The Red Sox and Giants also go nameless when they play at home. Leave it to the White Sox to start this naming tradition that strokes egos and tears apart teams. Not us, friends. Not us.

Photos: GPTMC vs. LevLane - 4.16.08

Directions to Game #2 — Same Parking Lot As Last Week, Different Field

How rad is today going to be?

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Boss rad.

So we got the same parking lot as last week. Different Field.

Above is a live map concerning how to get to the game, where to park and which field we’re playing at. Click it to explore.

we'll be leaving at 5:00 sharp. so be ready.

As for directions, it is highly recommended that you take West River / Martin Luther King Drive and not the Schuylkill Expressway. (The Schuylkill is a nightmare and should be avoided whenever possible.)

The good news: I’m estimating your drive time following these directions at between 11 and 15 minutes. A veritable breeze.

OK. So from Center City you need to get on 22nd street going north. If you parked at 24th and sansom resist the temptation to jump on walnut and hop on the Schuylkill -- you’ll get stuck in traffic at 30th street before even getting on the expressway.

Instead, take 24th st down to locust street. Make a left. Take locust two blocks to 22nd street. Make another left.

And then follow these directions:

1. Go NORTH on 22ND ST toward Market ST and then past Market street all the way to the parkway.

2. Turn LEFT onto BENJAMIN FRANKLIN PKWY.

3. Follow Parkway around Eakins Oval until you get in front of the Art Museum Steps at which point you should be in the right lane so you can turn right onto West River / Martin Luther Kind Drive.

4. Take West River Drive all the way to Montgomery Drive (2.3 miles).

5. Turn Left onto Montgomery Drive. Take Montgomery Drive up the hill .3 miles. You will pass under the schuylkill expressway.

6. After you do, on your right will be a parking lot. (SEE attached map.) Turn right into said parking lot and park to your left.

7. Our Field will be directly in front of you.

8. Koozie-time.

Declaring a winner

I hereby declare Ashlie as our first game ball winner. This is a title only since we will not be handing out our precious balls. (Pause for laughter.) Congratulations, Ash!

Our other poll is a much closer race. Unless more people vote or others change their choice, it looks like we will be heading to Ten Stone for our post-game activities this week. If you want to see the Beverage Director reduced to tears, nominate and vote for Mad River.

Quote of the day

Never bet on [soft]ball.
- Pete Rose

GameDay AccuWeather Forecast: “Beautiful With Plenty Of Sunshine - 69º”

Their Words. Not mine.

Bring your koozies…

Mr. T Opines On LevLane’s Chances This Wednesday

It’s true.

Recap: GPTMC vs. Tierney - 4.8.08

Quote of the day

Pitchers, like poets, are born not made.
- Cy Young

Quote of the day

The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don't play together, the club won't be worth a dime.
- Babe Ruth

Tips for Greatness

tip 1: getting a good night's sleep before and after the game is important. the former seems obvs, but, the latter is a little known fact. one must be well-rested the day after in order to truly bask in the glow of their win.

tip 2: eat a pepperoni mama celeste pizza for lunch on gamedays. and make sure that you eat it at 12 noon sharp. anything after 12:30 pm is a death wish.

tip 3: right before a game it's good practice to check out the field for certain things like ditches, dog poop, etc. but it's also important to know where your port-a-potties are. drinking beer inevitably leads to number one.

tip 4: there is no "I" in team...or "Z", so keep criticism positive, Zale :)

tip 5: it's tried and true and prob goes without saying, but I'll say it anyways...just have fun.

Quote of the day

The will to win is important, but the will to prepare is vital.
- Joe Paterno

Initial Post-Victory Bar Tour A Great Success, Next Week's Already Rumored To Be Even Hotter

Yos.

So we ended up at Bonner’s Irish Pub, a classic Philly dive'ish bar at 23rd and Sansom, after the game last night and… honestly, it was pretty terrific. Got a great turnout of about 15. (Although, we probably could have used a few more hipsters.)

The featured beverage of the evening was one of the Philadelphia Brewing Company’s new brews, draft pitchers of Walt Wit, right. (After all, gptmc has to support our local companies whenever possible, right?)

Good jukebox’ing by Rawle, Ashlie et al. Even decent pub grub like mozz sticks, chicken fingers, wings and delicious cheez whiz (which came with a side of fries).

Overall, a great prelude to the season to come.

So about next week… the early forecast is: 60 degrees and sexy.

Not gonna break out the BBQ just yet — but have no fear — in-game food and beverage service will continue to improve with age.

And a Wednesday game means an even more festive post-game dilly.

So start getting mentally psyched: one week from today is GPTMC Hammer-Time Part Deux.

And having a great time is just as important as winning. I’m here to facilitate the former.

In consideration for next week post-victory rendezvous spot: Bonner’s (again), Bishop’s Collar, Chaucer’s, Locust Bar, Westy’s, Ten Stone and your suggestions… just toss them in the comment section, yo.

Ok, so I guess that covers it.

Stay tuned for more updates to come from your humble Team Beverage (and Catering) Director.

See you out there.

Win #1 of 13

On a cool spring evening on April 8, 2008, the GPTMC softball team won its first game against Tierney Communications, with a score of 11 to 6. Spirits were high. Alcohol tolerances were low. I want to give a shout out to a few of the peeps who contributed to the success:

Coach Rawle led our team to victory.

Ash came up with a winning pitching strategy. TC never saw it coming.

President Zale showed everyone that hipster fashion has a place on and off the field.

Malerba caught some flies and did some unnecessary diving/falling to his knees.

Aaron showed off his batting skills to his personal cheering section, his girlfriend.

Morgan introduced the strikeout dance.

Jonas flirted with the ump.

And everyone else on the team gave it their all and made our first victory especially sweet.

A special thanks to Jim for coming out to support the team. We won't blame you for the other team scoring those runs as soon as you showed. I'm sure you're not bad luck.

Congratulations to the undefeated GPTMC softball team!

Check back for updates and game scores throughout the season.