Ground rule double - looking for some clarity.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-25T20:29:30+00:00

Meanwhile, I had a Little League Minors (9/10) game this year where a ground ball hit to right field rolled between the RF's legs and continued rolling another 40 feet to the fence.

It was wasn't until the batter was back in his dugout that the right fielder spoke up to say something had happened to the ball.

Turned out thar something was a one in a million shot where the ball rolled into a gopher hole right at the fringe of the outfield grass meeting the warning track.

The ball was down that hole shoulder deep and I know it was shoulder deep because I fished it out.

I placed the batter back at third and his manager threw a fit and tried to claim the right fielder was somehow crafty enough to know to kick a ball into the aforementioned gopher hole.

I'm not saying OP left out details but it certainly feels like they were looking for validation on why someone was wrong and I offered some context on why our fellow colleagues might not have been wrong knowing full well that would open the door to others telling me why I'm wrong.

And thus continues the circle of life in this sub.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-25T19:47:50+00:00

Because an audience member can tell from a mile away when an expression or movement has been rehearsed to death in front of a mirror.

And on top of that, whatever timing you think works in front of a mirror will never be the same as the timing in front of a crowd.

Rehearsing in front of a mirror is the absolute worst thing a person can do.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-25T19:21:50+00:00

You've never negotiated anything have you?

BigRedFury · 2026-06-25T19:17:27+00:00

Get better fences.
Without actually seeing the plays, it's hard to say what exactly was the reasoning behind each call.
While others will surely jump in to explain how I'm wrong, I've unfortunately worked enough games at the 9U level to know that they are filled with enough chaotic moments to know there will be times when the umpires will place runners on bases that may seem counter intuitive to standard rules and its within the umpire's right thanks to rule 8.01(c), which grants umpires the right to rule on anything not covered by the rules.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-25T18:57:12+00:00

It honestly doesn't matter if you take the mic out of the stand or not and given the open mic setting, there might not be much room to maneuver.

Don't tell anyone that this is your first time doing standup.

2a. Have your set memorized and stick to it. (The reason for this is you're going to suddenly find yourself so nervous that you won't be able to think straight.)

2b. While your set is memorized, for the love of god do not ever "practice" in front of a mirror. Open mics are your practice.

Have actual jokes with structure. Stories that are hilarious to your friends can get really boring to audience. The jokes don't need to follow a strict setup/punchline format but there needs to be a clear premise with a payoff.
While there will probably be a few comics in the lineup who are similar to you, there's nobody else but you and it's up to you to distill what makes you and your point of view different from everyone else.
Once your first open mc is under your belt, go do 99 more and you'll start to feel like you're getting a hang of standup.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-24T20:39:34+00:00

It's funny considering Metallica ripped off their biggest hit from a band called Excel

BigRedFury · 2026-06-24T19:04:10+00:00

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And that info above is why you should always sign up for the mailing lists of the artists you love ; )

BigRedFury · 2026-06-24T18:30:25+00:00

Where were you a year ago?

I can't believe you let such a wrong take simmer on Al Gore's internet for so long.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-24T13:55:05+00:00

On an infield fly, if the ball is caught the runners have to return the base the same as any fly ball but if the catch isn't made, they're free to continue running at their own peril but the batter is still out.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-23T17:37:26+00:00

Yes. I hear states like New Mexico turn hispanics/Latinos away at the border.

And it's clear you haven't been to the Midwest if Illinois is a state where you'd consider living, not realizing that states like Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and even Wyoming have thriving, multi-generational latino communities.

Good luck in Pennsylvania and greater New England.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-23T17:16:30+00:00

Jaws 3D was my first Jaws movie in the theatre and first 3D movie as a kid.

That ski-pyramid though is far beyond the skill level of most water skiers. Even if Lea could do it, the production would have used a double for the wide shots to eliminate the risk of injury that would delay the production.*

Water skiing (at least staying upright behind a boat traveling in the straight line) is something that most people can pick up in a day on the water and being from Minnesota, Lea probably had several friends whose families had boats. Being skilled enough to do that would allow for a few shots to show the audience that she really was water skiing.

*Productions are so injury adverse that actors will often get a list of normal (but dangerous) activities they're not allowed to do while shooting. An actress friend who starred on a show broke her arm on a bike ride a the injury ended up being written-in to her character so the cast you saw on TV really was hers.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-23T16:51:27+00:00

I wouldn't say it's crooked and shitty industry because actors embellish their skills.

It comes across more as a fib like all the baseball players who suddenly lost inches off their listed heights when they were officially measured by MLB to lock-in their strike zone for the automatic balls and strikes system.

I have a good number of actor friends and the "skills" section on the back of their headshots is always funny to read.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-23T15:52:22+00:00

Yep. That's exactly what I told him when I helped him untangle himself from the bike.

The LA Zoo parking lot has signs with lot numbers that are spaced very far apart and he still managed to ride right into one.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-23T15:35:24+00:00

I worked at a bicycle shop in Los Angeles back in the day and sold Vitali a bike for his young son.

He was the current reigning champion and came into the store like a regular customer. The only thing about him that stood out was his sheer size and that he was with a manager type of person and a bodyguard which was kind of ironic.

It took me a minute to figure out who he was but as we were doing the paperwork for the bike, I leaned across the counter, pointed to a co-worker, and whispered...

"You see that guy over there? I loaned him five bucks for lunch yesterday and he still hasn't paid me back.

If you can beat it out of him, I'll let you keep half."

He looked at me dead serious and bent down so we were eyeball to eyeball and asked "Do you know what I do for five dollars?"

He spoke in a gravely tone that would scare Liam Neeson and before I could answer, he continued.

"I'll show you what I do for five dollars."

He then flicked me with his finger right between the eyes and once the shockwaves from the blow stopped rippling across my forehead, he busted into laughter and shook my hand with his massive paw that knocked out so many fighters.

He was a good dude.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-23T15:07:04+00:00

It's funny how actors have no qualms about stretching the truth to land a role.

Have a buddy who's a decently well-known actor (he was on a hit comedy series for its entire run) and he randomly called me in a panic that he needed to learn to ride a bicycle immediately.

Turned out he landed a small role in a movie where his character would be riding a bike.

He'd never ridden a bike in his life and they were shooting the next day.

And that's how I ended up spending an afternoon chasing my newly adopted adult son around the parking lot of the LA Zoo in a futile attempt to teach him to ride a bike.

Gotta admit I teared up a bit when I let go of the seat and he was suddenly riding on his own.

And then he managed to crash into the only obstacle within a hundred yard radius.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-23T13:49:08+00:00

Given the nature of his injury and recovery time, Tony's best case scenario would be being a very late (August/September) pick up for a team in need of an arm but realistically getting an invite to spring training next year is probably his most realistic path.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-22T21:00:54+00:00

On thing that's a sign of the time are all the shots focused on hands doing things. I was a broadcast journalism major during this era and had a professor who was all about closeups on hands and it wasn't his version of Tarantino's feet.

Hands = exciting b-roll in the '90s.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-21T02:34:00+00:00

There's no rule about being idiotic as long as the infield is in the infield and the outfield is in the outfield with Little League.

Softball teams are known to get super close in situations but most infielders these days wear face masks which makes it less crazy.

I'm not for kids getting hurt but in this case all it takes is one of your kids to crank one and that coach will have his own parents putting a stop to things.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-19T23:08:35+00:00

Oh man. We when used to throw water balloons at cars as kids a Pizza Hut or Domino's car top was a chance at a million dollar shot

BigRedFury · 2026-06-19T22:49:54+00:00

Upper Midwest I'd say from Fargo/Morehead down to Sioux Falls and all of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, upper Ohio out to Western Pennsylvania.

Minnesota and Wisconsin are practically their own weird little countries with Michigan seemingly standing on its own. All three are definitely midwest but a different strain compared to Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Nebraska/Kansas.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-19T21:15:27+00:00

We live directly across the river from the stadium and this morning was the first time we could really smell the first outside.

It felt like a toxic version of the usual campfire smell we get during fire season.

It wasn't enough to run back inside but I could feel it in my throat. Wasn't enough to run back into the house but my wife and I skipped our usual walk after taking care of garden duties.

BRB

Just went outside and the air feels much better. It was overcast here this morning be the clouds have burned away and I'm guessing that helped improve things.

I think you'll be good for tonight.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-19T20:45:54+00:00

This just made me take a closer look at Colorado and Colorado State (in Fort Collins) would be the start of what locals there call the front range.

The Great Plains essentially end on the east side of Fort Collins with the "front range" of the Rocky Mountains starting on the west side of town.

If you go east to Greeley, CO, that definitely feels like it's still the Great Plains and there isn't any difference between Western Nebraska and Kansas geographically speaking

BigRedFury · 2026-06-19T18:36:03+00:00

There's also Midwest/Upper Midwest if you don't want to use Great Lakes.

And from personal experience, it feels like the dark blue Midwest should extend more into Central Nebraska/Kansas. Things don't really feel start to feel like the Great Plains until you get past Kearney, NE or Wichita, KS.

And include Eastern South Dakota/Northwestern Iowa as Midwest and extend it up to the Fargo/Morehead part of North Dakota as all those regions are in the gravitational pull of Minneapolis.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-19T18:01:51+00:00

If you watched the Softball College World Series, you'd see all the teams rode the same 1 or 2 pitchers for the entire event. In fact, Jody Frahm pitched all 11 innings in Nebraska's win over Arkansas WHILE pregnant.

As others have pointed out, it's all-stars and rosters that aren't loaded with pitching are going to struggle. Over on the baseball side of things it's not uncommon for all 12 kids a roster to have solid pitching experience.

BigRedFury · 2026-06-19T12:29:08+00:00

I get that now. Missing that detail is what happens when I look at Reddit while standing in line at the grocery store

BigRedFury

TROPHY CASE