Catching Up on Happy Things

Today I take the opportunity to continue a few things that I’ve let slide a bit. First, I take a look at a book I’ve been meaning to get back to, and then I move forward with my Second Chance League in Out of the Park Baseball. Both topics are ones I enjoy and am happy to comment on, and I’m gonna work to focus on some of the more happy topics in this time of craziness.

Diving Back Into a Good Book

I keep progressing in a very slow manner, but I’m hoping that’s gonna change. What am I saying…I’m gonna make that change so that I can start attaining the goals I’ve set out for myself.

What am I talking about? I’m talking about jumping back into reading The Rook by Daniel O’Malley.

In my recent foray into the story, I left off at chapter 2, and while I’m not gonna jump right into my deep dive, I’m gonna keep pushing forward with chapter 3.

Chapter 3 is where the new Myfanwy heads into the office for the first time and where we start to meet some of the strange people the lead character interacts with on a regular basis.

This Checquy group, in which Myfanwy is apparently a high-level manager, seems pretty much in control of all the supernatural happenings in the United Kingdom. Fox and Scully would have a field day with these guys, but we’re only starting to understand what the group does and the nature of their abilities.

First Loss of the Season

Game 6 of the Angels’ season in my Second Chance League turned out to be really good. There were home runs, a ninth-inning comeback, and a walk-off hit that tipped the game to the Texas Rangers. In all, it was a lot of fun.

Things started out well for the Angels as they were on the board first in the 2nd inning. Brian Goodwin smacked a double followed by a Justin Upton walk. After Jason Castro struck out looking, the runners performed a great double steal to move them over to 2nd and third. This was a great call since the next pitch was a passed ball. Goodwin scored, but Upton was stranded out third as Andrelton Simmons struck out to end the inning.

I forgot to mention earlier that this was a battle of staff aces as the Angels had Shohei Ohtani on the mound against Corey Kluber. And, as expected with aces on the mound, things settled down after that initial run…until Shin-Soo Choco smacked a solo home run over the left-field wall in the 4th to tie up the game.

Texas also picked up another run in the 5th on a leadoff double by Rougned Odor, followed by a single to Todd Frazier and a fielders choice.

The Angels were able to re-tie the game in the 9th with Justin Upton’s first home run of the year, but it would not be enough. After Ohtani went out for the 9th and gave up a first-pitch single to Danny Santana, the team brought in Noe Ramirez to pitch. He was rusty to start off and walked Odor but then struck out Todd Frazier, and things were looking good for extra innings. The Angels had some strong hitters looking to head to the plate in the 10th, but Texas first baseman, Ronald Guzman, was not gonna have any of that. He tapped a soft line drive to right field that allowed Santana to score from 2nd base.

Texas won 3 to 2 to end the Angels’ 5 game win streak.

It’s a Wrap

It’s always good to catch up on things that make me happy. While the real MLB season may be getting closer, I’m still enjoying my Second Chance League even though I picked up my first loss of the season. You can’t win them all after all.

Regardless of the loss, the game was close, and I got the feel of real baseball…even with the walk-off win for Texas.

In my reading, I’m glad to be moving forward in The Rook, and I think I’m gonna work on gaining momentum and try to push through to the end. Sure, there are plenty of chapters ahead of me, but the book is so good.

Ramble 2020.02.52 | Catching Up on Happy Things